They were arrested for distributing Shen Yun (Divine) Performing Arts DVDs. The police had Ms. Qi Shuyan face bashed in, broke her rib, and deprived her of food and water for two days.
Ms. Qi Shuyan and Ms. Yan Xihua Sentenced to Three Years in Prison
Ms. Qi Shuyan and Ms. Yan Xihua, both from Shuangyashan City, Heilongjiang Province, were arrested and sentenced to three-year prison terms. They are now being held at the Harbin City Women's Prison. Below are some of the details surrounding their arrests and imprisonment.
At about 11:00 a.m. on April 25, 2009, Ms. Qi and Ms. Yan distributed Shen Yun Performing Arts DVDs near Chenglong Middle School. A short while later, two police officers arrested them, then detained them to Xiangyang Police Station. While in custody, the officers interrogated them in separate rooms.
When Ms. Yan didn't reply to an officer's demands for her name and address, he immediately punched her in her chest. A few days later, she experienced pain in her chest area and found breathing very painful.
On the afternoon of April 25, 2009, the deputy chief of the police station brutally punched Ms. Qi in the chest and face, causing her face to become severely bruised. She didn't realize how badly her face had been beaten until she was taken to Shuangshi Detention Center on April 27, 2009, where an inmate told her that her face was all black and blue.
Four days later, Ms. Qi was again brutally beaten, and she experienced unbearable pain in her chest area. When Ms. Qi was later X-rayed, it was discovered that she had suffered a fracture to her eighth rib, which was very painful to the touch. While Ms. Qi was detained for two days at Xiangyang Police Station, the officers deprived her of both food and water.
On the morning of April 26, 2009, Police Officer Lang interrogated Ms. Qi. When she did not respond to his questions, he took off his trouser belt and fiercely whipped her face five or six times. Then he said, "Don't blame me for doing this to you, this is my job."
Ms. Qi, 53, is a renowned medical doctor at the hospital affiliated to the Transport Division of the Mine Bureau. After the persecution of Falun Gong began in July 1999, she was arrested several times for her beliefs. Just after the 2002 Chinese New Year, she was sentenced to two years at Jiamusi City Forced Labor Camp, where she was brutally tortured.
Ms. Qi and Ms. Yan were arrested on April 25, 2009, and sentenced to three years in prison. On August 19, 2009, they were taken to the Harbin City Women's Prison.