(Clearwisdom.net) Ms. Wei Mingzhen is a 53-year-old practitioner from the Nanpiao District in Huludao City, Liaoning Province. After being held in Xingcheng City Detention Center for over five months, she was sentenced to three years in prison on November 8, 2007.
On November 22, when her family went to visit Ms. Wei at the Liaoning Province Women's Prison, they noticed she was just skin and bones, and had to be supported by two inmates to walk out of her cell. There was also a blue and purple mark under her right eye.
Ms. Wei's son wrote a letter describing how his mother was being persecuted in prison and circulated the letter to the local people in their area. On the afternoon of November 30, he received a phone call from the prison, saying his mother's case had been investigated and the conclusion was that her injury was a result of a quarrel she had with other inmates. The prison authorities asked him to come to the prison the next day.
At 9:00 a.m. the next day, Ms. Wei's son arrived at the prison. In the visitation room, Prison Affairs Section Chief Zhang Xiaobing told him that his letter had been reviewed by prison authorities, who paid special attention to his mother's case. Zhang also repeatedly emphasized that the injury on Ms. Wei Mingzhen's leg was a result of an inmate kicking her during a squabble and that the bruise under her right eye occurred because she fell while hanging out her clothes. Zhang said that the inmate who kicked Ms. Wei had been removed from her cell and put under administrative suspension. According to Zhang, the other inmate beat Ms. Wei when Prison Director Ma was on a business trip and the acting director did not have much experience handling inmates. Zhang also said that their prison was a civilized prison and the guards there never beat the inmates.
During his meeting with the young man, Zhang Xiaobing stressed over and over again that Ms. Wei's injury was not severe and that they had had her examined. When Ms. Wei's son asked why others had to support her on November 22 when he visited her, Zhang explained that because Ms. Wei was so weak and slow and the visitation room was a bit far from her cell, they just wanted to help her in order to give her more time to see her son.
In the end, the prison authorities agreed to let Wei Mingzhen's son see her again that day. Zhang said, "If you don't believe what I said, listen to what your mother has to tell you." He swore that they did not tell his mother beforehand that she was going to see her son.
On that day, Wei Mingzhen's son, sister, and uncle were able to see her. Below is her own account of how she was treated.
"On November 8, the day I arrived at the prison, I was ordered to stay with two murderers, one sentenced to life and the other on death row. For two days, the two inmates did not allow me to sleep, nor did they let me use the restroom. They tried to force me to write statements giving up my belief in Falun Gong. They also hit my head until I fell to the ground. They grabbed my hair and hit my eyes, causing a big bruise and a bump under my eyes. They pushed my legs apart and kicked me between my legs. They hit my knees hard and beat my ribs. I don't even remember how many times they beat me. They threatened me not to tell anyone, as otherwise more beatings would follow.
"Because I had so many bruises and wounds all over my body, the prison applied so-called 'steam treatment' on me, intending to reduce the appearance of my bruises. Even now (December 1), my back still hurts when I walk. My knees are weak and sore. My voice is hoarse and I am even a bit confused. My vision is very blurry.
"Earlier on when I was detained at Xingcheng City Detention Center, policeman Cui Yue slapped my face about 15 or 16 times, causing bleeding in my eyes. Now that I am in the prison, they beat me again, adding more injury to my eyes. I still feel scared when I think about the two murderers who beat me."
Hearing what Ms. Wei Mingzhen had to say, Zhang Xiaobing and prison head Ma could not refute it. Yet they were furious that her family had learned the truth of her persecution.
Contact information:
Zhang Xiaobing: 86-24-892966896
Prison director Li Sen: 86-24-89296666 (Office)
related article: http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2007/12/1/91771.html
