27-year-old Man Jailed for His Faith, Beaten and Denied Family Visitation

(Minghui.org) A 27-year-old man in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province was ordered to serve 5.5 years for telling people how Falun Gong cured his depression. Mr. Song Yucen has been subjected to strict management and denied family visitation after he was taken to the Dalian City Prison on August 15, 2021.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

Mr. Song was arrested on March 29, 2019 for telling people the benefits he received from practicing Falun Gong. He was tried by the Heping District Court on June 16, 2020, and sentenced to 5.5 years on December 29, 2020.

Mr. Song was transferred from the Heping Detention Center to the New Admission Prison in Shenyang on July 9, 2021 and then to the Second Ward of Dalian City Prison on August 15. Because he refused to recite the prison rules, the guards beat him and caused his head to swell. His left ear also had a long cut. 

Mr. Song was later taken to the Fourth Ward. Because he refused to renounce Falun Gong, he was denied family visits and was only allowed to spent 100 yuan on daily necessities each month, which was barely enough to cover everything he needed. 

His mother frequented and often called the prison, demanding that she be allowed to visit him, but was rejected by the guards at the self-proclaimed “exemplary prison.”

Mr. Song’s mother visited the Liaoning Province Prison Administration Bureau several times, where an official told her, “The Dalian City Prison is the city-level prison and doesn’t fall under our jurisdiction. You should contact the Dalian City Prison Administration Bureau and Dalian Justice Department.” But when she contacted the Dalian City Justice Bureau, the officials there claimed that they were following orders from the Liaoning Province Prison Administration Bureau.

His mother also went to the Liaoning Province Justice Bureau, but was given the run-around again. Officials there said to her, “If the Provincial Prison Administration Bureau doesn’t take charge of your case, neither can we. You should talk to them.” 

Mr. Song’s mother returned to the prison on February 16, demanding to see her son. The guards kept her standing in the cold winter weather for a day and still refused her request to visit him. 

An officer from the prison’s visitation center said to her, “The Liaoning Province Prison Administration Bureau decided that Falun Gong [practitioners] would be denied any visits if they refused to give it [Falun Gong] up.” 

Another officer from the prison’s Affairs Division claimed that they denied her visitation request because Shenyang, where she came from, was a high risk COVID-19 region.

Perpetrators’ contact information:
Teng Changsheng (腾长生), president of Dalian City Prison: [phone]Chen Jie (陈杰), head of Dalian City Justice Bureau: [phone]Wang Peng (王鹏), political secretary, Liaoning Province Prison Administration Bureau: [phone]

(More perpetrators’ contact information is available in the original Chinese article.)

Related reports:

Young Man Imprisoned for Telling Others How Falun Gong Cured His Depression

25-Year-Old Sentenced to 5.5 Years for Telling Others How Falun Gong Cured His Depression