(Minghui.org) A 70-year-old woman in Beijing who was widowed in the persecution of Falun Gong has been detained since her latest arrest on January 27, 2025.
Ms. Su Xiurong and her husband, Mr. Liu Shengzhi, both took up Falun Gong in 1996. They became more considerate of others and strove to be good people. After the Chinese Communist Party ordered the persecution in 1999, the couple was repeatedly targeted.
Ms. Su was twice sentenced to a total of 8.5 years. She was tortured, force-fed, injected with toxic drugs, and subjected to brainwashing. Mr. Liu was also tortured while in custody. He was shocked with an electric baton on his private part and became incontinent. He struggled with systemic edema for years and passed away on July 17, 2024. He was 70.
While still mourning Mr. Liu’s passing, Ms. Su was arrested again on January 27, 2025 for raising awareness about the persecution. She has been held at a local detention center since.
The Couple’s Past Persecution
Early Arrests
Ms. Su went to the Tiananmen Square in late November 1999 to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong. As soon as she arrived, several officers swarmed her and questioned her whether she practiced Falun Gong. She said yes and was dragged into a police car. After several hours at the Tiananmen Police Station, she was transferred to the Fangshan District Detention Center, where she was held for 15 days.
The couple and 66 other practitioners in Beijing, from teenagers to those in their 70s, were arrested on December 6, 1999 and held at a psychiatric hospital for 48 days. They held a hunger strike and were released six days later.
The police arrested the couple again one month after their release and took them to the Huangshandian Drug Rehab Center for a brainwashing session. Another 70 practitioners were also detained there. To cover up the persecution, the authorities put up a sign that said “Afforestation Headquarter” outside the building. The practitioners started a hunger strike on March 4, 2000 and were released after each of them was forced to pay a 1,000-yuan fine. The couple’s daughter borrowed 2,000 yuan from a relative to pay their fine.
Wife Given One-Year Labor Camp Term
In the next few months, Ms. Su was arrested a few more times and each time detained for 2-4 weeks. She was once strip-searched and forced to share a small room with 30 other people.
In July 2000, Ms. Su was transferred to the Fangshan District Detention Center to the Daxing Dispatch Office to serve a one-year labor camp term.
Upon arrival, the guards shocked her with electric batons and forced her to take off all her clothes and squat in the corner with her hands on her head for several hours. All her belongings, including toilet paper, were subjected to strict search for Falun Gong related information. After a guard found a piece of paper written with Falun Gong lecture, they shocked her with electric batons again. She remained silent when being questioned where she got the paper.
The guards forced her and other practitioners to repeatedly squat and stand up hundreds of times under the scorching sun, while shouting “Yes, sir!” If the practitioners’ voice was low, the guards shocked them with electric batons or ordered the inmates to beat them. Due to the hot weather, many practitioners fainted. Some were unable to stand up after the electric shocks.
Once Ms. Su was beaten and taken to a dark room for doing Falun Gong exercises. Several guards shocked her with electric batons for a long time. She felt she was on the verge of physical and mental breakdown.
Husband and Daughter Beaten and Given Electric Shocks
To protest Ms. Su’s persecution, her husband and 17-year-old daughter appealed to the central government again. As soon as they returned home, they were summoned by village official Liu Shicheng.
Several officers beat and electrically shocked Ms. Su’s daughter, leaving her covered with bruises. She fainted three times and couldn’t walk. To cover up the torture, the officials held her in custody and left her lying on her stomach for over three weeks, releasing her only after she was better.
Mr. Liu was whipped and shocked with electric batons from head to toe, specifically on his private part, feet, and armpits. As a result, he was incontinent and struggled with long term edema.
Family of Three Arrested Together
The family of there were arrested again on February 11, 2002, the day before the Chinese New Year, while putting up couplets for decoration. They were held at a detention center for a month and then transferred to the Dashihe Brainwashing center.
Ms. Su started a hunger strike to protest the persecution. The guards began to force-feed her on the 8th day. They inserted a feeding tube through her nostril, even when her nose was bleeding. Once they inserted the tube into her trachea and she almost died. They cuffed her hands and feet and took her to the Fangshan County Hospital. The nurses tied her up in a spread eagle position, inserted a finger-thick tube into her nose and injected her with toxic drugs. She felt she was on the verge of death each time she was force-fed. Her vision also blurred due to the injection.
Wife Sentenced to 5.5 Years
Ms. Su was arrested one more time in February 2006 for hanging up a Falun Gong banner. She was handcuffed, restrained in a chair and interrogated overnight. When she refused to answer the police’s questions, they kicked her handcuffs, which cut into her wrists. Her hands became dark and the pain was excruciating. Her heart was pounding and she felt she was dying. One officer said to her, “We have an order from above. If we beat you to death, we just count it as suicide and no one would know what happened to you.”
Ms. Su was taken to a brainwashing center the next day and transferred between several detention centers for the next one and a half years. She was sentenced to five and a half years in July 2007 and taken to the Beijing Women’s Prison. She was forced to attend brainwashing session, deprived of sleep, beaten, shocked with electric batons and forced to do hard labor without pay.
While Ms. Su was serving time in prison, her husband was given an unknown labor camp term. He served time at the Tuanhe Forced Labor Camp.
Two More Arrests
The couple were arrested another time on November 17, 2016 and had their Falun Gong books and materials confiscated. Due to Mr. Liu’s extremely high blood pressure, he was released on the same day. Ms. Su was held at the Fangshan District Detention Center for a month. She was taken to a brainwashing center on December 16, 2016 and released three days later on December 19.
Five officers broke into the couple’s home around 8 p.m. on December 2, 2019 and confiscated their Falun Gong books and photo of Falun Gong’s founder. They then took Ms. Su to the police station and forcibly collected her fingerprints and foot printed. They also had her photos taken and forced her to sign her case document. She was taken to the hospital for a physical as well.
Couple Sentenced Together, Husband Later Deceased
The couple was reported for talking to people about Falun Gong on March 20, 2021 and arrested on April 26, 2021. The police confiscated a box of CDs and a few brochures with information about Falun Gong. The items were later used as prosecution evidence. The police kept harassing the couple after releasing them on bail.
The Fangshan District Court sentenced Mr. Liu to two years with a 2,000-yuan fine and Ms. Su to three and a half years with a 4,000-yuan fine in 2022. They appealed to the Superior Court in Beijing but lost the case. Due to their physical conditions, they weren’t taken into custody to serve time immediately after their convictions.
Ms. Su was harassed on September 22, 2023, after being reported by a young woman for talking to her about Falun Gong.
Several officers showed up at the couple’s home on November 24, 2023, and ordered them to have physical exams. The officers said the order came from the Fangshan District Court: If the two were found to be fit for imprisonment, they’d be taken into custody; otherwise the court would order them to serve time at home. It is unclear whether the couple had physical exams as ordered.
Due to the stress of being prosecuted, Mr. Liu’s health quickly declined. He was hospitalized four times between 2021 and 2023, before eventually passing away on July 17, 2024.
Related Reports:
Brother and Sister Die Four Years Apart in the Persecution of Falun Gong
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