(Minghui.org) Mr. Zhang Jing was sentenced to five and a half years in prison in December 2018 for distributing materials about Falun Gong.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Mr. Zhang of Fuzhou City, Fujian Province, started a hunger strike in June 2019 to protest the abuse he suffered in Fuqing Prison in Fujian Province. He lost more than 40% of his weight in a few months and he is now on the verge of death.
Many Falun Gong practitioners have been imprisoned in Fuqing Prison during the past 20 years. The prison officials established a special ward to hold brainwashing sessions to target the practitioners steadfast in their faith and torture them mentally and physically.
Sentenced to 5.5 Years
Mr. Zhang Jing, 45, was arrested on April 30, 2018, while handing out materials with information about Falun Gong.
The police ransacked his home and took him to a detention center. He held a hunger strike and was released two weeks later.
Mr. Zhang later demanded the return of items confiscated from his home, only to be arrested again.
He was sentenced to five years and six months on December 13, 2018, and ordered to serve time at Fuqing Prison.
Abused and Denied Meeting with Lawyer
Mr. Zhang was transferred to the special ward holding brainwashing sessions in June 2019. He was forced to squat all day and his legs became swollen. To protest the mistreatment, he held a hunger strike.
When Mr. Zhang's parents visited him on September 25, 2019, they learned that his weight had dropped from 155 pounds to about 90 pounds. They wrote to the prison officials requesting that Mr. Zhang be moved out of the special ward, but to no avail.
The prison officials notified his parents of his hospitalization on November 7, 2019. They also said Mr. Zhang asked to see his lawyer. When his parents saw him later that day, he was only skin and bones and spoke in a low and weak voice. They couldn't stop crying at the sight of their son's suffering.
His lawyer traveled from another city to visit him the next day. However, the prison reversed their decision and refused to grant a meeting as promised. The lawyer waited for nearly two hours but was still unable to meet with Mr. Zhang.
Crimes Committed in Special Ward
The special ward with brainwashing classes at Fuqing Prison was established in 2009. Falun Gong practitioners were forced to attend the brainwashing sessions and write statements to renounce Falun Gong. Those who refused to comply were forced to stand facing the wall, squat or sit for long periods of time. They were also beaten and deprived of sleep.
Mr. Lin Wenwei from Xiamen City was tortured to the verge of death with his whole body covered in bruises in November 2010. He passed away shortly after his family brought him home.
Mr. You Changliang from Ningde City became paralyzed because of the persecution in 2012. He was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment.
Mr. Zuo Fusheng was subjected to brainwashing for two years between 2012 and 2014. Since he still refused to give up his faith, the prison guards instigated the inmates to beat him up until his left eye became blind. Despite his severe internal injuries, the guards hung him up for another six hours after the beating.
