Three Falun Gong practitioners, pictured to the right, were imprisoned in 2000 and beaten to the point of paralysis, according to a recent report by Minhui.net. The photo was taken in the summer of 2000 at the risk of great danger to the photographer. All three women are teachers from Shouguang Experimental High School, in Shandong Province, in the north of China.
From the photo, one can see clearly that the teachers were seriously injured; their faces are swollen, distorted, and bruised. However, they look peaceful and dignified.
According to the report on Minghui.net on March 13, 2007, these three Falun Gong practitioners are Yang Yufeng, Yang Shihfang, and Sui Chingmei, respectively. They went to Beijing to appeal to end the persecution of Falun Gong in the summer of 2000, but were taken back to Shandong by school officials at midnight and immediately imprisoned, without due process, in the room shown in the photo.
The iron door and barred window in the room were installed to imprison the three captives. They lost their personal freedom and had to eat, drink, and urinate together in the small room.
Repeatedly Beaten Unconscious
The next day, the principal Zhang Chunhe, the driver Wu Ruixian, and the chief of the Political Safety Department, Zhang Peifeng, hired four thugs to torture the three teachers. These thugs were newly released from prisons and beat the teachers unconscious several times. The school confiscated the three teachers’ salaries to pay for the thugs.
The food and water that were sent for the teachers were all confiscated by the school.
During their imprisonment, the women were physically and mentally abused. However, the school refused to release them, using various excuses. Later the school agreed to release them, but the chief of the Education Bureau at that time, Zhang Wennan, insisted on holding them longer. The three teachers were only released after they were paralyzed from continuous torture. At the time of their release, they had been illegally held for nearly 50 days.
