CHINA—On Dec. 20, U.S. Embassy First Secretary Mr. Bruce J. Levine and Second Secretary Mr. Stephen Goldrup met with Beijing rights advocates Ye Guoqiang and Zheng Mingfan at Ye’s home regarding their claims of abuse and torture by the Chinese regime.
The U.S officials expressed their sympathy towards Ye and Zheng’s plight and said that the U.S. government will continue to pay attention to them and their relatives. Ye Guoqiang’s brother, Ye Guozhu, is still in prison.
Ye Guoqiang told The Epoch Times that he and Zheng Mingfan met with the two U.S. officials for one hour respectively. They told of their suffering in communist prisons and how the regime has violated their human rights. Zheng Mingfan also showed the U.S. officials her bruises from the torture she went through in prison.
The authorities illegally demolished the Ye family’s house because of the Beijing’s 2008 Olympic project. After demolishing their house, the authorities refused to arrange another living place or financial compensation for them. The family’s personal belongings were also lost amidst the demolition.
On Oct. 1, 2003, in a desperation suicide attempt, Ye jumped into the Jinshui River near Tiananmen Square. Because of his suicide attempt, he was sentenced to two years in prison with the charge of disturbing social order.
Ye told The Epoch Times that after he was rescued from the river, the police arrested him and said, “No one would even care if you drown in the Hucheng River [in a rural area], but you will be sentenced for jumping into the Jin Shui River.”
