(Minghui.org) Mr. Tong Mingyu, 37, a Falun Gong practitioner from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, was sentenced to a three-and-a-half-year prison term in February 2018. He was taken to Tailai Prison in Heilongjiang Province in April and transferred to Fengtun Prison in Qiqihar City in August.
Tailai Prison called Mr. Tong's parents in late May 2018 and asked them to say goodbye to their son because he could no longer drink water. Mr. Tong’s parents visited him on May 30 and saw that he was very weak. He tottered into the room with the help of others. There was also injection tape on his hand.
The prison asked his parents to convince him to give up his belief in Falun Gong and threatened that they would not see their son agein if he continued to refuse to give up the practice.
Mr. Tong’s parents visited him a second time on June 6, 2018. This time, they noticed that he could barely talk. His throat was severely damaged due to forced-feedings, so his parents requested that he be released on bail for medical treatment. The director of the No. 10 Ward said that since Mr. Tong refused to give up his belief in Falun Gong, they would only release him if he died.
Mr. Tong's parents received a phone call from the Third Affiliated Hospital of Qiqihar Medical College on August 23, 2018. They were asked to bring nutrition supplements like milk powder and protein powder for Mr. Tong. His parents arrived at the hospital on August 27, 2018 to visit their son, as promised.
Mr. Tong came into the visiting room with the help of two people. He was suffering from serious anemia and was very weak. His face and hands were very pale, and there was a tube inserted into his nose again for forced-feeding.
Their meeting ended after only a few minutes. His parents requested that the prison release him for medical treatment, but were refused. The prison said he did not qualify for medical release, because he had been on a hunger strike since being arrested.
His parents visited him again on September 17, 2018. His health situation had not improved. His parents went to the prison to see him again on October 15, but were told that Mr. Tong was not allowed to meet with his family, because he still refused to give up his belief in Falun Gong.
Background
Mr. Tong Mingyu is from Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, and worked in Beijing. He was arrested by police from Changping District, Beijing on June 25, 2017. He started a hunger strike to protest the arrest and was soon sent to Beijing Police Hospital. On February 2, 2018, Mr. Tong was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in prison by Changping District Court and sent to Tailai Prison on April 25, 2018.
