(Minghui.org) While interrogating three locals in Laishui County, Hebei Province, the police threatened to cut off their fingers if they refused to give fingerprints.
Ms. Zhang Shuping, in her 70s, Mr. Xia Hongmin, and Ms. Ji Xianglan were arrested after being reported for talking to people about Falun Gong at a farmers market on January 20, 2021.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a mind-body practice that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
After they were taken to the Laishui Town Police Station, the police forced each of the practitioners to sit on a metal chair. They then took their photos and forcibly collected their footprints and fingerprints. While holding their fingers to press the fingerprints, the police threatened to cut off their fingers if they didn’t cooperate.
Ms. Zhang said the police also forcibly opened her eyes when taking her photos, and she now has pain in her eyes and a headache. Her arms also feel numb and her fingers feel very painful due to the excessive force used by the police.
The police attempted to detain the practitioners. But due to the coronavirus outbreak in the region, they issued a 12-day administrative detention to each of the practitioners for disrupting social order and ordered them to serve time at home. The practitioners were taken back by their families at around 8:00 p.m.
A group of police officers and village officials went to Ms. Zhang’s home the next day and ordered her to sign a statement renouncing Falun Gong.
Ms. Zhang refused to comply. The police then asked her teenage granddaughter to find her parents to persuade Ms. Zhang. The girl also refused to cooperate. The police confiscated Ms. Zhang’s Falun Gong books and photos of Falun Gong’s founder, and then left.
The police also ransacked Mr. Xia and Ms. Ji’s homes that evening.
The local officials also impounded the three practitioners’ electric bicycles. When the practitioners went to their office and asked for the return of their bikes, the village officials threatened them, saying that they should go to the township government to make their case.
Prior to their latest persecution, Ms. Zhang and Mr. Xia had been arrested and detained several times for practicing Falun Gong. Mr. Xia also served a term at the Gaoyang Forced Labor Camp.
Related reports:
Mr. Xia Hongmin in Laishui County, Hebei Province Arrested Again
Persecution of Practitioner Mr. Xia Hongmin from Laishui County in Hebei Province
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