(Minghui.org) Since he was 21, Mr. Tan Qiucheng has been subjected to ongoing persecution for his faith in Falun Gong. At 24, he was sentenced to 15 years. Now at 43, he was given another lengthy term of 7 years.
Mr. Tan took up Falun Gong, an ancient spiritual and meditation discipline, in October 1997 when he was 19. At that time, he was addicted to smoking, drinking and gambling. His parents constantly worried about his future. It took them by surprise how fast Mr. Tan quit the bad habits and changed into a more considerate person after learning Falun Gong.
Life was full of opportunities for him, until the Chinese Communist Party launched the persecution against Falun Gong in July 1999 and vowed to eradicate it in three months.
For going to Beijing in October 1999 to appeal for Falun Gong, Mr. Tan was arrested and taken back to his home in Yushu City, Jilin Province. After two months of detention, he was given one year at Yinmahe Forced Labor Camp. That year, he was 21.
On September 22, 2001, Mr. Tan was arrested again for making informational materials about Falun Gong. The police hit his testes with a glass beer bottle, forced him to sit on tiger bench, shocked him with electric batons on his underarms, or poured water on his body and then electrically shocked him. When he held a hunger strike to protest the persecution, he was force-fed.
After six months of detention, Mr. Tan was tried in March 2002 and sentenced to 15 years.
At the Jilin Province No. 2 Prison, he was forced to sit on a wood plank from 5:30 a.m. to 7: 20 p.m. every day and once tied up in a spread-eagle position in the bed for two months.
Torture reenactment: Tied up in a spread-eagle position
By the time he was released on November 23, 2014, two years ahead of time, he had lost much of his hair and both the upper and lower front teeth. The scars on his wrists are still visible today.
After living in Yushu for a while, Mr. Tan moved to the nearby Changchun City after finding a job there, only to be targeted in a group arrest on August 15, 2019. He and thirteen other practitioners were later indicted by the Lishu County Procuratorate, after the prosecutor returned their cases several times due to insufficient evidence.
During their hearing by the Lishu County Court on September 28, 2020, the authorities blocked their lawyers from representing them. When the lawyers tried to seek justice for their clients, judge Cui Ren said to them, “If you think I have violated the law, feel free to file a complaint against me anywhere you want.”
In March 2021, the judge sentenced the 14 practitioners, including 7 from an extended family, to 7-9 years.
Related reports:
Once Incarcerated 14 Years for His Faith, Jilin Man Faces Prison Time Again
Sixteen Jilin Residents Tried for Their Faith, Lawyers Barred From Representing Them in Court
Sixteen Falun Gong Practitioners Targeted in a Group Arrest Face Trial for Their Faith
Families Targeted in Mass Arrest in Jilin Province
Fifteen Jilin Residents Remain in Detention After Prosecutor Returns Their Cases
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