(Minghui.org) A woman in Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, has been detained since her arrest in early July 2022 for her faith in Falun Gong. It’s recently confirmed by Minghui.org that Ms. Zuo Li is being held at the Hantan District Detention Center.
Ms. Zuo’s latest arrest came only four months following her earlier arrest on March 30, after she was recorded distributing Falun Gong materials by a surveillance camera. Her home was ransacked during the March arrest. Although she was released on bail on the same evening, the police targeted her again months later and are now attempting to pursue prosecution of her.
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.
Two Previous Prison Sentences
Ms. Zuo, 55, took up Falun Gong in 1996. Since the onset of the persecution, she has been sentenced twice, once to 5.5 years and another time to 5 years, and endured relentless torture while in custody.
5.5-year Sentence Following Arrest in 2004
Ms. Zuo was arrested in February 2004 with another practitioner, Ms. Li Lin, after being reported for distributing Falun Gong materials. At the Chenggu Detention Center, the police hung them up from the top window frame. They held hunger strikes to protest but were force-fed. The Chenggu County Court later sentenced Ms. Zuo to 5.5 years and Ms. Li to 6 years.
At Shaanxi Province Women’s Prison, the guards subjected the practitioners to non-stop physical abuse, including beatings, hanging up, exposure to the scorching sun, electric shocks, and force-feeding. The practitioners also suffered involuntary drug administration, brainwashing, and sleep deprivation. Both Ms. Zuo and Ms. Li were on the verge of death due to the torture.
Another Arrest and 5-year Sentence a Decade Later
Ms. Zuo was arrested again on June 7, 2014, for distributing Falun Gong materials with another practitioner Ms. Xiong Jiyu. The guards at the Hantai Detention Center searched Ms. Zuo and forced her to stand until dawn with her upper body naked.
Ms. Zuo was also deprived of sleep, denied restroom use (or forced to use the toilet in a standing position and not allowed to squat), and being forced to stand for long hours. Her legs and feet became extremely swollen from the standing torture. Her abdomen had fluid accumulation. Her eyes were also injured after being beaten by the guards. The inmates once dipped a towel into filthy water and then stuffed it into her mouth. They also kicked her in the abdomen, causing her sharp pain and fecal incontinence.
A guard slapped Ms. Zuo and another practitioner Ms. Tan Guangming in the face on September 17, 2014, before instigating the inmates to beat them for hours. The inmates stuffed Ms. Tan’s mouth with a filthy towel, tied her up with tape, and didn’t let her sleep.
Ms. Zuo suffered declined hearing, dizziness, and injuries to her knees after being slapped in the face many times and long term standing and kneeling.
Ms. Zuo and Ms. Xiong appeared in the Chenggu County Court on September 29, 2014. Ms. Zuo was sentenced to 5 years. Ms. Xiong was also sentenced, but her term wasn’t clear. Ms. Xiong died at the Shaanxi Province Women’s Prison in April 2016, less than two years after she was taken there.
Related report:4 Hanzhong Falun Gong Practitioners Sentenced in Secret
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