Ms. Ding Zhenfang, in her 50’s, is a resident of Dalian City, Liaoning Province. Since the persecution of Falun Gong started in 1999, she was repeatedly detained in detention centers, jails and labor camps and was severely tortured in many ways.

1. Locked onto a iron ring on the ground at the Dalian Detention Center

In November 1999, Ms. Ding and her husband, who is also a Falun Gong practitioner, were arrested in the Ganjingzi District, Dalian City and later Ms. Ding was sent to the Dalian Detention Center. She was beaten and locked onto an iron ring on the ground for ten days. Another time, Ms. Ding was locked onto the iron ring for over 40 days. Such constraint prevented her from raising her head or from being able to sit up with her back straight. Her hands and feet were almost locked together. Chief Wang also ordered inmate Kou to beat her. Kou gagged Ms. Ding's mouth with dirty rags and slapped her face with a shoe.

In September 2001, Ms. Ding was sentenced to three years in prison and was transferred to the Dabei Women's Prison in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province. Her husband was sentenced to three years.

2. Tortured in the Dabei Women's Prison

In the Dabei Women's Prison, Ms. Ding protested the detention and was badly beaten. Two inmates were assigned to keep her under 24-hour surveillance. She and other Falun Gong practitioners were also forced to go to the prison factory to work from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Ms. Ding was released after three years of torture.

3. Tortured at the Dalian Detention Center

In July 2003, police arrested Ms. Ding at her home and then took her to the Dalian Detention Center again. When she arrived there she shouted out “Falun Dafa is Good” and was severely beaten afterwards. Later, Ms. Ding was handcuffed and shackled in the 3rd room of the 7th Prison Ward. Her hands and legs were spread apart and tied onto a “stretching” bed (see photo). To protest the torture, she started a hunger strike. After three days of her hunger strike, prison doctor Su Ying force-fed her.

"Stretching Bed" Torture Re-enactment

Since Ms. Ding refused to answer any questions during interrogation, several policemen started beating her afterwards. They pulled her hair and pushed her face against a wall. She had wounds all over her body.

Later Ms. Ding was transferred to the 8th Division where she was again tied to the stretching bed. To protest this torture she started another hunger strike. Prison doctor Su Ying and several inmates force-fed her by inserting the feeding tube into her nose. Su slapped her face with a shoe and stepped on her breast when Ms. Ding resisted. They force-fed her twice a day. Once during the force-feeding, chief Wang Ying lashed her with a belt several times and told inmates to pull her hair and hit her head against the hard ground. The inmates also pulled her ears with great force, poured cold water on her, and kicked and beat her many times.

The officials of the detention center instigated the inmates to torture Ms. Ding by reducing their sentence terms as incentives. An inmate named Sun Caiyun participated and tortured Ms. Ding for eight consecutive days. The torture methods included beating her, tying her to the bed.

After 59 days of detention, Ms. Ding was near death and released from the detention center. Her husband waited for her outside of the detention center, but she had been tortured so badly that he could not even recognize her.

4. Sentenced three years at the Dalian Forced Labor Camp

On August 19, 2004, police from Xigang Rixin Street Police Station of Dalian City arrested Ms. Ding when she was clarifying the truth about the persecution of Falun Gong on the bus. At the police station, she was locked onto a steel chair for a whole day. The next afternoon she was sent to the Dalian Detention Center. This was the third time she was detained there.

On the night of her arrival, several policemen brutally tortured her, including Wang Ying, Su Ying, Guo Weijia and Jia Ling. Ms. Ding started a hunger strike to protest the torture. Later they locked her in the basement, and tied her on the bed with her legs and arms stretched out. They also force-fed her. At the beginning of September 2004, Ms. Ding was sentenced to three years of forced labor without trial and sent to the Dalian Forced Labor Camp.

5. Torture at the Dalian Forced Labor Camp

When she arrived at the forced labor camp, Ms. Ding was beat and locked into a solitary confinement cell.

The inmates Zhang Xiujuan and Wang Chong forced her to stand in an iron cage for 5 days, and later locked her onto a stretching bed (See photo above). They put a thick heavy hat on her head and sealed her mouth and nose with tape with only two poked holes for her to breathe. They poured thick cereal, thick garlic water, and urine into her mouth. They even put a live spider into her mouth and some bugs in her clothes. They pushed pins into her feet and pushed steel tubes and chopsticks into her mouth. Inmates Lu Jing and Zhang Xiujuan pushed toothpicks and pins into her toe nails.

The camp guards and inmates also tortured Ms. Ding by wrapping her body and head with plastic wrap, which was air proof, with only two holes for her to breathe. Then they carried her into a metal cage. They inserted an inch thick wooden board between her feet and the metal frame of the cage, which made her feet swell very badly. They constantly beat and cursed her to force her to give up her belief in Falun Gong.

Torture: Wrapped in plastic

Torture: Wrapped in plastic

Wrapped by plastic and forced to stand up (from side)

Wrapped by plastic and forced tostand up (from front)

Torture: pins pierced her toes

Torture: pins pierced her toes

Later, the team head Zhang transferred inmate, Yu Yehong, into the solitary confinement cell. Zhang and the two inmates tortured Ms. Ding by locking her hands and Yu's hands together. When Yu was sleeping, Ms. Ding was forced to stand up with her body bent. They also tortured her by pulling and pinching her breasts, ribs and back. They even poked and pinched her genitals. They hung her up and beat her as well. She was tortured this way every day. Ms. Ding became very thin and weak, and she was not able to stand upright. Nevertheless they still put her into a cage. Yu, who is a heavy and strong woman, rode on Ms. Ding’s neck and pulled her hair, so she could barely breathe. They also inserted a dirty cloth and underwear into her mouth. On the evening of September 29, 2004, they took off all of Ms. Ding’s clothes, tore her underwear into pieces and stuffed them into her mouth.

When she was released from the solitary confinement cell, her body was deformed. She could not walk or carry anything by herself. Even so, they still forced her to do labor. If she could not finish her assignment, she was not allowed to sleep and was forced to stand up until 1:00 a.m.

Since they where not able to force Ms. Ding to renounce Falun Gong by torturing her, on the morning of October 28, 2004 the Dalian Labor Camp sent her and seven other Falun Gong practitioners to the Masanjia Forced Labor Camp.

6. Tortured to the brink of death at the Masanjia Forced Labor Camp

At the Masanjia Forced Labor Camp, since Ms. Ding refused to study the anti-Falun Gong materials and wear the prison uniform, the camp guards locked her in the bathroom from 4:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. for a half month.

Torture: being tied up to a chair

During her entire detention in the Masanjia Labor Camp, Ms. Ding was locked in a solitary confinement cell three times for a total of 35 days. The first time, her hands were tied to a bench for 16 days. The second time, she was locked in the cell for 10 days. The third time, she was locked in the cell for 9 days. On March 31, Ms. Ding and other Falun Gong practitioners were transferred to a cold and damp cell. She started a hunger strike to protest. On April 4, some guards force-fed her.

Torture: being tied up

Torture: Pressing, pulling and stretching

On April 6, Ms. Ding started to throw up blood, and became too weak to eat or drink. She was sent to the hospital. For 15 days, Ms. Ding was not able to talk. Her tongue was swollen and she threw up whatever she was fed. To avoid complications, on May 28, 2005, the hospital informed her family, and Ms. Ding was taken home on the morning of May 29, 2005.