Since July 20, 1999, the officials of Yuping Township, Pingjiang County, Hunan Province have severely persecuted local Falun Gong practitioners by means of extortion, abduction and torture. Officials have illegally detained practitioners at the township government office and tortured them, attempting to force them to denounce Falun Gong. They have also extorted money from practitioners’ families to pay for their release. Some practitioners have already been detained five or six times. Below are just two selected cases.

Wu Yinkui, male, in his 50's, resident of Yuping Township, Pingjiang County, Hunan Province. In December 1999, Mr. Wu was abducted and brought to the township government office because he is a Falun Gong practitioner. The officials and police beat him and hung him up on a bamboo pole for eight hours. By the time he was finally released, Mr. Wu was unconscious. In December 2000, Mr. Wu was abducted and forced to attend a brainwashing class held by the township government. Weng Fangping, a policeman, choked Mr. Wu until he lost consciousness and almost died. On January 3, 2001, about thirty policemen from the Yuping Township Police Station stormed into Mr. Wu's home and tried to force his family to pay a fine of 50,000 Yuan[1] to release him. When they realized that Mr. Wu's family did not have any money, they took 300 kg of rice, the family's sewing machine, and all their valuable belongings. Several days later, Dai Wenming, Li Qiugui, Weng Fangping, Chen Man and Director Li from the Yuping Township Police Station, leading a gang of more than sixty people, went to Mr. Wu’s home again. They tore down his house and hauled away all the building materials, such as doors, windows and lumber. On the morning of March 28, 2001, shortly after Mr. Wu had been released, he was again abducted and sentenced to forced labor at Xinkaipu Forced Labor Camp in Changsha City, Hunan Province. Mr. Wu was tortured at the labor camp to the extent that he almost lost his eyesight, both of his legs were deformed, and he became incontinent.

Hu Xuanju, male, 63 years old, resident of Yuping Township, Pingjiang County, Hunan Province. In December 1999, Mr. Hu was abducted and taken to the Yuping Township Police Station because he is a Falun Gong practitioner. The police stripped off his clothing, poured a barrel of cold water on his body, and forced him to stand outside in the cold winter air. Later, they tied his hands around a tree and brutally beat him until he lost consciousness. He temporarily lost his eyesight due to the beating. In January 2001, Mr. Hu went to Beijing to appeal against such brutal treatment. He was then arrested and detained for more than a month. During his detention, police extorted several thousand Yuan from his family and ransacked his home. By the time Mr. Hu was released, he had become deaf as a result the persecution. In October 2001, Mr. Hu was abducted again. They took him to the township government offices and tortured him until he was severely injured.