Inside China Today

Inside China Today – Thursday 24th September

- Dissidents under surveillance during China’s National Day;
- Relatives of Falun Gong practitioners send open letter for help;
- Hackers attack Chinese rights website.

**************

Dissidents under surveillance during China’s National Day

In order to secure safety during the celebration of its 60th anniversary during China’s National Day, the Chinese Communist regime put many people under house arrest. Tiananmen mothers, and democratic activists who had participated in the 1989 June 4th democratic movement and other appellants are all under local authorities’ surveillance.

One of the Tiananmen mothers Zhan Xianling was under house arrest for three days during the Fourth Plenary Session of the Chinese Communist Party’s 16th National Congress. Even though she was sick and could not go out, the police still guarded the entrance of her living complex for the entire three days.

[Recording]: I have been under surveillance for several days. It began on September 15th. It’s September 18th today. It is for the Fourth Plenary Session of the 16th National Congress. Question: Did you say 24 hours? Yes. There was three people, and also a police car. It so happened that I was ill and could not go about. There was only one occasion that I went downstairs. They immediately followed me. They monitor whoever they feel afraid of. That is how scared they are towards these people. That means they feel guilty themselves. I am an old woman over 70 years old. In addition, I was sick. I was just released from hospital not long ago. I would feel tired if I talked too much. However, these people still put me under surveillance. I see that these people are weaker than me.”

Qi Zhiyong, who is still disabled from the June 4th massacre was forced to leave the hospital he was staying at on September 17th. Immediately after that, 10 police officers began monitoring his residence. On September the 25th, and the 26th, he will be forced to leave his residence in Beijing, and go to Shijiazhuang until October 1st, until the National Day celebrations are over.

[recording]: They will force him to go to Shijiazhuang, around the 25th or 26th. Firstly they forced him to leave the hospital. He was not allowed to stay in hospital, and was asked to go back home and to wait for further instruction from above. Now there is a police car at his front door, and a police car at his rear door. There are six policemen, and four security guards.”

Hu Jia’s wife Zeng Jinyan has been forced to leave Beijing as well. She was sent to her hometown Fu Jian and is being forced to stay there during October 1. Her husband Hu Jia is still imprisoned.

[recording]: Most likely Zeng Jinyan has left. We cannot reach Qi Zhiyong by phone either.”
Jia Jianying, wife of another detainee in He Dupu prison, has also been under surveillance since the morning of September 19th. It will be over on October 10th.

[recording]: We are under surveillance, from seven in the morning. It will continue this way until October 10. The surveillance of Zhang Jianguo and Gao Hongming began as early as September 15th. Gao Hongming and Yang Jing were not allowed to stay in Beijing and were sent to other places. Gao Hongming is the deputy chairman of the China Democracy Party, and so is Zhang Jianguo. Zhang Jianguo lives in Beijing. Even when he told the security guards he wanted to go watch a movie, they would not allow him to go. When he told them he would do grocery shopping, the guards said they would report to upper levels and ask for permission. It is different from before. This year’s surveillance is very strict.

Appellant Ye Guoqiang of Beijing has been under surveillance since September 17th.

[recording]: There are fewer guards this time, just one policeman and two security guards. They are hiding and suppressing all these problems. Once these problems errupt, who is to be held responsible? Who is doing the wrong deeds here?

Appellant Tang Shenggui was forced to leave Beijing. His elderly wife had cerebral thrombosis and difficulty walking. However, Tang had to take his wife to Shanghai and stay there with relatives and friends until after October 1.

[recording]: I am leaving tonight. The train leaves at 10:10 p.m. The police will not follow me to Shanghai. They will send me to the train station.

Appellant Wang Jianping was taken to the police station when she went to the city government on September 15th to appeal. Now she is being held at a hotel.

[recording]: I have been under house arrest since September 16th. There are three guards. I am being held at a hotel, near the police station. It is an order from the Police Department at the municipal level. A policewoman stays in the same hotel room with me. They take shifts to monitor me. A male policemen and a security guard live in the hotel room across the hallway. The security guard sits in front of the door every night. I heard it would end on October 10th.

During all festivals, holidays, sensitive days, and congress meetings, these people are under surveillance by the police. They think the government is fearful and weak.

By SOH reporter Tian Xi.

*****************

Relatives of FLG practitioners send open letter for help

Over the past few years, Beijing residents Jingping Niu and his wife Lianying Zhang have endured severe persecution by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) due to their practice of Falun Gong. In response to the couple’s sentencing to labour camp re-education, their family members have written an open letter to European Parliamentarians, hoping to catch the attention of international organisations such as the UNs. They hope the criminal activities against Falun Gong practitioners conducted in Chinese labour camps can be investigated. They also hope for such evil deeds to stop, and for justice to prevail.

On August 6th this year, the family members of Niu and Zhang, along with other Falun Gong practitioners, wrote a letter to European Parliamentarian Edward McMillan Scott. They hope he will continue to call on the world to stop the CCP’s persecution. They also want the whole world to understand the cruel acts committed against millions of Falun Gong practitioners in labour camps.

Niu is currently held at Beijing’s Tuanhe Labour Camp, while his wife is detained in Masanjia Labour Camp in Shenyan city. With the help of righteous individuals, their family members have come to understand full extent of the couple’s plight, which in turn has raised considerable concern for their safety.

Zhang’s brother had this to say:
(recording)
“I actually felt like dying inside when I heard about how she was treated. Before she went to the (labour camp), she had an operation. In Tongzhou at that time, she was nearly unconscious. In fact she has still not recovered. Her health has deteriorated, whether she will one day return to the life of a normal person is anybody’s guess!”

On May 21st, 2006, with no one else to turn to, Niu decided to seek the help of McMillan Scott, who was investigating in China at the time, in order to expose the brutality of the treatment that his wife had received. The couple have since then become targeted individuals of the CCP.
Under the CCP’s policy of “no meetings without transformation”, the rights and health of many Falun Gong practitioners in labour camps have been seriously impeded upon.

Zhang’s lawyer told SOH during interviews:
(recording)
“While I was representing her, my main job was to push for an administrative reconsideration. I was acting for the couple. However they refused to let them meet. We suggested the reconsideration be adjourned, and it was maintained. After she was transferred, they refused to let us meet with her, and that they will not allow any meeting to take place until she is considered transformed.”

Transformation refers to the CCP’s policy of getting Falun Gong practitioners to renounce their belief, and to write an oath that they would no longer practice.

Zhang has been reportedly close to death on numerous occasions after being tortured in labour camps. Although the family have asked lawyers to represent the couple, they have been severely hampered by legal restrictions and red tape in their crusade for justice.

This story was brought to you by SOH reporters Yifei Li, Jingxi Ling and Perry Luo for Inside China on SOH Radio Network

****************

Hackers attack Chinese rights website

A Chinese news website translated as “Rights Defend China Net” has been attacked by hackers. The attack began on September 19th.

Qiufeng, the website’s editor said, 【Recording】 “This attack is very, very serious. Since the site was established it has never been attacked like this. The website had been paralyzed since the 19th, and it is still paralyzed today. At one time, as soon as we launched the website the server could not stand, and then we were hastily forced to stop the site again.”

In the past this website has been shut down for 100 days by Communist authorities for publishing articles deemed “sensitive”.

Last year the website published an article titled, “The number of Olympic gold medal does not determine people’s happiness.” This led to the site being shut down for 40 days.

The site can only handle 150 cyber hits per second. From what the service provider told Qiufeng, it was being accessed 40,000 times per second.

The attack also affected another website sharing the same server provided by Beijing Interest Soil Media Culture Co. Ltd. Two days later when the site’s technical staff tried to relaunch the site they discovered the attack has not ceased.

Qiufeng had proposed to the site space service providers to request the Internet police monitoring department handle the case.

A technician from the service provider said that he is not clear how the Net monitoring department will manage the attack on the site.

The above news is brought to you by Guo Liang and Xi Wen, hosted Caden Pearson for Inside China Today on SOH Radio Network.

***************