Crimes of Wang Xiaohong, Minister of Public Security, in Persecuting Falun Gong

Title or Position

Wang Xiaohong, a member of the CCP, currently serves as secretary of the 20th CCP Central Committee Secretariat, state councilor, member of the CCP Leadership Group of the State Council, minister and secretary of Public Security Department, deputy secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, and chief police inspector.

February 1998 – May 2002: director of the Public Security Bureau and deputy secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Fuzhou City, Fujian Province; director of the Public Security Bureau and deputy secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee of Zhangzhou City, Fujian Province.

May 2002 – September 2011: deputy director and CCP committee member of the Fujian Provincial Public Security Department; first political commissar and first secretary of the CCP Committee of the Fujian Provincial Border Defense Corps.

September 2011 – August 2013: deputy mayor of Xiamen City, Fujian Province; director and CCP committee secretary of Xiamen Municipal Public Security Bureau; deputy secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Xiamen City, Fujian Province.

August 2013 – December 2014: assistant to the Governor of Henan Provincial Government, director and CCP committee secretary of the Henan Provincial Public Security Department.

December 2014 – March 2015: deputy governor of Henan Provincial Government, director of the Henan Provincial Public Security Department, and deputy secretary of the CCP Political and Legal Affairs Commission of Henan Province.

March 2015 – May 2016: deputy mayor and director of the Public Security Bureau of Beijing.

May 2016 – March 2018: deputy minister of Public Security, deputy mayor of Beijing (until January 2018), and director of the Beijing Public Security Bureau (until April 2020).

March 2018 – April 2020: deputy secretary of the CCP Committee of the Ministry of Public Security, deputy minister of Public Security in charge of day-to-day operations (minister level), secretary of the CCP Committee, and director of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau.

April 2020 – November 2021: deputy secretary of the CCP Committee of the Ministry of Public Security, deputy minister of Public Security in charge of day-to-day operations (minister level), inspector general.

November 2021 – June 2022: secretary of the CCP Committee of the Ministry of Public Security, deputy minister of Public Security in charge of day-to-day operations, inspector general, and member of the CCP Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

June 2022 – present: secretary of the CCP Committee of the Ministry of Public Security, minister of Public Security, inspector general, deputy secretary of the CCP Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

 

I. Major Crimes While Serving in the Central Government

On March 21, 2018, as part of the CCP’s institutional reforms, the Central 610 Office, an extra-legal agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, was shut down and its functions were transferred to the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, the Ministry of Public Security, as well as the corresponding public security departments at the provincial, city, and county levels. The Ministry of Public Security’s Bureau of Prevention and Handling of Cult Crimes (Anti-Cult Bureau) also exercises some of the functions of the Central 610 Office.

Since April 2020, Wang has served as deputy secretary of the CCP Committee of the Ministry of Public Security, deputy minister of Public Security in charge of day-to-day operations (minister level), and secretary of the Ministry of Public Security. In 2022, he served as minister of Public Security and deputy secretary of the CCP Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, becoming one of the highest leaders and commanders of the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong. He continued to implement the CCP’s extermination persecution policy of “ruining their reputations, destroying them physically, and bankrupting them financially” across the country.

In April 2021, the Ministry of Public Security and the Anti-Cult Bureau launched a large-scale “Anti-Cult Propaganda and Education on Campus” campaign in colleges and universities nationwide, with approval from the Department of Ideological and Political Work of the Ministry of Education. Deputy director Yang Xin and director Qu Hongbo of the Anti-Cult Bureau personally attended the kickoff ceremony.

On January 5, 2022, Wang published an article in People’s Daily, calling for a “severe crackdown on cults.”

On January 11, 2022, the Ministry of Public Security held a press conference to propose “preventing and cracking down on Falun Gong” and “carrying out in-depth education and transformation of cult members.”

In April 2023, the No. 4 Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security directed public security departments at all levels nationwide to hold a series of “Anti-Cult Education in Rural Areas” activities. By distributing defamatory propaganda materials and displaying boards and banners against Falun Gong, they force the general public to participate in the activities and incite public hatred against Falun Gong.

On June 25, 2023, Wang, as the secretary of the Secretariat of the CCP Central Committee and minister of Public Security, stressed at a national public security agency video conference that “we must strengthen the fight against cults.” Following his order, on July 24, 2023, a group arrest of Falun Gong practitioners took place in Zhucheng City, Shandong Province, by officers of the Zhucheng City Domestic Security Division, the Renmin Road Police Station, and Mizhou Road Police Station.

On January 14, 2024, Wang attended the National Public Security Bureau Directors’ Conference and delivered a speech. He called on the public security system at all levels to “maintain the powerful elimination campaign against cult organisations.”

During Wang’s tenure as deputy minister and minister of Public Security, at least 638 Falun Gong practitioners died in the persecution. As one of the highest people in the chain of command, Wang should be held accountable for the persecution of Falun Gong across the country during his tenure.

1. Crimes Committed During the Persecution in 2020

In 2020, COVID-19 broke out in Wuhan and spread worldwide. During the pandemic, the CCP continued to persecute Falun Gong, with persecution incidents taking place in 304 cities in 29 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities. In 2020, at least 84 practitioners passed away in the persecution, including 21 practitioners who died in custody.

In addition, 6,659 were arrested, 8,576 were harassed, 537 were detained in brainwashing facilities, and 3,588 had their homes ransacked. Among the targeted practitioners, 1,188 of them were over the age of 65, with 17 in their 90s and the oldest being 94. There were another 615 practitioners were sentenced to prison, with the total court fine being 2,565,000 yuan.

Mr. Yu Yongman, 65 and of Liaoyang City, Liaoning Province, was arrested on November 15, 2019, and detained in Liaoyang City Detention Centre. He died on February 23, 2020 of a “sudden illness.” His family suspected that he died of torture, as the forensic doctor found a fractured rib and a lung laceration.

Ms. Han Yuqin, 68, from Tangshan City, Hebei Province, was arrested on June 18, 2020, and her home raided by police from the Duanming Road Police Station. That evening, the family received a call from the police and learned that Ms. Han had died in the police station. They saw her body at the Fengrun District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine and noticed that her hair was disheveled and there was blood in her nose.

Ms. Li Ling from Penglai City, Shandong Province was arrested at home on June 28th, 2020. She was severely beaten and died on July 13. The Dazhangjia Village officials forced her family to cremate her body on the same day. According to her family, her face was deformed and her body was covered with bruises.

On July 10 and 11, 2020, the Dalian Public Security Bureau of Liaoning Province dispatched a large number of police forces to arrest local practitioners. At least 30 practitioners were seized and their homes ransacked, including a man in his 90s. More than 3 million yuan were confiscated from the practitioners. Seven practitioners were sentenced in December 2020: Mr. Du Yongfeng to nine years, Ms. Zhang Chunfeng to seven years, Ms. Fan Yongmei to four years, Ms. Zhang Liping to three years, Ms. He Yongqin to three years, and Mr. Chu Zhengjie and his wife Ms. Wei Duo each to one year.

2. Crimes Committed During the Persecution in 2021

In 2021, 131 practitioners died in the persecution, 1,184 were sentenced, 5,886 were arrested, 10,527 were harassed, and 142 had their pensions suspended.

On March 16, 2021, police officers Pu Dongjie and Sun Haitao broken into Mr. Yin Zhibo’s home in Yanji City, Jilin Province. They beat him and pushed him out of the window. He fell to his death. He was 44.

Ms. Mao Kun, 57, from Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, was arrested at her home together with five Falun Gong practitioners who were visiting on the afternoon of July 10th, 2019. The police beat her and broke her arm. She was sentenced to 11 years and six months in prison on December 28th, 2020. While she was still waiting for the result of her appeal, she was rushed to the hospital for resuscitation on April 9, 2021. She died in the hospital on the evening of April 11, 2021.

3. Crimes Committed During the Persecution in 2022

In 2022, the CCP launched the “Zero-out Campaign” ahead of the 20th National Congress, continuing the long-term harassment of Falun Gong practitioners.

According to information collected by Minghui.org, 172 practitioners died in the persecution, 633 were sentenced, 3,488 were arrested and 3,843 were harassed in 2022. Among them, 240 were taken to brainwashing centres, 2,193 had their homes ransacked, 78 were forced to live away from homes.

Ms. Ji Yunzhi, from Bairin Left Banner, Inner Mongolia, was arrested on February 1st, 2022 by Xu Jianfeng and others from the Domestic Security Division. She died in the Bairin Left Banner Hospital on March 21 at the age of 66. While in detention, she was brutally beaten by guards and inmates until she was on the verge of death. “If I die, it will be the result of torture,” Ms. Ji once said to her cellmates.

Ms. Cui Jinshi, 88 and of Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, was arrested at home by a group of plainclothes policemen on April 13, 2022. Two officers dragged her from her apartment on the second floor to the ground floor. They suddenly let her go and she fell to the ground. At 5:45 p.m., Ms. Cui’s son got a call from the police telling him his mother had been taken to the emergency room. He rushed to the hospital. Five minutes later, the doctor came out and pronounced Ms. Cui dead. The son walked into the operating room and saw her body. Her face was pale, her throat was cut open, and she was only wearing one shoe.

Ms. Zong Ming, of Wuhan City, Hubei Province, was arrested on April 18, 2022 during the “Zero-out” campaign, which targets all practitioners on the government’s blacklist in order to force them to renounce Falun Gong. She was emaciated and had difficulty talking when she was released on December 26, 2022 after eight months of brainwashing centre detention. She passed away six days later on January 1, 2023.

Ms. Jiang Yongqin, of Jilin City, Jilin Province, was arrested on June 12, 2022. On either July 7 or 8, 2022, the police covered her head with a black hood, plugged her ears, and took her out of the Jilin City Detention Centre to a secret facility. Four men, including a torture expert from the Jilin Province Public Security Bureau, his assistant Li, and two men, surnamed Tang and Lyu, of the Jilin City Police Department, interrogated her for nearly two hours. As she refused to answer their questions, they sexually assaulted her, force-fed wasabi oil through her nose, and placed lit cigarettes into her nostrils. The Changyi District Court tried her on June 14, 2023 without informing her family or allowing her lawyer to represent her in court. She was secretly sentenced to five years on January 24, 2024.

4. Crimes Committed During the Persecution in 2023

In 2023, 3,629 practitioners were detained and 2,885 harassed in all 31 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities. Among them, 107 were taken to brainwashing centres and 1,938 had their homes ransacked. A total of 167 practitioners reported having their biometrics collected, including blood samples, hair, urine, saliva, voice, fingerprints and footprints.

Shandong (1,061), Jilin (914) and Hebei (673) Provinces reported the most combined cases of arrests and harassment. Sichuan, Heilongjiang, Hubei and Liaoning Provinces reported combined cases between 450 and 576. Six other regions also registered triple-digit cases, followed by twelve regions with double-digit cases from 21 to 98. The remaining five regions had single-digit cases, between 4 and 8.

In addition, 209 death cases and 1,188 sentencing cases were reported in 2023. Among the 175 practitioners whose ages at the time of their passing were known, they were between 23 and 93, including 134 who were 60 or older. Eighteen practitioners died in custody, including two who lost their lives six days after they were arrested.

On March 3, 2023, the Rizhao City Police Department and the Domestic Security Division launched the “303 Special Project.” About 50 practitioners were arrested on May 12 and 13 as part of the operation. Most of them were later sentenced to prison. In particular, 21 practitioners including Ms. Hong Meishuang, Ms. Guo Xin, and Mr. Jiang Haibo were tried by the Wulian County Court on December 4 to 6. They were sentenced to one to five and a half years on December 25.

The Jilin City 610 Office and Jilin City Domestic Security Division conducted a group arrest of 25 practitioners on June 4, 2023. If the practitioners did not open the door, the police would break in by shattering glass or drilling the door locks.

Mr. Jiang Yong, a Changchun City, Jilin Province resident, was arrested on June 28, 2021, and sentenced to 8.5 years in Gongzhuling Prison on the trumped-up charge of “subverting state power.” Even though he was in critical condition from staging a prolonged hunger strike to protest the persecution, the authorities refused to release him on medical parole, citing his refusal to renounce his faith. He died on January 23, 2023, the second day of the Chinese New Year. He was 31 years old.

Ms. Xu Haihong, a Qingdao City, Shandong Province resident, was arrested on September 10, 2023 and detained at the Pudong Detention Centre. She was sentenced to 16 months in October 2023 and transferred to the Shandong Province Women’s Prison around December 6, 2023. She died three days later. She was 56.

Mr. Wang Liqun, of Qingyang City, Gansu Province, was sentenced to 12 years by the Zhenyuan County Court after a hearing in February 2023.

Ms. Ma Yun, of Jixi City, Heilongjiang Province, was sentenced to eight years with a 20,000-yuan fine by the Jidong County Court in November 2023.

Mr. Hou Lijun was arrested on April 25, 2023 and sentenced to ten years by the Wanbailin District Court on May 12, 2023.

5. Crimes Committed During the Persecution in 2024

In the first half of 2024, 69 death cases and 447 sentencing cases were reported. Another 1,470 practitioners were arrested and 1,244 harassed.

Ms. Li Fenglan, of Baiyin City, Gansu Province, was transferred to the Gansu Province Women’s Prison on February 17, 2023, to serve a 20-month term. She was already cancer-stricken when being admitted, yet the guards continued to torture her, including forcing her to stand for extended periods and depriving her of sleep. Her breast cancer soon metastasised. The prison didn’t release her until early January 2024. She died on the morning of January 10, 2024. She was 69.

Two group arrests were reported in Jilin Province, with at least 46 practitioners arrested in Changchun City between April and May 2024 and another 35 practitioners arrested in Shulan City on June 5. North to Jilin, 18 practitioners were arrested on May 9, 2024, in Ning’an City, Heilongjiang Province. All of the arrested practitioners had been monitored for some time before the police sweep.

 

II. Crimes During His Tenure in Beijing

Wang served as the director of the Beijing Public Security Bureau from March 2015 to April 2020, and as the deputy mayor of Beijing from March 2015 to January 2018.

During the five years that Wang served as director of the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau, at least 12 practitioners including Ms. Xu Xiuhong, Ms. Wen Mulan, Ms. Jia Yuping, Ms. Xu Junming, Mr. Li Chengshan, Ms. Liu Yanmei, Mr. Du Wenge, Ms. Li Xiuhong, Mr. Hou Junwen, Ms. Ao Ruiying, Mr. Li Gang, and Ms. Gao Yan died in the persecution. Many more were arrested, harassed or sentenced.

In 2015, 39 practitioners in Beijing were sentenced, 609 were arrested, and 127 were harassed.

In 2016, 245 practitioners in Beijing were arrested and detained, 53 were sentenced, and 58 who were harassed.

In 2017, at least 68 practitioners were sentenced or tried in court, 254 were arrested and 269 were harassed.

In 2018, 38 practitioners were sentenced, 131 were arrested, six were taken to brainwashing centers, 128 were harassed, and 36 were placed under surveillance at home.

The following are select death cases.

Case 1. Ms. Xu Xiuhong Died from Tortured and Toxic Drug Injection

Ms. Xu Xiuhong was arrested in the Tongzhou District of Beijing on January 21, 2016, and detained for three months. After she returned home, she exhibited symptoms of being poisoned and frequent panic attacks. Her health quickly deteriorated. She died on April 2, 2017. She was 40 years old.

Case 2. Ms. Wen Mulan Dies from Possible Drug Administration

Ms. Wen Mulan was arrested on October 14, 2017, while distributing table calendars with information about Falun Gong. She was taken to the Miyun District Detention Center, where she went on a hunger strike to protest the illegal detention. After about two months on her hunger strike, she was suffering from edema throughout her body and was in critical condition. When her husband refused to pick her up, the detention centre found a local Falun Gong practitioner to take her in. The practitioner noted that Ms. Wen exhibited symptoms of having been drugged. She passed away on February 27, 2018, less than two months after she was released on medical parole.

Case 3. Ms. Liu Yanmei Died While Serving a Four-Year Term

Ms. Liu Yanmei of the Shunyi District was arrested in November 2016 for inviting people to attend a Falun Gong practitioners’ hearing. She was handcuffed and shackled in the Tongzhou Detention Centre. The torture also left her bruised all over. They pulled out her hair, and her scalp became infected. She was sentenced to four years in prison in July 2017 by the Tongzhou District Court. She died from torture at the Beijing Women’s Prison on November 12, 2018. She was 52 years old.