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The second of two autopsies performed on the body of a Falun Gong practitioner
who was beaten to death in police custody revealed that several internal organs
had been removed, presumably shortly after her death.
On
April 23, 2003, 56-year-old Ms. Zhao Chunying was detained by Chinese police for
posting a story on the Internet about torture she had previously suffered in
police custody. Less than a month later, she was dead and photographs taken by
her family indicate her death was horrifyingly brutal.
The
Falun Dafa Information Center reported Zhao’ss death on October 2, 2003. (Full
story)
After
repeated demands from her family, the Jixi City Procuratorate conducted an
autopsy on Zhao’s remains. The autopsy revealed a large knife wound to the
head, four broken ribs and numerous black and purple bruises indicating a
violent beating. The autopsy also discovered considerable internal bleeding.
According
to reports from China, Zhao’s family has initiated legal action against the
police who allegedly killed her.
On
November 15, 2003, the Heilongjiang Judicature Appraisal Committee carried
out a second autopsy on Zhao’s remains. In addition to the findings of the
first autopsy, the second autopsy discovered a fractured skull.
The
second autopsy also revealed that the heart, spleen, pancreas and other internal
organs were missing.
It
is not known when the internal organs were removed or for what purpose, although
illegal human organ trafficking in China has been identified as a serious
concern by international human rights groups. In June 2001, Chinese Dr. Wang
Guoqi testified before the U.S. Congress about the nearly 100 operations he
reportedly performed on executed prisoners in China to extract their organs
for sale.
Posting date: 13/Dec/2003
Original article date: 12/Dec/2003
Category: News from China
