Media Report Uncovers Use of Starvation in Petitioner Death Camp

Source: Time Weekly

A recent report by Time Weekly on the torture and death of a former army veteran documents the use of starvation in a county government detention camp

The death of a former army veteran in a petitioner detention camp by a Time Weekly report on July 14 revealed the use of starvation and torture in a detention camp located in Shanxi Province.
The petitioner named Xu Lingjun died on March 18, 2010, after being tortured and starved for nine months in a “legal training camp” for local petitioners run by the Chenggu County government in Shanxi Province.
According to the report, several other petitioners in the camp were also tortured and starved at the detention camp administered by the county government.
The training camp, set up in May 2008, is used as a detention center for petitioners in Chenggu County.
Xu was sent to the institution in June 2009, after he repeatedly sent petitions to the local and central government. Laid off from a factory in 1998, Xu claimed he did not receive benefits that he was guaranteed as a disabled army veteran.
An autopsy carried out by Hanzhong City’s Public Security Bureau found no trace of food residuals in Xu’s stomach apart from two coin-sized ice chips. His body was then sent for cremation by the local government.
After Xu’s death, ten petitioners in the institution suffering from similar conditions were sent to the hospital for medical care.
In China, petitioning is the primary channel for individuals to seek legal redress. In practice, it is often obstructed by local authorities.
To date, the training camp is still in operation, and no criminal investigation has been launched into the case despite the appeals from Xu’s family to the local procuratorate and court.