Peng Ming’s Health Deteriorating After More Than Four Years in Prison
ICC Note:
China Aid received a letter of appreciation from the family of Peng Ming who has been imprisoned in China for more than four years. The letter revealed that Ming is suffering from severe medical conditions for which he is receiving no treatment.
__________________________
1/13/09 China (ChinaAid) ChinaAid received a letter from the family of Peng Ming, on January 6, 2008 expressing their sincere appreciation for the international support regarding Peng Ming’s case and an update on his condition. Peng Ming was kidnapped at gunpoint by eight Chinese special agents in May 2004, then taken to China where he was sentenced to life in prison in October 2005, charged with engaging in terrorism activities. He is in a heavily guarded prison cell in Han Yang where he suffers from serious medical conditions that have been ignored by prison officials.
The letter from Peng Ming’s family to ChinaAid read in part:
“On behalf of the entire family of Peng Ming, we would like to express our sincere appreciation of yours and your organization’s work on, and support of Peng Ming’s case. We appreciate your every effort on this matter.
At the same time, we would like to give you an update on Peng Ming’s current health condition in the PRC prison. Peng Ming has multiple illnesses, of which the following three illnesses are what we are most concerned about:
1. Life-threatening, late-stage kidney stones problem, resulting in blood in urine and ultimately poisonous to his body
2. Long-term heart condition worsened by the bad environment in prison (no heat in winter)
3. Severely painful arthritis condition in his ankles, causing him great difficulty in walking- lately he is just able to limp
…
Since his imprisonment, Peng Ming has developed a severe case of kidney stones and has suffered a massive heart attack. He received no medical treatment from prison staff. These and other health issues are compounded by prison officials who continue to afflict Mr. Peng with sleep deprivation and malnourishment. To date, Peng Ming has been without proper medical attention for more than 4 years.
