ICC NOTE: The Chinese delegation who attended the United Nations Committee Against Torture on November 18 provided many questionable statements regarding the accusations of the use of torture. The Communist Party of China has been notorious since their founding in the 1930’s for using various methods of torture to advance their ideological agenda. In today’s China, torture is used on various prisoners of conscience from political dissidents and Falun Gong to the Christian community which continues to grow. Based upon their statements during the meeting, it is prudent to believe the Chinese have a different interpretation of what torture is from the rest of the world. This does not mean they should be given a free pass as they are bound regardless of culture or language, to adhere to proper treatment of prisoners of conscience.
12/1/2015 China (Epoch Times) – On Nov. 18, the United Nations Committee Against Torture had a hearing on China that revealed more than the Chinese delegation may have intended about the regime’s attitude toward torture.
Wu Hailong, the head of Chinese delegation, had submitted a report. The committee’s experts responded with questions, and the Chinese delegation replied. Even though Wu’s report claimed that China had achieved important progress in promoting human rights, the experts on the panel were not convinced.
Some answers by the Chinese delegation made people wonder if it really understood the meaning of torture.
For example, the delegation claimed that solitary confinement was a management tool, not a punitive measure. It also claimed that the interrogation chair was used as a protective and security measure to prevent suspects from hurting themselves.
From the replies of the Chinese delegation, one can easily get the impression that in China torture is a common practice. It is so common that the officials didn’t realize that in their denials they actually admitted the practice of widespread torture.
Lawyers Tortured
The written responses in October specified that 10,000 judges and 24,039 procuratorial staff had received anti-torture training since 2012. This training has not prevented the use of torture, however.
Torture is applied by the police, the procuratorate, and even the court. The responses said the lawyers, who could only be the victims, not the perpetrators of torture, were the only ones who violated the laws.
A typical case occurred in Jiansanjiang in far northeastern Heilongjiang Province. The written responses stated that the lawyers were detained for “activities disturbing the social order.” The responses forgot, accidentally or intentionally, to mention that the “activities” were requesting the release of Falun Gong practitioners who were illegally detained in a brainwashing center. The brainwashing center is also known as a black jail—black jails happened to be another of committee’s concerns.
