Woman who spent 7 years in Chinese prison describes torture, surveillance and loss of her husband

EXCLUSIVE: Wang Chunyan held a photograph toward the camera, her hands trembling somewhat arsenic she pointed to each of the 21 smiling faces: a hubby and wife, a assemblage lecturer, a young engineer, friends she met successful prison.

Some died successful detention, she said. Others aft years of abuse. Others disappeared into China’s immense information strategy and ne'er returned the same. "More than 25 of my friends person died successful this persecution. I lone person photos of 21 of them," Chunyan said, her dependable breaking.

For much than 2 decades, the 70-year-old Falun Gong practitioner said, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) systematically dismantled her life, stripping distant the concern she had built, the location she erstwhile shared with her household and, eventually, 7 years of her beingness successful prison.

But the hardest happening for her, is that she believes it took her hubby too. "My beloved hubby died owed to the persecution," Chunyan claimed during an exclusive interrogation with Fox News Digital.

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Falun Gong practitioner Wang Chunyan holds photographs of friends she says died during the Chinese Communist Party’s crackdown connected the spiritual question during an interrogation with Fox News Digital. (Fox News)

Her relationship comes arsenic President Donald Trump prepares to question to China adjacent week for meetings with Chinese person Xi Jinping, with trade, information and determination tensions expected to predominate the agenda. Yet down the geopolitical rivalry lies different conflict: Beijing’s decades-long run against spiritual and spiritual groups the Communist Party views arsenic threats to its authority.

Former U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback believes Wang’s communicative reflects a overmuch broader conflict unfolding wrong China. "Either the satellite changes China oregon China volition alteration the world," Brownback told Fox News Digital.

Brownback precocious chronicled Chunyan’s communicative and the experiences of different survivors successful his publication China’s War connected Faith, arguing that idiosyncratic grounds tin often uncover the world of persecution much powerfully than statistic alone. "Stories are much almighty than data," helium said.

Photograph shown by Falun Gong practitioner Wang Chunyan during a Zoom interrogation with Fox News Digital picture friends and chap practitioners she says were persecuted during the Chinese Communist Party’s crackdown connected the spiritual movement. (Fox News Digital)

The publication examines what Brownback describes arsenic an progressively blase strategy of surveillance and repression targeting Christians, Uyghur Muslims, Tibetan Buddhists and Falun Gong practitioners. He argues the Chinese Communist Party views autarkic religion communities arsenic a nonstop menace to its authority.

"They fearfulness spiritual state much than thing else. More than our craft carriers, much than our atomic weapons, much than thing other due to the fact that they deliberation it is the biggest menace to the regime."

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Protesters chant slogans and clasp posters of victims during a objection against China's crackdown connected Uyghurs successful beforehand of the Chinese consulate successful Istanbul, Turkey, connected Nov. 30, 2022. (Khalil Hamra/AP)

Chunyan communicative started successful the precocious 1990s, erstwhile she suffered from terrible insomnia, sometimes sleeping lone 2 oregon 3 hours a night. Then her older sister introduced her to Falun Gong, besides known arsenic Falun Dafa, a spiritual signifier ,she says, is centered connected meditation exercises and teachings rooted successful "truthfulness, compassion and tolerance."

The question dispersed rapidly crossed China during the 1990s, attracting tens of millions of followers earlier Beijing banned it successful 1999, portraying it arsenic a menace to Communist Party control.

Chunyan says Falun Gong helped amended her "physical condition." She said, "My concern was booming. My household was happy. My beingness was perfect."

Chunyan became convinced the signifier had saved her life. She owned a palmy institution selling chemic accumulation instrumentality and had go affluent by Chinese standards, but aft the crackdown began she felt compelled to publically support Falun Gong against what she believed were authorities lies.

She bought a printing property and began distributing leaflets. Soon afterward, she said, surveillance followed everywhere.

"The buildings wherever I worked were nether changeless surveillance," Chunyan recalled. "I near to flight and was acrophobic to travel home."

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A pro-democracy activistic holds placards with a representation of Chinese national writer Zhang Zhan extracurricular the Chinese cardinal government's liaison bureau successful Hong Kong connected Dec. 28, 2020. Zhang was released from situation aft serving 4 years for charges related to reporting connected the COVID-19 outbreak successful Wuhan, according to a video connection she released Tuesday, May 21, 2024. (Kin Cheung/AP)

For years, she lived successful hiding, utilizing prepaid calling cards and nationalist telephones to secretly put meetings with her husband, Yu Yefu, successful restaurants, java shops and hotels crossed the city. The 2 tried, briefly, to support immoderate consciousness of normalcy.

Yu himself ne'er practiced Falun Gong, but constabulary repeatedly pressured him to uncover wherever his woman was hiding. He ne'er did. Then, successful 2002, Wang stopped proceeding from him.

When she yet returned home, she recovered him unconscious. Doctors could not prevention him. "He protected me," she said successful tears.

He was 49 years aged erstwhile helium died. Their girl was inactive successful college.

The devastation dispersed done the household afterward, Chunyan said. Her mother-in-law stopped eating and aboriginal became paralyzed. Her father-in-law died from grief. Her sisters were besides imprisoned and tortured.

Then came Chunyan’s ain imprisonment.

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The emblem of China is flown down a brace of surveillance cameras extracurricular the Central Government Offices successful Hong Kong, China, connected Tuesday, July 7, 2020. Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam defended nationalist information authorities imposed connected the metropolis by China past week, hours aft her authorities asserted wide caller constabulary powers, including warrant-less searches, online surveillance and spot seizures.  (Roy Liu/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

She described years of forced labor, slumber deprivation and carnal abuse. At 1 point, she said, the torture became truthful terrible that she fainted 3 times successful a azygous day.

One representation inactive haunts her most. Shortly earlier her merchandise from prison, Wang said authorities conducted unexplained humor tests and aesculapian examinations. At the time, chap inmates told her the authorities was simply checking connected Falun Gong prisoners earlier release. Only later, aft learning astir allegations of forced organ harvesting involving detained Falun Gong practitioners, did she statesman to fearfulness wherefore the investigating whitethorn person happened. "I was horrified," Chunyan said.

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Falun Gong practitioner Wang Chunyan recounting the decease of her husband, whom she says was persecuted by Chinese authorities for refusing to uncover her whereabouts. (Fox News)

Today, Chunyan lives successful the United States, having near China successful 2013 and yet making her mode done Thailand earlier arriving successful America successful 2015.

Yet decades later, the losses stay contiguous to her.

"There are millions of families successful China similar ours," Chunyan wants the satellite to know, "Persecuted by the CCP."

In a connection to Fox News Digital, Chinese Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu rejected the allegations and defended Beijing’s actions against Falun Gong. "The aforementioned remarks are thing but malicious fabrications and sensational lies," Liu said. "Falun Gong is simply a cult enactment that is anti-humanity, anti-science and anti-society. It is hostile toward religion, endangers the public, and serves arsenic a malignant tumor wrong society." Liu argued that "the Chinese authorities outlawed the Falun Gong cult successful accordance with the law, thereby safeguarding the cardinal quality rights and freedoms of the immense bulk of the Chinese people."