A Falun Gong devotee choked her nine-year-old daughter to death while trying to exorcise a "demon" from the girl's body in Yichun, Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.
Guan Shuyun, 44, killed her daughter, Dai Nan, in their home on April 22 as about 40 other Falun Gong practitioners stood by.
Guan began practising Falun Gong in April 1997. She was sentenced to labour education after engaging in illegal cult activities in July 2000, and was released ahead of the due date in February 2001.
After returning home, she pretended to give up Falun Gong, but actually kept close contact with other cult members and continued to "develop" her so-called "inner spirit," Guan said.
On April 19, she invited 40 Falun Gong practitioners from other cities in the province to her home where she said she would share her thoughts.
On the morning of April 22, Guan did not allow her daughter to go to school, saying the girl had been possessed by demon.
She put Dai Nan on a bed, and asked her sternly: "Who are you? Where are you from? And how much evil have you done?"
She then slapped her daughter on the face, and asked others to join in the beating despite pleas from the girl for it to stop.
Guan said her child's cries for help was the demon speaking. She then began to choke her daughter and asked the Falun Gong members to hold Dai still.
No one dared to stop Guan because she was choking her daughter and they feared being possessed by the demon, her neighbours said. Some followers just knelt down, others retreated to a corner and some just watched.
Guan then forbade others to come close to her daughter. She said if the child was moved, the demon would move out again and prevent them from "flying to heaven," the neighbours said.
When her husband, Dai Keqin, returned home and found their daughter dead, his wife ordered the others to tie him up. He managed to escape later and report the incident to police.
Before Guan practised Falun Gong, she and her husband made a good living by selling salted vegetables and had a content life with their daughter, her husband said.
However, after Guan began practising Falun Gong, her family's well-being was totally ruined. She no longer sold goods and gave up daily chores, and frequently quarrelled with her husband.
(China Daily May 13, 2002)
