Christian lawyer details 'sadistic torture' he endured in Chinese prison

A Christian lawyer who was imprisoned in China for almost two years has revealed that he wanted to commit suicide due to the "sadistic torture" he suffered at the hands of the prison guards, but he was kept alive by his faith in Jesus Christ.

In an article published in The Wall Street Journal on Monday, Bob Fu, the founder and president of China Aid, recounted the experiences of his friend, Li Heping, while he was in prison.

"There were times that I wanted to commit suicide. I survived because of my Christian faith, the courageous advocacy of my wife and the attention of the international community," Li said, according to Fu.

Li, who had openly spoken against human rights abuses in China, was arrested along with other rights lawyers on July 9, 2015 in what is now known as the 709 Crackdown.

Fu stated that Li suffered "sadistic torture" at the hands of Communist Party officials during while he was incarcerated, including confinement in frigid cells, beatings, electric shocks, sleep deprivation and being chained in stress positions.

Li said that he was drugged with unknown substances and forced to take six pills a day for nearly two years after he was diagnosed with high blood pressure.

The Christian lawyer was released earlier this month after almost two years of incarceration at the Tianjin Municipal Detention Center No.1.

Terry Halliday, an author of a book on China's human rights lawyers, said that he did not recognize Li in the photographs of the lawyer's reunion with his wife and daughter.

"[He looked] very thin. He's aged about 20 years. His hair has gone grey. He's gone through a torturous time, I would say," Halliday said. "I would defy anybody ... to imagine that so much transformation could have occurred over two years," he added.

Fu lamented that Chinese President Xi Jinping has "sought to eviscerate China's network of human rights lawyers and rights advocates, viewing their peaceful efforts at legal reform as a national-security threat."

"Mr. Xi has re-instituted the Maoist practice of televised public confession and embraced a system of torture so horrific it demands an international response," he added.

The China Aid founder noted that several other lawyers have come out to speak about the abuses they suffered, such as Li Chinfu, who has suffered from schizophrenia after he was forcibly medicated.

Fu said U.S. President Donald Trump has made some efforts to help the victims of human rights abuses in China, such as authorizing the rescue of the wife and two daughters of another lawyer, Xie Yang, in an escape to Thailand in February.

However, Fu said that other lawyers still remain in prison and are in danger of "horrific torture."

The China Aid founder has previously warned that Xi might make attempts at diplomacy with Western leaders, including Pope Francis, to appear respectful of Christianity, but Fu insisted that religion is still oppressed in the Communist country.