近日，有海外媒体纷纷报道偷渡到美国的中国广西籍“法轮功”人员覃永洁在广东曾遭中国警察迫害，导致三级烧伤的消息，经本社记者向有关机构了解后得知，不仅在中国大陆查无此人，而且覃的自述中有许多疑点。
记者首先向广东和广西的公安厅查证该人，经当地户籍机构电脑反复搜索，均未查到有“覃永洁”一名。据当地公安专家向本社记者解释，这名自称“覃永洁”的人在偷渡到美国后有可能用的是假名，而根据以往偷渡客的资料，使用假名可以避免中美警方对其真实身份进行调查，并有利于当事人陈述出最方便在美国获得居留权的受迫害的故事。
广东和广西警方指出，“覃永洁”其人并不存在，所谓“中国警察对其实施的酷刑”纯属造谣。
警方专家还认为，覃永洁自述中有诸多疑点，不能自圆其说。如覃自称“六月二日被中国警察用铁条烙伤”，报道称“医生诊断为三级烧伤，共十三处，深入肌肉中，伤口面积过大、过深，难以愈合”。覃身负如此重伤，居然能够先藏身于集装箱船板条箱内航行十四天，横渡浩瀚的太平洋，继而在语言不通、身无分文的情况下辗转至休斯顿于七月十三日入院医疗，前后已四十余天，令稍有常识的人难以置信。
警方表示，他们目前不便对“覃永洁”自述中的疑点和其偷渡中的真实经历作各种猜测。他们只希望能进一步获取有关资料和该人真实姓名，并根据资料继续查证，以便给海内外一切关心此事的善良人士一个令人信服的答复。
中新社 2001年08月28日
Chinese police 'torture Falun Gong follower': sheer lie
Some foreign news media lately report that Tan Yongjie, an alleged "Falun Gong" follower in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region who stowed away to the US, was tortured by Chinese policemen in Guangdong and had got a third-degree burn. But an inquiry of related departments about this tells that no such a man as Tan had been found in China's mainland and the so-called self-account by this man has many doubtful points.
The reporter first turned to public security departments of Guangdong and Guangxi for their residence files and local census records trying to find the man out allegedly by the name of "Tan Yongjie". However, irrespective of every possible effort made, all had got to no avail. Experts of public security explained that the so-called Tan Yongjie probably used a false name after he ran a blockade to the US. Experiences told that using false names have customarily helped stowaways get away from investigations by security departments in the US and present their stories of being persecuted that has turned out to be the most favorable means to have helped them out unscathed in the US.
Guangdong Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region security departments point out that they haven't got such a soul alleged as "Tan Yongjie". The so-called "Chinese policeman tortured him" is a sheer lie.
Experts also thought that there are so many doubtful points in Tan's self-account failing to justify his statement. For instance, Tan claimed to have been "branded by hot iron par by Chinese policemen" on June 2, and that "diagnosed as a third-degree burn, on 13 locations, deep into the muscle, the area of wounds is large and deep, hard to close up". But irrespective of such serious wounds, to people's surprise, Tan had managed to hide in a crate in a container ship on a 14-day voyage, crossed the vast Pacific Ocean, passed through many hands or places without any corn on hand, even not knowing a word of English, and finally arrived at Houston and entered hospital for treatment on July 13. The whole process takes more than 40 days. It is unbelievable to any person with a little common sense.
The police noted that now they are not supposed to make any guess at the doubtful points in Tan's account and his so-called real experience during the illegal immigration. They hope they can get more related material and the real name of the stowaway and conduct further investigation about the issue so as to give a convincing answer to all good and honest people within and outside China.
(People's Daily, August 30, 2001)