By CHARLES HUTZLER

Associated Press Writer (sintex)

BEIJING, June 1, 1995 (AP) -- Torture, forced labor and detention without trial underpin worsening political repression in China, Amnesty International said in a report Friday.

Christians, Tibetans and political dissidents are the primary targets for punishment, with hundreds detained in the past 12 months, a report by the London-based rights group said.

The report's release coincides with the anniversary of the June 4, 1989, crackdown on the pro-democracy movement at Tiananmen Square, in which hundreds of people were slaughtered by Chinese troops.

Thousands arrested in 1989 are still being held as authorities continue to keep a lid on dissent, Amnesty said.

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Wei Jingsheng, China's best-known dissident, was detained on Apric charges have been issud his whereabouts are unknown.

Police grabbed his assistant, Tong Yi, four She was sentenced in December to 30 months of labor "re-education" and sent to a labor camp in central Hubei province.

When she complained about conditions and long work hours, she was beaten by other prisoners. Prison authorities often use other inmates to maintain discipline.

Christians who practice outside of China's state-sanctioned churches also have been arrested and tortured, the report said.

Thirty to 40 Roman Catholics were rounded up in southeastern Jiangxi province around Easter in April, the report said. Many were beaten by police, and 10 lay women, a 23-year-old nun and six others still were still being held in mid-May.

Catholics who refuse abortions or sterilization to meet China's strict family planning targets were detained and tortured by officials in Lingshou County in the northeast, the report said.

Amnesty also called on China to end the widespread use of the death penalty for economic and other non-violent offenses. The group counted 1,791 executions in 1994, but said the actual toll is believed to be higher.