Swedish citizen Mrs. Svensson
5 More Practitioners Die At Hands of Police
Facts of the Persecution
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Swedish citizen Mrs. Svensson |
The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Embassy in Bangkok have expressed their deep concern over the issue and demanded "an immediate explanation" from the Thai Foreign Ministry in the early morning hours of April 30. Falun Gong is a legally registered organization in Thailand, and Mrs. Svensson holds a valid visa for staying in Thailand.
According to Mrs. Svensson's account, immigration officers came to her residence at about 8:15 a.m., asking for travel documents. The officers showed them a search warrant and confiscated all of her Falun Gong related material, including books and VCD's. The search warrant was written in Thai, so neither Mr. nor Mrs. Svensson were able to read it. They were then taken to the Immigration Office.
The Immigration officers told Falun Gong practitioners who went to visit the Svensson that they knew Mrs. Svensson had done nothing wrong, but they had received orders from their superiors which they had to execute, referring to incarcerating and deporting Mrs. Svensson.
Mrs. Svensson enjoys spending time in Thailand and accompanies her husband on yearly, three-month long business trips. While in Thailand, she introduces to the public the facts about Falun Gong and the persecution that is happening in China. Jiang's regime has been looking for an excuse to remove her from Thailand for quite a while.
Immigration officials claimed that Mrs. Svensson had VCD's in her possession, and that her distributing these VCD's might cause disharmony in the relationship between Thailand and China, as China might accuse Thailand of indirectly supporting Falun Gong. Another immigration official continually asked the Dafa practitioners that came to visit Mrs. Svensson if they intended to protest against China, raise banners during the Chinese Premier's visit to Thailand regarding the SARS epidemic, or if they planned to hold protests during the Asian Economic Symposium.
At the police station, the Thai police looked over some of the VCD's that they confiscated from Mrs. Svensson. They then pointed at some pictures that depicted Dafa practitioners being tortured by Chinese police and declared that the VCD's contained "violence." They used this as an excuse to detain Mrs. Svensson.
It was pointed out that this method of arresting someone and then finding evidence later, and using Mrs. Svensson's truth-clarifying VCD's as an excuse to detain her is something that is typical of the Jiang regime's tactics. The Thai government's actions of currying favor with the Jiang regime by persecuting Falun Gong practitioners is shameful and immoral. What kind of excuse did the Chinese regime give to the Thai government for these actions? According to the Thai news organization Thaivisa.com's report on May 1, the Thai police were concerned that Mrs. Svensson was planning to protest during the Chinese Premier's visit.
Currently, because Mrs. Svensson refuses to leave Thailand voluntarily, she is being held at a detention center. The conditions inside the detention center are poor, holding 30 people within an area of 20 square meters. They are without beds and are constantly pressured by the Thai police.
The Swedish media has reacted strongly to Mrs. Svensson's arrest, the story making the headlines in Swedish newspapers. Even though this incident was instigated by the Jiang regime, the Thai government must bear some responsibility for caving in to the Chinese government's pressure and resorting to conducting themselves in such a ridiculous, illegal manner. They are deserving of condemnation from people and countries all over the world who believe in the rule of law.
Falun Gong is a legal entity recognized by Thai law, but in recent years the Jiang regime has repeatedly pressured the Thai government regarding Falun Gong. In 2001, Thai practitioners were forced to cancel an international experience sharing conference due to pressure from the Thai police and Foreign Affairs Ministry.
We call upon the people, governments and media around the world to condemn the criminal action of the Jiang regime in using diplomatic pressure to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. It is our hope that international pressure will cause the Thai authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Swedish citizen Mrs. Svensson, and lead the Jiang regime to cease its persecution of Falun Gong.
(Clearwisdom.net)
A Great Historical Moment
Toronto practitioners have decided to send forth righteous thoughts in front of the Chinese Consulate from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday from now on. We will send forth pure, strong, determined righteous thoughts to assure smooth progression for the legal cases to bring Jiang to justice.
Every day is crucial. Falun Dafa practitioners inside and outside of China will form an indestructible environment and support the lawsuit against Jiang with strong righteous thoughts. At the same time, we can make use of laws in the human world to bring Jiang to justice and end his persecution against humanity.
Bringing Jiang to justice will be a breakthrough in the practitioners' participation in the Fa-rectification. We should make good use of this lawsuit and further clarify the truth to various governments, media and people. Once they know the truth and stand up to condemn this persecution, a righteous field will be formed in the human world.
Forming A Righteous Field in the Human World from the Perspective of Fa-rectification
On April 14, the attorney representing practitioners, Terri Marsh, delivered documents to the court citing evidence of crimes by Jiang, the "610 Office" and other substantiation required by legal procedures. The U.S. Justice Department, representing the U.S. government, will deliver documents that support the government's viewpoint to the court. The deadline for doings so is May 8, as set by the judge. In the four to six weeks following that date, the judge will decide whether there is enough evidence for the persecutors to be tried based on the documents provided by the practitioners' attorney and the U.S. government officials.
Our actions to bring Jiang to justice constitute a complete denial of the old forces and will help clear away the harm he has done to the human world. It is extremely important for all Dafa practitioners to maintain righteous thoughts and make good use of the lawsuit to clarify the truth to the fullest extent possible.
NEWS -- May 4, 2003 Falun Dafa Information Center, www.faluninfo.net
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The Chinese regime is exerting pressure on the Thai government to deport a Swedish Falun Gong practitioner. |
LOS ANGELES (FDI) -- As part of its worldwide campaign to persecute Falun Gong, the Chinese regime is exerting pressure on the Thai government to deport a Swedish Falun Gong practitioner living in Thailand.
The April 29 detention of Mrs. Pirjo Svensson came on the first day of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's visit to Thailand. She is "suspected" of planning to tell people about China's persecution of Falun Gong.
"I have done nothing wrong", says Mrs. Svensson, 50, who has been living in Thailand with her husband for two years. She was detained after VCDs were found in her apartment. These VCDs are compact disks with videos that can be viewed on a computer and contain documentary footage from China.
Practitioners in numerous countries distribute these VCDs in order to expose the human rights abuses against Falun Gong in China. According to Mrs. Svensson they contain "the truth about the persecution of innocent Falun Gong practitioners."
Because of this persecution campaign, former Chinese leader, Jiang Zemin, is being sued for torture, crimes against humanity, and genocide in several countries. One such lawsuit is proceeding in a US district court in Chicago.
The Swedish Embassy in Thailand quickly demanded "an immediate explanation" from the Thai Foreign Ministry. The Embassy has also helped Mrs. Svensson with the paperwork for an appeal and is advising her through the process. The Embassy has offered to pay Mrs. Svensson's bail in order to expedite her release from detention.
Thailand's immigration officers indicated that a "special request" from "high above" was received for her incarceration, and that it was done out of consideration for Thailand's relationship with China.
This is not the first time that the Swedish Government has come to the aid of Falun Gong practitioners. After the November 20, 2001 arrest of six Swedish practitioners in Beijing, Sweden's Foreign Minister, Ms. Anna Lindh stated: "I think this is totally unacceptable. Yet unfortunately it is so common when it comes to China that, despite the fact that they signed the UN's conventions and said that they would follow human rights, we see that the persecution of Falun Gong, amongst others, is getting worse."
The coercion from China came at a time when an emergency conference on SARS was being held in Thailand.
"The regime in China lies to the world and then expects everyone to toe its line", says Falun Dafa Information Center spokeswoman Ms. Gail Rachlin. "It doesn't want people in other countries to recognize how it persecutes innocent people and even exerts pressure to enlist other countries' assistance in doing so."
The Chinese regime has repeatedly pressured governments of many nations to prohibit appeals to the international community on behalf of Falun Gong. In spite of the threats and lies from the Jiang Zemin regime, many of the countries have remained true to their own constitutions and permitted such appeals to take place. Moreover, Falun Gong's appeals have gained a worldwide reputation as being completely peaceful.
Ultimately, police of many countries where appeals took place despite pressure -- such as Iceland, Germany, and Mexico during Jiang's visits in 2002 -- complimented Falun Gong on its peaceful, orderly, and noble conduct.
"It is admirable and beneficial to the world that someone like Mrs. Svensson would peacefully stand up and say 'no' to persecution," says Jillian Ye, a Falun Gong practitioner and software engineer from Toronto, Canada. "It is a righteous action that should be supported and encouraged by all governments."
"Thailand is an independent, democratic country strongly rooted in religion and freedom of belief," said Alan Adler, Executive Director of the NGO Friends of Falun Gong USA. "It is our sincerest wish that Thailand stand up for the principles of freedom and justice that it embraces and not condone or allow itself to be pressured by the Chinese government."
Despite the illicit pressure from China, the Thai government has yet to deport Mrs. Svensson. Deporting her could be seen as taking sides with Jiang regime's persecution, a persecution that is genocidal in nature and implemented through torture, defamation, and brainwashing that has been denounced by the media, governments, and human rights organizations worldwide.
"Thailand has a long history of independence and charting its own course," says John Nania, a Falun Gong practitioner who taught in Thailand's public schools. "We urge Thailand's government to release Mrs. Svensson. This demonstrates support for universal principles of morality and human rights, and shows the world that the nation does live up to the name 'Land of the Free.'"
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NEWS -- May 4, 2003
Falun Dafa Information Center, www.faluninfo.net
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Background
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa (about), is a practice of meditation and exercises with teachings based on the universal principle of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance." It is a practice that was taught in private for thousands of years before being made public in 1992 by Mr. Li Hongzhi. Falun Gong has roots in traditional Chinese culture, but it is distinct and separate from other practices such as the religions of Buddhism and Taoism. Since its introduction in 1992, it quickly spread by word of mouth throughout China, and is now practiced in over 50 countries.
With government estimates of as many as 100 million practicing Falun Gong, China's President Jiang Zemin outlawed the peaceful practice in July 1999 (report), fearful of anything touching the hearts and minds of more citizens than the Communist Party. Unable to crush the spirit of millions who had experienced improved health and positive life changes from Falun Gong, Jiang's regime has intensified its propaganda campaign to turn public opinion against the practice while quietly imprisoning, torturing and even murdering those who practice it.
The Falun Dafa Information Center has verified details of 669 deaths (reports / sources) since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in 1999. Government officials inside China, however, report that the actual death toll is well over 1,600, while expert sources estimate that figure to be much higher. Hundreds of thousands have been detained, with more than 100,000 being sentenced to forced labor camps, typically without trial.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT THE FALUN DAFA INFORMATION CENTER -- Gail Rachlin 917-501-4441, Levi Browde 914-720-0963, Erping Zhang 646-533-6147, or Feng Yuan 917-941-1097. Email: faluninfoctr@nycmail.com, Website: http://www.faluninfo.net/
(Clearwisdom.net)
Dafa practitioner Ms. Sui Songjiao was a 57-year-old farmer who lived in Shanlijia Village, Jinling Town, Zhaoyuan City, Shandong Province. Because she refused to give up her belief in Dafa, she was brutally tortured to death at a brainwashing center. She is the fifth Dafa practitioner in Zhaoyuan City who has been tortured to death.
At the end of 2002, Shao Cuifeng, a former practitioner who has turned against Dafa under pressure, convinced Sui Songjiao's family to send her to the notorious Linglong Brainwashing Center in Zhaoyuan City. Because she remained determined in Dafa, Lin Tao, Song Shuqin, and Liu Yujiu threatened to send her to a labor camp and punish her family members. For over 20 days, she was deprived of sleep, and forced by prison guards to stay in a bathroom without warm clothing where all the windows were open under subzero temperatures. Liu Yujiu, Liu Jincai, Liu Cuihua, Lin Shuxi, Yu Yingbin, and Sun Yanqin took turns monitoring her day and night. Whenever she closed her eyes to have a rest, she would be brutally beaten. They also wrote down some words to slander Teacher and Dafa, and then forced her to read those words. When she firmly rejected their demands, they then used every means at their disposal to torture her. They beat her, and also grabbed her hair and threw her head hard against the wall. There were injuries all over her body. Her head was swollen badly, and her face was deformed beyond recognition. During this period of time, in addition to suffering physical pain, she also endured great mental pressure. However, no matter what method the guards used to torture her, she always said the same thing, "Teacher is good and Dafa is good."
The brainwashing center extorted 2500 Yuan from Sui Songjiao's family, and caused her family to live in terror, which pained her heart dearly.
Finally, after enduring unimaginable physical and mental pain and pressure, Ms. Sui Songjiao passed away.
To the persecutors of innocent people: don't you also have parents, wives, children and siblings? How can you do such a terrible thing to these innocent people? Would you do the same thing if they were your family members?
Whoever persecutes innocent people must receive punishment from Heaven and will be brought to justice in the human world.
Zhaoyuan City Party Committee
Vice party secretary in charge of legal and political affairs: Zhang Guifen
Party Secretary of legal and political committee: Jiang Zhongqin
Zhaoyuan City "610 Office"
Switch board: 86-535-8242287, 86-535-8258610
Qin Yuxian, director, 86-535-8211818 (home), 86-535-8258610 (office)
üC86-13906458585 (cell)
Jiang Weihua, vice director, 86-535-8221659 (home)üC86-535-8252610
(office)üC86-13805456026 (cell)
Feng Shugui, vice director, 86-535-8215200 (home)üC86-535-8253610
(office)üC86-13853581989 (cell)
Liu Qinwu, vice director, 86-535-8229225 (home)üC86-535-8213509
(office)üC86-1300160992 (cell)
Zhang Guifen, vice mayor, 86-535-8216006
Lin Tao, special task team leader, 86-13953500555 (cell)
Zhaoyuan City Police Department
Political Security Division: 86-535-8214876
Patrol Team: 86-535-8231364
Zhaoyuan City People's Hospital: 86-535-8214561
Jinling Town
Police station director: Jia Yingbin; vice director: Lin Tao (now working in
the "610 Office")
Persecutors in the Town Government
Wang Xingtian, Duan Guofang, Wang Ruihe, Zhuang Yuelin, Feng Xuemei
(Clearwisdom.net) Dafa practitioner Mr. Sun Junxian, 31, was a college graduate from Zhuanglang County, Gansu Province. On February 19, 2003, officers from the Railway Police Bureau in Beijing illegally detained him when he passed through Beijing on a trip for work. In the early morning of February 25, the police from Zhuanglang County, Gansu Province escorted him home, but Sun Junxian died on the trip. The police claimed that Sun Junxian committed suicide by jumping off the train. However, Mr. Sun's injuries are not at all consistent with this claim.
According to internal information from the police department, Sun Junxian was detained in Beijing by the Railway Police Bureau on February 19. Luo Ming, deputy chief from Zhuanglang County Police Department, Li Wei, National Security section chief, Fu Jianhua and Zhao Dong from the county "610 Office"* and Sun Laishun from the township Party Committee went to Beijing to pick up Sun Junxian. In the afternoon of February 24, they took Sun Junxian from the Railway Police Bureau. At that time Sun Junxian had been on hunger strike for five days. Sun Junxian ate a bowl of noodles after they picked him up. That same evening they took the express train to return to Zhuanglang County. On the train, Sun Junxian was handcuffed the whole time, and he was unlocked only when he went to the restroom. When he was unlocked, officers were with him at all times. From Beijing to Zhenzhou City, officers Fu and Sun watched Sun Junxian. They arrived at Zhenzhou City around midnight.
From Zhenzhou City to Xi'an City, police officers Luo Ming and Li Wei monitored Sun Junxian. Sun Junxian slept on the upper bunk, and officer Li Wei slept on the lower bunk. Next to them, police officer Sun slept on the upper bunk and Luo Ming slept on the lower bunk. Fu went to another part of the train after he was relieved. At 4:00 a.m. on February 25, Luo Ming called the Zhuanglang County Police Department and said, "Sun Junxian jumped off the train while passing through Lingbao, Henan Province."
In the evening of February 25, ten people from Zhuanglang County "610 Office" and the police department, along with Sun Junxian's father, went to Lingbao, arriving in the afternoon of February 26. In an empty field near Lingbao Railway Hospital, they saw Sun Junxian's body along with his baggage.
On February 28, a medical examiner from Lingbao Railway Hospital came to perform an autopsy. The basic findings were the following: there were two pronounced indentations on the top of his head, with diameters of around 1.5 cm, approximately 4 cm. apart, and there were traces of blood near the indentations. The occipital bone in the back of the head was caved in. The face and facial organs were intact. The lower back area showed an embedded rock with a diameter of around 5 cm. The left leg was fractured in two places near the kneecap; the muscles above and below the broken bone were still connected but were not swollen. The right leg had no fracture and was basically intact; however, it was swollen and covered with black and blue marks.
The local police said that several train-jumping accidents had happened here. Most of the victims had fractured skulls and other injuries. It was unusual for Sun Junxian's body to be relatively intact.
Let us take a look at what the people who escorted Sun Junxian had to say:
While in Lingbao, police officer Luo Ming said to the personnel from Zhuanglang County who dealt with this incident, "Sun Junxian drank water several times at 12:00 a.m. He was in good condition. I don't know when he left. Maybe he jumped off the train from the restroom." Then he changed his story and said, "Sun Junxian pushed open the window and jumped. If we knew that, we would have put handcuffs and shackles on him, then he wouldn't have died."
After returning to Zhuanglang County, officers Luo Ming and Li Wei reported to the police department, "The two of us didn't leave our post. We stood near the bed next to the restroom. Sun Junxian suddenly jumped out of the restroom." Police officer Sun said to people, "I was in charge from Beijing to Zhenzhou, and during that time Sun Junxian was fine. I don't know what happened after that."
There are several suspicious points in the police statement:
1. Sun Junxian was in handcuffs at all times and he was only unlocked when using the restroom. When he used the restroom, the police on duty watched him constantly. The window in the restroom is 1.4 m high above the floor and the lower window is fixed, so he could only open the upper window. He would have had to climb up to the window and jump out with the policemen present. Even if he did jump out through the window, he would have had to go out headfirst. With the high speed of the train, his skull should have been fractured, yet, on autopsy, his head was basically intact. The doctor confirmed that he fell, facing up. Even if he jumped, he definitely would not have had a chance to take his baggage with him.
2. If he fell face up, where did the two indentations come from? They are each 1.5 cm. in diameter and 4 cm. apart. They're much more likely to be the result of being struck by something.
3. Sun Junxian's right leg was basically intact, yet it was badly swollen, and the skin was black and purple. The left leg was broken and dislocated yet it was not swollen. The state of two legs suggests that the right leg was injured while Sun Junxian was alive, and the left leg was broken after his death.
From the injuries on Sun Junxian's body, it is very likely that he died from being struck by the police on top of the head during a beating. From the injuries on the right leg, it seems apparent that the police hit Sun Junxian's right leg many times before he died, and then they struck Sun Junxian's head, killing him with the blows. After Sun died, the police tried to cover up their crime and threw the body out of the window facing up, and then tossed out his baggage. After they created the scene, the police called the railway personnel and authorities from Zhuanglang County Police Department.
According to inside sources at the police department, after this incident, eight Dafa practitioners in Zhuanglang County were illegally detained for 20 days and other practitioners were under strict watch. The county government sent three officials to monitor Sun Junxian's home, and they forbade Sun Junxian's parents to have outside contact. They strictly blocked the information regarding his death.
It was also reported that the authorities spread a rumor on Zhuanglang County's television station that Sun Junxian was connected with the explosions at Qinghua University and Peking University. We all know that the criminals responsible for the explosion were later discovered, and it had nothing to do with Dafa practitioners. Dafa practitioners absolutely would not do anything harmful to the safety and interest of the society and others. This is yet another attempt by the authorities to cover up their crimes after murdering an innocent practitioner.
Zhuanglang County Party Committee phone number: 86-933-662-1101
Zhuanglang County head: Song Quanke
Zhuanglang County Disciplinary Committee Secretary: Zhang Jinlu
Zhuanglang County Government phone number: 86-933-662-1151, 86-933-662-1211
Zhuanglang County Police Department phone number: 86-933-662-1571
Zhuanglang County Police Department deputy chief: Luo Ming
National Security Section chief: Li Wei
Zhuanglang County Judiciary Bureau phone number: 86-933-662-1677
Zhuanglang County Inspection Bureau phone number: 86-933-662-1120
Zhuanglang County Security Surveillance Bureau phone number: 86-933-662-4026
* The "610 Office" is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.
May 1, 2003
(Clearwisdom.net, May 4, 2003)
Ms. Huang Lisha was from Emei City, Sichuan Province. On August 22, 2002, Ms. Huang was unjustly detained by the Supo Police Station in Qinyang district of Chengdu city, and was held in the Chengdu Detention Center. Because she refused to give them her name, she was referred to as "Falun Gong Practitioner Number Two" and detained in the 11-4 group. To protest this illegal detention, Ms. Huang Lisha started a hunger strike on August 23. Later, she was force-fed food, drugs, and water. A reaction to the drugs caused her to vomit and pass blood. However, the detention center refused to release her. In late October 2002, Ms. Huang Lisha died in the Qingyang District Hospital of Chengdu City on Denglong Street. After her death, the director of the detention center Liu Lijuan immediately organized the criminals detained in the 11-4 group to have them say that Ms. Huang had been released.
Police Department of Sichuan Province 86-28-612-4846
Chengdu City Police Bureau 86-28-640-7212 (Bureau Chief), 86-28-662-6160
Address of Chengdu Detention Center
Zhengyi Road #3
Anjing Town, Pi County
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province
Zip code 611731
Telephone number of the Security Office: 86-28-8640-7825, Director Li: 86-28-8640-7826
Pi County Police Division (Detention Center) 86-28-786-2043
QingYang District Police Sub-Division of Chengdu City 86-28-664-5100
Supo Police Station in QingYang District of Chengdu City 86-8743-3110
Qingyang District Hospital of Chengdu City 86-28-8663-3874
(Clearwisdom.net) Dafa practitioner Mr. Xia Gang, born on July 5, 1969, lived in Wuhan City. He was a production line group leader at the No. 3 Workshop, Wuhan Cigarette Factory. After Jiang's regime began slandering Dafa, Xia Gang went to Beijing to appeal and was illegally detained. The Wuhan Cigarette Factory authorities then fired him.
In early March 2001, police from the No. 1 Division of Wuhan City Police Department kidnapped Xia Gang as he was making truth clarification materials. The police sent him to No. 8 Qingdao Road, Wuhan City, where the No. 1 Division of Wuhan City Police Department is located. No. 1 Qingdao Road is another place that belongs to the No. 1 Division. On March 6, 2001, Xia Gang was transferred to the No. 2 Camp of the No. 7 Division, Wuhan City Police Department, where he was illegally detained for one month. Later, he was transferred to other places to be secretly detained. On April 30, 2001, he was sent to the Hewan Labor Camp in Wuhan City.
During the detention, Xia Gang became extremely weak from torture, and he was released on bail for medical treatment in June 2001. On October 16, 2001, he passed away at age 32 after experiencing numerous organ failures. This is another crime the Wuhan City Police Department has committed against Dafa practitioners.
Wuhan City Police Department Criminal Investigation Division: 86-27-82615405/ 2615406
Wuhan City Police Department switchboard: 86-27-85864400
The No. 1 Division of Wuhan City Police Department: dial switchboard and ask for the division
The No. 7 Division of Wuhan City Police Department: dial switchboard and ask for the division
The No. 2 Camp of the No. 7 Division: dial switchboard and ask for the No. 2 Camp of the division
Wuhan Cigarette Factory: 86-27-84872610
Hewan Labor Camp "Strict Control Class": 86-27-85601024
Wuhan City Police Department Criminal Investigation Division link report hotline: 86-27-82615405
Wuhan City Police Department complaint hotline: 86-27-85395555
Hotline for the Head of Wuhan City Police Department: 86-27-85876666
Report hotline: 86-27-85396666
(Clearwisdom.net)
Ms. Zhu Yinfang, a Falun Dafa practitioner from Chengdu City, Sichuan Province was in her fifties. She was a former employee at the Chengdu Office of the Yumen Oil Field. She was wrongfully imprisoned in December 1999 and again in October 2001, at the Nanmusi Forced Labor Camp in Sichuan Province. On April 26, 2003, the labor camp informed her family that she had passed away.
(Clearwisdom.net)
Thirteen year-old Xie Ying is a practitioner from Lanzhou City, Gansu Province. Being very smart, she entered junior high school at the age of only eight and half years old, and was well known as a child prodigy. She began to cultivate Falun Dafa in November 1998 and has gained a deep understanding of Dafa. She was steadfast in her cultivation despite the persecution following July 20, 1999. She went to Beijing twice with her mother to clarify the truth, and was illegally detained five times. She was also forced to stay away from home for over a year.
In May 2000, the police illegally ransacked her home, arrested her and sent her to a brainwashing class in Lanzhou. They interrogated her about the situation in her home but she told them nothing. Neither the phony kindness of the evil nor the distorted reasoning of former practitioners who have turned against Dafa under pressure could confuse her. When her father took her home, the authorities demanded her to make certain promises. She rejected adamantly. She also refused to accept the school principal's request to not mention anything about Falun Gong in school after she went back. Facing possible expulsion, she still resolutely refused to give up her belief in Dafa.
(Clearwisdom.net April 25, 2003) Zhang from the 4th Division--a division of the Changchun City Heizuizi Women's Labor Camp responsible for propaganda and mind control of prisoners--wrote a book to defame Falun Gong. Then they forced Dafa practitioners to purchase the book.
In the 4th Division, a Dafa disciple was persecuted to the extent that her hands and feet were injured and she had to be supported with others' help. In other divisions, there were also similar situations. Once, at the entrance, I saw a Dafa disciple who fell down and appeared to be paralysed. She could not stand up, but was still being cursed at by a guard. I also saw a practitioner that was dying in a police car. Two policemen said that she could not be released without a definite diagnosis from the hospital.
From the window upstairs, I also saw a person in the yard with her head wrapped with something like a cloth bag, and with both of her hands bound behind her back. It looked like she was handcuffed or tied and two men were shoving her.
The police in the 4th Division often beat up practitioners. A Dafa disciple went on a hunger strike for a long time. Her body and face became extremely thin. Once, I saw her dressed neatly and knew she had just been cleaned up. But when I saw her face, I was frightened. Her face was swollen and disfigured. I knew that she had been beaten.
Zhang Shuhua often beat practitioners with electric batons, hoping to force them to betray their belief.
The police officers in the labor camp persecute, beat and curse Dafa disciples and snatch their property and money. The guards have a small store that is very expensive. Visiting relatives are forced to buy items from the store in order to see someone in the camp.
The production head of the 4th Division often violates the regulations of the labor camp and arbitrarily prolongs the practitioners' sentences.
Dafa disciples who were kidnapped and taken to the labor camp were first required to write the so-called "Disassociation Statement (promising to give up Falun Gong). " They would not be allowed to sleep if they did not write it. Sometimes, not sleeping over a long time caused the Dafa disciples to pass out. Oftentimes several people gang up on one Dafa disciple and take turns beating and verbally abusing her.
(Clearwisdom.net)
Currently, the Baoding Forced Labor Camp in Hebei Province is holding the following female Dafa practitioners in its "close supervision team": Ma Zhanmei (from Laiyuan county, 48 years old), Liu Junge (from Dingzhou city, 53 years old), and Bai Yun. Ma Zhanmei has been on hunger strike for 4 days, and Liu Junge has been on hunger strike for 3 days. Each practitioner is monitored by two cellmates around the clock. They are not allowed to study the Fa or practice the exercises; otherwise their detention periods would be extended. Other steadfast Dafa practitioners are forced to perform prolonged labor daily, and are only allowed to have 2 or 3 hours of sleep. They are also monitored by many cellmates around the clock. I would like to suggest that Dafa practitioners send forth righteous thoughts to strengthen the jailed Dafa practitioners, to fundamentally break all the evil elements' arrangements in other dimensions, to clean up all factors that persecute Dafa and Dafa practitioners, so that they will be able to come back to the current of Fa-rectification as soon as possible.
In addition, very recently the forced labor camp has been persecuting 80 newly received steadfast Dafa practitioners, who were transferred from other forced labor camps all over the country, and subjecting them to forced brainwashing. The means they have adopted to persecute Dafa practitioners include: beatings, deprivation of sleep, having former Dafa practitioners who became collaborators under severe pressure and torture brainwash practitioners with lies, verbal abuse, and various forms of torture.
The persecutors who torture Dafa practitioners include: Group leader Li Dayong from the No.1 male group, female group leaders Li Xiuqin, Yan Qingfen. The female group assistants are Bai Jie, Zhu Man and Zhang Guohong. They force practitioners to remain standing for long periods of time, deprive them of sleep, shock them with electric batons, beat them, and force-feed them through pipes.
The female cellmates who participated in the persecution include drug offenders Wu Xiaoli, Zhang Yan, Guo Shaohua and attempted murderer Su Jiangping.
(Clearwidsom.net)
Mr. Liang Guiai, 27, from Qiaojiatun Luoxin Village of Huashan Town in Jimo City, Shandong Province, was an undergraduate student at the Chinese Medicine University in Shandong Province. He started practicing Falun Gong in 1996.
Before practicing Falun Gong, Liang Guiai suffered from very serious headaches. After practicing Falun Gong, his headaches were gone and he was full of energy, so his grades improved rapidly. In 1999, Jiang's gang started persecuting Falun Dafa. On December 20, 1999, Liang Guiai went to Tiananmen Square to appeal for Dafa. When policemen saw him, they started beating him and took him to the Tiananmen Police Substation. Later, the police transported him back to Jinan. The leaders of the Chinese Medicine University tried to force him to give up Falun Gong, but he refused and consequently was expelled from the school. After returning home, the government officials in Qiaojiatun refused to issue identification papers for him and harassed him at every turn.
In April of 2000, Liang Guiai was brought into the police station and then released after two days. When he got out of the police station, his body was bloody and dirty all over, one of his teeth was missing and his mouth was split open.
On July 20, 2000, Liang Guiai and more than ten other practitioners decided to go to Beijing to appeal to the higher authorities. Because the local police blocked the roads, they left in a hurry in the night and didn't take much money with them. They had to live on very little on the way to Beijing. After walking 497 miles, they arrived in Beijing. Liang was arrested by police at Tiananmen Square and held at the Jimo Liaison Office in Beijing. A young police officer beat him because he practiced Falun Gong in the office. The policeman handcuffed Liang to a metal post and kicked him viciously. The policeman didn't stop until Liang had blood all over his face and on the verge of losing consciousness.
After Mr. Liang was brought back to his hometown, Zheng Cen, Wang Zeyi, and Sun , following the orders of the Qiaojiatun County Political and Judiciary Secretary, Liu Dianchong, handcuffed Liang to the motorcycle of a county government staff worker. Liu Dianchong also told Wang Zeyi to beat Liang Guiai. After beating Liang savagely, they handcuffed him to a post and left him under the hot sun for ten days. The temperature was very hot during the day and very cold and wet in the evening. After ten days, they sent Liang Guiai to the Jimo Detention Center, where the police tortured him even more.
Later, Liang Guiai was taken to the county police station. The police asked his family pay 2000 Yuan [The average annual income is less than 2000 Yuan per person in rural areas]. Liang Guiai refused to allow his parents to pay the money to the police, since he knew that they had borrowed a lot of money for his college expenses. He broke out of his handcuffs and escaped from the local police station that night. He left home and went from place to place in order to avoid further persecution, and bore a lot of hardship in the process. The police even went to his parents' home to look for him on Chinese New Year's Eve. They said that Liang Guiai was a "criminal wanted by the law."
On January 28, 2001, Liang Guiai went home and was arrested by the police, who had been watching for him for quite some time. Mao, the head of police station, tried to force Liang to write an "Announcement" and a "Guarantee Letter" to declare that he is remorseful for practicing Falun Gong and promises not to practice Falun Gong again, not to go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, and never again associate with any Falun Dafa practitioners. Liang refused to do so, but instead wrote a letter describing how good Falun Dafa is to the head of the "610 Office"* in Jimo City. A few days later, Liang Guiai was illegally sentenced to three years of "reeducation through labor" in the Qingdao Forced Labor Camp.
*The 610 Office is a bureau specifically created by the Chinese government to persecute Falun Gong. It has absolute power over each level of administration in the Party, as well as over the political and judiciary branches.
(Clearwisdom.net)
Dafa disciple Zhao Xilian worked in the Agriculture University of Henan Province, located in Zhengzhou City. In the beginning of September 2002, the head of her work unit kidnapped her by force and took her to the Shibalihe Women's Forced Labor Education Center in Zhengzhou, illegally forcing her to stay there for one year. During the one-year term, she suffered inhumane mistreatment and torture. Especially in March of 2003, she often suffered the torture of "tying the ropes,"* cruel beatings, and forced brainwashing. Only after she was tortured to the extent that she was emaciated did the center notify her working unit. The head of her working unit sent someone there, who took a look at her and then left. Later, Zhao Xilian was tortured to the verge of death, and the center sent her to the Henan Mental Hospital in Xinxiang City on April 9, 2003. After being notified, the head of her working unit called the mental hospital, approving to have Zhao Xilian be put there.
We are here appealing to all kind and righteous people in the world to help Falun Dafa practitioner Zhao Xilian. We hope that practitioners will send forth righteous thoughts to help secure Zhao Xilian's earliest possible release.
The following are phone numbers of people in the Agriculture University of Henan Province:
Zhao Peng: 86-371-3558666, the newly-appointed Party Secretary in the
Agriculture University
Zhang Guangzhi: 86-371-3978111, the previous Party Secretary in the
Agriculture University, now the Director of the Agriculture Department of Henan
Province
Zhang Bailiang: 86-371-3558888 (office), 3946503 (home), the President of
the University
Yang Dedong: 86-371-3558696 (office), 3978382 (home), the Deputy Party
Secretary in the University
The Office of the Party Committee: 86-371-3558000
Li Shiguo: 86-371-3558111 (office), 3978957 (home), 86-13903711549 (cell
phone), Chairman of the Office of the Party Committee,
Department of Organization: 86-371-3558618;
Security Department: 86-371-3558110;
Office of Persons on Duty: 86-371-3960264
Geng Chaoming: 86-371-3558886 (office), 86-371-5713611 (home), the
Director of the Security Department
Xu Jie: 86-371-3960171 (office), 86-371-5588113 (home), Deputy Director
of the Security Department
Du Jinbiao: 86-371-3960195 (office), 86-371-6365196 (home), a section
director in the Security Department
The Party Committee of the Agriculture College: 86-371-3558122,
86-371-3960820
Wang Ling: 86-371-3978969 (home), 86-371-3558031, 86-371-3960074
(office), Secretary of the Agriculture College
Luo Wei: 86-371-3978266 (home)
Yang Xianmin: 86-371-5968789 (home), 86-371-3960072 (office), Political
Director of the Agriculture College
* Tying the Ropes - The police tie up the practitioner with a thin rope, circle the rope around his neck, and tie his hands behind his back. Then the police would use all the force they could muster to tighten the rope. The rope becomes tighter and tighter around the body of the practitioner, and makes it more and more difficult for him to breathe. The pain is so intense that the practitioner sometimes loses control of his bladder. There are instances when the rope was tightened enough to break a practitioner's arm.
(Clearwisdom.net) In January 2001, I went to Tiananmen Square to validate Dafa and was arrested. I was first detained in the Haidian Detention Center in Beijing, where I was tortured and shocked with two electric batons all over my body by police officer Zhang. Later I was transferred to Shanghai and detained for more than two months. In March 2001, I was sent to the No.1 Shanghai Forced Labor Camp, also called Dafeng Farm, and was put in No.1 Team, No.2 Division, which is the special team set up to persecute Falun Gong practitioners.
During the early period in the labor camp, I was forced to endure brainwashing and physical torture daily through so-called military trainings. I had to jog in the room for 10 hours. I was also forced to run with the thighs raised high, to the level of the waist, and to walk in goose steps.
I was beaten and kicked, and my body was covered with bruises. The back of my left hand was beaten by prisoner Zhao Qingliang with his fist and covered with solid black bruises. It took more than two weeks to recover. I was also forced to put my head against the wall or carry the night bedpan above my head. During breaks, I was forced to sit on the four legs of the small, overturned wooden stool or on a stool with a few plugs from the thermos bottle on it. I was only allowed to sleep for five or six hours per day. The rest of the time, four labor camp prisoners took turns trying to brainwash me. One of them gave up later after his conscience was awakened. I also had to view materials that attacked Dafa.
Police officer Xia Yingcun, who was in charge of me, often came to have so-called "heart-to-heart" talks. I took those opportunities to clarify the truth and expose the evil to him and stated my determination in cultivating Dafa, which made him utterly discomfited. Every time after such a "heart-to-heart" talk, the prisoners would intensify my physical torture. I found out later that because officer Xia was very angry with them for not being able to brainwash me, the prisoners were punched and kicked and had their merit grades deducted--that is why they vented their anger on me. The head of the prisoners, Zhao Qingliang, yelled furiously, "I have transformed [brainwash] dozens of people (I got to know later, it was just a few people). Nobody can escape." During a public conversation, Zhao Qingliang complained to policeman Xia that he should get more merit grades according to his performance of the past two years in the labor camp. Xia pointed to me and said, "Whether you can get those grades you think you deserve all depends on him." Because of my steadfastness to Dafa, prisoner Zhao Qingliang tortured me brutally. After all his efforts to torture me, he still couldn't change me. He turned to beg me to write something so that he could get merit grades.
During the middle of May, officer Hong, the chief of the No.1 Team, came to have a "heart-to-heart" talk with me and failed again. Then they invited a psychology expert, a professor from a psychology department of a certain university, to teach them "the strategy of psychology." In the end, the "expert" pointed out, the kind of Falun Gong practitioners, those who would risk their lives for Falun Gong, could not be transformed at all and it would be a waste of time to try. This "expert" diagnosed me, saying, "I think you belong to this group."
At the end of April, my wife and parents traveled a thousand miles to Shanghai's Dafeng Farm to see me, but were turned away. Next day, in the afternoon, my family strongly requested to see me. My mother said in tears, "I will die here if you don't allow me to see my son." The police were afraid and promised to allow them to see me the next day. The next day while I was doing "military training" I was called out. The police wanted to make me yield through sentimentality. They even prepared a video recording for this family visit. During the interview, out of fear, my parents tried to persuade me to say I would give up Falun Gong. At one point, my mother even knelt down in front of me. I immediately knelt down as well and pulled my mother up, to stand. I reasoned with my mother. Because of my steadfastness to the Fa, I defeated the police's scheme again.
In the middle of May I was moved out of the "newcomers group." I was forced to do physical labor, such as farming, making letter covers, and making dog collars. I was not allowed to be with other practitioners and was watched by three or four prisoners. The special team was a very evil place. All the practitioners in this labor camp were gathered here, and they suffered from brutal torture and brainwashing by prisoners, especially during the early period. Three or four prisoners monitored one practitioner in a less than 15 square meter room. Behind close doors they threatened, deceived, beat and brainwashed the practitioners. Some police officers from the group of newcomers are team leader Hong, team leader Wang, team leader Xia and team leader Shi.
In July I was sent to the West Group team. There were about ten people in one room and only a few prisoners in it. The police wanted to brainwash me through those who had been brainwashed before. During a conversation I found this out. Many people were brainwashed because they couldn't endure the brutal physical and mental torture, plus they were not firm enough in their understanding of the Fa to see through the essence of the evil persecution. They were confused or had "enlightened" on an evil path.
Standing firmly on the Fa and truly believing Dafa and Master, I shared my understandings with them from the principles of the Fa, the rule of law, and the righteous principles of the human world. With other steadfast practitioners, together we did a lot of work to help those people. Three months later, many people from different rooms announced sternly to the police that everything they wrote during brainwashing or under pressure was invalid. The police were anxious to try to find out the reason and switched people around frequently. On October 29, the East Group for newcomers and the West Group were combined into one. Since I was regarded as the one who seriously "influenced" other practitioners, I was sent to the No.2 Team, a regular team for prisoners.
After October 29, I was forced to do long periods of slave labor along with prisoners. I got up at 4:30 a.m. and worked until 7:00 or 9:00 p.m. on alternate days. I worked for 12 to 15 hours a day making soccer balls and volleyballs. I was told they would be exported. Most of the products we make at "Two Labor Camps" in China are mostly handmade for export purposes. It is very hard work to make soccer balls. Oftentimes I accidentally stabbed my hands with the needle and awl. The skin on my fingers broke from constantly rubbing against the rope, and after a while, my fingers became deformed and a thick layer of calluses developed.
I went to sleep at around 9:30 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. I was so exhausted every day that I fell asleep as soon as I hit the bed. The next day I was sore all over and could hardly move. Our group leader beat and kicked prisoners who couldn't make the balls, and he beat them with wood planks until their buttocks were badly injured. The group leader claimed, "This is hell right here." They never corrected prisoners who made mistakes, but only treated them with violence. Many prisoners' only hope was to get out alive. At the labor camp, three to four prisoners monitored me every day, and one of them recorded everything I said and did, and he reported to the guards periodically to win their favor. With determined faith in Dafa, I used righteous thoughts and righteous actions to clarify the truth to the group leaders and prisoners on all possible occasions and taught them to be good. Many group leaders and prisoners gradually realized the great compassion and tolerance of Falun Dafa, and they clearly saw the evil of the persecution.
In March 2002, labor camps in Shanghai transferred all male Falun Gong practitioners from Dafeng to No. 4 Labor Camp, also called the Qingdong Farm, located in suburban Shanghai. Many determined practitioners, including myself, were separated from other practitioners and sent to other teams. I was sent to Team Two to wash light bulbs. I had to work without pay around ten hours a day, and three prisoners monitored me.
In May 2002, I was sent back to Team Four, which specializes in persecuting Dafa practitioners, because I was near the end of my term. I saw that the environment had changed. Most of the practitioners who went astray had returned to Dafa. Because there were now fewer people who turned against Dafa, the guards were afraid of us and separated determined practitioners from the others. The two groups were not allowed to talk to each other.
Many Dafa practitioners had memorized Dafa scriptures and we recited them for each other. Almost every Dafa practitioner could recite Hong Yin [a collection of Master's poems] and recent scriptures. We recited them several times every day and studied the Fa this way. We also used this opportunity of meeting the other group of practitioners who went astray during work and during a brief time at the bathroom to help them. Successively, many people wrote solemn announcements and declared their statements to be void.
In the last few months, Dafa practitioners have actively studied the Fa, promoted the Fa and clarified the truth, and many prisoners learned about the truth about Dafa. At the same time, we didn't cooperate with the police and reasoned with them. During the later period, the guards also realized that the majority of Dafa practitioners would never betray their faith. Because of our joint protest effort, the guards loosened their control and our environment was effectively improved.
In late December 2002, I walked out of the No. 4 Labor Camp, Qinggong Farm in a dignified and upright manner. After I was released, the authorities from the Sanqiao Police Department in the Pudong New Area refused to restore my identification and only gave me a temporary, three-month ID, which expired recently. Right now, I can't take a plane, withdraw money from the bank or do anything that requires the use of an ID.
Related departments that participated in this persecution:
Division Four of No. 4 Labor Camp in Shanghai: Gu, division head; Hong, group leader; Chen(g), instructor, Sun Jianguo, deputy group leader. Cell phone: 86-139-17671790
Huang Hao: police at Jiangjing Police Bureau in Pudong New Area, Shanghai
Address: Bldg 10, No 800 Lushan Building, East Lushan Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai; member of "610 Office" of Pudong New Area;
Phone number: 86-58990990-47157 (office), page: 86-63238238-90383
Cheng Siqi, head of Gaoqiao Police Bureau, Pudong New Areat, Shanghai.
Address: No 18, 21 St, Tongyuan Road, Gaoqiao, Pudong New Area, Shanghai
Phone number: 86-21-58674953 (office), 86-21- 58671020 (switchboard)
(Clearwisdom.net)
On March 13, the police in Shulan City, Jilin Province broke into many practitioners' homes, arrested them illegally, and ransacked their homes.
Practitioners who are now known to be jailed in the Heizuizi Female Labor Camp in Changchun City, Jilin Province include: Ma Lan, Zhang Yuezhi, Guo Lijuan, Shao Guirong, Chen Yafen, Fan Guolan, Qu Zhimin, Xu Guiping, Meng Xianqin, Dong Haifen, Qu Xiumin, and Guan Changchun.
Practitioners who are jailed in Yinmahe Labor Camp in Jiutai City, Jilin Province include Zhao Yiguang and Chen Ji.
Practitioners Liu Dapeng and Liu Shuanghui (female) were illegally arrested on the night of September 20, 2002 in their rented house. The house was ransacked and lots of their equipment plus over twenty thousand Yuan were confiscated. The two were illegally detained and persecuted in the Jilin City First Detention Center for over half a year. In April 2003, they were illegally sentenced to eleven and eight years respectively in prison.
(Clearwisdom.net)
It's hard to imagine what one would think about just as one is unexpectedly faced with death; but the thought at that moment determines one's fate.
There is a story in Buddhism: in the past, a person named Gan Daduo committed all manner of crimes. One day while he was walking on a street, he saw that he was about to step on a spider. A kind thought came to him: "A spider is a small life, but why should I kill it?" So he stepped over the spider and avoided killing it.
Since he had done so many bad things, he fell into an endless hell when he died. While he was suffering, a silver thread from a spider fell down from the sky. Feeling as if he had found a boat after falling into the sea, he quickly climbed up the thread with his all strength to escape from the pains of hell. But as he was climbing, he looked down and saw many other sentient beings were also climbing up after him. He was afraid that the fine thread could not stand so much weight and would break, ruining his chance to escape. He kicked down all of the others one after another. But as he was kicking his companions, the spider thread broke, and Gan Daduo and all the sentient beings fell into hell again to suffer in endless misery.
His earlier kind thought had given Gan Daduo a chance to escape from hell; but his bad thought had drawn him back to hell to suffer again. It seems that one thought can determine one's fate. It all depends on whether that thought is good or evil.
Some people have said: The issue of Falun Gong has nothing to do with me. Perhaps when people are persecuted or even beaten to death, since it did not happen to you, you may feel that that the issue has nothing to do with you. But when you hear about what is happening to Falun Gong practitioners and that people are being tortured for no good reason, you will form an opinion, and that thought is yours, so it's related to you. Whether your thought is support for the innocent people, indifference, or hate and disgust for no reason, the kind or evil thought will bring about totally different outcomes for you. The following are a few true stories:
1. A Falun Gong practitioner told a girl she knew to remember that "Falun Dafa is good." Later, while this girl was working, she received a bad shock due to an electric short, which caused her to fall. But at that moment, she remembered what her friend had said and recited, "Falun Dafa is good" in her mind. The result was that she was not injured. Her boss was surprised and curious about how she had been spared from harm. The girl told her boss what she was thinking when the accident happened. Hearing the story, her boss said: "How miraculous Dafa is! I also want to learn it."
2. In Xinji city, Hebei Province, a villager drove his tractor to work. On his way he saw a "Falun Dafa is good" banner. He thought: "I can use the banner to clean my tractor." He grabbed the banner and continued on his way. As he drove, he noticed that the tractor was leaking oil from several places. Then, he realized that what he had done was wrong and deeply regretted his actions while holding the banner in his hand. The oil leaks stopped. Since he did not dare to hang the banner in the original place, he threw it in a place where there weren't any people. When he got back home, he found that the front axle of his tractor was broken. The other villagers knew that this was the result of his wrongdoing, and told the Dafa practitioners in the village his story. He promised he would not do anything harmful to Dafa again.
3. In October 2000, the plant manager of the boiler unit, my manager, and a technician together tested a newly purchased high-pressure boiler. Although the water was heated to 100o C (212o F), then to 110o C, and then to 120o C (248o F), the water was not returning to the boiler unit, as it should have. Suddenly, steam burst out of a two-inch-wide pipe, and the manager was standing right below it. He cried loudly, "This is the end of me!" A Falun Dafa practitioner at the scene told him, "I'm a Falun Dafa practitioner. If you believe in Dafa and trust what I say, just think that you'll be fine and you won't get burned." The manager yelled, "I believe!" Meanwhile, boiling water and hot steam poured down on his head, face, neck, and body. Even though he was soaked by the hot water, he was not burned. Those who witnessed this were shocked, including the plant manager of the boiler unit, the technician, and at least ten other factory staff.
Later, the manager held the practitioner's hands with great appreciation and said "Madam, once you started talking, I felt a great power, which made me believe. I could not deny it. As I was thinking 'I believe,' a cool current flowed from my head to my toes. Now I totally believe in Falun Gong! Falun Gong is really powerful!" He happily called in many staff from the work unit to tell them what happened to him. He asked the practitioner to teach everyone Falun Gong, and encouraged all of the employees to learn Falun Gong.
We hope that everyone in the world will remember: "Falun Dafa is good!" "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance is good." This one kind thought will bring people a good future.
(Clearwisdom.net)
Master said, "A wicked person is born of jealousy. Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself. A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion. With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy. An enlightened person has no attachments at all. He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions." ("Realms" from Essentials for Further Advancement) In the past, my understanding of jealousy was narrow-minded. I thought that jealousy is like what we usually call the "red-eye syndrome."1 I had not tried to understand jealousy more deeply based on the Fa. Recently, when disagreements occurred between fellow practitioners and me, I calmly thought through the disagreements and came to realize that jealousy is not limited to only one attachment; it includes many factors, and it is an assortment of things from a person's bad side.
If one is entangled in a conflict and cannot let go for a prolonged period, strictly speaking, he is behaving like a wicked person no matter what he has done or said, or if it is right or wrong. The reason that he keeps arguing and won't let go is because he attaches himself too strongly to the flawed reasoning or mistakes of others. Looking from another angle, isn't he attached to his own reasoning or being right? Isn't it obviously an attachment to "oneself"? How can one, if overly attached to his own things, avoid arguing angrily when in conflict? When arguing angrily he would surely feel unfairly treated. The feeling of unfairness would again intensify the conflict. At that moment if one could not rationally examine oneself, he would get even angrier, and to relieve the anger he may do bad things. Then, in this conflict, hasn't he behaved like a wicked person?
From a different perspective, why should one focus on other people's faults, shortcomings, or mistakes and not let go of it? Why shouldn't he look at others' strengths and where they are right, and appreciate these things? This is a telling reflection of one's realm. If one's mind is filled with other's faults, then it is just like a principle Master taught us, "A person is like a container, and he is whatever he contains." ("Melt Into the Fa", Essentials for Further Advancement) If all that is contained in one's mind are other people's faults, shortcomings, and mistakes, and these faults, shortcomings, and mistakes have penetrated the depths of his mind, then can he have a pure thought? If a living being can let go of others' faults, be magnanimous and tolerant, and from the bottom of his heart sincerely and benevolently accept others' strengths, he is then a great being. Isn't this the mentality that we should have as a Dafa practitioner?
As for jealousy, I think it is not simply a question of whether we can get rid of it. If we judge and deal with things using a jealous mentality, we are seriously limiting ourselves from achieving further and higher understandings, and preventing ourselves from fundamentally changing this bad state of mind. Furthermore, if one tightly catches other's faults and does not let go, where can his Shan2 come from? "Shan is the manifestation of the nature of the universe at different levels and in different dimensions. It is also the fundamental nature of Great Enlightened Beings." ("A Brief Explanation of Shan," Falun Dafa Essentials for Further Advancement) If one is cultivating Shan, shouldn't he first have a magnanimous and tolerant mentality when judging things?
Master talked many times about achieving "benevolent solutions" to the things when teaching the Fa. He taught us to have "the benevolence that can melt steel." ("Explaining the Fa During the 2003 Lantern Festival at the U.S. West Fa Conference") My understanding is that this is also a requirement set by Master for a Dafa practitioner's state of mind when facing conflicts. "A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion. With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy." ("Realms," Falun Dafa Essentials for Further Advancement) I understand that resentment also arises from jealousy. If one has too much resentment, how can he understand the cultivation state of "takes hardship as joy"! Now I understand that, in the current Fa-rectification period, especially when in conflict with fellow practitioners, limiting oneself only to finding and discarding individual attachments is far from enough. We are required to use a benevolent person's mind to deal with the conflict, recognize the root of the conflict and resolve the conflict with the wisdom of an enlightened being. This is perhaps to break the old forces' arrangement in the process of elevating our realms.
This is my personal understanding, please benevolently point out anything inappropriate. Let us encourage each other with Master's poem.
Realms
"A wicked person is born of jealousy.
Out of selfishness and anger he complains about unfairness towards himself.
A benevolent person always has a heart of compassion.
With no discontentment or hatred, he takes hardship as joy.
An enlightened person has no attachments at all.
He quietly observes the people of the world deluded by illusions."
1
2
(Clearwisdom.net April 22, 2003)
I started my cultivation after the persecution of Falun Dafa began in July of 1999. At that time, I had seen the persecution campaign's massive reach. However, the Falun Gong practitioners continued to face the danger of being caught and beaten and still went to Beijing to validate Dafa. I could not understand it. With these doubts and misunderstandings, I started to get in touch with Falun Gong practitioners. I found that they were indeed different from other people. They were so broad-minded and generous, and judged everything according to the standard of "Truthfulness, Benevolence, Forbearance." They were indeed a group of kind people. So, I asked them what was written in Zhuan Falun because I had not read the book. They told me sincerely that this book taught the people the principle of being good and how to raise the moral standard of today's society. I was shocked after I heard this because I had been deceived by the authorities. I thought that it made sense that the book tells people how to be good. Nowadays there are too few good people in the society. So I said, "I also want to read this book."
As soon as I started to read Zhuan Falun, I began to feel that this was not an ordinary book. I read it four times from cover to cover. I was so delighted with it that I could hardly bear to put it down; I feared that it was too late for me to read it. I understood the unsolved mystery of my whole life and changed my outlook on life. Also, my diseases have gradually disappeared. I can do some farm work easily now, which I could not do before. I feel so light while walking, just as Master has mentioned in the book. My family could not understand me at the beginning. After they had seen my body's changes, they started to support me in the practice. I used to be at odds with my husband. Ever since I started my cultivation, I do not quarrel with him anymore; my family has become harmonious.
However, after 2002, the situation with the persecution has become more severe. Practitioners are often caught, beaten and sent to labor camps. So, I decided to write down my own cultivation experience to appeal to all kind people to stand up against this persecution.
April 27, 2003
(Clearwisdom.net)
Upon entering her house, a Dafa practitioner found 5 or 6 policemen waiting for her. These policemen were trying to take away Teacher's picture and her Dafa books. She immediately stood in front of them and shouted, "Stop! I will defend Teacher and Dafa with my life!" The policemen were shocked by her righteous behavior. However, they still tried to take back a few Dafa books to please their boss. The practitioner immediately sat on the floor and sent forth righteous thoughts. The policemen stopped right away, and the leader said, "Let's go!" Since then, no more police have dared to enter this practitioner's home.
April 22, 2003
(Clearwisdom.net)
Editor's note: The following article is written by a non-Falun Dafa practitioner and may not represent the understanding of Falun Dafa practitioners
The 93rd Guangzhou Fair opened in Guangzhou on April 15th and will close on April 30th. SARS cast a shadow over the fair like a dark cloud. However, the Chinese media, controlled by authorities, put a positive spin on the reports. They spread a large amount of good news about the fair and tried hard to create a secure and prosperous scene.
Before the opening, the fair's spokesman claimed that 48 commercial groups and 9,128 companies in total would attend this fair, the largest number of attendees on record. The spokesman also claimed that applications were still coming in from foreign companies the day before the fair. On opening day, the local media reported "the Guangzhou Fair is booming; domestic and foreign businessman are arriving in an endless stream."
However, during the first two days the fair only reached an export volume of USD 334 million, much lower than previous fairs. It was even lower than the 90th Guangzhou Fair, held right after the events of "9/11", which reached 13.2 billion in the first two days.
As the fair continues, the situation has gotten worse. Lacking anything to report, the local media, especially the Guangzhou media, began to gloss over coverage of the fair.
In fact, contrary to official media reports, the fair has lost business because of the SARS epidemic. Few people attended the exhibition complex. There were even some booths that nobody visited, where the attendants took a nap. The hotels nearby were also under-booked. The situation was unprecedented. Compared with the last fair, the number of clients has been down by 90%.
In order to save face, the authorities ordered all executives of state-run companies to bring their groups to attend the Guangzhou Fair. The Guangzhou authorities also requested local executives to attend the fair to support it. As a result, people at the fair served their own people, who didn't come to do business at all. These measures used by the Chinese authorities not only infringed upon the rights of domestic companies but also openly discriminated against fellow Chinese. Disregarding the obvious danger of exposure to SARS, they put the lives of these businessmen at risk. As we all know, Guangzhou is the place where SARS originated and is heavily affected by it.
As a result of the Chinese officials' habitual lies, SARS not only spread rapidly across China but also brought the disaster to the rest of the world. Regarding the extent of harm to the economy as well as international tourism and the airlines, the impact has been in some ways worse than the events of "9/11." The international organizations and media, including the World Health Organization, have firmly criticized and condemned the Chinese Government's deliberate efforts to conceal information. As a result of tremendous international pressure, the Minister of Health Zhang Wenkang and the Mayor of Beijing Meng Xuenong were removed from their positions.
However, the machine that creates the lies and conceals the truth was not touched at all. This tells us how necessary and urgent it is to rule the country by law instead of one person's will.
In the past, when the international society criticized the bad practices of the Chinese Government, the Chinese Government would defend itself and respond by claiming, "Don't interfere with another country's domestic affairs." Now, since the "domestically produced" SARS resulted in an international panic, people can't help asking: "Is the Chinese system a domestic problem or a problem facing the whole world?"
(Clearwisdom.net)
Editor's note: The following article is written by a non-Falun Dafa practitioner and may not represent the understanding of Falun Dafa practitioners
As an ancient Chinese saying goes, human life is of paramount concern, which is common sense shared by all human beings. For a responsible government, when an epidemic that shocks the whole society happens during its reign, there is no reason why it should not treat it as a priority. As for the media who is responsible for providing truthful information to the public, in the face of an epidemic of such a multitude, there is no reason why they should not put the news on the headlines and continue reporting on it as the situation develops. There is absolutely no reason that they should hide the truth from the public. The experience of civilized societies has indicated that timely, accurately, and objectively providing information to the public is a social responsibility of the government and media. The truth will put an end to rumors and panic, and it will also make it easier to contain and control the epidemic.
As usual, whenever things like this happen, because the black box in which the one-party politics operates, the authorities first think about their self-interest and their power, instead of human life. Naturally, whenever an epidemic situation or incidents involving casualties happen, no matter what the party line is, no matter what the leaders say or do to show their utmost concern for the people, the purpose is to minimize the negative impact on the party power. Take the following incidents for example, the explosion at Fanlin Village Primary School, the Shijiazhuang City Explosion, the Nanjing Tangshan Township food poisoning incident, a series of disastrous mine explosions and the incident in Haicheng City where 3000 students suffered from poisoning, the victims of the these incidents were sacrificed for the party's power. All these incidents are results of party power supremacy. The Chinese government cannot shirk its responsibilities to the world for the spread of SARS. It only shows, once again, the barbaric nature of a dictator who disregards human lives -- not just lives of the citizens of its own country, but also those of other countries.
SARS broke out in November 2002, when the 16th Party Congress opened its sessions. The party covered up the epidemic out of self-interest. In February 2003, some information was made public, but the media was silenced soon after, apparently in preparation for the upcoming 10th "Two Conferences" [The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and the National People's Congress]. The first SARS case in Beijing was found on March 1, but the information was hidden for the same reason. In early April, after the Ministry of Health publicized the epidemic situation, the central government issued directives requiring local governments to discourage the public from wearing masks. All work units in Beijing have received such directives that disregard public safety. The Xinhua News Agency even published an article saying that wearing masks had a negative impact on one's health. In Guangzhou where SARS originated, the municipal government forcibly forbade its citizens from wearing a mask in preparations for the coming of WHO officials. At the same time, the government not only did not cancel the Guangzhou Trade Fair, but also went on a blitz to promote the fact that it was safe to come to China and sent out a group of officials to invite investment all over China.
Before the pathogen of SARS is identified, no country can say that they have effectively contained the disease. Only officials from the Chinese Ministry of Health can shamelessly declare that "Everything is normal in Beijing and Guangdong. SARS has been under control and it is very safe for foreigners to visit China." The Chinese media even used the visit of WHO officials to promote the country, quoting the officials' praises of Guangzhou being "lovely and attractive" and their affirmation of the Chinese government's efforts in containing and controlling SARS, without mentioning the questioning and criticism by WHO about their handling of SARS. The most outrageous high-ranking official was Long Yongtu, who was quoted as saying that "if 500,000 people out of 6,000,000 got sick, I think it is reasonable to panic. But now only 300 people got sick. If Hong Kong reports the disease like this, who would come to Hong Kong?" To Hong Kong people who had enjoyed freedom, they value each individual instead of only seeing the overall economics of Hong Kong, and they are more concerned about health and life. Only officials bred out of a cold-blooded dictatorship can see economics, investment, and their own power as more important than human life. In comparison, the United States allowed 600 reporters to cover the war in Iraq, in which much national interest was at stake, and opened themselves up to potential criticism and judgments of media and governments around the world, as well as their own media in the USA. It indicates confidence, accountability and compassion on the part of the government. The Chinese government's cover-up and rejections of criticism can only demonstrate its weakness and its inhumane nature. It proves itself to be not only a threat to the safety of its citizens, but also to the international community.
(Clearwisdom.net)
[Shenyang City, Liaoning Province] Personnel at the Masanjia Forced Labor Camp Brutally Torture Dafa Practitioners Jiang Jie and Sun Qingyan
From 1999 to 2000, while Dafa practitioner Ms. Jiang Jie from Fushun City and practitioner Ms. Sun Qingyan from Chaoyang City were detained at the No.2 Women's Camp in Liaoning Province's Masanjia Forced Labor Camp, guards instigated four prisoners to tie the practitioners' arms and legs to the side of their bodies to form a straight line and kicked their private areas very hard. They also tried to force the practitioners to curse Master Li.
Those who participated in the persecution:
Criminals: Yang Jihong, Feng Lin, Mi Chunxia
Executive police officers: Lu Yueqin and Shao Li (team leader of the No.2 Team)
[Chongzhou City, Sichuan Province] "610 Office" Personnel Arrest Over Thirty Dafa Practitioners
In April 2003, personnel from Chongzhou City "610 Office"* forcibly arrested over 30 Dafa practitioners and detained them at the Nanjieyuan County Hostel for torture. The practitioners are not allowed to sleep six days a week. Those who fell asleep were sprayed with cold water from a high-pressure hose.
[Shenyang City, Liaoning Province] Officials from the Liaoning Provincial Rail Transportation Department of the Tiefa Coal Group Persecute Dafa Practitioners
Director Zhang Mingyuan and Party committee director Liu Tiejun from the Liaoning Provincial Rail Transportation Department of the Tiefa Coal Group made up some internal rules. Rule No.8 stipulates that whoever persists in practicing Falun Gong will not get a raise in salary. The rules are to be carried out in the eight coals mines affiliated with the department. Zhang Xiu, Party committee director from the Xiaoming Coal Mine and another party committee director whose name is unknown from the Daxing Coal Mine are the two responsible for persecuting practitioners. They refused to give raises to Dafa practitioners and in certain cases fired the practitioners from their jobs.
Telephone: 86-410-6826742
Fax: 86-410-6805313
* The 610 Office is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.
(Clearwisdom.net) A "solemn declaration" is a person's public statement declaring to the world that whatever he or she has done or said under duress or deception that was against Falun Dafa is null and void. Most of these statements have come from Falun Dafa practitioners in China who wished to express regret that, in the face of physical torture and brainwashing, they had signed documents renouncing Dafa and guaranteeing not to practice again. Also, as more and more people in China learn the truth about how they have been deceived and lied to by the Jiang regime, many non-practitioners are also submitting "solemn declarations."
Here are some examples of the Solemn Declarations:
Please click here for more Solemn Declarations.
Please click here for more Solemn Declarations.
April 21, 2003
(Clearwisdom.Net)
Editors' Note: In both Western and Chinese culture, the principle of karmic retribution, that is, being held ultimately accountable for one's own actions, is widely accepted. The fundamental teaching of Falun Gong is the characteristic of the universe, "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance." The universe will reward actions that are in harmony with this principle, while actions such as beating, torturing and murdering people will incur karmic retribution. Stated another way, good deeds will be rewarded with good, while evildoings will meet due retribution. Articles such as this one are meant as a compassionateáreminder of this principle to those who would commit wrongdoing. While many of those who persecute Falun Gong are merely "following orders," the universal law requires that they, too, be held responsible for their actions, and that only by reversing their course of wrongdoing may they escape retribution.
Chao Hongbao, male, is the chief of Political Security Section of Zhaoyuan City Public Security Bureau. Regardless of the fact that several of his family members practiced Falun Gong and benefited a lot from their cultivation practice, he still participated in the brutal persecution of Falun Gong. He even sent his father to a brainwashing center at a forced labor camp. Now, even in his youth, he is suffering from diabetes.
Wang Shushen, male, has been the vice chief of Dongzhuang Police Station of Xiadian Public Security Sub-Bureau of Zhaoyuan City. He has actively participated in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. He is currently serving a 6-and-a-half year prison sentence for accepting bribes, misappropriating public funds, and illegally searching personal property.
(Clearwisdom.net -- May 4) The community parade in the city of
Mountainview near San Francisco is a festive annual celebration. The 26th
annual parade took place on April 26, and Falun Gong practitioners participated for the fourth consecutive year.
As part of the parade procession, the Dafa practitioners' yellow practice clothes and "Falun Dafa is Good", "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" banners attracted the attention of the spectators. When they passed in front of the stage, the practitioners demonstrated the Dafa exercises. Their demonstration won warm applause from spectators and drew the attention of the local TV stations' cameras. The host briefly introduced Falun Dafa, and praised the serenity and peacefulness of the exercises.
(Clearwisdom.net -- May 4)
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(Clearwisdom.net)
Practitioners Exchange Insights
The following is an excerpt from the article "A Cultivation Experience in Facing Evil Interference."
One practitioner with his third eye opened was interfered with for a long time. We read Zhuan Falun out loud while surrounding him. This was followed by discussion, in which we helped him analyze the situation and look inward. This young man has become more and more clearheaded, and his cultivation status has greatly improved. He used to be very introverted, but he became more and more willing to exchange insights with us, and eventually opened up completely with us. He told us that he used to think things were complicated when he got involved in them, but after he studied the Fa, shared experiences with us, and found his attachments, the interference was eliminated. After only several hours, this young man had become a different person from the one that had arrived. We saw light shining in his eyes, reflecting his firm belief in Dafa. We understood through this experience the importance of Dafa disciples exchanging insights. We should firmly believe in Master, especially amidst tribulations. Every thought of ours must conform to Dafa.
Righteous Thoughts and Righteous Actions
The following is an excerpt from the article "My Experience of Going to Beijing to Safe-guard Dafa."
In November 2000, police often harassed me. One day my family member said to me, "Instead of hiding somewhere all day, why not going to Beijing to validate the Fa?" My family has always been against my cultivation, but they actually said this to me that day. I realized that I should go to Beijing a second time. I shouted, "Falun Dafa is great!" on Tiananmen Square, while running with a banner held high in my hand. My fellow practitioner Xiao Yu and I were locked in the detention center. We refused to tell them our names or addresses, and we went on hunger strike without water to protest. The police force-fed us a highly concentrated salt solution, and the prisoners poured cold water on us. But we put down any thought of fearing the cold, and we did not feel cold anymore -- instead we felt warm. Xiao Yu passed out during a force-feeding session. The police poured hot water on his eyes, but he still did not move one bit. The police were frightened and sent him to the hospital. On the morning of our ninth day there, the police sent both of us home.
Facts of the Persecution
Falun Dafa practitioners Cao Yingbin, Li Ru, Li Rumiao, and Ma Shaoru from Xinji City, Hebei Province were arrested by the township "610 Office" [an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems]. Falun Dafa practitioners Wu Congfen and Guo Min from Jinzhou City, Hebei Province were also arrested.
