Sent to a Labor Camp and Tortured for Appealing in Beijing, A New Practitioner Regains His Freedom with Determined Righteous Thoughts (Part 1)

(Clearwisdom.net)

1. Discovering Falun Dafa

I am 34 years old and from Northeastern China. In September 2001, I read Minghui [Chinese version of Clearwisdom.net] in a relative's home and I was shocked to learn that Falun Dafa practitioners were tortured to the point of disability and even to death for their persistence in cultivating themselves according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance. Such cruel persecution was happening all around me, but I had not known anything about it! I was greatly moved by the Dafa practitioners' immense compassion and forbearance and by their spirit of sticking to their faith! As one of all living beings, I felt that I, too, have the responsibility to safeguard the universal principle. I was deeply attracted to the profundity and magnificence of Falun Dafa, so I began the journey of cultivation practice in Falun Dafa. I eagerly read Zhuan Falun. It seemed like every word Master said struck my heart like a heavy hammer, helping me understand the significance of being human. My soul was cleansed and lifted up.

2. Going to Beijing to validate the Fa

Becoming a Dafa disciple, I realized that I ought to help Master rectify the Fa. On November 24, 2001, my birthday, I went to Tiananmen Square. I unfurled a banner reading "Falun Dafa Is Great" and loudly shouted "Falun Dafa Is Great." My heart was filled with peace and serenity, and I felt that Master was right beside me. The police crammed me into a police vehicle and I was not even in a bit of a flurry. I felt that I was re-born that day.

3. Eliminating the evil in the detention center

Me included, there were over twenty Dafa practitioners who were arrested and detained in the Tiananmen Square Police Station. All of us refused to tell the police our names. We were then transferred to Being's Xicheng Detention Center. Prior to our arrival, already more than a dozen Dafa practitioners had been detained there, making it a total of over 40 of us.

Two other practitioners and I were assigned to Cell 106, joining two more practitioners who had been arrested two days ago. One of the two, Xiao Mei had been arrested nine times in other places. Each time she had walked with dignity out of a detention center by means of a hunger strike. She told me her experience of validating the Fa and the stories of many other practitioners who walked out with the power of their righteous thoughts. She also helped me much in understanding the Fa. Ms. Mei was on a hunger strike to protest her illegal arrest. I thought that it was a special honor for me to be able to validate Dafa here, in the most evil place, and that it was also a good time to eliminate the evil. I must use this opportunity well. I decided then to protest the arrest through means of a hunger strike.

Very late in the night I was taken for interrogation. The police officer ordered me to tell him my name and I refused. He asked me why I had come to Beijing. I told him "Because Dafa is good, I want to let more people and the government know more about Dafa and hope that more people can benefit from Dafa, including you." He continued, "How many years you have practiced?" I told him, "Having heard the Dao in the morning, one can die in the evening." ("Melt into the Fa" Essential for Further Advancement)

Seeing he could not get anything from me, he slapped me once, which made me feel burning pain on my face and made my ears ring. I had already made up my mind then that I would not give in, no matter what would happen. When he continued to beat me, I no longer felt pain. I knew that Master was bearing it for me. I felt bad, and wondered how a vicious scoundrel could be qualified to beat Dafa practitioners. Once I had this thought, he immediately stopped beating me. He changed his tactics. He sat in front of me and made me look into his eyes, trying to use a tactic of psychological domination to break my will. I stared at him squarely and sent forth righteous thoughts. After he and I stared at each other for over ten minutes, he dared not to stare directly at me anymore. Master has said, "Disciples' righteous thoughts are powerful." Then I started to use my thoughts to command that policeman's mind that he would do whatever I wanted him to do. At the same time I also eliminated the evil elements controlling him. I clarified the truth to him and tried to awaken his conscience and make him stop persecuting Dafa. Later I learned that he had stopped this interrogation work. For the first time I felt the power of righteous thoughts. Because of this interrogation experience, I had strengthened my confidence that I could walk out of the place by using a hunger strike.

We were dragged out daily for force-feeding or intravenous infusion. More than twenty Dafa practitioners were on a hunger strike. We studied and recited the Fa together and shared our understandings every day. With the help of fellow practitioners, I could recite "Lunyu," [preface of Zhuan Falun] "Position," "Dafa Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful," "Fa-Rectification Period Dafa Disciples," "Dafa is Indestructible," "Path," [ all from Essential for Further Advancement II]and Hong Yin [Master's poems], and some other of Master's articles. My xinxing [mind or heart nature, moral character] was being quickly upgraded. We held to this way of doing things for over two weeks. The head of the detention center clamored, "The communist party has enough money. If you keep on a hunger strike, we will keep administering force-feeding. Let's see who will prevail." These words jolted me into awareness and made me realize we could not keep enduring passively any longer. Master said, "No matter what the situation, do not cooperate with the evil's demands, orders, or what it instigates." ("Disciples' Righteous Thoughts are Powerful," Essential for Further Advancement II)

The next day, we resisted the force-feeding together. The detention center mobilized the camp's total police force, and also called in many armed policemen to suppress us. They kept dragging, pushing, kicking, and beating us. One policeman in particular bent our fingers toward the back of our hands. They dragged me onto the force-feeding bed and more than a dozen people violently held down my head, hands and feet. A lot of blood came out of my nose. My hair was pulled out in bundles. This way, they put me and others each on a metal bed in the shape of a cross.

We all realized that the torture would become aggravated during subsequent force-feeding and we would even face the risk of losing our lives. We had not given in after several days. The police aggravated their abuse and mistreatment. In the daytime we were physically tortured, while in the night, they constantly interrogated us. The Beijing "610 Office" persecutors [an agency specifically created on June 10, 1999 to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems] also sent a group of collaborators [Former Falun Gong practitioners who have gone astray due to brainwashing and torture] to try and brainwash us.

They tied up our hands and feet together the whole night, and also slandered Master and Dafa and also quoted Master's Fa out of context and attempted to derail our thinking. However, seeing what they had done, we strengthened our faith in Master even more. We were determined to be qualified Dafa practitioners and protect the dignity of Dafa. Some practitioners, having been deceived, told their names and were later sentenced to forced labor. Some were taken away by their local police stations. Some could not endure the hunger strike anymore and started to eat. The number of practitioners on hunger strike was decreasing daily, and our bodies also became weaker and weaker. Several practitioners had swollen and sore throats and an inflamed esophagus. They suffered from long-term high fever. Other practitioners had stomach bleeding. Some had very low blood sugar levels. Several fainted from the low blood pressure. Even under such circumstances, the police ordered other inmates to torture us, using means such as pouring cold water on us, forcing us to scrub the floor, various corporal punishments, and humiliating us with foul language.

As our bodies became weaker, the detention center officials became afraid. They checked our bodies each day, doing blood tests. When they could not draw blood from the vein, they would draw blood from main artery of the thigh. It was extremely painful when they drew blood from the main artery, like having a cramp. They sent several practitioners whose test results were not good to the police hospital for "treatment," but the detention center got them back in a few days. They became extremely weak and skinny from these "treatments." The detention center supervisors were afraid that they might die there and would not accept the responsibility. One dark night, they secretly released them. Xiao Mei was among those released at this time.

There were then only five of us left. The enforcers became more aggressive and fearless in abusing and tormenting us. Xie, one of the leaders, said he felt like a veterinarian. He often dragged us out of the supervision room by our hair, tied up us to a force-feeding bed and personally inserted the tube. One day, they failed more than ten times trying to insert the tube into me. Several people held my hands and feet; others pulled my hair and pushed on my head and chin. They pinched all the acupoints on my four limbs and I could not make any move. A tube was once again inserted. I felt my throat was blocked and the darkness covered my eyes. I was clear that danger was coming upon me. I widely opened my eyes and yelled as hard as I could. Since I could not move my body, my chin was pushed down so I could only utter "oh, oh." They continued to viciously insert the tube further into me. In this darkness I felt my life was leaving me. "To live with no pursuits, To die with no regrets; All excessive thoughts extinguished, Cultivating Buddhahood is not difficult."("Non-existence") What should I be afraid of? If I had to die, then let me die! However, I suddenly realized that I am a Dafa disciple, and how could I allow these few evil clowns to do away with me? They do not have the power. As I thought of this, they immediately unhanded me. I knew merciful Master once again protected me and that my renewed life was for taking part in the Fa-rectification.

The next day they once again dragged me to the force-feeding bed when my physical condition was extremely weak. The head of the detention center came over to persuade me by saying, "If you eat we will release you." I said, "If I were the only person left, I would hold to the end of my hunger strike and would not cooperate with you."

The prelude of the first day began. The detention center evildoers could not figure out what to do with us. They then made a dirty deal with Tuanhe Forced Labor Camp and sent us there for brainwashing. It was said that they would pay 10,000 Yuan for each reformed person. I heard "almost 100% of the practitioners who were sent to Tuanhe were reformed. It was called a gigantic evildoers' cave." Each aggravated deed under this persecution further fortified my belief in Master. I quietly made up my mind that I would break this 100% probability, eliminate the evil in other dimension that is behind all this and firmly safeguard Dafa's dignity.

(To be continued)
Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/2/8/66890.html

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