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Bringing Jiang and His Accomplices to Justice
Facts of the Persecution
Voices of Justice
People's Hearts Determine Their Future
Open Forum
Practitioners Exchange Experiences and Insights
News and Events from Around the World
News from China
(Clearwisdom.net) On May 27, 2004, the U.S. Federal Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago will be the site for the court debate regarding the lawsuit against Jiang Zemin. This lawsuit against the head perpetrator of the persecution of Falun Gong and former Chinese president Jiang Zemin is receiving more and more attention from the international community and the general public.
Minghui correspondent Gu Anru interviewed Mr. Yang Sen, a representative for the U.S. Falun Dafa Association, Ms. Han Shuhui, a representative for the plaintiff attorney's team and Mr. He Haiying, a representative for the Global Coalition to Bring Jiang to Justice.
Correspondent: At the beginning, people had doubts about this lawsuit. Why? Over a year ago, when answering reporter's question, the plaintiffs' attorney Terri Marsh had said, "The goal of this lawsuit is to stop Jiang Zemin group's persecution of Falun Gong, to remind the world through the U.S. legal system that the crime of genocide is taking place in China, and at the same time encourage more people to help end this persecution through non-legal channels." [Paraphrase]
With Falun Gong practitioners' efforts in truth clarification over the past year, people's doubts have been gradually replaced by concerns and attention. They want to know the nature and progress of the lawsuit, the court discussions as well as the impact of this lawsuit. Should we first introduce the background information pertaining to this lawsuit?
Yang Sen: Of course. In October 2002, Jiang paid a private visit to Chicago, U.S.A. On October 18, Falun Gong practitioners filed a class-action lawsuit with U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois in Chicago, charging Jiang with torture, crimes against humanity and genocide.
Around 4:00 p.m. on October 22, the complaint was filed under seal and the defendants were served by alternate service by security agents designated by the courts as appropriate substitutes for personal service. In the subsequent several months, Court Summons were mailed via registered letter several times to Zhongnanhai. Jiang Zemin's office had repeatedly given their signatures and received the legal documents.
On January 13, 2003, the court held the first meeting for the lawsuit. The attoney and the judge determined the time for the next hearing in this case.
Around 2 p.m. April 14, 2003, plaintiffs' attorney Terri Marsh responded to the issues posed at the preliminary hearing on January 13, 2003, in order to assure that the statements conform to standards required by the state of Illinois. Because Jiang stepped down as president of China on March 15, 2003, he was no longer a head of state by the time the filing of documents with court was officially completed.
On June 10, 2003, a brief co-signed by 39 members from the U.S. Congress as a friend of the court, known as amicus curiae, was submitted to the Federal Court for the Northern District of Illinois to express the congressional members' support for the lawsuit against Jiang. Regarding whether the defendant enjoys immunity as the head of a country, the documents stressed that the basic principle to establish the immunity for Heads of State is that such an immunity appeal should not again be solved through diplomatic approach under the strong political pressure, instead, it should be solved by the court based on the legal standards.
On September 12, 2003, based on a technicality, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed the lawsuit, citing immunity for heads of state. At that time, Jiang was no longer a head of state. The judge, though, acknowledged some of the plaintiff's arguments as being valid.
Correspondent: according to my understanding, the judge's dismissal is only a technicality and does not exonerate the defendant, right?
Yang Sen: That is correct. Regarding the conclusion from the court, on September 15, 2003, the plaintiffs' lawyer Terri Marsh and a group of Falun Gong practitioners held a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., stating that they are planning to file a Motion for Reconsideration with the District Court and an Appeal with the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals.
On January 19, 2004, plaintiffs filed an appellate brief with the U.S. 7th Circuit Court, arguing that anyone, whether they are a current or former head of state, must abide by the rule of law and cannot be above the law. The brief pointed out that if the plaintiffs' complaints are verified; the defendant violated the basic principles of international law and committed genocide and torture. In addition, the brief also pointed out that according to the spirit of the genocide and torture treaties that the U.S. has signed, Jiang Zemin, who left the position of the Chinese President on March 15, 2003, no longer enjoys any immunity.
On March 5, 2004, in consideration of the complicated mutual interests between countries, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an amicus brief to reply to the brief filed by plaintiffs' attorney on January 19, and presented arguments about the immunity and the process of service.
On March 19, 2004, the plaintiffs filed a reply to the Department of Justice brief. In addition to the points raised in the January 19 brief, a summary about the validity of the legal process was also added.
Until now, the collection of materials have been finished by both sides, on May 27, 2004, oral arguments will be heard in the 7th Circuit Court.
Correspondent: I heard the May 27 oral argument is an opportunity to state and defend our cause after the legal procedure has begun. What do you think will happen during the court arguments?
Attorney Han Shuhui: This lawsuit is very important in U.S. legal circles. It is also very important in the international field of law, for lawyers and human rights. It has special historic significance. On May 20, the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin published a headline report on the pending court arguments, which shows the interest this case has generated.
It is predicted that three judges, the plaintiffs' lawyer and a lawyer representing the U.S. Department of Justice will be present. The plaintiffs' lawyer will state the legal cause and procedural issues; the U.S. Department of Justice lawyer will give his opinions on the legal procedures. During the approximately 40-minute argument, the three judges will ask questions of lawyers of both sides, who will respond to these specific questions.
Correspondent: what issues will this argument bring up?
Han Shuhui: since the lawsuit has officially begun, this court argument will mainly revolve around the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois' dismissal of the lawsuit due to immunity for heads of state; that part of the discussion will be an important part of the arguments.
The plaintiffs' lawyer will point out statutes pertaining to related international treaties and U.S. laws, that first, immunity for a head of state is temporary, limited and restricted in its range of application, and immunity does not mean the perpetrator will never receive just punishment. The U.S. government has signed a torture pact and genocide pact, both of which state the two crimes --torture and genocide - ought to be punished. If a head of state commits genocide and torture during his term in office, he must take full responsibility for his crimes after he steps down. Therefore, since Jiang left the position of Chinese president on March 15, 2003, he no longer qualifies for immunity granted to heads of state.
Second, Jiang single-handedly directed the persecution against Falun Gong and its practitioners and manipulated the whole government with his power. All that he did during the persecution was a violation of international laws and a violation of Chinese laws. They were Jiang's personal actions and decisions, which do not represent the government. Therefore Jiang is not protected by immunity for non-official and non-governmental acts.
Third, to the U.S. courts, Jiang does not represent a head of state, nor a U.S. president. He will not enjoy privileges not even granted to former U.S. presidents, who were sued, nor is he allowed to be placed above the law.
Correspondent: in your opinion, what is the future of this lawsuit?
Han Shuhui: It will get better and better. The beginning is the most difficult. The lawsuit has already begun, what else can be so difficult? Up until now, the procedures themselves have produced a great reaction in certain segments of U.S. society as well as in the legal community. It has provoked public concern and awakened a sense of justice in many people. People in all corners of the world will be able to gain a better understanding of the persecution of Falun Gong through this lawsuit, and of the significance of this lawsuit, how it affects mankind. We will have more people learn of the truth as we move forward, and more people will take the side of justice. Will Jiang then be able to escape justice?
Yang Sen: In fact, the basic principles of law are Truth, Fairness and Justice. In other words, good people should be protected and bad people should be punished. These principles are universally accepted worldwide. Lawsuits are based on upholding justice and morals. People have the right to escape slavery, torture, illegal detention and genocide.
Freedom of belief is one of the founding principles of the U.S. The early immigrants arrived in what is now America in order to escape religious persecution, poverty and conscription. Some regional courts in the U.S. have already reached verdicts favorable for Falun Gong.
For instance, San Francisco Judge Edward M. Chen recently denied sovereign immunity for Liu Qi, former Beijing Mayor and current Beijing Party Secretary, and Xia Deren, Deputy Governor of Liaoning Province. With his verdict he affirmed that government officials could still receive punishment regardless of their rank if they have committed crimes against humanity. In a report Judge Chen submitted to the court, both Chinese officials were found guilty of overseeing the torture of Falun Gong practitioners.
Correspondent: After the lawsuit was filed in Chicago, other lawsuits against Jiang were filed in several other parts of the world, which may establish that Falun Gong is widely known around the world.
Yang Sen: in the past five years there have been 25 lawsuits against Jiang and his followers, who were charged with torture, crimes against humanity, genocide, and other crimes. Jiang himself was served with lawsuits in the U.S., Germany, Belgium, Spain, Korea, and Taiwan.
Since this persecution in China has lasted nearly five years, resulting in the deaths of nearly 1,000 people and the incarceration of hundreds of thousands of people, such a lawsuit is crucial.
He Haiying: That's right! It is highly significant that this lawsuit is it is the first such case of atrocities filed by victims who are still suffering torture and genocide right now!
Jiang went way off base against millions of good, innocent people who believe in Truth- Compassion-Tolerance. He used the entire government machinery to involve the whole nation in this persecution. He used policies to force every single Chinese citizen to declare their stand on the persecution, which is historically unprecedented. As globalization spreads, the persecution of the conscience based on Truth-Compassion-Tolerance is impacting the whole human race. Jiang forces people to give up their basic morals as human, which has a detrimental effect on the human race. By filing a lawsuit against a human's public enemy, Falun Gong is accomplishing a magnificent feat that is benefiting the whole human race!
Falun Gong practitioners' courage and conscience have inspired the forces of kindness and justice around the world. In September 2003, groups and individuals who believe in justice and care about China's future and those who have suffered persecution under Jiang's dictatorship have organized the Global Coalition for Bringing Jiang to Justice. The coalition's mission is to engage all righteous people, expose every crime committed by Jiang, and bring Jiang to a court of law, as well as to the court of human morals and justice. The Coalition has held gatherings and discussion forums in over 20 major cities around the world, condemning Jiang's crimes against China and the Chinese people.
Up until now, nearly 100 well-known human rights groups inside and outside of China as well as hundreds of individuals have joined the Coalition. On May 14, 2004, the Coalition announced a resolution, stating, "the Global Coalition To Bring Jiang Zemin To Justice will fully support valid lawsuits or legal complaints filed against Jiang Zemin, the "610 Office" and their accomplices, in any region or country around the world; that the Coalition will dedicate itself to help the filing and hearing of such cases, and will assist in collecting and organizing the criminal evidence as needed."
On May 19, the Coalition formulated a public appeal letter asking to "abolish Jiang's immunity as a head of state." Within three days, many people had signed their names in support.
Yang Sen: Obviously, the publicity of this lawsuit against Jiang has taken on great significance and great impact and has far exceeded the importance of the actual lawsuit itself. It is one step in Falun Gong practitioners' peaceful protest, and it records the noble victory of compassion over atrocity, justice over evil, under the guidance of Truth- Compassion-Tolerance. The conscience, courage and dignity Falun Gong practitioners display will remain as magnificent examples in human history. The final grand trial will come.
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As part of events to build public understanding of the extensive persecution against Falun Gong in China that lead to the lawsuit in Chicago federal court against former Chinese president Jiang Zemin, Falun Gong practitioners are enacting methods of torture in the exhibition "Persecution Meets Principle."
Participants explain that by depicting actual scenes of torture carried out daily in China's labor camps, the public will learn of the scale of the suffering under Jiang's crimes. According to a survey taken in the late nineties, there were 70 - 100 million practitioners of Falun Gong in China.
Actors pose as sunglasses-wearing policemen administering beatings, injections, and rope tortures to detainees. Props replicate actual torture devices, such as cages spiked with nails, bamboo under fingernails, and tubing for force-feeding. The scenarios elicit murmurs of shock and shaking heads from passersby. Actual survivors of such tortures in China are on hand to explain the multiple-scene exhibition.
The exhibition will run the final time on Chicago's Federal Plaza all day Wednesday.
Other events so far included a Sunday conference of about 2,500 Falun Gong practitioners from all over the world at the Rosemont Convention Center. The gathering focused on the actual practice of Falun Gong: improving oneself according to Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance. Papers were delivered in Chinese or English by several practitioners. A highlight was a 45-minute lecture by the founder of Falun Gong, Mr. Li Hongzhi.
On Saturday, a parade of more than 1,000 flowed through the heart of Chicago's Chinatown. The beauty of traditional Chinese culture showed in dances of ladies in Tang and Song Dynasty dress. The current concerns of Falun Gong practitioners were seen in the peaceful carrying of signs seeking the end of the persecution of Falun Gong in China and bringing Jiang Zemin to justice. Chicago's Chinese community witnessed a demonstration of bright colors, uplifting music, and peaceful determination.
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NEWS
- May 26, 2004
Falun Dafa Information Center, www.faluninfo.net
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." Practiced in over 50
countries world-wide, Falun Gong has roots in traditional Chinese culture.
With government estimates of as many as 100
million practicing Falun Gong, China's Communist leader Jiang Zemin outlawed
the peaceful practice in July 1999 (report).
Since that time, Jiang's regime has intensified its propaganda campaign to turn
public opinion against the practice while imprisoning, torturing and even
murdering those who practice it. The Falun Dafa Information Center has verified
details of 966 deaths (reports
/ sources)
since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in 1999. In October 2001,
however, Government officials inside China reported that the actual death toll
was well over 1,600. Expert sources now 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
Contacts: Gail Rachlin (+1 917-757-9780), Levi Browde (+1 914-720-0963), Erping
Zhang (+1 646-533-6147), or Christina Chai (+1 917-386-5068).
Fax: 646-792-3916 Email: 
,
Website: http://www.faluninfo.net/
"This is a defining moment in U.S. history" -- Dr. Terri Marsh
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Oral arguments for the case will be made this Thursday before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit. (website)
PRESS STATEMENT
On May 27, 2004, the United States Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit will decide if former foreign heads of state may use the "head-of-state" defense, typically limited to sitting heads of state, to shield themselves from civil responsibility for the alleged crimes of torture, genocide and crimes against humanity. To do so would in effect dismantle the framework established by the Nuremberg trials, the international treaties and instruments established in its wake, and remove whatever deterrents they create.
In two cases brought before U.S. federal courts, La Fontant v Aristide, 844 F. Supp. 128 (E.D.N.Y. 1994) and Tachonia v Mugabe, 234 F. Supp. 2d 401 (S.D.N.Y. 2002), the district courts dismissed alleged charges of torture and other human rights abuses against foreign leaders who were still in office. While the jury is still out on the status of sitting heads of state, insofar as the issue has not been addressed by the Supreme Court or even a Court of Appeals, to dismiss the case filed against the former President of China for alleged acts of genocide and torture against practitioners of Falun Gong would in effect permit heads of state to interpret the court's ruling as a license to commit genocide and torture with impunity.
If the 7th Circuit holds that former heads of state, like Defendant Jiang Zemin, are not immune from suit for alleged crimes of torture and genocide, the Court will still have to decide if the Defendant Jiang Zemin, who was served with legal papers during his quasi-official visit to the United States in October of 2002, when he was still officially (an albeit lame duck) head of state, is immune from service of process. In light of the precedent provided by numerous U.S. cases, which permit service upon U.S. sitting Presidents, it is hardly clear why, if the President of the United States is not above the law, why should the President of China be above the law? If President Clinton can be served with process, why exempt the President of China?
The argument proffered indirectly by the defendant, that service of process upon a foreign head of state renders our leaders vulnerable to retaliatory suits does not withstand careful scrutiny. Anyone who has committed criminal or civil offenses may be sued in a U.S. court of law. The dismissal of this case hardly safeguards our high-ranking officials from retaliatory suits, nor should it. No nation commits genocide or torture as an official sovereign act. It insults and demeans the dignity of all nations to permit high-ranking officials of any status or rank to shield themselves with a permanent impunity even after departure from office.
This is a defining moment in U.S. history. We have an opportunity to place ourselves on the right side of history. There is hope that we will rise to the challenge.
Dr. Marsh can be contacted at 202-369-4977.
###
PRESS
STATEMENT - May 26, 2004
Falun Dafa Information Center, www.faluninfo.net
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." Practiced in over 50
countries world-wide, Falun Gong has roots in traditional Chinese culture.
With government estimates of as many as 100
million practicing Falun Gong, China's Communist leader Jiang Zemin outlawed
the peaceful practice in July 1999 (report).
Since that time, Jiang's regime has intensified its propaganda campaign to turn
public opinion against the practice while imprisoning, torturing and even
murdering those who practice it. The Falun Dafa Information Center has verified
details of 966 deaths (reports
/ sources)
since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in 1999. In October 2001,
however, Government officials inside China reported that the actual death toll
was well over 1,600. Expert sources now 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
Contacts: Gail Rachlin (+1 917-757-9780), Levi Browde (+1 914-720-0963), Erping
Zhang (+1 646-533-6147), or Christina Chai (+1 917-386-5068).
Fax: 646-792-3916 Email: ,
Website: http://www.faluninfo.net/
Click here to download the whole PDF file (931KB).
(Clearwisdom.net) In November 2003, Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Shuping shouted, "Falun Dafa Hao!" (Falun Dafa is great!) For doing so, she was then locked up in a small isolation cell for 15 days by Zhang Lei (police team number 211870), the commander of the second division of the third unit of Masanjia Camp. The cell guard also beat her with an electric baton.
In mid-February 2004, Wang Shuping shouted, "Falun Dafa Hao!" again. The police and their collaborators tied her with ropes, handcuffed her, refused to let her use a restroom, and denied her sleep. This went on for nearly a month. Meanwhile, she lost two teeth because each day they stuffed her mouth with rags to keep her from speaking. She is currently on the first floor under strict supervision and subjected to severe torture.
In November 2003, Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Shuchun was sent to a small isolation cell for ten days for handwriting a copy of Teacher's words. After she was released from the isolation cell, both of her legs were so swollen that she could not walk normally for a very long time.
Shi Chunying refused to recite the thirty rules or to sing the propaganda songs that prisoners were forced to sing, so she was put under strict supervision and slated for harsh persecution. She is not allowed any outdoor activity and has been given only coarse grain and salted vegetables to eat for over a month.
Practitioner Shi Jinying is in the first division of the third unit. The police of the first division tortured her many times because she shouted, "Falun Dafa Hao!" Her face bears the deep mark of a handprint from being handcuffed and severely beaten repeatedly. The police often tied her up with ropes, would not let her sleep, and forced her to stand or remain in a squatting position for long periods of time. The cruelty she suffered, and continues to suffer until today, was so horrible that one cannot bear to look.
Panjing describes her own painful experience:
"Toward the end of 2002 in Masanjia's Second Women's Camp, the police were forcing Falun Dafa practitioners to renounce their belief, while horror could be felt everywhere. The police carried handcuffs and ropes with them. The authorities were going wild. Because of my refusal to comply with their demands, police officer Zhang Lei, collaborator Jiang Lei and seven or eight others forced my legs into the lotus position and tied them up. They cuffed my hands together and tied them behind my chair for several hours. I managed to untie myself sometime later, but collaborator Zhang Huaizhi tied me up again, this time so tightly that I could not move at all. I suffered tremendous pain. When the rope was finally loosened, my ankles were full of large blisters and my hands were numb. Even in this condition, my tormentor still forced me to remain in a squatting position for over two weeks and would not let me sleep. My toes became deformed. I have been confined in an isolation cell for over four months now for reciting Teacher's lectures. The abusive police denied me any outdoor activity or showers and force me to eat highly salted vegetables and corn cakes--for a while they even fed me uncooked corn cakes. I loudly recited Teacher's words which caused guard Zhang Huan to direct two collaborators, [former practitioners of Falun Dafa who renounced their belief under high pressure and torture and now are used to persecute fellow practitioners] Sun Xuejuan and Ma Xiaoli, to handcuff me to the bed, stuff rags into my mouth, and seal it with adhesive tape. When I practiced the exercises, a few collaborators handcuffed me to the bed for over three weeks, allowing me to use the toilet only four times a day. Ma Dongmei hit my face with a metal ladle for no reason. I spoke loudly to other individually confined practitioners to expose their vicious acts, and guard Zhang Huan led two others (one of them was Chen Hongwei) to cover me with tape, including my whole face, so that I couldn't see. I refused to eat any food in protest of the treatment I received. That worried the guards so they altered the punishment from hanging me in handcuffs to handcuffing me to a bed. This lasted for over three weeks. They only let me use the toilet once a day, sometimes once every day and a half. Regardless of how cruelly the guards acted, they were unable to change determined practitioner's rock-solid minds, because Falun Dafa practitioners cannot be broken."
Dafa practitioner Huang Guifen was originally assigned to the second division of the first unit. She remained steadfast in her practice of Falun Dafa. The police felt they could not deceive her so she was sent to the first division of the first unit for forced brainwashing order to get her to renounce her belief in Falun Dafa. The police handcuffed her, hung her from heating pipes and broke her arm. Her legs became so atrophied that she cannot walk, and her broken arm is so withered that it is difficult for her to move it. She had already completed her jail term but the police would not release her. She was confined to an isolation cell for one month. The incessant tortures she was subjected to weakened her body. She has high blood pressure, heart disease, and a hard lump near her heart pains her so much that she cannot fall asleep. She applied for permission to leave on medical parole but the authorities refuse to release her.
Falun Dafa practitioner Hu Ying persisted in studying the Fa and doing the exercises, so the guards used handcuffs, rope and other instruments of torture to restrain her for two long years. During those years, she was also confined in an isolation cell five times. The guards persecuted her both mentally and physically. When she was in the forced conversion unit, Wang Xiaofeng used an electric baton to shock her mouth so that she could no longer open it; her right hand was shocked until it bled. They took off her shoes and socks to shock the center of her foot. She still did not yield, so the police locked her in an isolation cell to intensify the persecution. Initially they denied her food and water. They let her freeze by periodically leaving the window open in the freezing cold of December. The police made frequent attempts to force Dafa practitioners to condemn their belief in December when it was freezing cold. On the shady east side of the fourth floor of Masanjia Camp, Huying froze for twenty days. When she was released, she was skin and bones. She could not move her hands freely because they were swollen and dark purple. Her shoes would not fit because both feet were so swollen, and her toes had festered. Both of her knees were swollen and red. Today the police are still persecuting her. They force her to sit on a small, cold, plastic pedestal each day. She cannot go to sleep until 1:30 in the morning and she has to get up and be sitting on the pedestal by 4:00 in the morning. There is always someone watching her. Even so, she cannot be forced to renounce her firm, righteous belief in Dafa and Teacher.
Falun Dafa practitioner Su Yiwen (Suming) has persisted in studying the Falun Dafa principles, practicing the exercises, sending forth righteous thoughts, and clarifying the truth ever since she was abducted and sent to Masanjia Labor Camp. The police shackled her hands separately and made her sit on a small plastic chair twenty-four hours a day even when it was obvious that she had a serious heart problem, high blood pressure and other conditions. In the summer, the skin that touched the plastic chair festered. She sat like that for an entire year. Eventually, her life was in grave condition because of her heart and lung problems. During that time, she was also confined in the small isolation cell. Now, she can no longer get out of bed, and a hard lump has appeared in her abdomen. She has no money, so the police refuse to permit her to have a physical examination. She was diagnosed with illnesses previously, but the police secretly collaborated with Masanjia hospital personnel to falsify her physical exam and giver her a passing grade so they can continue to detain and torture her. These days, her abdomen hurts so much that it is very difficult for her to sit or stand. She is looking very pale and her life is in grave danger.
On behalf of all the named Falun Dafa practitioners, we call on all the good people around the world to pay attention to, to support, and to save the Falun Dafa practitioners who are being persecuted in Masanjia. These are the bloody and tearful protests from the Falun Dafa practitioners who are still being persecuted.
Every day when we practice our morning exercises, there are always Falun Dafa practitioners who shout, "Falun Dafa Hao!" The collaborators who have renounced their belief in Falun Dafa would always beat practitioners harshly, confine them in small cells, deny them sleep, and stuff rags into their mouths. The labor work that we are assigned to do is toxic. Some Dafa practitioners who have been there for a long time have developed health problems - vomiting, losing consciousness, and fainting while they are at work. The director, Su Jing, told the people who were affected by the poison, "You'll be fine if you adjust your mental attitude." What nonsense! What kind of adjustment is this! It is obvious that it is poison. Sometimes we work overtime until 10:00 pm and they don't care about our lives. To raise the conversion rate percentage [refers to the number of Falun Dafa practitioners they can force to sign a written statement renouncing their belief] in order to obtain a monetary reward, the prison personnel behave irresponsibly and secretly direct the collaborators to persecute Dafa practitioners using severe cruelty.
Those sly police with deceptive smiles on their faces lie to the newly arrived Dafa practitioners saying, "You'll save your whole family if you renounce." But after seven or eight days, when they cannot make Dafa practitioners sign the statements, the labor camp personnel reveal their true evil nature and begin the torture. If a practitioner does not submit to their demand to renounce Falun Dafa within three months, their camp stay is extended for an extra month.
At present, Dafa practitioners in Masanjia are in poor health due to the brutal persecution they are facing. When an inspector visits, the police hide the sick and those who cannot walk so the inspector will not see them.
I now stay on the first floor. This is the floor where the tortures take place. Observing the unwavering Dafa practitioners being persecuted until their last, weak breaths and until they are mentally unstable is horrifying to watch.
On the surface, Masanjia Forced Labor Camp appears to be civilized, when in truth it is actually a place that specializes in persecuting Dafa practitioners! Every year between October and December, the labor camp personnel gear up for a long fight. In the name of "social re-education," a large number of police are sent from other places. They are in fact a group of cruel oppressors who torment Dafa practitioners. The group punishes practitioners who do not submit to "transformation" by beating, punching, kicking, and hitting them in the face, denying them sleep, and tying their legs in the lotus position with rope. These are tactics used to torture Dafa practitioners in order to force them to give up their belief.
When female Dafa practitioner Mao Shulan, 47 years old from Anshan, resolved to persist in Dafa cultivation, the evil police used the torture method of stretching to tie both of her legs in the lotus position with rope for almost five hours. Her legs were so swollen that her heel was invisible when they finally loosened the rope. They then made her stand with both feet on bricks and deprived her of sleep for six days. A collaborator was stationed to monitor on her. The blood vessels in both of her eyes were filled with blood. She had difficulty walking because both of her feet were very bloated. She was fed steamed cornbread and salted vegetables every day in the police restroom. Even with such cruel torture, they could not sway this practitioner, who would give up her own life rather change her belief in Dafa. Running out of alternatives in trying to convert this practitioner's rock solid belief in Dafa, they had to let her go home.
In the dark nights, one can often hear the police loudly shouting at Dafa practitioners as well as Dafa practitioners' loudly calling out "Falun Dafa Hao!" and "Restore My Teacher's Pure Name!" The guards preferred methods of torture include shocks with electric batons, the "big hang up" (practitioners are hung on a metal frame or heating pipe with their hands handcuffed behind them), solitary confinement in a small cell, and other cruel devices.
We are calling all the good people in the world to empathize with the oppressed Dafa practitioners in Masanjia. It is best to organize a special task force to do in-depth internal investigations to expose the evil and cruel things happening there. We'd like to apprehend Jiang Zemin's entire criminal group and make sure they are brought to justice for the crimes they have committed.
There are eighteen divisions for the three units of the Second Women's Camp in Masanjia:
First unit commander - Wang Xiaofeng
Division managers:
First division - Xue Feng
Second division - Shi Yu
Third division - Huang Haiyan
Fourth division - Cui Hong
Fifth division - Zhang Chunguang
Sixth division - Ren Hongzhan
Second unit commander - Zhang Xiurong
Division managers:
First division - Wang Xiaofeng
Second division - Zhang Zhuohui
Third division - Qi Fuying
Fourth division - Wang Xiuju
Fifth division - Wang Zhengli
Third unit commander - Li Yuming
Division managers:
First division - Zhao Jinghua
Second division - Zhang Lei
Third division - Dong Suxia
Fourth division - Zhang Huan
Fifth division - Guan Liying
Sixth division - Pei Feng
Direct subordinate unit:
(The direct subordinate unit is the most vicious unit.)
Independent unit commander - Lu Yueqin
Platoon commander - Wang Xueqiu
A former third unit commander who has been reassigned to a subordinate unit-Qiuping
On-duty commander, second unit - Dai Yuhong (very bad)
Broadcast room - Xiang Bofeng (specializes in broadcasting defamatory Falun Dafa
articles)
"Teaching faculty":
Director-Fang Yehong
Specialists in converting practitioners-Zhao Yonghua, Yuan Shuzhen
Camp director - Su Jing (female),
Assistant directors - Wang Naimin (female), Zhao Laixi (male)
The so-called Psychological Recovery Center on the fourth floor of the camp
is equipped with:
1. Two high-pressured static electricity meters, one of them with a range of 60
kV (a thousand volts).
2. Three muscle-electrode biofeedback meters
3. One high-quality computerized electric needle meter
The second floor is equipped with noise and light therapy equipment (it plays music that paralyzes human will power and hypnotizes).
The third floor is called the "Emotional Tuning Room." This small room is padded with sponges over ten centimeters thick. It lacks oxygen for the air cannot penetrate the sponges. This room is used to lock up those practitioners who shout positive messages about Falun Dafa. One can see the handprints, all over the sponges, of those who have struggled while being suffocated.
On the afternoon of March 18, 2004 at 1:15 pm, in the third unit of the camp, a Falun Dafa practitioner whose mouth was taped shut, hands handcuffed, and covered with a cotton jacket was dragged by the unit commander and two others for treatment.
A Falun Dafa practitioner named Li Hong, who was hung with hands handcuffed, was beaten for two days and nights. Some were beaten hanging upside down. This kind of brutality cannot be described in human terms. The direct subordinate unit (also called the industrious labor unit) is the most cruel. Beatings and forcing conversions are regular occurrences. It is in total darkness with absolutely no light.
(Clearwisdom.net) Falun Dafa Practitioner Diao Xihui is twenty-nine years old. He is from Chuanzhigou Village, Fengyi Town, Longkou City. His wife, Lu Yanna, is thirty-one years old. She is from Xilujia Village, Xiadingjia Town, Longkou City. They are both teachers.
Diao Xihui's father Diao Shusheng and mother Fu Guihua, Lu Yanna's grandfather Lu Jinxiang, grandmother Lu Shufen, aunts Lu Renying, Lu Renjuan and Lu Renju, her brother Lu Hengxiao, and four cousins from her aunts' families all practice Falun Gong. Lu Yanna's grandmother was sixty-two when she began practicing Falun Dafa. All of her illnesses such as high blood pressure, rheumatoid arthritis and cataracts were cured after practicing Falun Gong. The whole family practiced together happily.
Since Jiang's regime started the persecution against Falun Gong, Lu Yanna went to appeal for Falun Dafa in Beijing three times -- in July 1999, October 1999 and January 2000. The first time she appealed for justice for Falun Dafa, government staff members from Xiadingjia Town beat her. The previous two times, she was detained. The whole family was detained one after another. Over just one year from July 1999 to July 2000, the family was forced to pay over 30,000 Yuan in fines, deposits, detention center fees, and deducted salaries [500 Yuan is the average monthly income for an urban worker in China].
In October 1999, Lu Yanna went to appeal in Beijing and was sent back home by airplane. The vice-principal of her school, Wang Feng, did not allow her to resume teaching and terminated her salary. She was subjected to surveillance at the school for a long time, during which time she was not allowed to go home. Even her family was not allowed to visit her. In the summer of 2000, just twenty days after Ms. Lu was married to Diao Xihui, local practitioner Tian Xiangcui from Fengyi Town was tortured to death because she appealed for an end to the persecution. Fellow practitioners exposed the incident among the local residents by distributing written accounts of the whole incident. They also exposed it on Clearwisdom.net. Lu Yanna was suspected as being the person responsible for exposing the authorities crime, so her rented room and her parents' home were both ransacked. She was then taken to the public security bureau (possibly the Chengguan Division) and was interrogated and tortured. One young police officer punched her repeatedly while demanding that she disclose the source of the materials. Ma Shumei (female) furiously insulted her, grabbed her hair, forced her to the ground, and kicked her. Lu Yanna's face was badly injured and her glasses were missing. Ma Shumei's teenage son was doing his homework nearby as this happened.
The next evening, Ma Xiangyang, a thirty-year-old police officer who has beaten many practitioners, began to beat Lu Yanna. She was tortured until she became very weak. Ma Xiangyang then deceived her, claiming that they were about to send her home, but they instead sent her to the hospital to have an intravenous injection. Later they sent her back to her school where she was once again strictly monitored. They planned to sentence Ms. Lu to a labor camp term, but she managed to escape and became homeless with her husband Diao Xihui to avoid further persecution.
The perpetrators fiercely went after Lu Yanna. As a result, her second aunt Lu Renjuan and her cousin Liang Bin were also forced to leave home. The homes of Lu Yanna's senior aunt, youngest aunt and her parents were frequently ransacked. Her two aunts were detained and tortured numerous times. Her sick mother missed her daughter dearly but was unable to see her. Facing such a family tragedy, her grandfather and grandmother were traumatized and passed away one after another. Her senior aunt, Lu Renying, had her telephone line tapped. In 2001, her second aunt Lu Renjuan, who had been forced to leave home, made a phone call to Lu Renying. The police then arrested Lu Renying and interrogated her as to the whereabouts of Lu Renjuan. In 2001, Diao Xihui's parents were arrested and sent to a brainwashing class. Thus, Diao Xihui and Lu Yanna lost contact with their families.
After three years of moving from place to place, the couple finally settled down in Qianshan County, Anhui Province. During these several years, they persisted in clarifying the truth to people and telling them that Falun Dafa is good. Lu Yanna was pregnant then. Because they did not get a birth permit when they left home, the local hospital turned them away. However, because an emergency situation occurred during delivery of the baby, Qianshan Hospital took her in, considering that it was her first child. At 9:40 p.m. on March 29, 2004, their daughter Shanshan was born.
At around 3:00 a.m. on April 8, 2004, Diao Xihui went out to distribute truth-clarifying materials and never returned. He probably was arrested, but no one knows his whereabouts. Their baby was only ten days old and Lu Yanna had not completely recovered from giving birth. Realizing that she was in danger, she moved out to avoid further persecution. However, she still did not escape. Police from Longkou City found her and took her and her daughter back to Longkou City even though her daughter was not even one month old. After returning to Longkou City, she was only allowed to see her father Lu Renqiang at the Xiadingjia "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]. On the second day, Lu Yanna's mother and senior aunt went to the "610 Office" to see her but no one paid attention to them. When they tried to phone, they were told that Lu Yanna was not there. At present, no one knows where Ms. Lu is.
Here we call on all kind-hearted people to help free Lu Yanna, her husband Diao Xihui, and their infant daughter!
Telephone numbers:
Director's office of Qianshan County Public Security Bureau, Anhui Province:
86-556-8935088
Political Committee Office: 86-556-8935098
Deputy Director's office: 86-556-8935078; 86-556-8935018
Meicheng Police Station: 86-556-8922942
Chengguan Police Station: 86-556-8921480
May 6, 2004
(Clearwisdom.net) The violent force-feeding used at Huludao Detention Center in Liaoning Province is an excruciating torture. The guards demand that criminal inmates force-feed hunger striking Falun Dafa practitioners. The prisoners are usually reluctant to do it, and they often vent their anger on the practitioners that are to be forcibly fed. They curse, beat and otherwise abuse their victims while force feeding.
First, five or six prisoners shackle the victim's hands and feet to an iron chair (1). Then they hold his head, pry his mouth open with a special tool (i.e. similar to a tongue depressor) and insert a ratchet-like wooden brace between the upper and lower teeth. Then they pinch the person's nose, fill an empty 500 ml. water bottle with salty corn gruel and pour it into the prisoner's mouth. The victim has to breathe through the mouth and will inadvertently swallow the corn paste while desperately trying to breathe. However, the corn paste is often sucked into the trachea and can enter the lungs, which is very dangerous.
Each feeding includes a bottle of water and two bottles of salty corn paste, and takes thirty to forty minutes. Force-feeding is conducted twice a day, after which the prisoner will have difficulty exhaling, causing them to breathe heavily. Even the next morning, it will still be difficult for them to breathe normally. Such forced feeding injures the trachea and lungs. In terms of a normal person's health status, force-feeding for two or three days will severely injure the lungs, rendering the victim unable to restore his or her health for a long time afterwards and become susceptible to severe infection.
Administered in this manner, forced feeding is such a severe form of torture that few people are able to continue refusing to eat after enduring only several days of forced feeding. Huludao Detention Center only uses this method of torture on Falun Gong practitioners who are already very weak.
On July 16, 2001, Huludao Detention Center caused a death by using the forced feeding method of inserting a tube through the nose and into the esophagus, in order to feed Jin Lifeng, a female English teacher at Huludao Maritime Technical College in Liaoning Province. According to the Clearwisdom.net report (2), the cause of Jin Lifeng's death was the plastic tube, inserted through the nose, which punctured her lung.
In early April 2004, Huludao Detention Center illegally detained at least twenty Falun Gong practitioners. Around April 6, more than ten practitioners a day were being tortured by force-feeding.
Around April 20, another Falun Gong practitioner, Fan Dezhen, suffered from "pneumonia" as a direct result of forced feeding. As he approached the verge of death, the detention center authorities became fearful of bearing responsibility for his impending death, so they released Fan Dezhen, who was already very close to taking his last breath.
In addition, Huludao Detention Center also tortures Falun Gong practitioners by beating them, using the "tiger bench" (3) and "washing" (4). The guards also often command many criminal inmates to torture a single practitioner by beating them and other methods of torture. On April 6 and 7, 2004, instigated by the guards, seven or eight criminal inmates tortured Fan Dezhen, who had gone on a hunger strike for protesting the persecution, to the point where he was unable to walk.(5)
Currently, there are still many more Falun Gong practitioners in Huludao Detention Center who are being tortured to various degrees.
Relevant telephone numbers:
Country code: 86; city code: 429
Huludao Detention Center: 3960806, 3960813
Huludao Judicial Bureau: 311486; Director's office: 3128088; Deputy Director's
Office: 3110430, 3110130, 3110142
The Complaint Telephone of the Huludao City Government: 3366
Commission for Inspecting Discipline of Huludao City: 3116717
The Huludao City Public Security Bureau:
Director General: Bao Ruoyan, 3113229(Office), 024-86404969(Home),
13842929999(Mobile)
Deputy Director: Gu Changjiang, 3119068 (Office), 2170002(Office);
3160799(Home), 13309890929(Mobile)
Deputy Director: Zhang Ying, 3118828(Office), 3113698(Home), 13304295398(Mobile)
Deputy Director: Yu Tingwu, 3113815 (Office), 2170003(Office), 3120369(Home), 13904299918(Mobile)
Deputy Director: Ye Shuhe, 3111786(Office), 2170005(Office), 8231888 (Home)
Deputy Director: Lin Baizhi, 3118266(Office), 3180199(Home), 13304290299(Mobile)
(Clearwisdom.net)
The "Legal Education Center" in Yakeshi City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region (AR) is in fact a vicious brainwashing center.
On November 4, 2002, right before the 16th Chinese Party (CCP) Congress, the police in Yakeshi City mass arrested many Falun Dafa practitioners for having firm beliefs in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance." The personnel in charge of the planning and implementation of the arrests are Luu Tiezhi, deputy party secretary of the municipal committee, Xie Wenzhong, secretary of the Political and Judiciary Committee, Yuan Shaogang, head of the "610 Office,"(1) Zhang Qinglin, deputy head of the "610 Office," Dong Quan from the "610 Office," in the Education Department, and Li Qun, Li Yuezhong, and Zhang Shiliang, from the National Security Division of the Police Department.
The secret arrests started at 7:00 p.m. They sent the arrested Falun Dafa practitioners to a brainwashing center which was officially known as the "Legal Education Class" at the Dianli Hotel.
Among the arrested practitioners are Ge Rile, a teacher from the First Middle School, Pei Xinmin, from the Physical Education Reform Office of the Municipal CCP Committee, Zhou Shuhua, from the Department Store, Liu Mingying, from the Environmental and Health Bureau, retired employee Liu Guirong, from the Vegetable Company, Zhang Lixiang and Wang Xiujie, who live in the area under the 1st neighborhood committee, Zhang Limei, who lives in the area under the 2nd neighborhood committee, Jin Fengyun, who lives in the area under the 5th neighborhood committee, and Li Yanling, from Tulihe.
Participating personnel exerted pressure on the workplaces of the arrested Falun Dafa practitioners, and forced their workplaces to collude with authorities, send their employees to the brainwashing center, and pay 5,000 Yuan (2) room and board for the arrested practitioner(s) and "helpers" from the workplace.
Three people were assigned to each room in the brainwashing center - a practitioner, a police officer and a "helper" from the practitioner's workplace. The police and the "helper" monitored the practitioner's every move, including eating, sleeping, and using the bathroom. They followed the practitioners everywhere, and prevented practitioners from talking to each other. Practitioners had no freedom whatsoever. They also forced practitioners to watch videos slandering Falun Dafa. Additionally, Li Baocheng, from the municipal CCP propaganda department, held seminars to slander Falun Dafa, and Dong Quan, from the "610 Office" vigorously slandered Falun Dafa, forcibly brainwashed practitioners, ordered them to write "guarantee statements,"(3) and told lies to deceive practitioners in many respects.
These "610 Office" personnel and police officers used violence and torture on practitioners, and threatened them with forced labor and imprisonment using mean and shameless methods. They forced the workplaces to pay expenses and send another employee to accompany the practitioner during brainwashing. The brainwashing center is a detention center in disguise in that it illegally deprives citizens of their freedom in the name of offering so-called "legal education classes." These officials' behavior already constitutes a crime by unlawfully detaining innocent people without due process. These lawless personnel kept Falun Dafa practitioners detained here and prevented them from going home, but conversely, during interrogations and brainwashing, accused the practitioners of no longer caring about their families and children and other such nonsense.
In order to achieve the brainwashing goal of forcing Falun Dafa practitioners to sign statements renouncing their belief, these law-violating personnel made all kinds of threats to the workplace leaders, the assigned "helpers," and security personnel at the practitioners' workplaces, and stirred up their hatred towards Falun Gong and practitioners. In addition, the persecutors slapped political labels on Falun Dafa practitioners such as "anti-Party," "anti-society," and "anti-CCP" which was in order to justify their persecution.
As a matter of fact, the brainwashing center is a completely illegal detention place where innocent people who believe in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" are persecuted and forced to give up their beliefs. It blatantly tramples citizens' personal freedoms which are protected by the Chinese Constitution.
Account of Ms. Liu Yunhua's Persecution by Authorities at the "Legal Education Center" in Yakeshi City, Inter Mongolia AR
Ms. Liu Yunhua, an employee of Yakeshi City Forestry Planning Institute of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region previously had many illnesses, and could not find any relief, even though she had spent a lot of money. After she started practicing Falun Gong in April 1998, her illnesses disappeared and she became very healthy.
Ms. Liu Yunhua followed the principles of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance," and improved herself by practicing Falun Dafa. Her family thus became harmonious, and the conflicts with her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and brother-in-law were all resolved.
Ms. Liu Yunhua worked diligently, and was willing to bear the burden of her office. She also got along very well with her neighbors. People in the all throughout the institute said she was a good person.
For example, her workplace permitted its employees who were not hospitalized to be compensated with 300 Yuan for medical expenses every year. Her husband tried to get compensated for the previous two years of claimed medical expenses without her knowledge. After she found out about it, she found the person in charge, asked for her claim form, and tore it up, because she had not seen a doctor or taken any medicine since she started practicing Falun Gong. She said she wanted to be an honest person.
On July 20, 1999, Jiang's regime suddenly forbade the people to practice Falun Gong. Ms. Liu Yunhua decided to go to Beijing to say some sincere words for Falun Gong.
Along with others, the police arrested and handcuffed her, confiscated all her money and sent her back to her hometown where she was detained for a month.
One day in April 2002, she went to see a Falun Gong practitioner friend. In less than five minutes, officers from Jianshe Police Station arrived and arrested her. They took her to the police department and did not release her until 24 hours later.
In the afternoon of March 1, 2004, after Ms. Liu Yunhua returned from work, Guo Xiaozhong, the party secretary of the institute, deceived her into going to the "Legal Education Center" where two people monitored her, even when she was using the bathroom. She was forced to watch video programs slandering Falun Gong, and the authorities attempted to force her to write the so-called "Three statements."(4) Her workplace was extorted of 4,000 Yuan, and they decided to deduct the amount from her paychecks.
These evil persons used dishonest tactics to trick her into going to the brainwashing center, and then detained her there, forbidding her to go home. In turn, they accused her of being too selfish and neglecting her child and family. She was illegally detained for 18 days in the brainwashing center, and she felt as if she were detained in hell. Under the evil pressure, she wrote the "Three statements" against her will. Although she was released after that, her physical and mental state has not been well ever since.
The "610 Office" personnel in Yakeshi City deprive Falun Gong practitioners of means to make a living
Mr. Li Yongquan from Yakeshi City has been illegally detained several times for practicing Falun Gong. His workplace fired him. On his second job he was constantly harassed. He then moved nearer to his younger brother and found a temporary job in Anqing City, Anhui Province. The "610 Office" in Yakeshi City notified the Anqing City Police Department and had him arrested and detained. Mr. Li Yongqun could neither work in his own city nor in other cities. He has no way to make a living.
On December 3, 1999, Mr. Li Yongquan went to Beijing and appealed for Falun Gong, but local police arrested him and took him back to his hometown. He was then detained and illegally sentenced to three years of imprisonment, with a suspended sentence. The main culprits are municipal leaders Li Baochang and Wang Guocai, Ye Xianjin from the Political and Judiciary Committee, Police Department chiefs Chen Weiji and Xin Shuhe, Yang Chengwen from the prosecutor's office, Wu Wenzhi and Qu Nianzhong from the court, among others.
He wasn't released until five months after his term expired. Because Mr. Li Yongquan was detained for almost a year and a half for practicing Falun Gong, his workplace, Dayan Hospital, did not allow him to return to work. In late September 2001, he again went to his younger brother's in Anqing City, Anhui Province and found a temporary job there. As soon as he arrived there however, Zhang Qinglin, the person in charge of the Yakeshi City "610 Office," as well as persons in charge of the police department and Xingong Police Station, notified the police department of Anqing City to arrest Mr. Li Yongquan, and the reason given was that the National Day, October 1 was a sensitive day. After Mr. Li Yongquan was arrested, personnel from the Yakeshi City Xingong Police Station sent someone to take him back, and then detained him at the detention center for one month.
After his release, Mr. Li Yongquan worked at the outpatient dental service at Zhongmeng Hospital located on West Eleventh Street. Officers from Xingong Police Station often harassed him at his workplace and wouldn't leave him alone. Mr. Li Yongquan requested the Police Department to allow him to make a living in Anqing City, Anhui Province. The request was granted. But right before he left for Anqing, the police again arrested him and sent him to a detention center, fearing that he would appeal in Beijing.
During the detention, the deputy head of the detention center, Li Yilong, injured Mr. Li Yongquan using violence. Mr. Li Yongquan's physical condition was extremely weak, and he started to spit blood afterwards. His family members had not obtained any information about him for a long time, so his older brother came to Yakeshi City from hundreds of miles away to look for him, and in the end found that he had been illegally detained for six months. His older brother questioned the police department about the reason for his detention and requested of them to release him, the police department referred him to the "610 Office." When he went to the "610 Office," they referred him back to the police department, saying that they were responsible for the arrest. It was not until many rounds of being given "the run-around," back and forth like this, that Mr. Li Yongquan was finally released.
From then on, Mr. Li Yongqun could no longer work at Yakeshi City and he couldn't go to Anqing City either. He was forced to become homeless.
Persecution cases in Yitulihe Town, Yakeshi City, Inner Mongolia AR
The Security Department of Hailaer Railway Branch arrested him on November 2, 2000 and detained him for two months because he practiced Falun Gong. During his first month of incarceration in the Nantun Detention Center he suffered inhuman torture. Inmates beat him so severely that his ribs fractured. He couldn't lie down for a long period of time, and had difficulties breathing. When he was released, he had to pay a so-called "guarantee fee" of 5,000 Yuan.
On February 21, 2001, Mr. Zhang Zhaohua was again arrested while he was distributing Falun Gong materials to fellow practitioners. He was first detained for two months, and then sentenced to two years of forced labor. The officials deprived him of the right to appeal and sent him to Fuyu Forced Labor Camp in Heilongjiang Province, to endure further torment and mistreatment.
He suffered unimaginably cruel tortures in that labor camp, such as being locked in a metal cage. Because he reported the true situation of the labor camp to the higher authorities, on October 21, 2001, several police officers in the camp savagely tortured him with many kinds of torture tools. Mr. Zhang's legs were beaten so badly that he couldn't walk. There was a big cut near his eye and it was so badly swollen that he was unable to see anything for a long time.
He was then sent to the Fuyu Detention Center where he was held for nearly five months, and subjected to further barbaric torture. On February 25, 2002 and March 8, 2002, he was put on trial and sentenced to seven years in jail. During this time his family was extorted of 4,000 Yuan by the court for various fabricated charges.
The persecutors sent Zhang Zhaohua to the Beian Prison in May 2002. There he frequently suffered maltreatment, such as being confined to a solitary compartment and being forced to wear a thick, insulated coat during the hot summer. The police did not permit his wife to visit him. Mr. Zhang has been confined to a solitary compartment in the No.1 Sub-division of No. 4 Division in the Beian Prison since February 18, 2004 and is presently still there.
Zhang Zhaohua began experiencing financial difficulties from the persecution beginning in 2000, when he was still working. His work unit did not pay him his full salary. The total amount of illegal deductions from his salary by his work unit to this day has reached tens of thousand of Yuan.
Throughout all these years, his home has been ransacked many times, and his parents and child were seriously traumatized, both mentally and physically.
The Labor Camp Police: Li Zhi
No.1 Sub-division of No. 4 Division of the Beian Prison
Tel: 86-456-6428554
On December 8, 2000, because he practiced Falun Gong, people from the Security Department of Hailaer Railway Branch unlawfully detained Mr. Liu for one month. When he was released he was forced to pay a so-called "guarantee fee" of 5,000 Yuan.
On February 21, 2001, Liu Huichun was again arrested and detained for more than two months for exchanging Falun Gong materials with other practitioners. After the illegal detention he was sentenced to three years of forced labor. He was deprived of the right to appeal and was sent to Fuyu Forced Labor Camp for further abuse and mistreatment.
While in the labor camp, Liu Huichun suffered inhuman treatment. All of his upper teeth were knocked out, and he had difficulty eating, and therefore developed severe gastritis. His coronary heart disease recurred and he suffered several heart attacks. The labor camp was afraid of taking the responsibility, so they asked the family members to bail him out for "medical treatment." Presently, Li Huichun is still under surveillance.
Because she practiced Falun Gong, persons from the Public Security Department of Hailaer Railway Branch arrested her on November 30, 2000 and illegally detained her for one month. When she was released she was forced to pay a so-called "guarantee fee" of 5,000 Yuan.
After her release, Zheng Baozhen returned to work on January 2, 2001. The hospital refused to assign her any work, and told her to wait at home for one month, and did not pay her in full for that month. On February 1, she was dismissed from her position as a head nurse, and lost her job. She was forced to work in a laundry, and is still being persecution. She is being monitored and has no personal freedom. Over the three-year period when she worked in the laundry, she lost income in the amount of 10,000 Yuan.
On November 30, 2000, the Public Security Department of Hailaer Railway Branch arrested and unlawfully detained Ms. Li Renmin for one month for practicing Falun Gong. She was held at the Nantun Detention Center in Hailaer City for two weeks. During this period she and her family suffered much mental and physical agony. When she was released she was forced to pay a so-called "guarantee fee" of 5,000 Yuan.
Because of practicing Falun Gong she was illegally arrested by the Public Security Department of Hailaer Railway Branch and was illegally detained for one month.
In January 2001, she went back to work but was still subjected to persecution. Her paycheck was reduced, and for over a year she was only paid enough to cover basic living expenses. She was monitored and couldn't go anywhere freely. She has suffered enormous mental and physical torment.
In April 2000, while having dinner with fellow practitioners, Wu Guichuan was arrested and sentenced to 15 days of detention. Because she went on a hunger strike to protest the persecution, she was soon released.
On January 26, 2001, while visiting a fellow practitioner, she was arrested again and detained in Genhe City for four months. She was later sentenced to one year of forced labor in Genhe, during which time she suffered savage abuse, torment, and mistreatment.
On February 4, police tortured Wu Guichuan for more than five hours. She was forced to do a half-squat, and was handcuffed to two ends of a heating pipe, thus her arms were forced to be completely stretched out. When she went on a hunger strike to protest the persecution, she endured savage force-feeding twice, which precipitated a severe heart attack. Wu Guichuan was then sent to Tumuji Forced Labor Camp, but the camp refused to accept her because of her poor health. Instead, they permitted her to go home after being bailed-out for medical treatment. Because she practiced Falun Gong, her husband was implicated and forced to leave his job, leaving only a little income each month for basic living expenses. Police forced her husband to monitor her and forbid her to go out or contact any others. Her freedom was curtailed.
Wu Guichuan was arrested the third time when she was distributing truth-clarification information. She was detained in Yakushi for four months.
(1) "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.
(2) Yuan is the Chinese currency. The average monthly salary of an urban worker in China is 500 Yuan.
(3) "Guarantee Statement" - A statement to declare that one is remorseful for practicing Falun Gong and guarantees 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.
(4) "Three Statements" - Practitioners are coerced under brainwashing and torture to write these as proof that they have given up their belief. Created by the "610 Office," the three statements consist of a letter of repentance, a guarantee to never again practice Falun Gong, and a list of names and addresses of all family members, friends and acquaintances who are practitioners.
April 26, 2004
(Clearwisdom.net) Falun Dafa practitioners in Slovakia sent petition letters to Mayors of villages in the country asking for their support in calling for an end to the persecution of innocent people who practise Falun Gong in China. Mayors of four villages in Slovakia responded to the letter and signed the petition demanding an immediate end to the persecution and severe torture of practitioners of Falun Gong in China.
Text of the petition:
A Petition for the Support of the Human Rights of Falun Gong Practitioners in China
* Whereas, Falun Gong, also called Falun Dafa, is a traditional cultivation practice, which, apart from the exercises, teaches the universal principles of Truth-Compassion-Forbearance;
* Falun Gong is widely recognised in forty countries as a practise, which leads to higher moral standards and therefore helps to improve society as a whole;
* Falun Gong is impressive by the harmony of the exercises, meditation and study, by which it supports a good spiritual way of life, cultivates the mind, body and spirit;
* Falun Gong helps to preserve the traditional values of humanity, such as sincerity, persistence and unselfishness;
* Practitioners of Falun Gong in China are exposed to suffering in labour camps, prisons and re-education centres. The number of known deaths from torture has reached 955. Tens of thousands are being tortured during their detention in labour camps, prisons and especially women who are subjected to numerous forms of sexual violence, including sexual abuse and forced abortions.
We, the undersigned, demand an immediate stop to the persecution and the severe torture of Falun Gong practitioners in China.
Source: http://www.clearharmony.net/articles/200405/19843.html
(Clearwisdom.net)
A Senior Engineer Starts to Practice Falun Dafa
A friend of mine is a senior engineer. After she learned the truth of Falun Dafa, she began studying Zhuan Falun and Master Li's lectures. After listening to Master Li's lectures, she excitedly said: "It's great what Master Li talks about! Falun Dafa teaches people to be good, to be compassionate, and helps people heal illnesses and keep fit. But the government's crackdown on Falun Gong is incomprehensible." She then began the cultivation of Falun Dafa. When she meets acquaintances, she tells them the truth about Falun Dafa. She always talks very reasonably, so after many people understand the truth, they say: "We know that the people who practice Falun Dafa are good people. The self-immolation incident and other propaganda broadcast on TV are all fabrications."
In order to let more people understand the truth, she sincerely donated 100 Yuan for making truth-clarifying material.
A Hostess Who Believed the Goodness of Dafa
People have been telling following story in Tongliao City, Liaoning Province: A nanny in Beijing took care of a baby for a rich family, and her salary was 2,000 Yuan a month. She wanted to reduce her troubles, so she sedated the baby who otherwise did not sleep easily. Finally this had noticeable side effects on the baby.
Another household also needed a nanny. The woman of the family knew the truth about Falun Dafa and wanted to hire a practitioner, but the man of the family did not agree. However, he could not dissuade his wife, so he agreed to pay the new nanny only 200 Yuan a month. After observing for 6 months, they found their baby improved in health. The man now tells relatives and friends: "Falun Gong is really good. The propaganda on TV is totally untrue."
Those who Treasure Dafa Materials get Good Fortune
In a certain village there lives an 80 year-old man. After he listened to a Falun Dafa practitioner telling him the facts, he admired the fact that the truth clarification materials were made by the practitioners at their own expense. When he sees somebody tearing up such materials, he says: "Don't tear it up. They are made by the practitioners at their own expense. Falun Gong doesn't want anything from you. You may read if you wish. If you don't want to read, you should not tear it up."
One day, this old man went outside on a bike. When he rode around a corner, there was a car driving straight at him. The old man fell into a 1 meter-deep ditch. When he was pulled out, he was only ruffled a little bit, but was not hurt at all. A Dafa practitioner told him: "you got good fortune because you protected Dafa truth clarification materials."
(Clearwisdom.net)
Police Station Director Dies in Car Accident in Xijiatao Town, Tangshan City, Hebei Province
Qi Zhiwu, at 44 years old, was the police station director in Xijiatao Town, Guzhi District, Tangshan City, Hebei Province. Since July 20, 1999, he has persecuted and abducted Falun Dafa practitioners, as well as assigned spies to monitor practitioners' daily activities. He has beaten practitioners with his own hands and personally sent two practitioners to Kaiping Labor Camp, and another to a brainwashing center. On February 27, 2004, Qi Zhiwu died in a car accident. His face was severely disfigured from the crash and he could no longer be easily identified.
Xinmin Railway Police Station Policeman Gao Derong Crushed to Death by a Train
Gao Derong was a 40 year old policeman working at Xinmin Railway Police Station. During the summer of 2002, he persecuted local Falun Dafa practitioners in order to get reward money and gain favor with his superiors. He often spied on practitioners' daily activities in order to assist the persecution. Some Falun Dafa practitioners suggested to Gao Derong to stop his wrong doings, but he did not listen. One morning, his vehicle collided with an express train at Xinmin Railway Station. He was crushed to death from the impact.
Liaozhong County Police Department Traffic Division Head Shi Changyan Dies of Late Stage Pancreatic Cancer
Shi Changyan used to be the director of Dongjie Police Station in Liaozhong County. He abused his job title and severely beat Falun Dafa practitioners who had been detained at the station. He also led others to illegally arrest practitioners and ransack their homes. On December 7, 2001, he received some intelligence and stopped more than 10 Falun Gong practitioners from going to Beijing to appeal. His actions led to the imprisonment of Dafa practitioners Guan Suli, Li Haifa, Zhang Dayong and others, who are now still detained in prisons in Shenyang City where they are experiencing severe persecution. Other practitioners were sent to Zhangshi Brainwashing Center and persecuted there. Han Qingcai died due to torture after being illegally detained.
Shi Changyan was awarded and promoted as Traffic Divison Head of Liaozhong County Police Department for the "successful arrests." Shi Changyan was diagnosed with late stage pancreatic cancer. He died in Beijing after medical treatment failed.
Retribution Cases in Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province
Examples of karmic retribution in Jinzhou District of Dalian City, Liaoning Province
The Director of Zhucheng City Ceramics Company Who Participated in the Persecution was Jailed
Wang Shuzhong, 60 years old, was the former director of Zhucheng City Ceramics Company in Shandong Province. He was also the head of the "Working Team for Falun Gong" that persecuted practitioners. Wang Shuzhong was responsible for Dafa practitioner Ma Yanfang's death. In late 2003, Wang Shuzhong was arrested and jailed for bribery.
Each time we publish news of this nature, we do so with heavy hearts. These people started off as public servants, but under the intense pressure applied by Jiang's political group, they were pushed into persecuting Dafa disciples. In the process of destroying the lives of kind, law-abiding citizens, they have sealed their own fates and inevitably faced karmic retribution as punishment. If it weren't for Jiang's vicious orders, perhaps their fates would have been different.
(Clearwisdom.net)
Introduction
At the end of February 2004, the Chinese Anti-Cult Association led by Jiang Zemin, came out with a classified document entitled, "Notice regarding successfully preventing 'Falun Gong' [slanderous word omitted] organization from sabotaging activities [1] during the 'Two National Conferences period." [2] This document was officially cited in classified documents distributed by provincial and municipal governments on March 2, 2004.
Jiang's order targets people who practice Falun Gong. This was confirmed by what was recently published on Minghui Net regarding this new round of intensified persecution against Falun Gong launched nationwide. The purpose of this article is to expose the evil, analyze the true nature of the classified document, and provide information, in a timely fashion, to all the organizations and media in the world that care about the issue of Falun Gong.
1. See the Chinese Minghui article "Jiaozhou City 610 Office Starts A New Round of Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners" http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/3/18/70263.html
2. We also have copies of the classified documents sent out by many provinces, cities, and local governments.
Abstract:
The facts presented in this article provide the international community and human rights organizations with evidence of recent human rights abuses in China to help people gain a clearer understanding of the nature of Jiang Zemin's political group.
The article also aims to help people better understand the nature of the battle between good and evil, and hopes to give people greater faith that good will overcome evil.
The article also reveals the despicable means used by Jiang Zemin's political group, which are comparable to those employed in the most barbaric wars, invasions and political campaigns in history.
Regarding the National People's Congress held in Beijing, Jiang's political group, using its typical method of "passing on the spirit of the central government," came out with a policy directive that specifically targeted Falun Gong practitioners. It also forced all levels of administrative bodies in the nation to act accordingly.
"Passing on the spirit of the central government," without exception, takes two paths, known among officials as the "dark way" and the other being the "bright way." The "bright way" mainly refers to conveying the government orders in the format of secret or top-secret documents, which are usually written formally with elegant and dazzling words, so that local officials can actually see the documents and act accordingly. Once the "bright way" documents are received, the higher authorities will immediately make "dark way" phone calls or use verbal communication to further explain the actual objective and convey the political tone of the documents, while at the same time, leave no written evidence for the subordinates to keep.
Jiang's group persecutes Falun Gong practitioners by using both the "bright way" and the "dark way." This point can be proven by looking at the so-called "classified or top-secret" documents that were distributed by the provinces, prefectures, counties, and townships in China. Viewing the contemporary mindsets of Chinese people in terms of psychology, we know that the low-level officials in the Party have a subservient mindset, and display a kind of "respect and flattering" toward their bosses. So for any central government documents that come in the "bright way," the local governments will for sure add the words of "Coming from the Central Government" or "Coming indirectly from the Central Government" to the local governments' "classified or top-secret" documents. The local governments will use these words to explain the source of the documents, and in the meantime, compel their subordinates to follow the directives. Regarding the transmitting of "The Central Government's spirit" during the time of the "Two National Conferences," we can see from the available classified or top-secret documents that the order came directly from Jiang Zemin's group.
Following "The Central Government's spirit," the Anti-cult Association came out with it's classified document at the end of February. It was sent to all central government branches, provinces, cities, counties, districts, townships, and towns, without omitting any government bodies. The content of the document completely targets Falun Gong, and it laid out the policies, strategies, and measures that were to be used to persecute Falun Gong during the "Two National Conferences." When the document was sent out, it was also stamped with "Urgent Notice," along with the word "classified." The officials could directly read the original document if their ranks were high enough, while those whose ranks were not high enough were only told verbally.
The major points of this "classified" document:
[Quotes from the document:]
"At the present time, activities of Falun Gong are increasing. The founder of Falun Gong has made public appearances, and they want to move the emphasis of the activities to Mainland China. Falun Gong members inside and outside China have been using the Internet to cooperate with each other and engage in propaganda activities. [3] They have adjusted the propaganda strategies inside China, and some key members [4] of Falun Gong have openly held activities. According to the number of Falun Gong cases, which have been registered or solved, Falun Gong activities are rapidly increasing, especially when the "Two National Conferences" are about to start. Our task is very important and arduous... "
The proposed requirements are as follows:
[quoting again from the document:]
1. Learn the situation even better and improve understanding. Correctly recognize that the present struggle [against Falun Gong] is complicated and important. Take the task of guarding against "Falun Gong" as the core task during the "Two National Conferences" period. Maintain a high-level alert and take all efforts to make sure that no mishap happens."
2. Focus on key tasks and strengthen prevention efforts. During the "Two National Conferences" period, the key tasks of prevention include strictly preventing key members of Falun Gong from going to Beijing, preventing their local assemblies and extreme incidents, and preventing them from using technical means to spread their propaganda, etc.
All related departments should do well in prevention and investigation and take necessary measures to bring key Falun Gong members under strict control. Assist the related departments to actively track down those who are at large. Ascertain the responsibilities of watching, controlling, and educating those who have left their homes specifically so as to ensure that the goal of 'no one going to Beijing' is achieved.
3. Ascertain responsibilities, and strengthen on-duty system. Related units must co-operate with the comprehensive administration offices and local police stations in their area, strengthen patrols and watches, and guard the paths of TV optic fiber cables in business and residential areas. During the "Two National Conferences" period, related units must make strict on-duty arrangement to ensure trouble free communication 24 hours a day, and to ensure "zero reports" every day. If any event occurs that involves Falun Gong, it must be reported immediately.
In China, people who went through the Cultural Revolution and people of a certain age all know that the so-called "classified" document is mostly for controlling and punishing people; if a "classified" document is issued, it means a certain group of people are in trouble. If it were something good for all people, it would have already been published through newspapers and broadcasting stations.
The value of the document from the aspect of information
From the document we can see that there is essentially no improvement in the human rights situation in China, even though the Chinese government has recently released several dissidents who had been detained for years. It has become a habitual practice of the Party (CCP) to release several dissidents as a show whenever there is an international agenda presented about human rights in China. However, this does not mean that the Chinese government leaders are relaxing their political control, especially over Falun Gong practitioners. We hope that the governments of different countries recognize the CCP's nature, and continue to raise agendas and resolutions in the United Nation's Human Rights Committee about human rights issues in China.
The value of the information provided in the document is that it not only allows us to recognize that Jiang's political group is not sincere about human rights issues; more importantly, it strengthens the belief of kind hearted people that righteousness will defeat the evil.
Comments on the classified document from a psychological aspect
From the "classified" document, we can see the sad state of Jiang's political group. "Falun Gong has increased their activities; our tasks are very important and very arduous ..."
Many Chinese people experienced the mental torture and torment of the souls through out various political movements. Every political movement was a tragedy that ended with the people being suppressed yielding to the persecution. Even Liu Shaoqi, Chairman of the country at that time, was overthrown in three days when they wanted to overthrow him. However, the situation is very different this time with regards to the suppression of Falun Gong practitioners who believe in the principle of "Truthfulness-Benevolence-Tolerance." Jiang had demanded at the beginning to eliminate Falun Gong in three months, but almost five years have passed and Falun Gong practitioners have not yielded to the suppression and they are still steadfast in their belief.
The "classified" document stressed the policy of ascertaining responsibility, "strengthen the patrolling and monitoring and guard the paths of the TV optic fiber cables in business and residential areas. During the 'Two National Conferences,' related units must make strict on-duty arrangement to ensure trouble free communication 24 hours a day, and to ensure 'zero reports' every day." From this, we can see the magnificence of Falun Gong practitioners in China. The tapped cable TV programs have brought about a huge psychological impact to the people; they have awakened people to the truth.
The analysis of the classified document an ethical aspect
Why did Jiang Zemin want to step up the patrol and inspection the TV optic fiber cables in residential and business areas? It is because he did not want the people to learn the truth about their persecution against Falun Gong.
Reading about "patrolling and monitoring the paths of the TV optic fiber cables," people are reminded about the Japanese invaders' "patrolling and monitoring the paths of the railroads" during their occupation in China. When the war against the Japanese invasion reached its critical period, the Japanese army could only arrange its troops in the large and middle cites in their occupied area and along the railroad paths. To defeat the Japanese army, the railroad had to be turned over to cut its supply line. In the past, Jiang Zemin had a Japanese style education in the occupied area during the war against Japan's invasion of China; now he uses all the same fascist techniques to deal with the Chinese people. Furthermore, during the "Two National Conferences" period, Jiang Zemin again brazenly pushed the policy of "patrolling and monitoring the paths of the TV optic fiber cables" to deceive the people in China. Jiang Zemin, what kind of "paths" are you patrolling and monitoring; if it is the "paths" owned by the people and if you are on the side of justice, do you need to patrol and monitor people?!
This document will lead kind hearted and reasonable Chinese people to carefully and ethically logically think about things.
The "classified" document makes people realize the essential development of the battle between the righteous people and evil minded people. Another point worth mentioning is that concerning the "Two National Conferences," Falun Gong was the only group that was targeted in the document. This also shows that Jiang's political group does not take any notice of other groups. This is because Falun Gong represents righteousness and justice and is the only group that non-violently persists to uphold the freedom of belief and expose the evil persecution. Any other group that upholds justice, in their future activities, might as well adjust their focus and put more energy and time in supporting Falun Gong.
[1] "Sabotaging activities" -- During large national events like the National Congress, Falun Gong practitioners usually peacefully and non-violently exercise their constitutional right toappeal in order to clarify the truth about what Falun Gong really is, and to ask the Jiang political group to stop its violent persecution of Falun Gong. However, Jiang's followers have distorted the nature of practitioners' peaceful appeals by using propaganda rhetoric to label the appeals, "anti-China activities" or "sabotage," and use this to frame and stir patriotic sentiment against Falun Gong amongst the Chinese people.
[2] "Two National Conferences" - The National People's Congress Conference and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
[3] "Propaganda activities" -- Jiang's political group uses political labels to refer to peaceful events held overseas and in mainland China, which aim to raise people's awareness and to end the persecution of Falun Gong as "propaganda activities".
[4] "Key members" -- There are no "key members" in Falun Gong, neither is Falun Gong an organization. The so-called "key members" are only volunteers who assist in coordinating activities. By calling them "key members," Jiang's political group attempts to paint Falun Gong as a political organization and therefore seeks to use this label to justify the persecution.
March 25, 2004
(Clearwisdom.net) "Brown vs. the Board of Education" was a landmark case in shaping the US legal and educational system. Recently, Dr. Rod Paige, the US Secretary of Education, attended the 50th Anniversary of the "Brown" ruling at Harvard University, where he gave a speech -- "Beyond Brown: Unfinished Business." As a person who was born in a middle-class African American family, Dr. Paige reviewed the atrocities that the policy of racial segregation brought to Black communities, fifty years ago. He appraised the achievements in abolishing segregation and pointed out the problems Americans are still facing today.
(Dr. Rod Paige has served as the US Secretary of Education since January 2001. Photo from http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/paige-bio.html)
Among the attendees of the anniversary event were some fellow practitioners of the Falun Gong spiritual practice, who brought to the audience's attention the on-going discrimination and persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. They pointed out that in China the whole educational system has been involved in the persecution of Falun Gong. In fact, many teachers and students in China have been subject to illegal imprisonment or expulsion from schools. Moreover, getting the "correct answers" on exam questions often means agreeing with the Party's propaganda campaign against Falun Gong. The Falun Gong practitioners asked Dr. Paige if he could help with their ordeal. Dr. Paige thanked them for bringing the issue to his attention, and he made very clear his unwavering concern about human rights abuses around the world. Finally, he gave some advice regarding how to seek further help.
A Half-Century of Achievements in the US are a Strong Contrast to the Brutal Persecution in China
Here is a brief background on the landmark case, "Brown vs. the Board of Education." In 1954, in response to the complaint of a black student, named Linda Brown, against the Board of Education in Topeka, Kansas regarding forced racial segregation in school, and to similar lawsuits in South Carolina and Virginia, the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs: "We hold that the plaintiffs and others similarly situated for whom the actions have been brought are, by reason of the segregation complained of, deprived of the equal protection of the laws guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment." After that, the segregation of black children from white children in public schools was gradually abolished and children of different colors could attend the same schools. Take Dr. Rod Paige as an example. He went from being an ordinary African American student to receiving his Ph.D. in education, and from an ordinary teacher to the US Secretary of Education, which clearly demonstrates the great achievements of the US in the past half-century.
However, contrary to the tremendous advancements in the educational systems of most countries around the world, in China, where "respecting teachers and Taos" has been a tradition for thousands of years, the educational system, headed by the Party Minister, Chen Zhili, has been carrying out a policy of discrimination and even brutal persecution against Falun Gong practitioners. This is not a suppression based on race, but rather, on belief. Falun Gong is a traditional system of belief based on the universal principles of Zhen-Shan-Ren (Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance). Chen Zhili is actively implementing Jiang Zemin's (Party politburo member, Head of the Central Military Commission and former Head of State) campaign to "eradicate Falun Gong."
According to numerous reports on the Clearwisdom.net website over the past five years, many children of different ages have either died as a result of persecution they received, been imprisoned, or were expelled from school as a result of their practice of Falun Gong. At the same time, teachers who were supposed to be educating children in classrooms were instead put in prisons, or even tortured to death for their belief in Falun Gong. In particular, among the 958 Falun Gong practitioners (as of May 2004) reported on the Clearwisdom.net website to have died in the persecution, 61 of them were teachers and 6 were students. The death toll of Falun Gong practitioners within China's educational system is one of the highest.
In addition, according to preliminary statistics from the "World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong," in 2003 alone, at least 435 Falun Gong practitioners at 210 colleges and universities were sent to various brainwashing programs, forced labor camps, or psychiatric hospitals solely based on their belief. The authorities in the education department have been mainly assisting in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners by exploiting the means at their disposal, i.e. depriving teachers of their right to teach, and stripping students of their right to graduate or to enroll or advance in school. Since 1999, at Tsinghua University (one of the most prestigious universities in China) alone, over 300 professors, teachers, undergraduate students, Masters or PhD degree holders have been imprisoned, forced to attend brainwashing classes organized by members of the university, dismissed from their positions, expelled, or directly sent to forced labor camps. There is no question that this systematic persecution has violated the provisions of China's own "Education Law," which states that, "Regardless of their ethnicities, races, genders, jobs, financial situations, and religious beliefs, citizens shall have the equal opportunity to receive education."
A Strong Contrast Between the US Secretary of Education and the Chinese Minister of Education
The biography of Dr. Rod Paige, the US Secretary of Education, can be easily obtained from the White House web site (http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/paige-bio.html). As a former teacher and a soccer coach, Dr. Paige began working with students early in his career. He then served for a decade as Dean of the College of Education at Texas Southern University (TSU). In 1989, he was sworn in as a trustee and an officer of the Board of Education of the Houston Independent School District (HISD). Now, he is leading the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB), to further make it possible for every American child to have the chance to learn in school, regardless of their race or ethnicity.
On the contrary, in March of 1998, Chen Zhili, who had no prior experience working in education, was appointed by the Party to serve as the Minister of Education in China. According to a report in "Cheng Ming," a monthly magazine in Hong Kong, the presidents of the most prestigious universities in China, such as Tsinghua University, Peking University, Zhejiang Univesity, and Fudan University, etc., collectively filed a written appeal during a national conference organized by the State Council asking for the dismissal of Chen from her position as the Minister of Education.
In spite of her notorious reputation in educational circles, Chen hasn't been trying to change her image as an incompetent educator, but has instead been putting her effort into persecuting Falun Gong, suggesting that her appointment as the Minister of Education is merely for political purposes. According to a report from the "World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong," Chen has been trying to carry out the policy of "eradicating Falun Gong" mainly in the following areas:
Chen has been exploiting huge national resources to brainwash hundreds of millions of children and young adults by spreading lies and instigating hatred towards Falun Gong practitioners. In line with Jiang's goal of "eradicating Falun Gong," Chen has launched massive anti-Falun-Gong movements by mobilizing those who did not know the truth about Falun Gong to turn against Falun Gong. For example, on February 1, 2001, just after the government-staged "Tiananmen Square Self-Immolation" incident, Chen, leading the Party Committee in the Ministry of Education and together with the Party Youth League of the Central Government, issued an order to launch a widespread "anti-Falun-Gong movement" in every college and university directly associated with the Ministry of Education. The national anti-Falun-Gong movements, which swept the country, started subsequently, even igniting vigilante and mob-like violence against some Falun Gong practitioners.
Taking advantage of her power, Chen Zhili has been exploiting financial resources, which are supposed to be used for the advancement of China's educational system, to spread lies, to filter and block positive information about Falun Gong, and to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. For instance, Chen ordered university programs in China to further develop technologies for filtering and blocking the Internet, to focus their resources on the software and hardware for such information filtering, and to provide technical support for screening all information on Falun Gong. She encouraged and sponsored various on-campus and off-campus "seminars," picture displays, shows, community activities, and publications that all slandered Falun Gong. Furthermore, she spread the slanderous publications to an even broader segment of the public.
Chen also put in effort in persecuting Falun Gong overseas. In the name of "Cultural and Educational Exchanges," Chen has spent huge amounts of money sponsoring activities in other countries to spread the Party's lies. Her purpose was to vilify and attack Falun Gong in the international community. In spite of the difficult situation in China where tens of millions of children live in poverty and cannot afford to go to school, Chen used her power as Minister of Education to spend money extravagantly overseas for the sole purpose of persecuting Falun Gong practitioners in academic circles overseas.
Half a century has passed since the case of "Brown vs. the Board of Education" was ruled on in the US. That bit of history has demonstrated, once again, that any act of violating basic human rights will always fail in the end, no matter how high-and-mighty the violators pretend their reasons to be. With the same token, the on-going suppression in China is going against the historical trend and therefore, will not last long.
(Clearwisdom.net)
"Today is Easter, the day of a god's resurrection! This is all I'll say today. On this special, glorious day, may Dafa disciples' divine sides also be resurrected!"
("Teaching the Fa on Easter, 2004, at the New York Fa Conference")
When I read this sentence, I was shocked.
For a long time, I had not been able to correctly position myself in regard to being a human or being a cultivator (a future god). From the perspective of the Fa, all Dafa practitioners have appeared to know for a long time that we should allow our divine sides to function. However, in reality, we have, at many times, still taken ourselves as ordinary persons and are trapped in human notions. Judging from the present situation, we are still far from what Master has required of the great Dafa disciples in the Fa-rectification period. Here I want to share my recent understanding on this issue with fellow practitioners. Please point out anything that is inappropriate.
"In a dream, things may be this way one moment and some other way in another moment. Where do they come from, anyway? It is said in medical science that this is because one's cerebral cortex has experienced changes. This is a reaction manifest in this physical form. In fact, it is the result of receiving messages from another dimension. Therefore, when you dream you feel muddle-headed. This has nothing to do with you, and you do not need to pay attention to it." [ Zhuan Falun]
One day when I was reciting this paragraph, I suddenly came to understand one principle: Aren't human beings dreaming while living in the human world? It was said in the past that human life is like a dream, and this statement is actually true. Before Master woke us up, we were the same as ordinary people. We were muddle-headed while busying ourselves in doing things and we had forgotten our true selves.
When Master taught us Dafa, our main consciousnesses started to gradually wake up. We came to realize that only those things related to our cultivation are what we should be truly concerned with, because doing these things can directly change the place we came from and our true bodies, namely, all the things that a god has. Particularly now, Master has asked us to do the three things well, so only these three things are real and beyond the dreams.
A few manifestations of being in dreams
However, in the "dream" of the human world, we are, most of the time, muddle-headed, and may be this way one moment and some other way at another moment. This has caused frequent occurrences of the phenomenon that Dafa practitioners, who possess great divine powers, are repeatedly persecuted and mistreated by low level dark minions and rotten demons. This is the case not only for many of the practitioners illegally put in jail, but also for practitioners who are not arrested. The most obvious manifestation is that when we read stories of Dafa practitioners' righteous actions and divine powers, we unknowingly exclude ourselves from having divine powers. We see how well those practitioners have cultivated themselves and how far we still lag behind. What we are saying then is that we have not cultivated ourselves very well and we do not have divine powers. Or we thought that those practitioners' divine powers were unlocked during their cultivation, and we cannot see anything, nor can we use our divine powers.
These are, in fact, manifestations of being in dreams. I will roughly explain some common notions as follows:
1. "I do not have divine powers" or "I do not know how to use divine powers"
This is a typical example of "being in dreams and recognizing no divine powers." I came to understand that when we are clarifying the truth and sending forth righteous thoughts, both of which Master has asked us to do, we exhibit our mighty and magnificent divine powers all the time. It is just that we are in a dream and are not aware of our divine powers.
Let's talk about clarifying the truth first. It appears to be the same as opening the mouth and talking about the principles; but in fact, it is a display of mighty divine powers. Let's take a simplest example: When a Dafa disciple is clarifying the truth to an ordinary person, what is really happening in other dimensions? As the practitioner clarifies the truth, his divine sides, which are layer upon layer and increasingly enormous, are explaining the magnificent Fa principles they have enlightened to in
