On May 4th, 2008, Radio France International reported that, "According to AFP (Agence France-Presse), on Saturday there were about 1500 people holding a parade and demonstration at the Chinese Embassy in Brussels to appeal to the CCP government to respect human rights."

"The parade which was organised by Amnesty International conveyed a message that human rights are not a game and appealed to the CCP government to fulfill the promise in respect of human rights, abolish the death penalty, stop harassing dissidents and stop the blockage of the Internet."

For the original text please refer to http://www.rfi.fr/actucn/articles/101/article_7260.asp

I am a native of Sichuan Province. Because of something I was involved in, I was sentenced to prison for voluntary manslaughter and sent to Chuanxi (Women's) Prison. To make a profit, the prison authorities forced prisoners to work overtime every day. Sometimes we did not get any sleep for several days and nights. Anyone unable to complete the assigned workload would be yelled at and assaulted, tortured with tight ropes and handcuffs, and any money given to them by their family would be confiscated. Many people could not endure the inhumane mistreatment. Some committed suicide or injured themselves.

In the latter part of 1999, the prison received some Falun Gong practitioners who had previously suffered tremendous mistreatment in another prison in Jianyang City, Sichuan Province. The prison authorities followed the instructions from the communist regime and set about trying to brainwash these practitioners. The prison authorities closely monitored everyone. If a prisoner expressed any sympathy for Falun Gong, she would be regarded as having "dangerous thoughts." The punishment for that was physical and mental abuse, reduction of merit points, and solitary confinement.

I was assigned to monitor Falun Gong practitioners. After they told me the facts about Falun Gong, I realized that Falun Gong teaches people to be a good and unselfish. Later I had more opportunities to be close to them. I realized that Falun Gong practitioners are conscientious, and their moral standards are quite high. Even in such a harsh environment, they still cared about others all the time. I could not understand why the Communist Party had arrested and persecuted these good people who followed the principles of "Truth, Compassion and Forbearance."

Here I would like to reveal how the prison guards mistreat the practitioners.

All practitioners were searched upon entering the prison. After that, they were watched by some of the inmates. They did not have any basic human rights. In order to try to force them to "reform¹," the prison authorities used incentives to encourage the other inmates to participate in the persecution. The incentives included merit points and sentence reductions. The prison authorities ordered the practitioners to obey all the rules, such as manual labour, wearing the prison uniform and criminal symbols, and spying on other inmates. Basic human rights such as using the toilet, shopping in the prison store, and meeting with family members were strictly regulated. If anyone refused to work, the guards would tell several criminal inmates to push and shove them and force them to do the work. If any practitioner refused to wear the criminal symbols, the guards would take away their clothes. Some practitioners ended up with only one set of clothes. The prison guards could withhold meat from their meals; some even banned vegetables. In the end, the practitioners were only allowed to eat rice. The time allowed for toilet breaks, washing their face, and brushing their teeth was also tightly controlled. Some practitioners' families came from far away to see their loved ones but were turned away at the prison entrance. Eventually the prison authorities chose extreme measures to try to force practitioners to "reform," even taking away the most basic rights enjoyed by other prisoners. They put practitioners into solitary confinement and assigned the most vicious criminal inmates to monitor them.

In April 2000, in order to punish the most steadfast practitioners, the prison guards handcuffed their hands to the window frames in their jail cells. This torture lasted from 10 to 15 days. During this time, the practitioners were allowed only three toilet breaks a day. Some of the women ended up soiling their clothes. Another kind of physical torture was to force the practitioners to run long all day long. Even the elderly women with little energy were not spared. Some practitioners were too tired to run, so the guards would tell criminal inmates to push or drag them. Some practitioners' hands were injured from being dragged, and their feet were badly bruised from the excessive running. Another punishment was abolishing the after-lunch nap. Some criminal inmates took away the practitioners' blankets until midnight. Once the prison guards tried to make practitioner Ms. Gao Hongxiang wear a criminal sign. She refused and threw the sign on the floor. To punish her for her defiance, the guards brought several tall, strong inmates from the kitchen. They threw her to the ground and kicked, and punched her with all their might. Many people heard Ms. Gao's loud screams.

Unlike the regular inmates who only suffer physical pain, Falun Gong practitioners suffer both physically and mentally. The prison authorities use "reform specialists" to try to brainwash the practitioners. These people were criminal inmates who received a reduced sentence or other benefits for cooperating with the guards. They used every conceivable tactic to deceive and intimidate the practitioners. Many display boards were hung in the prison to insult Falun Gong. These boards were designed to spread lies and poison the inmates. Some practitioners could not bear the sight of the graphic displays that slandered Falun Gong. They tore down and destroyed the display boards. To punish them, the guards ordered inmates to put the practitioners into solitary confinement. One day guards Wang and Gao pushed a pen and paper in front of practitioner Ms. Gao Hongxiang and told her to write a "promise" to give up Falun Gong. She refused. These two guards led her to an office, where several guards pinned her to the floor and tied her up. The next day, they again tried to force her to write the guarantee statement. Ms. Gao wrote: "Is this how you enforce the law?" The guards were furious. They pushed her to the floor and tied her up again. After the repeated torture, Ms. Gao's right thumb was permanently injured.

The guards often search the prison cells without notice. They thoroughly sift through practitioners' belongings, such as letters and daily items. They also search their bodies for any Falun Gong literature. Every time they did this, they turned everything upside down unapologetically.

Some practitioners resorted to a hunger strike to protest the persecution. As a result, they were very weak, some even near death. The prison authorities showed little mercy and refused to release them. The guards (Zone head Wang among them) and prison doctors worked together to handcuff them behind their backs and force-feed liquid food into their stomachs. Some also used infusions to sustain the torture. An older practitioner died during force-feeding by several prison guards (including Section Head He). To cover up the facts, the guards warned the criminal inmates not to tell anyone. They told the practitioner's daughter that her mother had died of illness.

Guard Wen Xiujun hated Falun Gong. Whenever high ranking officials and reporters visited the prison, practitioner Ms. Fan Ying would yell "Falun Gong is good!" so people knew that practitioners were incarcerated here. Guard Wen Xiujun would openly insult Ms. Fan.

Some criminal inmates assigned to monitor the practitioners were sympathetic. Inmate Yang Dejing helped practitioners to obtain Falun Gong literature from outside and was informed on by others. The prison authorities punished her severely. Even fellow inmates were punished along with her, and their request for a reduced sentence was denied. Yang Dejing herself was grossly mistreated. She was tied up several times, physically assaulted, and put into solitary confinement to sleep with snakes and rats. Yang was so scared that she almost had a nervous breakdown, yelling out loud at midnight. Her physical and mental health both deteriorated badly. Practitioner Ms. Li Ying, who was involved in this, was punished with a three-year addition to her sentence. Several other practitioners were also punished. After that incident, the prison authorities started a new round of harsh persecution.

I witnessed the above stories with my own eyes. I also knew many other criminal inmates like me. They truly believed that Falun Gong is good, and that the practitioners were unfairly persecuted. Falun Gong turned these criminal inmates into good people. Some saw their sentences reduced; some had their original verdicts changed. I was sentenced to several years, but later was found innocent and released. Falun Gong is indeed amazing, it is wonderful!

People responsible for persecuting Falun Gong in Chengdu Women's Prison, Sichuan Province:

Head: Zhang

Team Leaders: Ms. Wen Xiujun, Ms. Guo

Guards: Zhu Yan, Yi Zhenping, You Mingying, Yang Xiaoping, Zhou Li, Chen Ling, Han Min

The most nasty guards are: Wen Xiujun and Zhu Yan

Note

1. "Reform or Transform" Implementation of brainwashing and torture in order to force a practitioner to renounce Falun Gong. (Variations: "reform", "transform", "reformed", "reforming", "transformed", "transforming", and "transformation")

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2008/4/18/176724.html

On April 15th, 2008, numerous Falun Gong practitioners in the Guangzhou Metropolitan area were arrested by policemen from Guangzhou Police Department and the Guangzhou 610 Office¹. Ms. Liu Guifeng and Ms. Cai Yuzhen were among the practitioners arrested.

At about 6:00 a.m. on April 15th, practitioners and residents of Liwuan District Mr. Huang Zihui and Ms. Chen Jie (husband and wife) were arrested by officers from the local police station. Ms. Chen was released that evening (to take care of their son), while Mr. Huang was transferred to a brainwashing centre.

At approximately 6:00 a.m. the same day, practitioners Mr. Shen Yi, resident of Liwuan District, and Ms. Lai Huibing, resident of Yuexing District, were both arrested by 610 Office personnel and were later transferred to the brainwashing centre.

At 7:00 a.m. on April 15th, sisters Ms. Gao Suming and Ms. Gao Qianming from Liwuan District were arrested at their home. Their residence was searched.

On April 15th, a gang of policemen from Tianhe Police Department arrested practitioners Mr. Chen Yongtao, and Ms. Zou Danyu, husband and wife. The policemen also searched their residence and took many of their personal belongings. The next day, policemen from Tianhe Police Department, along with a local policeman from the Research Institute of Non-ferrous Metals and individuals from the neighbourhood committee that didn't know any better arrested Ms. Zou's parents and searched their residence. These thugs took their computer, and other personal belongings. Mr. Chen and Ms. Zou's whereabouts are unknown.

At approximately 9:00 a.m. on April 15th, officials from Guangzhou City 610 Office, Guangzhou City National Security Division, Haizhu District 610 Office, Haizhu District National Security Division, Haizhu District Police Department, Jiangnanzhong Street Police Station, as well as the neighbourhood committee, arrested Mr. Shen Yi and Ms. Lin Bo, husband and wife, and Mr. Liu Jianguo. Over two dozen police searched the whole building, but failed to find anything. To deceive the large crowd that was watching, the police acted like that they had found illegal drugs on Mr. Shen. They opened up a package of an illegal drug and showed it around. This is more evidence to show how the Chinese Communist Party deceives the Chinese people. Shen Yi was later transferred to Haizhu District Nanzhou Detention Centre, while Ms. Lin was sent home in the evening. Mr. Yang Liuguo's whereabouts is unknown.

Note

1. "The 610 office" is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2008/4/19/176778.html

Additional information about the persecution death of Gong Zhaotao from Yantai City, Shandong Province

Mr. Gong Zhaotao, 52 years old, from Chahe Village, Shuidao Town, Yantai City, Shandong Province, started practising Falun Gong in 1996 and became very healthy as a result. He had been actively informing people about the persecution of Falun Gong and dispelling the state propaganda attacking the practice since July 20th, 1999. In October 2007, while distributing Falun Gong leaflets exposing the persecution he was forcibly taken away by police and detained in a forced labour camp for one year. After being persecuted for over four months in Wangcun Forced Labour Camp, he passed away on February 22nd, 2008. Upon examining his body after his death, his family discovered a great deal of blood had come out of his ears and mouth. The labour camp authorities claimed that he died from coronary heart disease. His family originally intended to pursue justice, but communist authorities cremated his body to cover up the evidence.

Additional information about the persecution death of Li Zhenshan from Anyang City, Henan Province

Mr. Li Zhenshan, 74 years old, was a resident of Anyang City, Henan Province.

Before practising Falun Gong, he suffered from many diseases including gastritis and skin rashes. After practising Falun Gong, his diseases disappeared. He led his whole family to start practising cultivation and he was also the local coordinator for the Gulou practice site in Wenfeng District.

After July 1999, Li Zhenshan went to Tangyin's provincial government and Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, thus becoming a major target of persecution of Anyang City's 610 Office¹. Wang Yuansheng, the head of brainwashing centre at Anyang City's 610 Office; Huang Ze, the head of Wenfeng District's 610 Office; and Bai Dongming, the head of the National Security Group of Wenfeng District, were the most aggressive in persecuting Mr. Li.

In June 2006, Mr. Li's three daughters went to Beijing together to appeal and were taken away by the local National Security Group and imprisoned in Anyang City Detention Centre for half a year. Thinking that Li Zhenshan had instigated his daughters to speak out, communist staff aggravated the persecution of Li Zhenshan and his family. Their phones were tapped and they were monitored. They were harassed during holidays and sensitive dates. His house and his daughters' houses were often searched and property was repeatedly confiscated. His daughters were frequently taken to brainwashing sessions held by the city or county. The 610 Office often sent Li Yucheng, who has become a communist party secret agent, to Li Zhenshan's family to intimidate, monitor, and threaten them.

After a long period of threats and pressure, Mr. Li Zhenshan suddenly suffered a cerebral haemorrhage on July 20th, 2004. A few days later, he passed away at his home.

Li Zhenshan never renounced his faith in Falun Gong.

Note

1. "The 610 office" is an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2008/4/24/177048.html

My name is Lu Zhiyong. I am 46 years old, and I live in the Farming Department in Heishui County, Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. I was a forest police officer. I started practising Falun Gong in January 1997.

On July 20th, 1999, my supervisor asked me, "Do you want to be a practitioner or a police officer?" I took off my uniform and said resolutely, "I want to practise Falun Gong!" I was then suspended.

In June 2006, my family and I went to Beijing to appeal on behalf of Falun Gong's reputation and to tell the government that Falun Gong is good! I ended up being detained at the Sichuan liaison office in Beijing. A week later, police officers from Heishui County came to collect me. I was imprisoned in Heishui County for three months. My employer dismissed me from the forest police position and placed me under supervision for one year, where I was forced to do hard labour. The farm is in the Maoergai area (3800 - 4500m above sea level), without any communication infrastructure and very poor roads, making any form of transportation difficult. My duty was as tough as anyone else's, but I was entitled to only 300 yuan¹ for living expenses while a regular salary was around 1700 or 1800 yuan.

At 6 a.m. on June 18th, 2001, forestry police officers Zhou Bin, Chen Aiguo, and Chen (given name unknown) from the First Section County Police Department arrived at my residence. Zhou Bin said, "The Party committee decided you need to be 'educated' and we are here to take you." I asked, "Where are you taking me? What am I being educated about? For how long?" He said, "For a few months in Mianyang County, where there are other Falun Gong practitioners."

I arrived at Xinhua Forced Labour Camp in Mianyang County that afternoon at 4 p.m. Only then did I realize that I was taken there for a year and half of forced labour. I was tortured in all kinds of ways. Under police orders, the personal "cangues"² made me stand from 6 a.m. till midnight, and they frequently punched me in the chest, often to the point where I couldn't speak or get up from the bed. I would have acute pain once I spoke and sharp chest pains if I moved. The police tied me up eight times during one ten-day period, increased the use of electronic batons from one to four, and beat me with spiked clubs. When I resisted the attempts to smear my face on the toilet floor, the "Personal cangues" and guards pushed my head into the urinals.

On January 24th, 2003, I left the Xinhua labour camp and returned to Heishui County. The county 610 Office told me to renounce my belief in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" in order to return home to reunite with my wife and daughter. I said, "I believe there is nothing wrong with being a good person who enjoys living by 'Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance!'" They took me into custody, put me in a motel, and took me back home early the next day. I was given a salary of 600 to 700 yuan every month.

On the afternoon of December 27th, 2004, I was arrested and taken to a detention centre by Sanlang (family name unknown), the office chair of Heishui County Police Department, and six other officers of Luhua Street in Heishui County.

On January 19th, 2005, Heishui County Police Department officers took me to Xinhua Forced Labour Camp in Sichuan Province for a three-year sentence.

In Xinhua Labour Camp, I was physically tortured and devastated by drugs. They put drugs in my cup and in my rice bowl, they put poison in the intravenous injections, and they gave me drugs when they force-fed me. This caused me major damage. Their methods of torture made me feel that I would be better off dead.

On May 24th, 2006, I was taken to the hospital by the guards from the Fifth Section, Sixth Ward. Doctor Yu said, "Lu Zhiyong, you have the flu. We need to give you medicine. I said, "No! I am not sick. You are looking for excuses to torture me!" In the afternoon, the female head nurse (also the Section Captain) Yu and female nurse Rong injected me against my will with what they claimed to be Azitromycin. Four personal cangues held me down on the bed and held my arm so they could inject me. They injected me like this for a few days. After the injections, my lower back felt sore and feeble, I had discomfort in my heart, my limbs were weak, I had painful bowel movements, fever, and my memory worsened. My speech and movements slowed. Two weeks later I was transferred to the Third Section under the Sixth Ward. At that time, I suffered from dizziness, blurred vision, and drowsiness. I had difficulty walking, reacted slowly and my memory was poor. The symptoms lasted for a month. People from the labour camp said, "Lu Zhiyong's face is so pale he looks dead."

Around January 10th, 2007, I was carried to the hospital by personal cangues. Seven of them held me down on the bed and forced me into a strait jacket. I couldn't move my body or limbs. They held my head while Section Captain Yu and Nurse Rong stuck a feeding tube into my nose and down into my stomach. I was in such pain that tears rolled down my cheeks, and I choked.

I couldn't move in the strait jacket. It didn't take long before every muscle ached and was numb, my limbs shivered, and my heartbeat became irregular. That night I couldn't sleep. The next day, oily sweat ran down my face. My body was noticeably shrinking. They kept me tied up this way for a few days. The feeding tube produced an awful odour, and the foreign object in my stomach was torture. The pain was unfathomable. Everyday they would force 3000cc of liquid into me.

Usually I would be force-fed twice a day, but one day after dinner, Branch Captain Yu force-fed me an extra time. Afterwards, I became dizzy and very slow, I couldn't focus my vision, and I moved and spoke slowly. My reflexes and memory worsened. I walked around mechanically. The ground felt like a sponge. My voice became raspy and I would choke whenever I drank. This lasted for many days. I believed that I was a practitioner, and that anything from the ordinary world couldn't hurt me. Falun Gong practitioners can overcome the most difficult of situations.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.

2. Cangue - the name of an instrument of torture, the word is now used to indicate the person designated to supervise the behaviour of practitioners.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2008/4/21/176926.html

This is true story of an older Falun Gong practitioner, Li Xuezhen (alias). Fellow practitioners asked me to publish it to encourage more practitioners to step forward, to be more diligent during the final period of assisting Teacher in the Fa-rectification, and to save more people.

On the morning of January 25, 2008, the weather was cloudy, with misty fog, strong winds and heavy snow. On a rugged mountain road of Dabie Mountain, an older lady walked, her shoes tied with grass strings, step by step in ankle-deep snow. Her healthy and round face showed a firm and resolute look. She is Li Xuezhen.

On that day, she walked dozens of miles to visit a veteran practitioner who has not stepped forward to clarify the truth, and to advise the practitioner to withdraw from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations (this is known as the "three withdrawals" -- withdrawing from the CCP, the Communist Youth League, and the Young Pioneers). Before the new year, she accidentally bumped into this practitioner's son's fiancée, who planned to get married on January 25, 2008. The persecution in their area was severe, so several practitioners did not dare to come out, like her. Consequently, no one did the "three withdrawals" in her area. Li Xuezhen realized that this was a good opportunity to clarify the truth and save people, so she said, "I will certainly come to attend the wedding ceremony." That day, she sent forth righteous thoughts at 6:00 a.m., took fifty yuan with her as a gift, walked in the snow for a dozen miles on a mountain road and arrived at the practitioner's home where the marriage ceremony was to be performed.

She arrived there after 9:00 a.m. Three rooms and the living room were already occupied by several guests, and more people chatted next to the stove in the corner of the living room. Li Xuezhen exchanged greetings with the host and handed her the gift. Then, she went around to give every guest a small, red envelope with "truth-clarifying" materials inside. The guests read the materials with curiosity as she sat down next to the stove. While she was thinking about how to start the topic, a big, tall young man came in from outside, saw that people were reading the truth-clarification material, and viciously asked, "You are all reading Falun Gong stuff. Who gave this to you?" Li Xuezhen stood up and calmly answered, "It is I. We are together today because we have a predestined relationship. I come here for you," and offered her seat to him. The man immediately smiled and said, "You Falun Gong people are so kind. But I just do not get it. Why did you have ten thousand people go to Beijing on April 25, 1999 and cause trouble, and burn yourself on Tiananmen Square?" Li Xuezhen realized that this was her opportunity, so she took over the topic, and began to explain the truth of Falun Dafa. She started with He Zuoxiu, brother-in-law of Luo Gan, head of the Politics and Judiciary Committee, who slandered Dafa in a Tianjin magazine. The Tianjin City Public Security Bureau arrested Falun Gong practitioners who went to the magazine publisher to explain the truth. She went on to explain the reason why ten thousand practitioners went to Beijing on April 25, and then explained the many inconsistencies of the "Tiananmen self-immolation incident," staged by the CCP. She explained how the CCP has relied on lies and atrocity to rule China for several decades and caused the deaths of 80 million Chinese people in successive political campaigns, bringing disaster to the nation and the people of China. Then she said, "Now the CCP is doomed to be destroyed, and one can maintain one's life only by withdrawing from the party." Li Xuezhen made it very easy for people to understand her message, which resonated with all those who listened to her.

After she finished talking in the living room, she went to other rooms and continued clarifying the truth and registering people who wanted to do the "three withdrawals." At around noon time, before the banquet started, a tall young man (brother-in-law of the groom) who was responsible for the fireworks, suddenly put down the fireworks, ran inside, excitedly and tightly held Li Xuezhen's hands, and said with a shaky voice, "I truly admire you from my heart. You have been talking for half a day. I heard everything outside the door. You spoke so well. We have some Falun Gong practitioners here, but nobody dared to speak like you do. You are so great!" Li Xuezhen knew that Teacher was encouraging her through this man so she humbly said, "Our Teacher is great, Falun Dafa is great. It is Teacher and Dafa that give me wisdom. Otherwise how can an older, barely literate lady like me talk about so many principles?" These few simple words caused the excited young man and many guests to show deep respect to Teacher and Falun Dafa.

After the banquet, Li Xuezhen answered some questions from people and continued helping people with the "three withdrawals" until 5:00 p.m. She was busy for most of the day and helped over twenty guests do the "three withdrawals," including the first young man who questioned her and the other young man who worked with the fireworks.

The next morning, she stopped to talk with the owner of a meat shop on her way back. The shop owner invited Li Xuezhen to come in and buy meat. Li Xuezhen thought that maybe the meat vendor has a predestined relationship and wanted to be saved, so she took the opportunity and began to clarify the truth to the couple who owned the shop, and helped them withdraw from the CCP. As she was in a hurry, she forgot her handbag with the list of people who had done the "three withdrawals." She remembered only after she was at the bus station. When she turned around to get the handbag, the shop owner's daughters, sons-in-law, and grandchildren happened to be at the shop at that time. Li Xuezhen took her handbag, and suddenly enlightened that this was another good opportunity Teacher had given her to save people! Teacher really put a lot of thought into saving people! There, she explained the truth to the shop owner's children and relatives, and a total of ten people withdrew from the CCP and its affiliated organizations. When she returned to the city, it was already nighttime.

After arriving home, Li Xuezhen recalled the feeling of these years, just like in the song, "Nine Pairs of Shoes," "Feet have blisters and hungry, icy snow and rain wet clothes...... go through grove and alley, the world is dark but the stars are bright." However, she felt warmth in her heart. She thought, "In order to assist Teacher in Fa-rectification, to save people, I am willing to do it, no matter how tiring and painstaking it is."

Li Xuezhen perseveres in both relaxing and stressful environments. Since the second half of 2007, especially as it's getting close to the Olympics, the CCP issued secret orders to step up the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, intensifying the atmosphere. Facing such tribulations, some practitioners have hidden in their homes and not come out, some have moved to other cities and sought refuge with relatives and friends. Yet Ms. Li still firmly remembers Teacher's guidance, "Weathering the Storm,"

"Born into a sphere of suffering
Man struggles just to survive
One day, behold, the Great Law gained
Cease not your steps on the path of return"

She diligently goes out every day to clarify the truth and to encourage people to do the "three withdrawals." She often sets out early and returns late, listening to the Fa or sending forth righteous thoughts while walking. She studies the Fa at home in the evening and reads practitioners' sharing's on "Minghui Weekly". Some practitioners asked why she was not afraid. Ms. Li replied that in her experience, she holds only the thought of assisting Teacher in Fa-rectification and saving people, maintains righteous thoughts and acts righteously in the face of ordeals. In this way, one's righteous thoughts will be strong, and one is able to walk through the tribulations. She was truly enlightened to the profound connotation in "Eliminate Your Last Attachment(s)": "If you are not afraid, the factor that would make you afraid will cease to exist."

One day in November 2007, Li Xuezhen and another older practitioner sent forth righteous thoughts at 6:00 a.m., walked along the road going north, and posted truth-clarification information. They spoke to cotton pickers about the truth and advised them to do the "three withdrawals," and helped 17 people to withdraw from the CCP. At 11:00 a.m., she heard the sirens of a police car nearby. She knew that Teacher was reminding her and looked down the road to see six police cars quickly speeding towards them. She sent forth righteous thoughts to eliminate evil elements and rotten ghosts that controlled the police to persecute Dafa practitioners for clarifying the truth, and hoped that the police cars would keep moving forward past them, and she asked Teacher for strength. At the same time, she dragged the fellow practitioner and jumped into cotton field by the road. They stayed together with the cotton pickers, helped them to pick cotton, and explained the truth to them. Six police cars stopped in front of her. The leader jumped out of his car and spoke to the five police cars behind him with a loudspeaker, "Just keep going, they are ahead." Then, the six cars kept going, and the two practitioners returned home safely.

Recently, Li Xuezhen went to an open-air theater in the countryside, clarified the truth and advised people to do the "three withdrawals" for over ten days. Every day she helped more than ten people to withdraw from the CCP. In the afternoon of the last day, after helping several people do the "three withdrawals," she felt that she was being followed by someone. After stepping into an alley, she saw four police cars headed directly to the theater. She returned home safely through the alleyway.

To date, Li Xuezhen has covered virtually every street and surrounding village within dozens of miles of her home. Public places like supermarkets, stores, rural gathering places, theaters, bus stops, and residential buildings are all good venues for clarifying the truth and advising people to do the "three withdrawals." Among those who have withdrawn from the CCP there are current and retired communist party cadres in political departments, police officers, current and discharged members of the army, teachers, students, workers, farmers, and businessmen. According to Ms. Li, she has helped over 5,000 people withdraw from the CCP and its affiliated organizations so far.

Falun Dafa practitioner Li Xuezhen truly has stepped out of the fear of being persecuted and out of the conventional ways of thinking instilled by the old forces, and the human mindset.

One morning not long ago, while she walked along a street, the director of her workplace came towards her, patted her on the shoulder, gave her a thumbs-up, and said to her with a smile, "You are a great Dafa practitioner! You are a Fa-rectification practitioner!" She knew this was Teacher's encouragement for her. This director lives in the same block she does, so he sees that she often goes out early and comes back late, all for saving people. Thus he has heartfelt admiration for her.

One wonders, in order to assist Teacher in Fa-rectification and to save sentient beings, who knows how many difficulties and tribulations she has experienced!

In China, if an adult isn't married or does not want to get married by his or her 30s, people will find it hard to understand. I know some practitioners in their 30s that are still single, including myself. This has caused a false impression among some everyday people that practitioners do not get married and have families.

I began to practice Dafa in 1996 when I was a college student. Right after I graduated from college, the persecution of Dafa began. I was "illegally imprisoned" for more than four years, so I have had little opportunity to be in contact with everyday people or to find someone to marry, let alone engage in any sexual activity. I live a simple life and steadily do the three things that a Dafa practitioner is supposed to do. It feels good to live like this.

Then why do I raise this issue of handling the single life in ordinary society? It is because many of my family members thought I was strange. I am the only son in my family. From their standpoint, I will fail to fulfill my filial duty to my parents unless I get married. There is an old Chinese expression that says three acts are considered unfilial and having no descendant is the worst. They used to complain that I was not considerate of my parents. As everyday people, my aunts not only found me hard to understand, but were also angry with me. My father said he thought there was nothing meaningful to live for. Because so many others had grandchildren, he did not want to be without. I was therefore faced with a serious conflict.

I do know other practitioners who have not married. Some of them live in families where everyone cultivates Dafa and so they are understood. Some of them avoid marriage because they have painful memories from before. For me, I basically never had any opportunities to get to know anyone of the opposite sex.

Thus, the only choice I have is to act according to the Fa that Teacher teaches us. We are creating the future. The people of the future will form families, so it's all right for us to have our own families. However, the future people's moral standard must comply to that of the new universe. One of the requirements is never to engage in any sexual activity before marriage, so we should be a role model in this regard. This then raises the issue of the purity of the person that a Dafa practitioner marries--I feel it ahould be a person with no sexual history before marriage. So I answered my parents this way. I told them that I agreed to get married. However, I can only marry a pure girl. Interestingly, the situation changed and my family no longer pushes me about marriage. Although they think I am too old-fashioned, in some ways they admire me for this. When we follow Teacher's Fa, immediately the problem is resolved.

Of course I know that some single practitioners have made mistakes in this regard. I feel very sorry for them. In fact, ancient Chinese people said, "Life or death is not a big issue. Losing one's integrity is the big issue." I believe integrity not only means one's character, but also one's morality and conduct in society.

When we diligently cultivate the Fa we often dont have time to consider these issues. However, we are cultivating among everyday people. This is the most difficult thing. We have to face everyday people, and sometimes it's hard to avoid their notions. Just like Master said in Zhuan Falun: "That's what's convenient about it. Our discipline is the most convenient, you can cultivate among ordinary people and you don't need to become a monk or nun. But that's also what's hard about it--you cultivate among ordinary people, the most complicated environment." Compared with cultivation in the olden times, I feel this is indeed the most difficult. However, Master also said, "It turns out, though, that's also what's good about it, because it allows the real you to get gong. That's what's key in our discipline, and today I've spelled it out for you."

Indeed, we must do well in this critical matter.

A four-day long "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" Art Exhibition was held on April 29th - May 2nd in the city of Yokkaichi, in Mie Prefecture, Japan.

Yokkaichi is the largest city in Mie. The population of this industrial city is three hundred thousand.

Local Falun Gong practitioners held the 12th international "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" Art Exhibition at the City Culture Centre, which attracted many citizens. The local newspaper interviewed and reported on the event.

Newspaper report about the exhibition

The report, entitled "Exposing the Human Rights Violations in China," introduced the exhibition. It briefly described several artworks, including "Suffering in China," "Poisonous Injection," and "Why?" It quoted a viewer who said, "The persecution of Falun Gong in China is really brutal." Finally, the report introduced Falun Dafa, and its spreading around the world.

Many people came to the event. One of them wrote to practitioners: "I enjoyed great artworks today. I was very touched by the stories. They will be meaningful for the rest of my life. I will read the book Zhuan Falun carefully, which will be the guide in my life."

Also, many citizens signed their names to support the Falun Gong practitioners.

Qu Tutong was a brave general in the Sui dynasty. Once, Emperor Wendi ordered him to check the livestock record at Longxi and he found there were twenty thousand horses not recorded in the book. Emperor Wendi got very angry and arrested fifteen hundred officials related to the affair and wanted to execute them all.

Qu Tutong said to the emperor: "It is a matter of life and death. If they are executed, they will not come to life again. Your highness's kindness has spread over the whole world. Do you really mean to kill all fifteen hundred people just for these livestock?"

Emperor Wendi was in a fit of anger and reprimanded him. Qu Tutong knelt to plead for the lives of these officials: "I am willing to die for them instead."

Emperor Wendi came to realize the seriousness and said: "I was confused and that's why I behaved that way. Thank you for your kind advice." He, thus, punished those officials according to the law and didn't execute any of them. Emperor Wendi then promoted Qu Tutong to General Guarding the Left to honor him.

Qu Tutong was a military officer, but he cherished life. On the contrary, several tens of millions of Chinese citizens died from hunger under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party military officials. Major general Zhu Chenghu, Dean of Defense Matters, Chinese Military Academy, once told a reporter from the Wall Street Journal that if a conflict occurs in the Taiwan Strait and if the US intervenes, China will consider using nuclear weapons to destroy several hundred US cities and that China is prepared to sacrifice billions of Chinese people and the cities east of Xi'an. How can the lives of Chinese people under such military officials not be in danger?

Source: New Tang Book

Translated from:
http://www.zhengjian.org/zj/articles/2008/4/17/52341.html