(Clearwisdom.net)
(Continuing story)
There was a Falun Gong practitioner named Xiao Zhijun being held at the Panjin Labor Camp and he was a determined and persistent fellow. He started practicing after staying just two days with me. As soon as he started to practice, he was sent to a solitary confinement cell. That cell was more hideous than the one in Jinzhou. His hands were cuffed to the cage and he could not move at all. He had to stand all day long and really suffered a lot. That day the Brigade leader called a meeting with all of us and said, "You should all take a look at the lesson given to Xiao Zhijun. That is the consequence of practicing here. Who wants to be like him?" I stood up and said, "Leader, I also practiced. What is so scary about it?" Unexpectedly the leader laughed, he said, "Sit down, you old man. You won't be sent to the solitary confinement cell. They sent him to solitary confinement cell because of my instruction, not because anyone who wants to go there will go there. He could not be compared with you; you have already gone through two labor camps and were never fazed even at the Jinzhou (labor camp). I treat you nice because I want to see if you will still continue to practice."
The Brigade leader took care of me quite well. Once he saw my socks had holes and he bought a new pair for me. I declined to accept, but he insisted and followed me all the way to the dining hall, and finally just stuffed them in my pocket. I thought to myself, "I will practice regardless how well you treat me." Once the leader chatted with me, "Old man (Mr. "L"), why couldn't you do me a favor since I treat you so nice? How come I just cannot convert [Note: Make him give up his belief in Falun Gong and stop practicing] you?"
I thought in my heart, "You took care of me well alright but it was all phony; why didn't you treat others well, too? You not only tossed Xiao Zhijun into that solitary confinement cell, what you did was even more hideous than those at the Jinzhou labor camp. At least I could sit down in the solitary confinement cell at Jinzhou. Yet, Xiao Zhijun had his hands cuffed to the iron door and he could not even sit down or squat down. Xiao Zhijun has been on a hunger strike in there for five days now without any water or food. You force-fed him and then sent him back to the brigade. You deliberately cut off the rations for the whole Team where he stayed, declaring that it was because of Xiao Zhijun's insistence on practicing that the rations were cut. You caused the whole Team to hate Xiao Zhijun and hate Falun Gong. They ended up beating Xiao Zhijun badly with wounds all over his body. When they were forced to do drills during the freezing weather in winter, (with seasonal temperatures in the Northeastern part of China routinely dropping down to 5-15 degrees F below zero), Xiao Zhijun was forced to just wear one layer of thin clothes, and they took his shoes away. Two inmates jogged along dragging him barefooted wearing only shorts since Xiao could no longer even walk by himself. Is this 'kindness' on the behalf of the Brigade leader? Can this kind of 'kindness' win me over?"
The Brigade leader kept on telling me, "Senior Mr. L, with me treating you so well, how could you still keep on practicing? Couldn't you have just a little change of heart?" He even invited me to eat with him, with such a feast with fish and meat. I would rather go hungry instead of eating with him. His trick just could not work on me. I told him, "You can beat me up or curse me, but I will not give up my practice. You can try as hard as you can to convert me, to treat me really nicely but again, I will not give up Falun Gong. I do not have any emotional attachment or human sentimentality." Since then, the Brigade leader lost faith in trying to convert me.
12. Walk out of evil's den by rectifying the environment
After seeing that he could not sweet talk me out of practicing he changed to hardball tactics. One day, several newly arrested practitioners arrived at the labor camp. They were all made to put on inmate clothes with numbers. The camp official on duty was a Team leader named Liu Dahan. He asked me why I didn't wear inmate clothes. I replied that I had not worn them and never will. He ordered me to his office, by then it was already around 9:00 o'clock in the evening. He asked me again why I did not wear inmate clothes. I gave him the same reply. Right away he gave me couple good punches on my cheek. I started to do my practice. After practicing a little while, another team leader Chen came in and told him, "Leader Liu, don't you know that Brigade leader already ordered that no one touches Old man Mr. L." Liu Dahan stopped. One punch did hit my mouth and broke my lip, blood dripped out and soaked into my jacket. I kept on doing the exercises with no intention to stop anytime soon. I told them that I intended to keep practicing whether they beat me or not. They ordered two guards to carry me back to the sleeping quarters, washed my face clean and even cleaned my shoes. They put me in my bed and ordered me to sleep.
Not long after this, the Brigade leader came running in from his home. Seeing me already in bed he went back out. The next day he told me, "I heard that team leader Liu beat you. I ordered the camp to punish him. Since he already beat you, why don't you just beat him up, OK?" I said I could not beat others in return. He said, "If you punch him back then you will settle the score for good so he will not owe you anymore." I just insisted on not hitting back. In reality, they were just putting on a show.
They gave all of us notebooks and pens as part of our "re-education class." I did not accept them. I wouldn't write any "ideological experience" report, nor would I do any of the so-called "homework." Once the homework was math and team leader Chen asked me to work out problems. He said this had nothing to do with Falun Gong. I replied that I still wouldn't do that homework regardless. They ended up ordering me into an office again, and demanded to know whether I would do the homework or not. I flatly told them their tactics didn't intimidate me. Team leader Chen could do nothing to me. Once having gotten rid of the attachment of fear, tribulations were easily passed.
One day the Camp director ordered the Brigade leader to take me to the hospital for an X-ray examination, saying that I might have tuberculosis. Of course I did not have any symptoms whatsoever. Finally they wrote me up for "Out of Camp medical treatment," and ordered me released to go home for "treatment." On November 21, I walked out the labor camp and returned home honorably.
(Note: the author of this series was a farmer in Liaoning Province. On February 5, 2000 (Chinese New Year) he was arrested after appealing for the right of practicing Falun Gong in Beijing. They detained him for 50 days at the detention center before illegally sentencing him to labor camp. He was detained in various labor and re-education camps until November 21, 2001.)
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