(Clearwisdom.net)

I am a 57-year-old female Falun Dafa practitioner from Weifang City of Shandong Province. I started practicing Falun Gong in 1996. Since 1999, Weifang City has been one of the areas where the evil forces severely persecute practitioners. The following is my own experience that I would like to share as an example of how Jiang's gang attacks kindness, and bullies and oppresses civilians.

Before I started practicing Faun Gong, I had several illnesses. The most severe ones were bronchial asthma and migraine headaches. Oftentimes, I could hardly breathe and my face would become swollen and turn a greenish color. When it got worse, I could not stop coughing, I lost control of my bladder, and I could not sleep at night. Soon after I started practicing Falun Gong in 1996, miraculous changes occurred to my body and all the symptoms disappeared. For the very first time, I enjoyed the feeling of having no illness. In the meantime, I saw some supernatural scenes and heard some supernatural sounds. I was happy beyond words. I had only one thought: I have no other pursuit but to cultivate firmly.

In July 1999, Jiang Zemin's gang started persecuting Falun Gong nationwide. Suddenly the whole country was overshadowed with terror. Every work unit forced all its employees to disclose their attitudes toward Falun Gong and the police started to arrest people. During that period, the police and the neighborhood committee came to my home many times to try to force me to turn in my Falun Dafa books and write a pledge to not practice Falun Gong. I refused to do so.

In July and August 1999, several of us practitioners went to Beijing several times to appeal and we were held off by the police mid-way there. On November 25, we overcame all kinds of obstacles and eventually got to the State Appeals Bureau in Beijing. However, even before we got in the door, we were dragged into a police vehicle and sent to the Weifang Deputy Office in Beijing. Then we were taken back to the Kuiwen District Nanyuan Street Neighborhood Committee Office, where I was detained illegally for forty days. During those forty days, I experienced all kinds of torture and humiliation. Under the direct order of the Party Secretary Zhao Jie, Deputy Secretary Miao led seven or eight thugs in brutally torturing us. They confined me in a dark room without food or water and they deprived me of sleep for a long time. They also seized the food and commodities sent by my family and did not allow my family to see me. They often gave me no food or water for several days. Sometimes I only got one pack of instant noodles for two or three days. Once I was given no food or water for eight consecutive days. I only had a chair to sleep in the whole night and often I woke up due to the cold. They did not let my family know anything. They forced me to pay 10,000 Yuan (The average Chinese worker's wage is 500 Yuan per month) and write a pledge to not practice Falun Gong. I refused. Then they started beating me. The people who participated in these atrocities were Party Secretary Zhao Jie, Deputy Secretary Miao and eight or nine thugs twenty to thirty years of age, including Cui Xigui, Zhang Guangzhu, Wang Qinggui, Wei Qi, Ran and An. They beat me numerous times. Once they attached me to a wooden pole with tape and eight or nine of them surrounded me, kicked me and hit me back and forth. They pushed me straight down to the floor and dragged my head back and forth, hitting me on my chest, stomach, back, lower back, legs, neck, and face. While beating me, they shouted, "Do you dare to practice Falun Gong!? Do you dare to appeal!?" I felt so dizzy and nauseous that I almost lost consciousness. Then I distantly heard someone come from outside say, "You can't beat her like this. She is at such an age that you would kill her." Then they stopped the beating. They pressured my family many times to pay money. My husband and children had no way to gather such a big amount of money so every time they just came in crying and went out crying. Those vicious people couldn't get what they wanted so they used all kinds of methods to torture me. One day in late December, it was very cold and the temperature was in the negative teens (Celsius). At around 9:00 p.m., they stripped off my coat, shoes, and socks. With only underwear and bare feet, I was tied to a tree in the yard. I was frozen and shaking. Moreover, Wang Qinggui poured a bucket of water on my feet. They did not untie me until the early morning. During that period of over a month, I had only a few meals and not even one night of good sleep. They also forced me to do labor such as house cleaning and weeding.

Every time when I was in a tribulation, I always had one thought: with the Teacher and the Fa, I fear nothing and nobody can touch me. I insisted on reciting the Fa and on meditating and practicing. No matter how hard they tried to force me to write or sign the pledge, to pressure me to pay bribes or to ask my family to persuade me, I did not say one word against my will and neither did I sign anything. It was Dafa that gave me the strength to manifest great compassion and forbearance without complaint or regret and Dafa that helped me stay energetic and in good health. I told those people many times that Falun Dafa cultivates Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance and that it is the heavenly principle that good is rewarded with good and evil is met with evil. I also advised them not to do evil things. In return, they laughed at me and cursed me. However, those vicious people had to admit the miracle that was happening to me. They said many times in front of me with laughs, "That Falun Gong practitioner is really strange! She is not afraid of beatings or of freezing. No matter how we torture her, she is fine."

On January 1, 2000, some practitioners who went to Beijing to appeal were escorted back. They were treated the same as I was in the Nanyuan Street Neighborhood Committee Office, being tied to trees with their coats, shoes, and socks stripped off. The Party Secretary Zhao Jie showed up and asked Cui Xigui and other thugs to be ready. I heard Zhao Jie tell Cui Xigui, "You guys get ready. Prepare some excrement and urine. We will force-feed them with the excrement and urine plus some herbs. Just use your own urine, that will be fine." On that evening, they dragged over thirty practitioners to the yard, lined them up and let those practitioners watch how they would torture us. Then the eight of us who went to Beijing to appeal were untied from the trees. They then retied our hands and feet and forced us to our knees. Zhao Jie and his thugs put the excrement and urine in water bottles. Zhao told Cui Xigui, "Didn't they go to Beijing to appeal? Didn't they say they would continue to practice Falun Gong? Feed one bottle of this stuff for each one of them, starting from this old woman!" At that moment, I felt very calm. This would not scare off Dafa practitioners. The thugs forcefully fed practitioners who struggled to reject and the excrement and urine got all over their bodies. One female practitioner felt so bad that she threw up. She almost fainted due to the stomachache. However, those vicious ruffians still did not let her go and they shouted, cursed, and insisted on feeding every one of us. Some practitioners were fed two bottles. The scene was horrible to watch. Zhao Jie shouted to other practitioners and threatened them, "Did you see this? If you insist on practicing, this will be how we treat you too!" That was what a party secretary did under Jiang's leadership. This inhumane Zhao Jie was later promoted to Deputy County Supervisor because of his efforts in persecuting Falun Gong.

My family members didn't have the heart to see me suffering there. They borrowed money from every possible source and collected 4,000 Yuan. On January 2, my daughter went to the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee and handed the money to Cui Xigui. Cui impudently said, "Do you know what they drank yesterday? It was my urine." After my daughter took me home, she saw the black and blue marks all over my body. She felt so grieved that she cried out badly.

On the January 18, 2000 (in the lunar calendar) I heard the news that Chen Zixiu, a Dafa practitioner at Chengguang Street of Weicheng District in Weifang City, had been beaten to death and would be cremated the same day. I went to the hospital immediately. Many fellow practitioners went as well. The hospital was crowded with practitioners. At that time, many police vehicles and policemen went there. When they saw more and more practitioners come, the police forced us to leave. I was taken to the Xiguang Police Substation and then transferred to the Kuiwen Police Station. At 5 p.m., Deputy Secretary Miao of the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee came to the police station with other people. They brutally beat me and then took me back to the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee. Right after I stepped out of the vehicle, they beat me again and then took off my coat, shoes, and socks, and tied me to a tree with both hands behind my back. After 9 p.m., they came back after drinking. Cui Xigui fiercely said, "I'm going to beat you to death tonight." He then kicked me badly in my stomach and private parts with his leather boots. I passed out immediately.

At this time, my husband and my daughter came. My husband saw I had been beaten terribly and shouted to Cui Xigui, "Do you still have any human nature? Last time, you almost killed her. This time you beat her so badly. You could kill her." My daughter also said, "Cui Xigui, you are not a human being. Last time you forced my mom to take your urine. Now you torture her so terribly again. You will receive your retribution." Two females on duty for the neighborhood committee could not stand to see the torture against me and said to me privately, "If you think Falun Gong is good, just practice at home. There is no need to suffer." I sincerely told them, "My Teacher taught us to practice Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I must tell the truth. If I just secretly practice at home, how would you know that Dafa is good? How would you know that those people against Dafa are so vicious?" This time, I was detained and tortured for one week again. During this week, they didn't let me have any meal or drink. They didn't release me until they got another 2,000 Yuan from my family. After I went back home, I was so weak that I could hardly stand up. My legs were in so much pain, my private parts were swollen and bruised, and I had difficulty urinating. I had not had any meal or drink for eight or nine days. My husband and children cried badly. They discussed how to retaliate against those vicious people for what they had done to me. After I kept persuading them, so they gave up the thought.

On the morning of August 11, 2000, between 8 to 9 a.m., four people from the police substation and the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee drove a car on Xingzheng Street and saw me. They asked me to go to the neighborhood committee and dragged me in the car without my consent. As soon as they got out of the car, they hung me on a tree and tried to force me to curse the Teacher. I said, "Teacher is innocent. Falun Dafa is a righteous way. You will know that in the future." Zhang Guangzhu and others came up, hitting and kicking me madly. I felt dizzy and fainted. I kept tearing, unable to hear or see anything. The next day I was released and went back home with swollen eyes. My family was angry but could do nothing about it. They tried to keep me from going out, but I couldn't stay home. I wanted to expose the evil deeds of those under Jiang Zemin's command because the evil is most afraid of being exposed.

On October 1, another practitioner and I took a bus to Beijing to do Fa-rectification in Tiananmen Square. When we got to Zibo City, Shandong Province, police arrested us. I told them the whole story of me being persecuted and told them the truth of Dafa cultivation. Upon hearing it, they had nothing to say but expressed their sympathy, "We know you are all good people. But we can do nothing about it. We have to follow the orders from upper levels." They then informed the Nanyaun Neighborhood Committee who took me back and tied me to the tree again. They pressured my husband to pay 5,000 Yuan before I could be released. My husband and children went around to borrow money and they could only get 600 Yuan (they had already borrowed 6,000 Yuan). Thus I was sent to the Kuiwen Detention Center for half a month. I was released on October 24. At about 7 p.m. on October 25, eight or nine people from the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee broke into my home and dragged me into a car. They said they were going to send me to the "Brainwashing Classes." I recalled Teacher's words, "Getting arrested is not the purpose. Validating Dafa is truly glorious". (Rationality) When the car got to Shengli Street, I strongly requested to make a phone call to my family. They surrounded me tightly to prevent me from escaping. After finishing the phone call, I immediately shouted at passersby on the street, "Everybody please look. The vicious people are arresting people illegally. They are doing bad deeds in broad daylight, bullying good people!" Then I told the people on the street how I was captured and tortured several times. More and more people gathered. It was Dafa that gave me the wisdom and courage to speak clearly and loudly without any fear in front of so many people. My actions shocked the thugs and suppressed them. They did not know what to do. After a while, they just went away. The people who surrounded me heard my story and many felt very angry and sympathetic. In the end, I shouted to the surrounding people and passersby, "Falun Dafa is the righteous way. Teacher Li is good. Everybody, please don't believe the rumors or the slanderous propaganda." On the way home I felt especially happy and relieved because I told people the truth and some more people now know the truth.

Because I was arrested and beaten over and over again, my family was really scared and this time they would not let me go out no matter what. I was locked inside my room. So I just studied the Fa and did the exercises. I felt very uncomfortable, though, since I could not do anything for Fa-rectification at home. So on November 1, I opened the lock and ran out of the house. Together with another practitioner, I went to Tiananmen Square and shouted to the tourists, "Falun Dafa is good! Restore the clean reputation of Teacher Li. Restore the clean reputation of Dafa!" Then the police came. The vicious police beat me and dragged me to the Weifang City Deputy Office in Beijing. At around 11 p.m., Deputy Secretary Miao got to the Weifang deputy office with several thugs and escorted me back to the Nanyuan Street Neighborhood Committee Office. They handcuffed me and three other practitioners to electric poles. I started to send forth righteous thoughts. No matter how they tortured me, I told them over and over again with no resentment or regret, "Falun Dafa teaches people to be compassionate. Truthfulness-Benevolence-Forbearance is the universal principle. It is a heavenly law that good is rewarded with good and evil is met with evil. You should not do any bad deeds or commit any wrongdoings. You are harming yourselves!" They not only ignored my words, but also laughed at me.

On November 5, my husband and my daughter came to see me. They argued with Zhao Jue, Miao and Cui Xigui. "Will you ever finish? Why do you always torture her? Exactly what crime did she commit that you torture her almost to death? If you won't let her live, we won't live either!" Then Zhao Jie and Cui Xigui ordered several thugs to beat up my husband. My husband was beaten down to the floor and could not stand up. My daughter could not stop crying, seeing it all. The sound of cursing and crying created a big scene. I was tied to the tree and saw it all. I was very saddened. My husband was almost 60 years old and he experienced so many tribulations and pains because of me. My daughter cried numerous times for me and received so many curses. My father-in-law, who was in his 90's, stayed alone at home with nobody taking care of him. No matter how the evil forces tortured me, I never shed a single tear. At that moment, I could no long hold myself and cried. I realized the old forces were not only brutally persecuting Dafa practitioners with the purpose of sabotaging Dafa, they were also greatly hurting practitioners' families and relatives. The most horrible thing was that they were harming people who don't know the truth and making them have misunderstandings about practitioners, or even hatred toward them. This was particularly true of the ignorant and violent thugs whom Jiang's regime used as clubs to attack people. What a pity that those people would be destroyed! I felt that only by exposing the evils and clarifying the truth could we possibly save them and wake them up. At this moment, I thought, "Teacher, please help me! I can't be tied here. I have to go out and tell people the truth of what is happening." Suddenly a miracle happened. The handcuff on my right hand got loose. I was very excited, "Thank you, Teacher. I'll go right now." In the chaos, nobody saw me walk out of the gate of the hell-like Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee Office. I was again able to join the Fa-rectification current. I still remember clearly that day, November 5, 2000. At that moment, I felt the unmatchable sacredness and magnificence of Dafa and the great compassion and protection from Teacher. Later my daughter told me that after I left, Zhao Jie found I was gone and accused my daughter of setting me free. My daughter argued with them, "The handcuff key is still in your hand. How could I have opened the handcuffs?" Yet they forcibly detained my daughter for half a month. Looking back on the past two years, my three daughters ran many miles and cried many times. This time my oldest daughter was even put in jail because of me. My youngest daughter has not been able to get a marriage license from the Nanyuan Street Neighborhood Committee. She went there dozens of times and was repeatedly refused the license. The reason given was "when your mother gives up Falun Gong practice, you will be able to register and get married." The evil forces have used all kinds of plots and methods to persecute Dafa practitioners.

Since November 5, 2000, when I walked out of the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee Office, I have been unable to go back home. I first lived in a fellow practitioner's home for a while. Since the Nanyuan Neighborhood Committee was looking for me, I had to move several times and was unable to find a suitable place to live. Later I wandered to a torn up thatched roof cottage on a remote hill where a couple lived. I told them I was arrested for practicing Falun Gong and had escaped. They saw me as a nice person and let me stay. I helped them do housework and also taught them about Falun Dafa and the practice.

One month later, I heard a piece of news saying my family's house had been burned. On November 1, 2002 of the lunar calendar, our neighbors saw that our house was on fire. The fire spread really fast. They told my nephew about it and my nephew called the firefighters. But when the firefighters came, the house had almost burned down completely. Eight rooms and all the furniture became ashes. The responsible person and causes were not being investigated, but I knew in my heart that the evil forces would do everything to persecute Dafa practitioners. Another month later, I left the house on the hill. With the help of fellow practitioners and other kind-hearted people, my husband and I were able to take my 90-year-old father-in-law and make a life on the road, still maintaining a basic standard of living. Sometimes I worked temporary jobs to make a living. No matter where I went or how difficult the life was, I never forgot Fa-study, Fa-rectification and doing Dafa work. My husband also knew some principles of the Fa and provided me with support and understanding. He also helped me with some truth-clarification work.

Looking back on the benefits I have had since practicing Dafa, my experiences are beyond words. Teacher not only gave me a healthy body, but also taught me the principles of being a good person and allowed me to understand the meaning of life as well as saved me and helped me move up to higher realms. Although I experienced some tribulations, I always feel Teacher has given me too much and I have done too little. I have often made mistakes that were taken advantage by the evil. I will follow the Fa and do better in studying the Fa, rectifying the Fa, exposing the evils, and clarifying the truth. Finally let us read together Teacher's recent article "Foretelling the Fa's Rectification of the Human World" that says, "The Fa-rectification moves through the world, the grand manifestation of Gods and Buddhas unfolds, and all of the chaotic world's unrighted wrongs and karmic relationships are settled with benevolent solutions. The ones who do evil against Dafa go down into the gate of no-life. As for all the others, people's hearts return to righteousness and they cherish virtue and do good, all the myriad things are renewed, and every single sentient being reveres Dafa's saving grace. All of the heavens and the earth celebrate together, rejoice together, and exalt together. Dafa's most glorious period in the human world begins at this moment.