That late July afternoon in 1999, a practitioner and I sat on the steps of a small grocery store across the street from the appeals office. We were heavyhearted, unsure of what to do amidst evil's escalation of the persecution of Dafa. At about three o'clock in the afternoon, we watched the news broadcast on the grocery store's TV. In the news headlines, Falun Dafa was labeled as an "illegal organization." Tears flowed down as I watched. What an evil resolution!
On the morning of July 23, the police arrested practitioners on Liubukou Ave. The plain-clothed and uniformed policemen circled practitioners like vultures. I escaped. In the afternoon, I arrived at my workplace. The boss approached me and asked where I had been these days. I told him that the police were arresting Falun Gong practitioners all over the place. He did not reply. When I returned home that evening, Mrs. Hu, the director of the neighborhood women's committee, came to my house. In the past she had collected a list of the names of Falun Gong practitioners in the neighborhood. She asked me, "Were you at the appeals office over the last two days?" I replied, "Yes, I was." She then asked, "Do you have Falun Gong books and your teacher's pictures?" "Yes, I do," I said.
The next day, the police came to my home. There were eight or nine practitioners there at the time. Seeing so many people, the police officer said, "Just in time! I'm going to announce the "Six Rules" from the Ministry of Public Security. You will not be allowed to practice in the future." I said, "We won't follow these rules, neither should you announce them!" He repeated, "I'm telling you, you're not allowed to practice in the future!" An elderly practitioner said, "We won't stop our practice just because you tell us we have to. I'm not afraid of you. I was a messenger for the Eighth Route Army (the Party's army during the war with Japan) when I was only six years old. I dealt with Japanese enemies back then. Do you think I am afraid of you?!" The policeman was stunned. Then another of the men said, "I'm telling you, I'll practice even if I'm killed!" The policeman could see no alternative, so he ordered them to accompany him to the police station. I told him, "You can talk to me. Why are you taking them away?" He said, "Even you won't be missed." Then he went to chase the practitioners as they were leaving. In a moment he came back and asked me, "Who is the old woman? She circled the building ahead of me, I couldn't catch her." I told him, "How shameful it is you couldn't even catch an old woman!" The policeman said, "I'll find her even if you don't tell me. Who is she?" I said, "Whoever comes to my practice site can come and go at will. I don't register their names!" He placed the "Six Rules" from the Ministry of Public Security on the table and said to me, "Take a good look at this." I replied, "I won't bother looking at such nonsense" and he walked out the door. I threw the evil document on the floor and stomped on it. After he left, so did I. I came back in the afternoon. My neighbor told me, "Three policemen came here for you. They told me to report to them once you come back. Be careful!" I didn't take it seriously.
The next day, as soon as two practitioners (from out of town) and I arrived at my home, someone knocked on the door. I opened the door and saw three policemen standing in front of me. They said, "Come with us to the police station." "Why should I go to the police station? I'm not going," I said. "But you have no choice," the policemen said. I asked, "Do you have any legal documents for taking me to the police station?" They said, "Documents? OK, I can get one for you." Then they turned to ask the other two practitioners, "Do you practice Falun Gong?" I said, "Are you crazy? Don't tell me you want to arrest everybody!" Then I told the two practitioners, "I'll be OK. You should go now." When I arrived at the police station, they began to record everything I said. He asked me, "Will you still practice?" I said, "Sure I will, even if I was killed." He then asked, "Have you seen what's on TV?" I said, "Yes, I have." "What do you think about it?" he asked. I replied, "It calls black white and white black. It's pure nonsense." He asked, "Will you appeal (for Falun Gong) again?" "Sure!" I said. After the interrogation, the policeman walked out of the room with the record, without obtaining my signature. In a moment, he came back and told me, "Let's go." He took me to a small dark room in the backyard where criminals were held.
It was as high as 40oC (104oF) in Beijing that day. The two leaders of the Joint Defense Team (lower level of security function than police) watching us sweat a lot. I sat with my legs crossed on a bench and promoted Dafa to two people, telling them the principle of karmic retribution. The older of them, "It's so hot here, I'll water the entire floor to keep you cool. Will I receive good fortune?" I told him that if one treats others well, one receives good fortune. So he watered the floor, and it indeed made the small sauna-like room seem a lot cooler.
At three o'clock in the afternoon, the police called me. This time, it was a vice director of the police station who interrogated me. I told him that I would still keep practicing, and I asked him if he had any legal basis to arrest me. He was irritated and said, "I'm telling you, there isn't a single one in this area like you. I'll do whatever possible to send you to the detention center today." Then I was taken back to the small room. When it was almost dark, he asked me for my boss' telephone number. I said, "What do you want with my boss? Handle me whatever way you want to, but there's no one in the office on Sunday." He ignored what I said. He just wanted to inform my workplace. At midnight, he called me aside again, and said to me, "Your boss praised you. He indeed said a lot of good things about you. To tell you the truth, if it wasn't for your boss, I would have sent you to the detention center today for sure. I heard you're also a good daughter?" "Of course, Falun Gong practitioners are truly good," I said. "Stop there," he said. "Save your nonsense. I'm telling you there must be no next time, because next time I'll make sure to send you to the detention center."
The next day, I went to work. Official in my workplace asked me to turn in all my Falun Dafa books and suspended me from my duties pending investigation. My boss bailed me out of the trouble and exclaimed, "The general manager is being censured because of corruption. We can't put you to work when we need you the most. Manager Chen said that you must perform "self-criticism" before we can resume your duties again." I was suspended from my work. Everyone else went on business travel, leaving me alone in the workplace. The general manager called my home from Hong Kong to urge me to perform the "self-criticism." The person in charge of my workplace called my home every day, trying to persuade me to think of them. Officials of the Party Office talked with me every day. They even called my home after hours to urge me. I was driven mad and I fought with them as I explained my standpoint. Furthermore, the other practitioners no longer went to the practice site, nor did they meet with one another as often. The Ministry of Public Security had set the rules that not more than three Falun Gong practitioners were to be seen together. We could pass around articles downloaded from Clearwisdom only secretly. We became very disheartened.
(To be continued.)