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Please help to rescue our relatives jailed in China for practicing Falun Gong
In the middle of the night, Xiao Jin received a phone call from his brother in China, who said that their mother had been arrested for practicing Falun Gong; a few days of torture in the detention center had left her in bad shape. Upon hearing this, Xiao Jin wept. For quite a while, he couldn't speak.
(Male) Xiao Jin: When I heard my mom had been arrested, I was shocked. Knowing how vicious the police in China are toward Falun Gong practitioners, I was extremely worried. It was hard for me to imagine how my mom would endure all that torture and brutality in their hands. When I calmed down, I realized that there may be other practitioners living through the same experience. I asked around and found out that seven fellow practitioners in Toronto have relatives who have been arrested in China. They are a husband, a son, a mother, a brother, a sister and a nephew. They have been either imprisoned or sent to forced-labor camps. I thought we should work together in Canada and rescue them.
(Female) Through Xiao Jin, we found Zhang Li.
(Female) Zhang Li: My husband He Lizhi graduated from Xi'An Metallurgical College of Architecture in 1984, specializing in Civil and Industrial Architecture. He was only 20 at that time. Because of his outstanding academic performance and his integrity, he was assigned to the Beijing Central Engineering and Research Corporation of the Iron and Steel Industry--a first-class institution in China. I graduated from the same college and was assigned to the same company a year later.
In 1988, when China opened its doors, the company was responsible for many joint projects with other countries. Lizhi was sent to Germany as a technical liaison as well as the English interpreter for the team of experts. He was 23 at that time, the youngest in his team. He didn't know much German, but he taught himself and soon was able to translate all the German materials for the Company. Being responsible for some Japanese projects as well, he also taught himself Japanese and was able to translate the technical materials. He contributed a lot to the introduction of advanced technology to China and the upgrading of local technology.
Since 1988, he has received the 'Outstanding Staff Member' award every year. Shortly before his arrest, he won the National Gold Award for Outstanding Contribution.
(Female) Since childhood his health was weak. I always worried about him, wondering how I could help him improve his health, but nothing seem to help until he started practicing Falun Gong. For the first time he didn't get sick for a whole winter. It was almost like magic to me. After that, he was free of illnesses and our life together was even more fulfilling and happy.
(Female) In July 1999, the Chinese government started persecuting Falun Gong. In March 2000, while the National People's Congress was in session, a friend and I went to deliver a letter of appeal for Falun Gong and were arrested in Tiananmen Square. That night, Lizhi went to Tiananmen to look for me when I didn't come home. Plainclothes policemen who posed as Falun Gong practitioners then took him away. He was jailed for 15 days before he was sent to a brainwashing center for a week. In the meantime, I was held for a month. In July 2000, we received papers from the Canadian government to immigrate to Canada and were going to finish up our business at work and home before we headed for Canada.
On July 18 and 19, Lizhi went to the post office to do a mass mailing of some Falun Gong truth materials to his friends. He was seen by the Security Bureau and was videotaped. On the 21st, he was taken away by the National Security Bureau from his workplace and our home was ransacked. For one month, I was unable to learn of his whereabouts. When I found out that he was being held at the Beijing Haidian District Detention Center, I tried so hard to rescue him. I got in touch with someone who was well connected locally and he told me he might be able to get him released if I had 100,000 Yuan ready. I didn't have that much money, but I was ready to pawn all I owned. When I was almost there, the man said that money would not work any more. They had received orders from higher authorities that with 100,000, a murderer could be released. But with Falun Gong practitioners, even 200,000 would not work. Six months later, on January 5, 2001, the Beijing Middle-level Court sentenced him to three years and six months in prison.
(Female) On February 20, 2001, I was allowed to visit him for the first time since he had been arrested seven months prior. Three policemen escorted him to see me. He was shackled, looking very weak, and he could barely stand on his own. He was being physically supported by the policemen, and did not have any warm clothes on. His body was very swollen and he was coughing all the time. The fence separated us. The police took him away after we exchanged only a few words. We have been together for more than 10 years and are very much in love. We don't have children and our parents live in other cities. It was just the two of us in Beijing and we had become very dependent and attached to one another. When he was arrested, I felt that a huge part of me had been taken away and I didn't know how to carry on. Thanks to Falun Dafa. Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance helped me through all this.
(Female) The third time I went to see him was April 14, 2001, when he was already in the hospital. He was still very swollen, extremely weak and was coughing blood. I requested bail for medical reasons, but was rejected. I was also under the threat of being sent to the brainwashing center, or forced labor camp, or imprisonment. As our Landing Papers were going to expire soon, I got in touch with the Canadian Embassy and with their assistance I arrived in Toronto in May of 2001.
(Female) I didn't have a chance to say goodbye to my husband. I haven't heard from him since. I waited a long time after I arrived in Canada to tell our parents about what had happened. My in-laws were devastated. They are honest, simple people who could never understand how their kind-hearted son became a criminal overnight. My parents couldn't understand how their son-in-law whom they were so proud of could be thrown into jail for telling the truth. They don't know where China is heading.
Eleven other Canadian practitioners with twelve family members are also imprisoned in China.
They are experiencing unimaginable persecution every day, even under the threat of losing their lives at any time......some family members of Canadians have already lost their lives.
Simply because they want to live their lives truthfully, compassionately and with forbearance...
Bei Shi, 49, mother of Canadian student Chris Xu, was denied food for a week. She died on September 10th, 2000.
Songtao Zou, 28, brother-in-law of Vancouver resident Tianxiao Zhang, tortured to death in Shandong Wangcun labor camp on November 3rd, 2000.
Yunhe Zhang, 29 , Songtao Zou's wife, missing since May 2001.
Yueli Yang, 63, mother of Canadian practitioner Yang Zhendong. Yang was a senior engineer with the Ministry of Aerospace in China. As a scientist, she was involved in the first satellite launch in China in the late 60s, and the design and launch of Rocket Long on March 3 in 1986. She had been granted many awards inside and outside of China for her achievements in rocket science.
Yang was arrested on December 7, 2001 and subsequently given an 18- month sentence in a labour camp. Her son Zhendong has since lost contact with her.
Xiuzhen Lu, 58, is the mother of Canadian practitioner Li Bo. Lu taught Japanese in the Fifth Secondary School in Jinzhou City, Liaoning Province. Elected as an outstanding employee, she was well recognized for her achievements in teaching. She had also been elected as a local representative to the People's Congress. In November 2001, she was arrested and sentenced to two years in the notorious Masanjia Forced Labor Camp in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province.
Xiuchao Huang, 70, is the mother of Canadian practitioner Liang Biao. Huang is a mother of four and grandmother of five. A native of Siuxi in Guangdong Province, she had devoted all her life to her family and work. In February 2002, she was arrested and secretly sentenced to four years.
Tingxiong Peng, 29, is the twin sister of Canadian practitioner Peng Tingying. Tingxiong was an officer working with the First Military Medical University in Guangdong Province. She was detained in March 2001, and forced to leave her four-month old child behind. She was brainwashed in the camp and subsequently released. In April 2002, she was adducted from home and sent to a brainwashing center again where she has been detained ever since.
Yangying Wu, 42, and Zhanzhong Wu, 36, are the sister and brother of Canadian practitioner Wu Yanxia. Both Yangying and Zhanzhong were arrested on January 18, 2001 and sentenced to two years in forced labour camps. In September 2001, Yanxia went to see her imprisoned sister the day before she left for Canada. Yanying's face had been badly beaten and her thumb and forefinger seriously injured.
Zhaojin Qiu, 59, is the husband of Canadian practitioner Wang Yanying; and Bo Qiu, 27, is her son. Both Zhaojin and Bo were arrested in October 2000 and sentenced to three years in Liuchangshan Forced Labour Camp for practicing Falun Gong. Que Zhaojin had been the Chief Art Editor at Jinan Dachong Daily newspaper in Shandong Province.
Yangtao Jin, 24, is the nephew of Canadian practitioner Liu Jinan. Yangtao graduated from the Finance Department at Liaoning Institute of Technology in 2000. He was highly regarded by his colleagues, friends and family as a responsible and mature person. He was arrested in March 2002. Despite his parents' efforts, Yangtao's whereabouts remain unknown.
Mingli Lin, 43, brother of Shenli Lin of Montreal. Illegally sent to the Dafeng Labor Camp in May 2001.
Jiangang Huang, brother of Canadian Limin Huang, a senior engineer, was sentenced to Dafeng Labor Camp for 18 months without trial in March 2001.
Zhou Zheng, 51, sister of a Vancouver resident, an engineer in China. Taken away from home, she has been in prison for over 18 months.
(Male)Xiao Jin: My mother has been temporarily released after my brother signed a guarantee statement in which the condition for the release was clearly laid out: if my mother is found practicing the Falun Gong exercises or distributing FLG flyers again, she will be sentenced and my brother will lose his job. When I called the local security and judiciary departments in China regarding my mother, they said that they knew those Falun Gong practitioners are the best of people, but they had to follow instructions and there was not much they could do.
(Female) Zhang Li: Yes, Jiang's regime practices "guilt by association." The families of practitioners are not the only ones who experience persecution. The fellow employees of practitioners' work units, residence offices, local police departments and related county offices are all penalized through demotion or firing. These people find themselves in a very difficult position as they try to protect themselves and become the accomplices of the perpetrators. Those who are most ruthless in torturing practitioners, however, are the ones who are distinguished and awarded by the security departments.
(Male) Xiao Jin: But we believe in the power of justice. With the support and assistance of the Canadian government and Canadians, we have saved practitioners Zhang Kunlun, Zhu Ying and Lin Shenli from imprisonment and they are now all safe in Canada.
(Female) Behind each rescue are many touching stories that have demonstrated the strong sense of justice and perseverance of this great country.
(Female) Zhang Li: We have shown the world that the final victory belongs to justice. We believe that when enough people are willing to stand up and give voice to those who are persecuted, the persecution will end.
Your help will make a difference
Pursuing Truth-Compassion-Forbearance is not a crime
Our tribute to all Falun Gong practitioners protecting truth and freedom in our world
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