(Minghui.org) In spite of two fractured ribs, he still had the strength to carry his elder sister on his back. Nine years of imprisonment for his faith did not change his optimistic personality. Although he had not a penny to his name, he just started anew. In his dictionary, there was no such word as “being depressed.”

What he often said was that a Falun Gong practitioner is not afraid, even when facing a life and death tribulation. His life is a shining testimony to Falun Gong and his name is Mr. Jing Yu.

The Tribulations of a "Black Five" Family

Mr. Jing Yu’s mother was the daughter of a capitalist, making her a member of the “Five Black Categories,” (categorized as landlords, rich farmers, counter-revolutionaries, bad-influencers and rightists during the cultural revolution) and she was thus considered an enemy of the Chinese Cultural Revolution.

Since the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ruled China, their family’s social status was lowered and it brought endless persecution during each political movement for Jing Yu’s mother.

When Mr. Jing was a teenager, his father died from heart disease. The hardships of life left his mother with a variety of illnesses, such as kidney and gallbladder inflammation, hepatitis, diabetes, and rheumatism.

Holding Steadfast Faith in Falun Gong

Mr. Jing's two elder sisters, who practiced Falun Gong, introduced this cultivation practice to their mother. With her having vision problems, they found Zhuan Falun, Falun Gong’s main book, with words in larger prints.

The first time their mother read Zhuan Falun, tears flowed, and she felt that she found a relative. What she read touched her heart, and she did not hesitate to practice Falun Gong. Her illnesses disappeared within one year.

She wrote, “After practicing Falun Gong, I returned to good health. Upon cultivating in Falun Gong, I began to experience happiness, and was energized.”

Mr. Jing felt happy and grateful for his mother’s good health. Although he thought this practice was good, he just wanted to earn money for his family.

Then, Falun Gong was banned by the CCP in 1999. Mr. Jing’s mother and his second elder sister, Ms. Jing Cai, went to Beijing to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong.

His mother wrote in her appeal letter, “Such a good practice was banned. I can’t understand. It is taught without asking for money, yet one returns to good health, and it teaches people to become kind. Why does the government not allow us to practice it?”

Imprisonment and Torture

The mother and daughters went to the Beijing Appeals Office to appeal for the right to practice Falun Gong. They were arrested and detained at a motel. Then, the mother and one daughter were taken to Shenyang City and incarcerated in the Shenyang Longshan Forced Labor Camp. Ms. Jing Tian was taken to a forced-labor camp in Shijiazhuang City.

All practitioners in the camp started to practice the Falun Gong exercises inside the prison cells. They were taken from their cells and shocked with electric batons. The lips of the more than 60-year-old mother were swollen and almost touched her nose. Ms. Jing Cai’s face was shocked and her arms cuffed behind her back.

Mother and daughter were released in May 2005. They were ordered to pay a total of 7,200 yuan for their living expenses at the camp. Fellow practitioners came up with the money and took them back home.

Ms. Jing Tian Taken to Forced Labor Camp

Ms. Jing Tian had congenital heart disease from childhood and recovered after she practiced Falun Gong. She could not go to petition in Beijing for business reasons. After she heard about the arrest of her mother and sister she knew that it was useless to visit the Appeals Office. Thus, she decided to go to Beijing. She and several practitioners she met on her arrival in Beijing went to Tiananmen Square to tell people that Falun Gong is good.

They were displaying a five-meter-long banner that said, “Shenyang Falun Gong Practitioners Came to Beijing to Appeal.” Police arrested all practitioners with the exception of her because they thought she was a tourist.

Instead of leaving, she told the police, “I brought them here, so I'm responsible.” She was arrested and taken to a forced labor camp in Shijiazhuang City. Practitioners were tortured, so she went on a hunger strike.

Mr. Jing Yu Tortured

Mr. Jing thought, “Why is this society so evil? My mother and sisters are kind and honest people, so why does the government torture them? Falun Gong teaches Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance. Why is this not allowed?”

He read Zhuan Falun to find out why his mother and sister remained steadfast, even when facing arrest and brutality. After reading Zhuan Falun, he decided to practice Falun Gong.

Then, the local police demanded that the entire family come to the police station for a talk. However, only the mother and eldest sister went and were arrested on arrival and taken to the Shenyang Longshan Forced Labor Camp

Zhang Jiaying and other officers from the Huanghai Police Station in the Yuhong District of Shenyang City broke into Mr. Jing's home, ransacked it, and found a cultivation experience sharing article by Mr. Jing Yu in which he likened Jiang Zemin (the former CCP leader) to a fascist.

They took him to the police station and tortured him for two days and two nights, demanding that he tell them where his second older sister was. They tried to shock him with electric batons, but the batteries had been depleted.

Zhang Jiaying beat Mr. Jing and broke two of his ribs. Then, they used a wooden stick to press down on his legs. Two policemen stepped on each side of the stick. Mr. Jing did not tell them the whereabouts of his sister.

The chief police told Mr. Jing, “It is fine for you not to give us the whereabouts of your sister. You can give us information about other Falun Gong practitioners.” Mr. Jing just smiled.

The chief of police transferred Mr. Jing to a detention center and wrote on the detention report, “Jing Yu was in close contact with Falun Gong practitioners at home. He also wrote Falun Gong letters to oppose Jiang Zemin and called Jiang Zemin a fascist.”

However, a few days later Mr. Jing Yu was released. As soon as he arrived home, he received a call from the police station asking him what he was doing. He realized that the police released him in the hope that he would lead them to his second elder sister and other practitioners.

Clarifying the Truth

Mr. Jing's eldest sister, Ms. Jing Tian went on a hunger strike to protest her arrest. Her health deteriorated and the public security hospital was afraid to take responsibility, so they notified her family to get her out on bail.

Mr. Jing went to the hospital and explained that he was just released from a detention center and had no money. His mother was detained in a forced labor camp, and he had lost contact with his second elder sister after she was released from the forced labor camp. The hospital released his sister.

A police officer took him to his sister Ms. Jing Tian. He told his sister that they would go home and he would carry her on his back. At home, Ms. Jing Tian received a call from the court, checking on her situation. They realized that the authorities would arrest her again, so they left their home.

They met up with their sister Ms. Jiang Cai and other practitioners. They agreed that the authorities would not treat them fairly, so they decided to print Falun Gong materials and make DVDs for distribution to the public. They produced and distributed Falun Gong materials for over a year.

The police could not find the source of the Falun Gong materials, so they ordered the merchants, computer centers and taxi drivers of Shenyang City to report anyone who bought printing supplies. They offered a 500 yuan reward. Mr. Jing Yu and his team were reported by a taxi driver.

Police rushed into their house when they opened the door the next morning. The police confiscated a lot of Falun Gong brochures and DVDs. Then the police took them to the market in handcuffs which they covered with a towel.

The two practitioners pulled away the towels and shouted. “Falun Gong is good!” People surrounded them. The policeman covered their mouths. An elderly man who witnessed the altercation against Mr. Jing Tian and Ms. Jing Cai when they were being pushed into the police van, hit the van door with his fist.

Mother’s Strong Will

The mother refused to give up her faith when detained in a brainwashing center, so she was transferred to the Longshan Forced Labor Camp where she was tortured.

She was shocked with electric batons. A prison guard used a comb to hit her face and kicked her. Despite showing signs of diabetes and cerebral thrombosis she was still tortured. She lost the sight in one eye and could barely see out of the other. When her health deteriorated further, the forced labor camp did not want to assume responsibility and released her.

On her return home, she found it a mess, as the police had ransacked it. Practitioners and neighbors helped out as much as possible and supplied her with vegetables.

She recovered after she practiced the Falun Gong exercises. To make a living she washed clothes and cooked meals for people in their homes. She earned 300 yuan a month. She saved every penny she could by not using heat in the winter and only ate home-made pickles and coarse grains all year long. That way she could afford to bring clothes and food to her detained children.

The police kept harassing her. She remained kind and compassionate and told them that they would be punished if they continued to do evil. She explained the reason for quitting the CCP and its youth organizations. Many of the police officers quit the Party and refused to participate in the persecution.

Sentenced to Prison Terms

Mr. Jing Yu and his two sisters went on a hunger strike. Each sister was sentenced to 13 years in prison and Mr. Jing to 10 years. Most other practitioners were sentenced to 10 years or more.

Fellow practitioners dared not notify Mr. Jing's mother to attend the trial, but she finally knew the result. With fellow practitioners’ help, she visited her children periodically.

Reporting Prison Conditions

Mr. Jing Yu was taken to Huazi Prison in Liaoyang City. Several of his ribs were broken when the police beat him and his lung was punctured, so he often spit up blood. He was held in the prison hospital. Each Falun Gong practitioner in that prison was monitored by eight inmates.

Mr. Jing planned to inform outside practitioners about the prison conditions. He noticed that some inmates had cell phones and frequently made calls to people outside the prison. He was told that he could also buy a cell phone, which he did after saving some money.

The guards found his phone and interrogated him, but he did not tell them how he got it. After some back and forth, the guards decided to let it go and not report it to their supervisor.

Receiving and Sending Information for Many Years

Mr. Jing Yu was able to get another cell phone, which he shared with other imprisoned practitioners. Thus, they were able to report to the Minghui website what was going on inside the prison. These practitioners found ingenious ways to hide the cell phone for many years, despite being monitored by many inmates.

Mr. Jing had a good relationship with prisoners in his cell so he was able to charge the cell phone.

Having this cell phone helped him get information from the outside and provide information to the outside. Fellow practitioners’ family members cooperated with practitioners inside to pass on new articles by Master Li Hongzhi (the founder of Falun Gong), as well as an MP4 player that contained Master Li’s Fa lecture to Australian students.

Since prison officials were unable to stop the information flow from the outside and inside, they transferred the practitioners to Nanguanzi Prison in Dalian City. Thus they no longer had access to the cell phone and the MP4 player.

Released and Leaving China

With overseas Falun Gong practitioners putting pressure on officials and others responsible for the incarceration of Mr. Jing Yu, he was released in 2012, one year earlier than the end of his prison term.

He reunited with his mother. He was more than 30 years old and had difficulty finding a job. But, a restaurant hired him and he became the best cold-noodle baker in that area. He also was able to tell his customers the facts about Falun Gong.

After his mother passed away, he found a way to leave China and was reunited with his sisters who had left some time ago.