(Minghui.org) On April 25, 1999, over 10,000 Falun Gong practitioners went to the appeal center in Beijing to seek the freedom of freely practicing their faith. This turned out to be one of the biggest appeals in China’s modern history. The courage and resilience they demonstrated transcends time and space, and it will continue to inspire generations to come.
I was one of the witnesses who experienced the series of events that led to this historic appeal, and the day April 25 means even more to me.
On April 11, 1999, He Zuoxiu, a scientist who fervently supported the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), published an article in Youth Science and Technology, a magazine under the Tianjin Education Institute. In this article titled “I Do Not Approve of Youths Practicing Falun Gong,” he fabricated information to slander Falun Gong and its founder.
Upon learning about the situation, several practitioners in Tianjin including me decided to go to the magazine’s office on April 19 to clarify to the editors, the basic facts about Falun Gong.
A director in the editorial department received us around 9 a.m. We told him that the information listed by He in the article wasn’t true. We gave examples of how we and our family members, including our young children, benefited from practicing Falun Gong. The director listened to us carefully. He kept apologizing to us, saying that he did not know Falun Gong is so good. He was also interested in learning that so many people practice it. Then we brought up three requests: 1) the magazine issues a public apology to Falun Gong; 2) He Zuoxiu revises his article to reduce the negative impact he had caused on the reputation of Falun Gong; 3) the magazine publishes an article about Falun Gong’s health benefits in the next issue.
The director made notes of our conversation and said that he would have a meeting with his supervisor for instructions. He said he would inform us of their decision as soon as he could. We felt he was very sincere and he truly wanted to work with us to solve the issue. So we ended the meeting and left.
On our way out, we saw more practitioners coming to talk to the magazine’s editors. We told them that we had talked to them already and were waiting on the result. We walked together to the playground of the Tianjin Education Institute (publisher of the magazine), where we saw another ten or so practitioners. During the day, practitioners kept coming and we stayed there to wait for the final decision from the director.
In the evening, a school official came and said, “So many of you have come. There is no way for us to receive everyone. We are aware of your request. Why don’t you go home and wait for notification?”
After three days, we still didn’t hear back from the magazine’s director. We tried to contact the institution’s official but didn’t receive any response either. We realized that things were becoming serious.
During those few days, more and more practitioners went to the institution to appeal. They kept good order and remained peaceful. Most of them sat on the playground and quietly read Falun Gong books. Some did the exercises. No one spoke loudly or displayed any banners.
To minimize the impact to the students and teachers, the practitioners stayed away from the sidewalk and avoided using the restrooms in the institution. Some also walked around and collected used water bottles and empty food packages from the practitioners.
On April 23, things made a drastic turn. We noticed that some practitioners didn’t come back after using a public restroom near the institution. Then another practitioner told us he saw some practitioners had been arrested by plainclothes officers and pushed into a van.
Almost around the same time, one official announced through the speaker in the institution, demanding everyone to leave, or we would bear the consequences ourselves. None of us left there.
In fact, during those days, we saw a camera videotaping us from a room on the second floor in a nearby building. The police closed the curtain, leaving space only for the camera lens, which kept moving from side to side to videotape everyone there. We weren’t afraid. We knew that we didn’t do anything wrong. The magazine hadn’t got back to us, and how could we just leave like that?
For the entire afternoon, an official kept ordering us to leave through the speaker. We felt the wind and thunder before a storm.
Then someone said loudly, “Look! Falun!” We looked up and saw a big Falun in the sky. It sometimes turned clockwise and sometimes counterclockwise. We could also see the large srivatsa in the center. Then we saw countless Falun with different sizes and colors on the practitioners, as well as on the wall and the ground. We were all very excited and put our hands together. Some school staff members also came out and saw this magnificent moment. They couldn’t help but said, “It’s so amazing! Amazing!”
When it began to become dark after sunset, the police came to clear the place. They dragged the practitioners into the police vans parked outside of the school. Anyone who tried to resist was beaten. Some were pushed to the ground and stomped by the police. One elderly female practitioner was dragged by the police on the ground. Her clothes rolled up and her back rubbed against the ground and bled. For the male practitioners, the police beat them even harder. Some practitioners stood there and recited Falun Gong’s teachings. Their unyielding voice was soul-stirring.
We later confirmed that a total of 45 practitioners were arrested that day. But in the report by China Central Television (CCTV), the police chief in Tianjin blatantly claimed that they didn’t arrest any practitioners or beat anyone.
Some practitioners suggested to go to the Tianjin municipal government to appeal. So we went there and requested the release of the 45 practitioners. An official said to us, “We can’t make a decision about this. The case has been escalated to the Ministry of Public Security. Without the approval from Beijing, we can’t release anyone.”
“You should go to Beijing. Go to the National Appeals Office and ask them to solve the problem for you,” he urged us.
As a result, some of us took the bus, some by train and some even walked overnight to Beijing to appeal. After practitioners in Beijing and nearby regions heard about the incident, they also went to the National Appeals Office on April 25, which ended up being the historic appeal.
Later, accusing the practitioners of “sieging the government,” the communist regime ordered the persecution three months later, which is still continuing today.
In the past 24 years, countless practitioners have been arrested and tortured and families torn apart. Children were separated from their parents. In addition to the brutal torture, some practitioners were even killed for their organs.
In front of the atrocity, most Chinese people stay silent for self-protection. But now, the persecution has gradually expanded to the general public and many young students may have been victimized in organ harvesting crimes as well.
At the 24th anniversary of the appeal, I hope the practitioners’ courage can inspire the inner good in every one of us. By speaking up for them, we are speaking up for ourselves. The divine is watching us and we are choosing our future in the choices we make during the battle between good and evil.
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