(Clearwisdom.net)

Associate Professor Zhang Ruixia (female), 55 years old, was the director of the Distance Education Department at the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) School in Tonghua City, Jilin Province. She previously suffered from hypertension and heart disease but became both physically and mentally healthy after she began practicing Falun Gong and following the standards of Truth, Compassion and Tolerance in 1998. Since then she has energetically fulfilled her duties in education. Her colleagues all praised her for her exceptional work and high morals.

In 1999, corrupt officials, jealous of Falun Gong, used base means to persecute practitioners by creating rumors, framing innocent people, slandering Falun Dafa, and fabricating evidence. Professor Zhang Ruixia, who had benefited from Falun Gong, went to the Beijing Appeals Office to appeal in person. For this, she was sent to the detention center in her hometown, where she was detained for one month and then released. Back at school, she clarified the truth to the school administrators, but the schoolmaster did not listen, and even demoted her to managing the library books. Still, she worked hard and did not complain.

With the persecution escalating, the regime arrested, tortured, and detained practitioners, sending those who did not give up the practice to forced labor camps. On February 23, 2001 the Tonghua "610 Office" [an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems] Political and Law Committee, and police station held a brainwashing session in the CCP School. They attempted to brainwash, deceive, and threaten Falun Gong practitioners to give up their cultivation. They forced everyone to submit 25 Yuan [500 Yuan is the average monthly income for an urban worker in China.] every day as an accommodation fee. Zhang Ruixia was forced to attend the session for 39 days. During this period, the School only issued her 400 Yuan salary per month. During this time she was steadfast in clarifying the truth to the people who held the brainwashing class. They saw there was no way to transform her, and thus sent her to a detention center. Although her blood pressure rose to 200 mmHg and her eyes swelled, police in the jail tormented her further with forced injections. After being detained for one month, her health was very poor, and she was sent to a hospital for several days of treatment. She felt she should no longer be persecuted, and walked away from the police by maintaining strong righteous thoughts. Forced from her home, she continually moved from place to place to avoid arrest. In order to save sentient beings and let more people to know the truth, she dissolved into the current of Fa rectification to save the world's people who were poisoned by lies.

On April 22, 2002 the police searched and found her truth-clarification materials. She and several fellow practitioners were arrested and taken to the Dongchang Police Station. Police tied her up in the air, with her feet off the ground and her arms outstretched. Her whole body was swollen and she could not walk or stand, but she held the righteous thought: "It is not wrong to be a good person." She maintained her belief in Dafa and was full of compassion. She did not cooperate with the evil and did not say a single word. Police could do nothing and sent her back to the detention center where she clarified the truth to everyone. She held righteous thoughts while striving for the right to practice Dafa exercises. To force participation in a video recording distorting Dafa, practitioners were called to the wall. She recognized the plot and cried out, "Falun Dafa is good! Falun Dafa is the righteous Fa! Falun Dafa has suffered the most appalling injustice through the ages!" Male and female practitioners all cried out together, and the plot failed.

Zhang Ruixia has been sentenced to 8 years in prison, though she has not yet recovered from previous torture. Both legs are injured, and her health has suffered from the long-term detention and bad food. In the detention center she has difficulty standing, and sometimes has to crawl to the washroom. Her blood pressure ranges from 200 to 240 mmHg, and her life is in danger. Police refuse to release her, however claiming, "If she dies, just notify her family to come and take her cremated remains."

We appeal to all kindhearted people and international organizations around the world to take notice of the Chinese regime's cruel persecution of innocent Falun Gong practitioners! Recognize the bloody persecution by corrupt political factions against good Falun Gong practitioners! Please give your support and help to rescue Zhang Ruixia and all innocent Falun Gong practitioners.