"Global Committee for Urgent Rescue of Falun Gong Practitioners from Shanghai Jiao Tong University" Established

(Clearwisdom.net) Dear fellow students at Shanghai Jiao Tong University:

We used to be schoolmates and we pursue truth and conscience. We hereby announce to all the world the founding the "Global Committee for Urgent Rescue of Falun Gong Practitioners from Shanghai Jiao Tong University". Our purpose is to rescue a group of fellow schoolmates, to assist them to uphold their right to seek the truth and follow their conscience, something they can do right now only by risking their lives.

These people are young students, highly achieved teachers, outstanding people who are earning their Master's and Ph. D. degrees. They could have warm families, flourishing careers and freedom. Instead, because of the Cultural Revolution-style persecution against Falun Gong that has lasted for longer than three years, they are incarcerated and suffering inhuman physical and mental tortures.

Qu Yanlai, 26 years old, was a student of the class of 1995 in the department of Energy Engineering. Ever since he was young, he was honest, righteous and kind, but was brutally tortured because he practiced Falun Gong and believed in Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance. He was arrested twice. In jail, his body showed bloody bruises all over from tortures by the vicious police. He was on the verge of death, and one of his legs was broken from beating, but he persevered and didn't give in to the demands of the evil guards. When he was carried to a detention center, the guards and detention center supervisor did not accept him, afraid he would die there. This is how this all began:

Around 11:00 p.m. on September 30, 2002, police broke into his dorm room near his work unit in Shanghai and kidnapped him. This time, the police strictly cut off all information about him to the outside and prohibited anyone to visit him. Right now he is wearing handcuffs and shackles and the police don't allow him to sleep. His body was tortured and was extremely weak. He could not walk.

Another fellow schoolmate is Yang Yi'ning. He was a Ph. D student in the department of computer science. On July 22, 1999, Yang Yi'ning courageously went to Zhongnanhai, Beijing, to speak the truth when faced with blatant and outrageous lies. He was arrested and handcuffed and sent back to Shanghai. Facing evil police who are assisting the authorities, Yang Yi'ning pointed out that the policy prohibiting appeals directly violates the Constitution. Police directly sent Yang Yi'ning to the Hefei Mental Institution. After being tortured with forced intake of psychiatric medication for three months, Yang Yi'ning was under house arrest in his home in Anhui Province. Police ambushed and kidnapped his fiance', Zhao Lijun, the morning of New Year's Eve [Chinese lunar calendar]in 2001. She was directly sent into a brainwashing class and was tortured for several months. Right now, fellow schoolmates Yang Yi'ning and Zhao Lijun are separated and are suffering inhuman physical and mental tortures.

When faced with the most brutal persecution in China's history, these students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University would sacrifice their studies and families to uphold their belief in truth and conscience, and their right to seeking after truth and conscience, for their faith in Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance.

Today, we are founding the "Global Committee for Urgent Rescue of Falun Gong Practitioners from Shanghai Jiao Tong University". We will use all peaceful and rational means to contact foreign governments, international organizations, academic organizations, other organizations, people around the world, alumni of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, inside and outside of China, and all people of justice, to call for support for these kind and outstanding students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Please pay enough attention to them and help in various aspects so they can obtain freedom as soon as possible.

We solemnly announce that our rescue efforts will last until the day that all detained students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University and their families are released! The "World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong" has already been founded. We will cooperate with this organization and investigate all criminals who participated and are still participating in the planning and execution of persecution against Falun Gong practitioners, in order to prepare lawsuits against them in the future.

Finally, we call for fellow countrymen to take immediate action to rescue our illegally detained schoolmates from Shanghai Jiao Tong University!

"Global Committee for Urgent Rescue of Falun Gong Practitioners from Shanghai Jiao Tong University"

February 24, 2003

(Website of "Global Committee for Urgent Rescue of Falun Gong Practitioners from Shanghai Jiao Tong University": www.rescuejiaoda.org)

Appendix:

The List of Shanghai Jiao Tong University Alumni Who Are Known To have been Kidnapped, Illegally Imprisoned Or Compelled to Temporarily Leave School:

Yang Yi'ning: graduate student in the Computer Sciences program and Ph.D. candidate; (wife Zhao Lijun is also imprisoned)

Bai Jianjun: doctoral candidate

Zhang Zhiyong: doctoral candidate

Zhuang Wei: graduate of Library Information Management, also graduate student of Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Mei Jianqi: undergraduate student

Qu Yanlai: 1995 graduate of Energy Engineering

Li Jianbin: graduate of Computer Science Department (has died while in police custody)

Guo Xiaojun: instructor of the Electronic Information Institute

Xu Wenxin: alumna and wife of alumnus Guo Xiaojun

Li Tao: alumnus

Wu Yuxin: alumnus

Zhao Hongtao: alumnus

Jiang Xinxia: alumnus

Xiang Donghui: alumnus

Northern Jiaotong University

Sun Chunhua: instructor

Duan Yi: graduate and instructor

Wang Yi: English instructor of the Foreign Language Department

Xi'an Jiaotong University

Liu Haichao: doctoral candidate

Cang Jing: doctoral candidate

Li Yonghong: graduate student

Liu Dianxun: 1998 graduate student of System Engineering major of the Engineering and Scientific Research Institute

Ren Junxian: 1998 graduate of Mechanical Engineering Institute, Material Forming and Control; Major

Zhao Xunmin: 1998 graduate of Telecommunication Institute

Yang Minghui: Computer Science graduate of the Continuing Education College

Zhu Haiyan: sophomore

Southwest Jiaotong University (awaits verification)

2/24/2003