(Minghui.org) In July 2008, during the Beijing Olympics, many Dafa disciples from our county were illegally arrested, including my two sisters and a nephew.
1. Resisting Arrest with Righteous Thoughts
At that time, Master's “Fa Teaching at the 2008 New York Conference” had just been published. I read it ten times at one go. Master said:
“Today, this gangster regime and the entire government, including its foreign embassies, exist solely for the sake of Falun Gong. This gigantic apparatus accompanies you and casts you in vivid relief--isn't that terrific, something unheard of! They no longer bother with pretending and are pulling out all of their thuggish, underhanded tactics as they go about doing malicious things. It looks like quite an intimidating show that they put on, but I would say that that's their last flurry of activity before they perish. (Applause) Just keep watching and you will see that that's how the drama plays out. This period of history was arranged for Dafa disciples to save sentient beings, so why haven't you taken the lead role?”
One afternoon, someone from the resident's committee came to see me, requesting that I write statements promising to give up practicing Falun Dafa. I refused to comply.
One night, when I returned home from a group Fa-study, someone warned me out out of good intentions. “You better hide, as the authorities are going to take action tonight. They might arrest you.” My husband is not a practitioner but he is very righteous. He told me: “You did not do anything bad so there's nothing to be afraid of. You go into the house and I will wait for them at the door. No one will dare to touch you.”
With my husband's support, I felt much calmer. I placed my Dafa books in front of Master's portrait, sat in the full lotus position, palms upright and started to send righteous thoughts. At 12:15 a.m., my husband had just come into the house and shut the door when someone knocked. My husband opened the door and a group of police officers barged into the house, making a ruckus. They shouted for me to come out. My husband said: “It is illegal for you to break into private property in the middle of the night.” An officer replied: “We just want to take a look inside the house and then we'll be gone.” They went into the room I was in, made a circle and left as if they did not see anything.
I only learned the next day that on that night, they arrested and took my elder sister to the detention center. Immediately afterwards, they came to my house.
The next day, in the afternoon, I asked my second sister and the wife of my nephew to come along with me to demand the release of my eldest sister. I encouraged them. Master is beside us. After sending righteous thoughts, we left for the detention center. Just then, a group of officers walked straight up to us. One of them called me: “You are so and so. Open the door to your house. We want to conduct a search.” With that, six to seven police officers gathered around.
For a moment, I was scared. Then instinctively, I shouted loudly: “Help, there are thieves!” Many neighbors came out of their houses to the courtyard and some of them reprimanded the police officers.
I told the police that before I practiced Falun Gong, I suffered from all kinds of illnesses such as tuberculosis and high blood pressure. After practicing Falun Gong, I became healthy and my family became harmonious. I then went on to tell them about the spread of Dafa throughout the world, how the Tiananmen Square Self-immolation incident was staged and other facts about Falun Gong.
One officer said: “We have no choice, trying to make living. Just let us go in and have a look.” Another officer said fiercely: “Don't waste any more time. The chief called and instructed us to pry open the door if she refuses to open it.” I said severely: “I dare you to do so. Everyone knows the deeds you have done. There was someone in your office who persecuted Falun Gong practitioners many times and refused to repent for his deeds. He subsequently died. I'm sure you've heard of it.” Some of the officers squatted down, head lowered and did not say a word.
This stalemate lasted till past 5 p.m. When my husband came home from work and saw the scene, he said anxiously: “No matter who you are, my wife has not done anything wrong in practicing Falun Gong. There's no way any of you can touch my wife.” The police kept pleading with us: “Just open the door and let us into the house. We just want to take a look and then we will leave.” My husband looked at me. “Let's just let them into the house to take a look.” I sent righteous thoughts silently. They went in, made a circle and came out, saying: “We did not touch anything in the house.” I replied: “You must remember that Falun Dafa is good! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good! Treat Dafa with kindness and you will be blessed.” They nodded and left. I thus passed two consecutive tests. This strengthened my faith in Master and the Fa.
2. Going to the Police Station and Town Government to Ask for the Release of My Sister and Confiscated Belongings
After discussing with my other sister, we decided to go to the police station to ask for the release of our sister. As we walked into the police station, two officers who had come to my house the day before saw us and tried to run away. I smiled and went up to them saying: “Why are you running away?” They replied: “Have you come here to tell us the truth? We could feel Falun spinning above our heads and it's made us dizzy.” I said: “That's a good thing. Why don't you renounce the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] using a pseudonym?” They agreed, saying: “Whatever you say.”
While looking for the police station head, I took the opportunity to go to every office to clarify the truth. When I saw the police chief, I asked: “What crime has my sister committed that you had to arrest her? I also heard that you appropriated personal items confiscated from other practitioners.” I continued: “They took my nephew's bicycle, the 500 yuan in cash he had on him, my elder sister's two laptops, my third sister's desk computer and other belongings.” The police chief answered: “Let me look into it. If it is true, I will return the items.”
The next morning, we went to the police station again. The deputy head received us. He told my nephew's wife to go to his office and retrieve the 500 yuan in cash they had confiscated. Immediately, I saw Dafa books and Master's portrait amongst the confiscated items. Without hesitation, I took Master's portrait and put it into my bag. Unexpectedly, they did not see what I did. Later on, when I went back to the station again, I retrieved two music discs and a Dafa book. The chief said: “You have to see the town head about the bicycle and computers. I have no authority in regards to the release of your sister.”
We went to the town government. Visitors going into and out of the office had to be registered and their bags examined. I sent righteous thoughts forbidding them from checking my bag. I found the town head, and I got my nephew's bicycle. At that time, I saw a portrait of Master and a copy of Zhuan Falun in the office. I took Zhuan Falun and the town head saw what I did. He grabbed my hand and said fiercely: “Are you a Falun Gong practitioner?” I smiled and replied: “Isn't one free to believe in what one chooses?” He said: “Yes.” My heart was in pain when I thought of Master's portrait left in the town head's office and I could not protect it. I resolved to get the portrait back. Every time I went to the office, I would clarify the truth to the town head. In order to rescue my two elder sisters and nephew, I went to the government office twice a day.
Once, the town head threatened to arrest me if I continued to tell him about Falun Gong. I answered calmly: “If your family members were unjustly arrested, would you stand aside and do nothing? My family members practice Falun Gong and strive to be good people in all aspects. However, these practitioners were arrested, sent to forced labor, sentenced to jail and some of them had their organs harvested while alive. The government and hospitals even sold these harvested organs at exorbitant prices for a profit.” He was shocked to hear my words and asked many questions. I answered them one by one. In the end, he expressed his willingness to help me.
3. Going to the 610 Office to Demand Fellow Practitioners' Release
I left the town government office and began to look for the county 610 Office. The daughter of an arrested practitioner came along with me. Along the way, we recited Master's poem “The Fa Rectifies the Cosmos” from Hong Yin II:
“Compassion can harmonize Heaven and Earth, ushering in spring
Righteous thoughts can save the people in this world”
Upon reaching the main entrance to the county party committee office, I said to the guards: “Three of my family members were arrested for practicing Falun Gong. My elder sister's blood pressure is very high and she is not in good health. We came to ask for her release.” One of the guards asked: “Do you know the head of the 610 Office?” I said no. He said: “You look at my expression before you act. When his car arrives, you follow it.” Afterwards, this guard also renounced his membership in the Chinese Communist Party.
We saw the 610 Office head and asked for the release of the arrested practitioners. He threatened me several times: “If you come again, I will arrest you.” Not intimidated by his severe attitude, which I felt was only a show, I proceeded to tell him the facts about the persecution. I told him: “So long as you don't release them, I will come and see you every day until you let them go.” Thus, every day I kept going to and fro, from the government office, police station and 610 Office. Everywhere I went, I clarified the truth.
Subsequently, when I went to the 610 Office, and the head saw me, he hid from me. I sent righteous thoughts. I got his office number from the guard and called him. The person who answered the phone said he wasn't in, telling me to come back another day. I answered: “My elder sister is being held in custody and she is very ill. If they still refuse to release her and she dies, will you take responsibility?” He quickly said: “Come to the office then.” When I went to the office, I told him: “My elder sister's right kidney was removed and in 1995, her left kidney deteriorated. After practicing Falun Gong, she regained her health. She is known to be a good person. Please release her as soon as possible.” He listened and recorded my words, then said he would pass what I said on to his supervisor as soon as he could.
After that, I went in and out of the police station, government office and county party committee freely. Once, I went to the 610 Office to ask for my sister's release again. Maybe the head sensed that I was coming. He suddenly opened the door and I walked in. I began to clarify the truth to the officers inside. The 610 Office head pounded his desk and threatened to throw me out if I continued to talk. I sent righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil controlling him in other dimensions. I smiled and said: “Three of my family members are detained by you and yet I have not gotten upset. Why are you upset?” He took up his phone and shouted to the guard: “In the future, don't let this practitioner in again. If you let her in, I will punish you.”
At that time, the practitioners in my area were either arrested or not at home. I shared my understandings with fellow practitioners and encouraged them to have faith in Master and Dafa, step out and rescue the detained practitioners. I also encouraged practitioners' family members to go and ask for the release of their loved ones in an open and dignified manner. We exposed the truth of the persecution, posting notices on every major road and small streets in one night. We even put brochures into the desk drawers of the police station.
4. Demanding Practitioners' Release at the Detention Center
Every day, I went to the detention center to ask for practitioners to be released, clarify the truth and send righteous thoughts. However they kept refusing my request to see my family. Once, I stopped the head of the detention center in his car and asked to see my family. I also told him to remember “Falun Dafa is good.” He said: “Falun Dafa is good” then and even said: “Next time, don't ask to see them. Instead request that they be released.”
Every time I studied the Fa or sent forth righteous thoughts, I would call out practitioners names and ask that we assimilate to Dafa together, eliminating the evil. In order to encourage detained practitioners, I went to the main entrance of the detention center and shouted the names of practitioners. The guards rushed out frantically and surrounded me. They threatened to arrest me. I clarified the truth to them calmly: “If your family members were wronged and arrested, how would you feel? I want my loved ones to be released as soon as possible.” Later on when I did this again, they were not as angry as before.
Practitioners detained inside also did well. They persuaded those that they encountered to renounce the party and even smuggled out a name list of those who had quit the party. Later, all the detained practitioners were sent to the brainwashing center except for my eldest sister.
On the day the brainwashing class was set up, I went to see the town head. He told me: “I didn't want to do that, but I had no choice. I know why you are so anxious to find these practitioners. You are afraid that their organs will be harvested while they are alive, isn't that right?” I said: “I don't want you to torture my loved ones, I don't want them to be sent to labor camps and their organs harvested. I also don't want you to be tried in court in the future.”
Subsequently when I went to see them again, the town head and police officers treated me very politely. Once, the town head said: “I think you are very righteous.” I answered: “You see that in me because our Master is righteous. Dafa is righteous.”
Once I happened to encounter the wife of the head police officer who had led the other officers to my house before. I helped her whole family to renounce the party. His wife held her hands in a heshi gesture and thanked me. When I saw her the next time, she told me: “My husband chose early retirement after learning the truth about the persecution. He said he does not want to do such bad deeds anymore.”
5. Going to the Brainwashing Center to Clarify the Truth and Rescue Fellow Practitioners
Since the persecution began, the county Legal and Law Committee, 610 Office and police department had organized no less than 10 brainwashing classes to persecute Falun Gong practitioners. Agents in the brainwashing class forbid practitioners from doing the exercises, sending righteous thoughts or seeing anyone from outside. They tortured practitioners, including beating and kicking them as well as making them stand for long periods of time.
This time, on the first day of the brainwashing class, I went to the place where the class was held. There was a sign outside “Military base, unauthorized personnel cannot enter.” I saw that the door was open and walked straight in. I saw fellow practitioners and a group of assistants. The assistants asked me how I managed to come in. I told them I pushed the door open and came in. One of them said to me fiercely: “We just moved here and you've already discovered where we are.” I sent righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil behind him. I told fellow practitioners that their family members outside miss them and hope that they will be released soon.
When I returned to the brainwashing center they had locked the main entrance. I went to the back door and clarified the truth to them as well as sent righteous thoughts from the other side of the fence. Several dozen assistants gathered around to hear what I had to say.
Thus, because practitioners outside sent righteous thoughts and exposed the persecution on the Internet in a timely way, very soon, the brainwashing class was closed and practitioners were sent back. Regretfully, some of them were sent to forced labor. My eldest sister was not released and was detained at the detention center.
6. Master Gave Me Courage to Open the Door to the Detention Center with Righteous Thoughts
Several days later, the police department called and asked me to bring my family home. I called a taxi and went to the detention center, sending righteous thoughts along the way. My eldest sister and I packed up her things. Just as I stepped out of the door, the deputy head hung a lock on the door and shut my eldest sister back inside. He told her to write a statement promising to give up practicing Falun Gong or else she would not be allowed to go home.
I could feel Master granting me tremendous power then and I shouted in a commanding voice: “What are you doing? Open the door for me and let her go!” They were shocked. I stepped forward, ripped off the lock, threw it to the ground, grabbed my eldest sister and walked out. The detention center head laughed, saying: “Open the door and let them go.” Thus I brought my sister home from the detention center.
It was two months of battle between good and evil. Through Master's compassion, I came through with righteous thoughts and actions.