Why I Do Not Question the 400-Million Death Toll in China

(Minghui.org) Master Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Dafa (also known as Falun Gong), said on January 15 that 400 million people in China have died over the past three years of the pandemic and that the total death toll would reach 500 million by the time this wave ends. Some people have difficulty believing these numbers, but I do not doubt them at all.

There is a great deal of data to support that number. But even without it, I do not question the numbers above. Here is why.

Unwavering Trust in Master’s Words

When I was detained for upholding my faith in Falun Gong, nine inmates attempted to brainwash me and force me to renounce my belief in Falun Gong. In particular, they insisted that I justify the numbers that Master Li mentioned when he revealed the structure of the universe.

Instead of providing any justification, I gave them an example of how company employees each have their own responsibilities. I said, “Assume a listed company has 100 million yuan in inventory. Only those assigned to monitor and tally the inventory go to the warehouse and verify the items one by one. No one else would to that. Managers and executives would not doubt the inventory people’s reports. Why? Because everyone has their own responsibilities.

“Similarly, it is not my job to research the universe. Rather, I am here to follow Master Li, the founder of Falun Dafa, to cultivate and to learn about the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I couldn’t agree more with what Master has said about improving mind and body and constantly elevating oneself. This is enough. As for the detailed structure of the universe, that is not something I should worry about, just like an elementary student should not worry about calculus. That is, I trust Master and believe what he says about the universe and everything else.”

When Master said 400 million have died so far in the pandemic, I again had no doubt at all.

The CCP Lies Habitually

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) of course has never admitted to such a shocking death toll. On January 14, 2022, the regime confirmed nearly 60,000 COVID deaths after facing complaints about its cover-up of the latest wave of surging cases. With the hospitals and crematories all over China overwhelmed, many believe that the actual death toll was much higher.

The CCP’s lies about the pandemic were preceded by the untold numbers of lies it has told since it seized power in 1949. The CCP claimed to be serving the people even as it oppressed and persecuted them. It claimed that “all power belongs to the people” when the people have actually never had any power. The CCP organizes slanderous propaganda campaigns to discredit the groups it targets in its numerous political movements, such as the intellectuals in the anti-Rightists movement, traditional culture during the Cultural Revolution, democracy advocates in the Tiananmen Square Massacre, and law-abiding citizens who believe in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance in the persecution of Falun Gong.

Given its track record for lying, how credible are the CCP’s numbers? Why should we believe them? In addition, the CCP claims that China has a population of 1.4 billion. Since it would be time-consuming and cost-prohibitive to verify the accuracy of that number, there is no way to confirm it is, in fact, 1.4 billion.

Many who have seen through the CCP’s lies automatically discredit whatever it officially reports, be it size of the population or COVID numbers.

The COVID Deaths I Know of

I live in Chengdu City, Sichuan Province. In my extended family alone, we lost two people in four days. My older sister’s husband Xiong, 68, died on December 17, 2022. My husband’s brother, Liang, died three days later and he was 71.

After Xiong died, his family couldn’t find a local crematory to take him because they were all full. In the end, they got a booking at a crematory in Pengzhou City (about 70 kilometers away) and still had to wait four days.

Liang collapsed on the way to the bathroom that fateful morning. He was rushed to a local hospital and died two hours later. Again, because there were no openings in the Chengdu crematories, his family turned to Meishan Crematory, a very big facility. When we got there, all furnaces had displays reading “cremation in progress” and the parking lot was full of hearses.

When we held a funeral service for Xiong, three other families in my sister’s neighborhood were also having funerals.

On Chinese New Year’s Day (January 22), I ran into a 71-year-old woman who said that many people had died lately, and there were always several funerals every day in her community. “It is so tragic!” she sighed.

The next day, Hong, who lives in my apartment complex, told me that several of her relatives had recently died. The youngest was her nephew, who was only 25. She said her nephew first tested positive and stayed home for a few days. After he recovered, he returned to work, only to die suddenly at his workplace. She heard that he had white lung (damage from COVID), but that his death certificate indicated that he died of “fatigue.”

We cannot deny something just because we have not personally experienced it or witnessed it. But one thing for sure is that almost everything the CCP says is a lie, including about the pandemic. For example, after the end of the zero-COVID policy, the CCP said COVID was as mild as a common cold. Looking at the infections and deaths since, we know that is complete nonsense.

The Change in My Sister-in-Law

My younger brother Dong and his wife Hua came to visit me around the Chinese New Year. In the past, I had told them about the facts of Falun Gong, but Hua did not want to listen. This time, though, she became much more receptive, especially after I told her about what Master said about the loss of 400 million lives.

When I told her to keep in the mind the phrases “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,” she said she would definitely recite them. In fact, I had told her about them before, but she was too poisoned by the CCP’s propaganda and worried about her pension, so she never heeded me. This time, she tested positive twice and was hospitalized twice. After hearing that some other members of our extended family had recovered quickly by reciting the phrases, she was eager to do the same.

I gave Hua an amulet with these words “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” She took it and carefully placed it in her handbag. I could tell she really cherished it.