(Minghui.org) The Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp in Jiangsu Province was shut down on February 21, 2013. It was notorious for persecuting Falun Dafa practitioners.
Over 600 practitioners were detained in this labor camp from March 2000 to February 2013. These practitioners included Zhou Qingmao, Dai Shaodong, Wang Liwei, Wang Xufang, Wang Biao, Sun Xiao, Peng Chaojun, Yi Song, Lu Jun, Zhang Xuefeng, Ma Zhengyu and Cai Shijun.
At 4 a.m. on February 21, when the Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp officially shut down, some practitioners were secretly transferred to the Judong Force Labor Camp. They were: Shi Bingjun, Wu Zhenghai, Gao Yun, Dou Wenqiang, Wu Baolin, Qin Dequan, Liu Desheng, Gong Hongchang, Li Jianshun, Chen Hongfu, Wang Yuxing, Gu Hejun, Fan Chengzhou and Jiang Zhong. This was ordered by officials from the Jiangsu 610 Office, Jiangsu Re-education Bureau and Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp.
The Judong Forced Labor Camp closed down a few months later, on August 13, 2013.
Sentenced to Two Years of Forced Labor
I was illegally arrested and sentenced to a two-year term in the Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp in 2011. During our detention, other practitioners and I clarified the truth about Falun Dafa to save people in the labor camp and resist the persecution. Some guards turned for the better, while others remained wicked.
Practitioners in the labor camp were determined to clarify the facts to save people. We wrote lots of truth-clarification letters to the guards, the person in charge of the Jiangsu Province Re-education Bureau and other government departments in Jiangsu Province. We wanted to expose how practitioners were being persecuted in the labor camp, and at the same time to explain the facts about Falun Dafa and the persecution.
The guards initially impounded our letters. We then looked inward to find our shortcomings. Practitioners who were responsible for sending forth righteous thoughts said they didn't do well. Practitioners responsible for clarifying the facts said they also didn't do well and held wrong thoughts.
Upon looking within, I realized that the letter I'd written was sermonizing. I adjusted my mentality, corrected my thoughts and rewrote the letter. At the same time, I asked for Master's help: “Please let all of the letters be delivered to the people who have predestined relationship with Dafa.”
After the letters were sent, I asked the guard who was supposed to receive a letter whether he had received it. If he did not, I told him that the letter must have been impounded. I gave him the name of the guard who had taken the letter and told him to ask for the letter from this guard. As expected, this guard then went to ask where the letter was.
Some letters that we wrote to other government departments in Jiangsu Province were also impounded by the guards. I then passed the letter to the directors of the labor camp and asked them to post it. Later, none of the guards impounded our letters.
Warning the Guard About a Future Investigation
Ward No. 4 of the Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp was where practitioners were persecuted. It was under the oversight of the Jiangsu Province 610 Office.
I talked to a guard and asked him: “Can you tell me how big of a hatred you hold toward Falun Dafa? I will write down what you say and then you will sign it. The words you say will be used as evidence in a future investigation.” The guard asked, “How will you investigate it?” I responded: “It is none of your business. Divine beings will look after it.”
I warned him that an international organization investigating the persecution of Falun Dafa would never give up investigating the crimes committed by the perpetrators, no matter how long it takes. He was embarrassed and no longer wanted to discuss the matter.
I told him, “During the past 13 years, more than 600 practitioners have talked to you about Falun Dafa.” I then asked him, “Have you stopped persecuting us?” He said, “You don't sound like a Falun Dafa practitioner.”
Opposing the Prison Rules
I was one of the practitioners transferred to the Judong Forced Labor Camp upon the closure of the Fangqiang Forced Labor Camp. We experienced harsh ordeals there as well. To resist the persecution, we did not follow the guards' instructions. For example, we refused to wear the prison uniform, answer the roll call, or squat when told to do so. We also went on a hunger strike to oppose the persecution.
We told the guards to release us immediately, without any conditions attached.
A guard asked, “Why are you on a hunger strike?” I replied: “If one of your family members was being persecuted, would you help or not? If not, would you still be a human being? I have to do something when I see fellow practitioners being persecuted. Otherwise, I would not be a Falun Dafa practitioner. A hunger strike is a way to express our concerns and awaken people's conscience.”
The guard then asked why we didn't do as ordered. I said: “Our Teacher told us not to hit back when attacked and not to talk back when insulted. Our Teacher also asks us to always be considerate of others. Which laws have we broken? What crimes have we committed? This is one of the reasons we don't wear a prison uniform, asnwer the roll call or squat.”
The guard responded, “To be honest, sometimes we really admire you.”
When facing death at the Judong Forced Labor Camp, some practitioners showed great dignity. This behavior shocked the guards.
One guard said, “I only saw such scenes in a Hollywood film, where American soldiers had a laid-back attitude toward death when fighting in a war. Contrary to my expectations, you are the same. You are extraordinary! I will report your request to be released to my superiors. Truthfully, I am not going to persecute you anymore.”
Some of the guards thought hard about the persecution and their future while facing the closure of the labor camps. Some guards then didn't act as badly as they had done before. Some were in a constant state of anxiety, worrying and fearing nonstop.
