(Minghui.org) Because I refused to give up practicing Falun Dafa, at the beginning of 2000 I was illegally sentenced to nine years in jail. I decided to clarify the truth and resist the persecution based on the law.
Letter of Appeal
I wrote a letter of appeal and gave it to the head of the prison division.
A week passed, and I didn't get a response. I confronted the guards: “According to the 'Prison Laws,' an inmate's letter of appeal should be acknowledged within five working days. Please comply with the law.”
They sent a young guard to see me, who had just started working there. He told me, “We manage the Falun Gong practitioners according to the internal document from the Political and Legal Affairs Committee. You are not allowed to read it.”
I told him that the law should be strictly enforced in prison, that it was illegal to go by any internal documents. The young guard repeatedly said that he know of no such rule. He had just graduated from the police academy and knew little about the law. I said, “Let's stop for today. You go back and read the general principals in the Criminal Law code. Then you come back to talk to me again.”
After I appealed, more than 40 practitioners in the ward were placed under stricter control. We were forced to sit on small stools every day. Our paper and pens were taken away to prevent us from writing anything. I knew they were targeting me since my appeal letter had exposed their evil conduct.
I continued to try to talk to the division head. No one came to talk to me. They avoided meeting with me. This went on for six days.
I thought that we shouldn't have to keep sitting on those small stools every day. I told the others, “Today is Sunday. According to the Prison Law, an inmate has the right to rest, and I will exercise my right. I'm not going to sit on the stool today.” The other practitioners said they would do the same. We all stood up. Practitioners in other cells heard what we were doing and did the same. Discipline over the Falun Gong practitioners in the prison fell apart.
Detained in the Confined Cell
Instructed by the division head, the following Monday armed guards put me in the confined cell and started another wave of harassment.
I told the inmates assigned to watch me that practicing Falun Gong was not a crime and that innocent people were being persecuted. I told them that when they made their report to the guards in the strictly-controlled division, they should submit my request that I wanted to see the prosecutor in the prison supervision section. I was being detained in solitary illegally, since I didn't violate any prison regulations. I wanted to report the illegal confinement.
A few days later, a guard from the strictly-controlled division came to talk to me. He said the only law in China was power politics. Whoever had the power was in charge. As long as I admitted I was wrong, I would be returned to my division.
I told him I didn't do anything wrong, so how could I acknowledge any wrongdoing?
He said that one should conform to one's environment and not fight it.
I reminded him that the banner on the division office wall said, “An inmate under strict control has right to appeal to the prison prosecutor.” I said I wanted the person from the prison supervision section evaluate the situation.
He said I was only allowed to go through the division head.
A few days later, a senior guard was sent to talk to me. The first thing he said was, “I came to educate you.”
I said practitioners were required to correct our mistakes. "I would thank you if you find I have done anything that does not comply with Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.
He said, "We put you in the confined cell, because you were leading others to act out against the government.
I told him that wasn't true, that exercising my right was, in fact, helping the government to maintain the law. "When you were persecuting us, I kept trying to talk to the division head to find out which rule we might have violated to prompt such a response, but you deliberately avoided me. We had been wrongly charged and now were further being punished for no reason. After my attempts failed, I had no other choice but to uphold the law by myself. How is that going against the government?"
He said, “I give up. I'll let the division head come talk to you himself.”
In the confined cell, as soon as I tried to cross my legs, the inmates in the cell pulled them apart. All that month, I was forced to sit on the wooden floor with my legs stretched out straight. It was painful. My pants stuck to my skin, which would tear whenever I stood up. It really hurt to sit down again. Later scabs formed on my legs; later still, they abscessed.
I kept looking inward to see whether I had any loopholes and kept reciting Master's articles. Although I was unable to do the exercises, I experienced the state of “Three Flowers Gathered Atop the Head” many times. Sometimes, it happened several times a day. I felt three poles turning above my head. I knew it was Master who was protecting and helping me.
At the end of the month, the division head finally showed up and talked to me. He tried to be sympathetic and then repeated the Party propaganda. When he finished, I said, “Now you have finished what you wanted to say to me. Can I say something to you?” He had to agree.
I told him, “The first day I was admitted to this prison, you came to talk to me. I pointed it out that my sentence was illegal and I wanted to appeal. At that time, you said it should be done according to the regulations. I followed the regulation and sent you an appeal letter. But I didn't get a response. When I exercised my right, you put me in a confined cell.
“If you tell the world that there is no law when dealing with Falun Gong practitioners, there would be no need for me to appeal.
“There are universal standards to judge what's right and wrong. It is not determined by some authority figure. How many people have lost their integrity and become a tool of the CCP during the persecution of Falun Gong. Of course, it's the individual's choice.”
He said, “There is no need for you to acknowledge your wrongdoing; your confinement will end tomorrow.”
I asked, “How can I admit wrong if I haven't done anything wrong? You cannot simply end my punishment without justification. I request that the prison supervision section judge the issue.”
He said, “I can't win over you based on law. I will ask a lawyer to talk to you later.”
I responded, “It is not that you can't win the debate. The issue is that your superior didn't give you a reason for the persecution of Falun Gong. In other words, the persecution of Falun Gong is illegal.”
He stood up and left. Not long after, a guard came in and took me out of the confined cell.
After I was taken back to the original division, my third eye opened. I saw Master teaching the Fa in other dimensions surrounded by a sea of faces. I knew Master was encouraging me.
I also knew I was a Dafa practitioner during the Fa-rectification period. There was still along way to go. I should not have any attachment of zealotry. I must cultivate solidly and diligently and do well in the future.
