(Minghui.org) Mr. Lai Fanrong is an expert and patent-holder in biotechnology from Guangdong Province. He started and owned various companies over the years. He credits Falun Gong for giving him the moral compass to be an honest researcher and businessman.
The 40-year-old, however, suffered tremendously simply for refusing to give up his belief in Falun Gong.
He wasn't there to welcome his son's birth in May 2000 as he was being kept in police custody. Seven months later, he had to leave home and go into hiding to avoid further arrests.
He was arrested again in July 2002 and spent the next 14 months in a labor camp, where he was subjected to various forms of torture. His release in September 2003 did not bring much respite to his family as the local police kept harassing him at home.
Mr. Lai was devising a sales strategy for a multiplex developer in June 2007 when he was arrested again and sent to a brainwashing center. During the three months of his detention, more than 25 employees in his real estate brokerage firm lost contact with him and had to put his plan on hold. His developer-client refused to pay the more than 20 million yuan of commission, citing breach of contract.
The local authorities would not issue official warrants to Mr. Lai for his arrest and detention, which he had hoped to use as evidence in his lawsuit (still pending at the time of the writing) against the developer for refusing to pay the commission.
Mr. Lai also had trouble explaining to his own employees and other clients his sudden disappearance in June 2007. He holds former Chinese dictator Jiang Zemin responsible for launching the persecution of Falun Gong that resulted in his devastating losses.
He filed his criminal complaint with the Supreme People's Court on August 27, 2015. Below are details of Mr. Lai's persecution.
The government prohibited group Fa study and exercises after April 25, 1999. On July 22, Mr. Lai peacefully appealed to the Guangdong Provincial Government for permission to do the exercises in public. The rally was blocked off by riot police and people were forced to leave the site.
In October, Mr. Lai was arrested while on a train to Beijing. He was then taken to Huadu Detention Center for 15 days. He was shackled throughout his detention period. He was also forced to kneel down next to toilet.
In December, Mr. Lai protested in Tiananmen Square. He was whisked into a police car and slapped repeatedly. He was then sent to Chaoyang Detention Center.
In May 2000, Mr. Lai was arrested in Anshun City just as his wife was giving birth to his son in Anshun Women and Children Hospital in Guizhou Province. He was detained for five days. His home was ransacked. Some Dafa books and recorders were confiscated and they have never been returned. The mental anguish that Mr. Lai suffered was indescribable.
On July 19, 2002, Mr. Lai was arrested at a friend's home by officers from Shahe Police Station. He was then detained for six days in Tianhe Detention Center, where he endured torture. He was forced to sit on a stone bench and repeatedly interrogated for days and nights. He was starved into a confession. In his weakened state, he could not sleep and awoke around midnight every day. When he was sent to Chini Labor Camp, he could hardly walk.
In the labor camp the first day, Mr. Lai was placed in a confined space with no window and forced to sign a repentance statement and guarantee statement in a small room.
He was also forced to watch Master Li's photo being burned. When he resisted, he was beaten.
The second day, he was taken to a small room and hung up with both hands and feet tied together. He almost passed out when he was cut loose. He was incontinent and numb in both arms. He was forced to sign three statements and loudly sing the song, “No new China without communism.” Afterward, He was repeatedly forced to “confess” to wrongdoing in criticism gatherings.
His mental anguish was tremendous because he was forced to set Master's picture ablaze. The guards also threatened to send a video of it to the Minghui website. He was close to mental collapse due to the tremendous pressure put on him over the course of the ordeal.
On June 23, 2007, Mr. Lai was arrested again by plainclothes police. He was taken to Tankong Brainwashing Center for more than three months. He was confined to a small room and monitored around the clock. He was denied use of the restroom. He was forced to watch derogatory videos and copy libelous statements about Falun Gong.
Mr. Lai was once visited by his mother when he was at the labor camp. She could not stop crying when she saw the torture that her son was enduring and was traumatized.
After his release on September 22, 2003, Mr. Lai was regularly visited by police officers and agents from the local residential committee. He asked the reason for the illegal visits, and they said they had their orders. This continuous monitoring and harassment put tremendous mental pressure on his family. His parents often could not sleep out of worry that he would be arrested again.
Mr. Lai started practicing Falun Gong in June 1998. Prior to cultivation, he suffered from Hepatitis B for years, which forced him to take a six-month leave of absence from college. The disease disappeared within one month after he started practicing. He also became extremely energetic. This change encouraged him to more firmly practice Falun Gong.
Mr. Lai had been instilled with atheism since elementary school. He did not believe in the existence of a higher moral code, reincarnation, or karmic retribution. He used to be selfish and indifferent to the plight of others. He felt that the end justified the means and did not restrain himself in the pursuit of personal gain.
After starting cultivation, he became more considerate. One example is an incident that took place in Tianhe Detention Center in 2002. Even though he was very hungry, Mr. Lai gave his last pack of instant noodles to an inmate.
He did not think of himself and helped others. He returned money that he mistakenly collected from customers. He never accepted bribes. He did overtime without pay. He helped customers install software without remuneration.
He was also responsible to his community. To improve food safety, he took the lead and invested in environmentally-friendly agricultural products in 2007. He stopped using anything harmful to human health and the environment, even though doing so would result in financial loss. His insistence influenced his partners to follow suit.
His mother had high blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar. She was received benefits from Falun Gong in 1998 after she began living with her son. She became more considerate and got along well with neighbors. She felt happier, and her health improved.
Mr. Lai's ex-wife fell in 2004 and fractured her right leg. Despite the doctor's recommendation to operate, she checked out of the hospital and started to practice Falun Gong. Her injured leg miraculously healed three months later and she no longer limped.
Because of Falun Gong, his father examined himself when he had conflicts with people and thus resolved many rancorous situations. His spirits rose and he became healthier.
In 1999, Jiang Zemin, as head of the Chinese Communist Party, overrode other Politburo standing committee members and launched the violent suppression of Falun Gong.
The persecution has led to the deaths of many Falun Gong practitioners in the past 16 years. More have been tortured for their belief and even killed for their organs. Jiang Zemin is directly responsible for the inception and continuation of the brutal persecution.
Under his personal direction, the Chinese Communist Party established an extralegal security organ, the “610 Office,” on June 10, 1999. The organization overrides police forces and the judicial system in carrying out Jiang's directive regarding Falun Gong: to ruin their reputations, cut off their financial resources, and destroy them physically.
Chinese law allows for citizens to be plaintiffs in criminal cases, and many practitioners are now exercising that right to file criminal complaints against the former dictator.