Cause and Effect: The Consequences of Our Choices

(Minghui.org) After the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) began to suppress Falun Gong in 1999, even the practitioners in the remote province of Yunnan in southern China were targeted. One example was Mr. Shi Jianwei, an English teacher at Binchuan County No.1 Middle School. Both Mr. Shi and his wife were arrested in September 2015 for filing a criminal complaint against Jiang Zemin, a former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader who launched the persecution 23 years ago.

When Mr. Shi was sentenced to six and a half years in prison and his wife to five years, their elementary school-aged daughter was left at home on her own. Due to long-time detention and torture, Mr. Shi died at 56 on September 26, 2021.

This was one of the many instances in which Falun Gong practitioners were detained and mistreated—both physically and mentally—for their beliefs. But victims of the suppression are not limited to practitioners and their families. 

After blindly following the CCP’s persecution policy against the innocent, some CCP officials have met with dire consequences, while some who changed their ways found new opportunities open to them.

Consequences of Persecuting the Innocent

Over the past 23 years, practitioners have risked their lives to tell people what Falun Gong really is and to clarify the CCP’s slanderous propaganda. But some officials refused to listen and chose to suppress the innocent for political or material gains.

A Key 610 Office Member

Yang Xingyuan, director of the Education Division of the Yunnan Justice Department, was also a key member the Yunnan 610 Office. When he attended a national conference in Beijing in July 2000, he met representatives from 610 Offices and justice departments from all over the country. In particular, he learned how the Liaoning Province justice department mistreated practitioners.

Back home, Yang told Wang Tianxi, Yunnan Party secretary and director of the Yunnan 610 Office Leadership Team, how Falun Gong practitioners were suppressed elsewhere and suggested learning from a brainwashing team from the notorious Masanjia Forced Labor Camp.

Following his recommendation, the Yunnan government, at great expense, hired the Masanjia brainwashing team twice, first in September 2000 at Yunnan Women’s Forced Labor Camp and second in November 2000 at Yunnan Second Forced Labor Camp. They first used psychological techniques to try to brainwash the practitioners. Those who did not give up their belief were then subjected to unbearable torture, leading to the disability and deaths of many of them. Officials then recommended these techniques to other places in Yunnan Province and other provinces in China.

Under instructions from the Yunnan 610 Office, Yang also helped to produce a three-episode video defaming Falun Gong. Released by the Yunnan Television Station, the video stirred up hatred for Falun Gong and made the suppression much worse. Yang also worked with Sun Cuifang and Li Shaoming, two reporters from Yunnan Daily, to write articles slandering Falun Gong. The articles were used to help force practitioners to renounce their faith, in their words, to “transform” them.

Yang was amply rewarded for these “accomplishments:” He was given the National May 1st Labor Day Medal and bonuses in 2001, as well as numerous awards within Yunnan Province. He was recognized as a key figure in the persecution of Falun Gong in Yunnan Province.

In late 2007, Yang died suddenly. He was only 55, and some attributed his early death to his involvement in the persecution.

Reporting Practitioners Led to an Unhappy End

Dai Tangkun of Kunming City went shopping in a rice store. The owner was a Falun Gong practitioner, and she chatted with Dai about the practice. Dai collected the owner’s contact information along with the contact information of other practitioners and reported them to police.

Feng Ming was the Political and Legal Affairs Committee (PLAC) Party secretary as well as police chief in Tangdan Town. After receiving the information, Feng planned to go with Dai to see higher officials to get his reward for reporting practitioners. The two agreed that Dai would wait at the entrance of Yuhong Elementary School. When Feng arrived, however, he lost control of his car and Dai was struck and killed.

Police Station Director Stabbed to Death

Huang Baoqi was the director of Chengbei Police Station in Jianshui County. In March 2006, he was in charge of arresting five Falun Gong practitioners. In 2007, he was promoted to captain of the Criminal Investigation Brigade in the Jianshui Police Department. People said he used public funds to eat and drink, visit prostitutes and gamble, and that he didn’t pay his debts. On October 12, 2008, someone stabbed Huang over 10 times and he died. He was 35.

Two other officials were stabbed in the incident. One of them was Zou Zhijun, deputy Party secretary of the Jianshui PLAC in charge of the 610 Office. Another one was Tong Jinlu, deputy police chief of Jianshui County. Among over 20 police officers at the scene, the only three that were stabbed were all heavily involved in the persecution.

A Party Secretary Who Persecuted Over 200 Practitioners

Kunming Iron & Steel Company is one of the largest enterprises in Yunnan Province. After the suppression of Falun Gong started in 1999, more than 10 practitioners in the company went to Beijing to appeal for the right to practice. As a result, both the Party secretary and the general manager of the company were terminated by the CCP.

Zhang Guisheng, deputy director of the company’s Organization Department, was then promoted to be a deputy Party secretary for his active participation in the persecution. In late 2001, he was promoted again, this time to Party secretary of the company for ruthless measures against practitioners. Between July 1999 and late 2007, more than 200 practitioners were mistreated for their belief. Some were investigated, had their homes ransacked, and were detained. More than 40 were sent to forced labor camps, over 30 were sentenced, and at least two lost their lives, while dozens were fired, many families were broken, and untold numbers were forced to stay away from home.

At the end of 2007, Zhang was headed to lunch in the company’s senior executive cafeteria. Exiting the elevator, he suddenly had an acute stomachache and began to vomit blood. Emergency measures failed and he died at 52. When the CCP ordered about 100 company leaders to attend his funeral, at least four of vehicles in the motorcade ended up in accidents. Many in the company said that Zhang had received retribution for his bad deeds.

Same Vehicle, Different Outcomes

A Luobai Police Department van was in an accident on January 9, 2004. Of the four police officers in the vehicle, one died and two were seriously injured. All three had participated in the arrests of Mr. Feng Baoding, Ms. Gao Huixian, and Mr. Ji Kaichun in November 2003.

Xu Chunwei, a Liming Police Station officer, was the most active in arresting practitioners. He also repeatedly ignored practitioners’ advice not to do bad deeds. He died in the accident. Li Zhengfa, a Luobai Detention Center officer, sustained several ribs and damage to his liver, pancreas, stomach, and small intestine. Jia Wanhong, an officer with the Criminal Investigation Division of Luobai Police Department, had his arms broken and a serious eye injury.

The fourth officer was Yang Jun, who did not participate in arresting practitioners. He only had a minor leg injury.

A Hospital Official Poisoned

Su Ming was the security chief at Second Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical College. Because of his involvement in the persecution, practitioners had told him about Falun Gong, hoping he could see through the CCP’s defamatory lies. But Su ignored them. In the end, quite a few practitioners who worked at the hospital were mistreated. Some were fired and some were sent to forced labor camps.

On December 8, 2007, about 20 people, including Su, ate the herb da cao wu (Vilmorin Monkshood root) as supplements. Everyone else was fine, but Su was poisoned and died the following day.

Framing Practitioners

Wang Baoping, about 40, was the director of the Lancang County Sports Committee. When practitioners did their exercises in the gym in early 1999, Wang collected their names, claiming they were needed to issue permits to enter the facility. But he later used the list to persecute practitioners.

In the winter of 2001, Wang violated traffic rules and crashed into a truck. He died on the spot, his body nearly unrecognizable.

A Reckless 610 Office Director

Long Qingfu was the director of the Shiping County 610 Office. He and Zhang, a deputy director of the 610 Office, went to Honghe in June 2003 to plan further actions against Falun Gong. On the trip home on June 22, they were in an accident. Long died, while Zhang was seriously injured with several ribs broken and had to be hospitalized for months.

In addition to following the persecution policy, both Long and Zhang personally swore at Falun Gong and its founder. “We did swear at your Master. So what?” they called out to practitioners. They pressured practitioners to denounce Falun Gong and its founder and to write statements renouncing the practice.

Many people in the area talked about them after the accident. “Given what they did to Falun Gong, it’s not surprising to see them end up like this,” one resident said.

Nearly 10 Practitioners Sent to Forced Labor Camps

Peng Zhongfa was a Jianshui County 610 Office manager who actively planned the suppression of Falun Gong practitioners. Under his command, nearly 10 practitioners were sent to forced labor camps and many were held in brainwashing centers. Practitioners repeatedly told him to stop doing bad deeds, but Peng refused to listen.

In 2004, Peng was diagnosed with cancer and given chemotherapy, but he died at 50 in Jianshui Hospital

Forcing Nearly 100 Practitioners to Renounce Their Belief

Hu Suhai was the Party secretary of Laojie Village in Xichou County. In April 2000, he set up a brainwashing session in the village Party committee office. He coerced nearly 100 practitioners to show up, then forced every one of them to give speeches and write statements denouncing Falun Gong. If they didn’t comply, they would not be allowed to return home.

Several months later, Hu and two other village officers, Liu Yingyong and Mo Shengzhu, were in a car accident, and all three of them, plus the driver, died at the scene.

Death by Electrocution

Yao Zhimin was the director of Xichou County Police Department. On February 9, 2001, he and other officers arrested four practitioners and ransacked their homes. In addition to keeping the practitioners at the police department and detention center, Yao defamed Falun Gong and its founder while pressuring practitioners to give up their belief.

When Yao went fishing in Laojie Village in 2002, his fishing pole accidentally touched a high-voltage power line. He was electrocuted and died. Yao was less than 50 at the time.

Headache as a Warning

Yuan Chun was the captain of the Domestic Security Division of Menghai Police Department. In March 2006 alone, he was responsible for the arrests of more than 20 practitioners. When he started having headaches, practitioners told him to stop doing bad deeds to avoid further consequences. But Yuan did not listen and continued to send practitioners to prison, where some were badly beaten.

Yuan was diagnosed with a brain tumor two months later. Despite two operations, he died soon afterward.

Harm Others and Harm Yourself

The manager of the Political Security Division at Baoshan Police Department was very active in persecuting Falun Gong practitioners between late 1999 and 2000. After arresting several practitioners, he attended a celebration banquet, where he threatened that all the practitioners in Baoshan would be arrested shortly.

After returning home, he accidentally poured water on a high voltage power line and was killed instantly.

Turning in a Coworker

Hu Meifang, 47, was an employee of the Kun Steel Building Group. To receive an award of several thousand yuan, she turned her coworker, Ms. He Qiqiong, in to the authorities. This led to Ms. He’s arrest and home ransacking on October 23, 2004, followed by detention and four years in prison.

Two weeks later, Hu and her husband crashed their motorcycle into a truck, leaving Hu dead.

Corrective Measures Lead to Better Outcomes

Some people have learned from their lessons and stopped doing bad deeds. They have also witnessed miracles.

Son of a 610 Office Staff Member

Ai worked in a 610 Office and her husband was a prison officer. At a college reunion, her friend Ping told her about Falun Gong, its benefits, and the suppression. “You’re lucky you’re my friend,” Ai warned her. “Otherwise, you would be arrested”

Later, Ai’s only child was admitted to renowned Fudan University. The boy was badly injured in a car accident and the car fled. His heart was irreparably damaged. In fact, the doctors announced several times that he was on death’s door.

In despair, Ai remembered Falun Gong and asked Ping for help. “It doesn’t matter what it costs,” she said. “Even if I end up with nothing left, I want my son to be cured.”

Ping said that neither she or Falun Gong would take a penny from Ai but that harming the innocent would indeed be bad for Ai and her family. She suggested that Ai help get practitioners released, apologize to those who had suffered because of her, and recite “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.”

Ai began to check on the practitioners she had sent to labor camps or prisons. Since most of them had returned home, she decided to visit each one and apologize. “These families have suffered miserably because of me. Won’t they humiliate me or seek revenge?” she thought. To her surprise, they were all were very generous and no one had a bad attitude. After calculating how much she had stolen or confiscated from them (about 240,000 yuan in total), she started to return what she had taken.

By the time Ai had paid back about a third of those she owed, her son was cured without treatment. The doctors were stunned and Ai’s family was thrilled. They not only came to understand the importance of reciting “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” but also agreed to quit the CCP organizations for a better future.

Acute Chest Pain

Several police officers arrested a practitioner for telling local residents about Falun Gong. On the way to the station, one of the officers suddenly had acute chest pain (angina). Besides a pale face and cold limbs, he was sweating and had the symptoms of shock.

The arrested practitioner, who was sitting handcuffed in the van, recommended the officer try reciting “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” The officer was hesitant until another officer said, “Go ahead. Try it. It’s okay with us.”

The officer began to recite the phrases. After a short while, the chest pain miraculously disappeared, as if nothing had ever been wrong. Witnessing this, the officers in the vehicle changed their minds. Before they got to the station, they released the practitioner and told him to go home.

My Mother

Situations like these have occurred not only among government officials but also ordinary citizens.

My father, my younger sister, and I all practiced Falun Gong but my mother does not. After the CCP began to suppress Falun Gong in 1999, she was even more against it. My father died in 2013 due to the persecution, and both my sister and I were detained for our belief. My sister was even jailed. Mother often ridiculed us and made negative remarks about Falun Gong and its founder.

Other than a bad temper, Mother had no other problems. Starting in 2016, however, her heartbeat was very slow—only 30-40 times per minute. Following the doctor’s advice, she spent about 200,000 yuan and had a pacemaker installed. But shortly after that, she got an infection—vasculitis and sepsis. Because she was in critical condition, the doctor had to remove the pacemaker.

While we took care of her, my sister and I shared our thoughts. We reminded Mother that she had witnessed how we and Father had benefited from Falun Gong. We said it was unfair to say bad things about the practice just because the CCP suppressed it. Mother agreed and sincerely apologized to Falun Gong’s founder. She also recited “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good” from time to time.

Not long after that, her condition improved. Her heartbeat returned to normal and she no longer needed a pacemaker. “I agree Falun Gong is indeed good,” Mother said. “And I won’t believe the CCP’s lies anymore.”