High School Teacher Dies After Years of Persecution for Practicing Falun Gong, Suspended Pay Amounts to Over 1 Million Yuan

(Minghui.org)

Name: Ji ZhongxianChinese Name: 纪中贤Gender: MaleAge: 62City: BotouProvince: HebeiOccupation: High school teacherDate of Death: April 13, 2025Date of Most Recent Arrest: September 29, 2011Most Recent Place of Detention: Brainwashing center

A 62-year-old man in Botou City, Hebei Province, died on April 13, 2025, after suffering years of persecution because he practiced Falun Gong.

Mr. Ji Zhongxian took up Falun Gong before 1999 and strove to live by the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. While his fellow teachers at the Botou City First High School often kept the extra charges collected from students for study materials, he always returned the money. Additionally, unlike his peers, he never charged for tutoring students outside of school hours. He was known as an outstanding teacher of integrity.

After the communist regime launched the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999, Mr. Ji upheld his faith and became a target. The Botou City 610 Office and Board of Education took him to a brainwashing center. He refused to renounce Falun Gong so his school demoted him. After he was released, the Botou City 610 Office and Board of Education pressured his school to suspend his pay (about 7,000 yuan per month). For the next two plus decades, he was only given a monthly stipend of a bit over 300 yuan. Depending on how many classes he was assigned to teach, he also earned up to 700 extra yuan teaching fee each month. The total amount of suspended pay amounted to over one million yuan over the years.

Mr. Ji managed to save money to make Falun Gong informational materials. He was often seen around town talking to people about Falun Gong. Such a simple act resulted in multiple arrests and harassment.

The Botou City Police Department officers raided Mr. Ji’s home on October 7, 2007, and took him to the Botou City Detention Center. He was held for an unknown amount of time.

Officer Wang Wensheng from the Botou City Police Department arrested Mr. Ji in September 2011 and extorted 10,000 yuan from him. He was seized by Wang again days later on September 29. His family was forced to pay Wang 20,000 yuan in exchange for his release.

Mr. Ji was harassed at home by police in June 2021. The long-term persecution plus the suspension of his pay took a toll on his health. He died on April 13, 2025. He is survived by his mother. He told a friend before he died that he planned to take her to another city to have her illnesses treated.