(Clearwisdom.net)

When I stepped on the airplane to North America with the trust of practitioners in my area, when I stood in front of the consulate doing exercises and sending forth righteous thoughts openly for the first time, the magnificent feats of local Dafa disciples during the Fa-rectification period appeared in my mind one scene after another. I could not help that my eyes were full of tears.

Since late 1995 or early 1996, more and more people started to practice Falun Dafa. There had been practice associations in many districts, as well as practice sites, which spread everywhere. One could see Dafa disciples wearing Dafa emblems everywhere. Through the seating arrangement in the auditorium that we rented for experience-sharing conferences, I estimated that the number of practitioners in my local area exceeded 5,000 people. Because we had neither an organizing system nor name list, nobody knew the exact number. There were 75 people working in the research office that I was in, and more than 20 of them had a copy of Zhuan Falun, and more than 10 others kept going to the practice site to do the exercises. Many of our local practitioners did not know each other. Therefore, after July 20, 1999, when we heard that some practitioners went to Beijing to appeal and were brought back by the police, or that some practitioners were detained for distributing truth-clarification materials, we were unable to match these names with who they were. And for some it was not until they were detained together that they were able to get to know each other.

The vicious people were even confused about the practitioners' situation. Out of selfishness and personal spite, the Party Secretary at my workplace sent Dafa disciples to the "610 Office", (an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems) where they were illegally detained for more than two months. One day, he told me, "I thought I have taken care of all of you. Why is there another one with the name of Lu? When did he start to practice?" How is it possible for the evil people to understand that, although Dafa disciples do not have a formal organization, it is actually better this way? Thus, the so-called "tight organization [of Falun Gong]," and "there are only 2 million practitioners nationwide" did not have any basis in fact. Furthermore, they did not even believe these things themselves.

Because there were many intellectuals at my workplace, Dafa disciples' education levels are generally high here. Most of them have college degrees or higher. Some were even officials or at management levels (Of course, they have now been deprived of their posts). They have had very positive effects, laying a solid foundation for the future Fa-rectification.

As early as in the beginning of 1998, we could feel the systematic damage caused by the vicious people. The practice sites were shut down one after another, and we had to change places from time to time. Some government agencies started to investigate us secretly, especially some Dafa practitioners at management levels. They talked with us, showed "consideration" for us, and warned that we needed to pay attention to our "influence," etc. I once asked them, "Our practice aims at being a better person, and improving physical health. Plus, we have been doing well at work. How can there be any negative influences?" They had nothing to say. That is to say, the hidden persecution, as we know it, already started as early as the beginning of 1998. They simply sped up after April 25, 1999, when nearly ten thousand people peacefully appealed at the government compound in Zhongnanhai.

As I recall, at around June 10, 1999, CCTV broadcast that the Central Government had never been against the practice, and people had the freedom to practice or not to practice, and nobody should believe in rumors nor spread rumors. On the next day, an assistant director came to us with a policy without a title, signature, or date. He read the policy to us. Its tone and contents were the same as the propaganda after July 20, 1999. I thus asked them where it came from, and said, "Just yesterday, the Central Government had noted that we should not believe the rumors nor spread them. How can you give us this? It must be a rumor, and I hope it stops here." That director had nothing to say.

On July 20, 1999, the Jiang regime openly persecute Falun Dafa. At that time, many Dafa practitioners stepped forward, many of whom later played important roles in the Fa-rectification. Except for a very few who turned against Dafa, most practitioners have walked through it in tribulation and hardship.

By September 1999, most of the Dafa practitioners in my area participated in the magnificent Fa-rectification. Five of us successfully went to the Tiananmen gate tower, and unfurled a banner to appeal for Falun Dafa. Upon doing that many everyday people said, "Falun Gong is remarkable. Your Teacher must be great since he has made you so outstanding."

Hundreds and hundreds of Dafa practitioners went to Tiananmen Square. On New Year's Day of 2000, more than 300 Dafa practitioners at my workplace went to Beijing to validate the Fa. At the beginning of 2000, we held a group exercise of more than 200 practitioners. It was among the largest group exercises throughout the province, and it strongly shocked the evil. Truth-clarifying banners and flyers appeared on the streets and in residential areas, batch after batch. Many local people saw or read truth-clarification materials.

Meanwhile, the local Dafa disciples were brutally persecuted. According to an incomplete estimate early this year, one Dafa disciple was persecuted to death, and over 700 were illegally detained or sent to the labor camps. Dafa practitioners who had been illegally detains were fired from their jobs by their employers. For some who still remained at their posts, they are closely monitored, and unfairly mistreated. The following are some of the experiences that I heard.

Regarding Lao Hong (alias), many people have heard about him and respect him. The evil is afraid of his righteous actions. Lao Hong was an engineer at a research institute. With high technical skills, he was in charge of several projects. People around him all said he was a good person.

On December 25, 1999, with other four Dafa disciples, Lao Hong passed through the police checkpoint with his righteous thoughts and entered the Tiananmen gate tower, where he unfurled a banner and spoke from his heart. The banner was displayed for nearly one minute, and the police were agitated that he was able to pass through their checkpoint. Later, Lao Hong was illegally sentenced to two years of imprisonment. Two others were illegally sentenced for one-year imprisonment, while others were also illegally detained.

On December 25, 2001, Lao Hong stepped out of that prison in Beijing openly and with dignity. When the security officer at his workplace met him at the gate of the prison, his first sentence was, "I have been practicing here throughout these two years." That really discouraged his supervisor and local police, who had hoped to use Lao Hong as a "model of transformation." With no other choice, they had to send him home, and did not mention any so-called "transformation" since. The determination of Dafa disciples is rock solid and unshakable.

When I went to visit Lao Hong, and asked him about the situation in the prison, he answered, "I have experienced all the imaginable tortures." In the first half-year, in order to create an environment for doing the exercises, Lao Hong suffered a lot. But as the torture went on, he became even more determined. Later, all the criminals in his cell voluntarily protected him. Whenever the police came, the prisoners in his cell would inform him or block the police's view of him. At that time, he said, "You do not have to do that, since I want the police to see me practicing." Finally, the police tried all means, but still could not shake his righteous faith towards Dafa, and towards Teacher! In front of other people the police head said, with a thumbs-up, "Outstanding. He is a cultivator. Let him continue to practice, and do not bother him." Since then, the environment of doing the exercises in public throughout the prison was established, which gained respect from many people there, ranging from the prisoners to the police.

(Please refer to http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2003/5/20/35919.html for a related report of this article.)

May 7, 2003