(Clearwisdom.net)

Ms. Zang Yuncong, 49 years old, is from Zhucheng, Shandong Province. She has practiced Falun Gong for eight years and is physically and mentally healthy. After July 20, 1999, when the persecution of Falun Gong began, she went to Beijing with another practitioner from the same village to appeal and to clarify the truth about Falun Dafa. The police arrested her at Gaomi and escorted her back to her hometown. They detained her in the Wangjiatun School for seven days. None of her family members were informed of her whereabouts.

Party Secretary Zang Puyun from the Production Brigade, policeman Sun and the district administrator, Li Jianxin searched her house and took away her Dafa books. They also threatened and constantly watched her relatives and family members. While in detention, Ms. Zang and her fellow practitioner were forced to watch TV programs that slandered Falun Gong. They were forced to swear against Dafa and write "guarantee statements" promising that they would "stop practicing," and that they would not appeal anymore. The two of them were monitored by a dozen persons, including the deputy Party secretary Wang Yong, the head of Public Security Wang Xuexiang, and the head of Female Affairs, Fan Jirong. The practitioners were forced to work on farms without pay, but had to pay for their own keep. Party secretary Chen Jiazhi from the Political and Judiciary Office said, "Fine them! If they don't have money, take the food supplies from their families. We won't let them have anything to eat or drink." At a conference, the Production Brigade Party secretary yelled at the village Party secretary for the latter's failing to stop the practitioners from going to Beijing to appeal for their right to practice Falun Dafa.

Because of the persecution, the local Dafa practitioners could not live in peace. One day, Sun from the police station, Wang Xueyang and Party secretary Zang Puyun from the local police station came to Ms. Zang's residence to conduct a search. Sun said if they found more Dafa books, they would handle Ms. Zang more viciously. Yet, after they ransacked the whole place they failed to find anything.

On October 1, 2000, Ms. Zang went to Beijing to appeal again for justice for Falun Dafa. She wanted to explain why Falun Dafa is good. The police at Tiananmen Square arrested her. Among the practitioners arrested were senior citizens, young people and children, but they all shouted out from the bottom of their hearts, "Falun Dafa is great!" The police beat and kicked the practitioners. Some of them were so severely injured that they lay on the ground with their blood flowing. Some of their clothes were torn. Onlookers pointed out that those plainclothes policemen concealed metal weights inside their gloves, making the beatings even more severe. The perpetrators also used electric batons to shock the practitioners. The police loaded the practitioners into vehicles and then took them to a cordoned-off location to register them.

It was already afternoon when Ms. Zang Yuncong was taken to a prison. The Beijing police threatened that if she ever again went to Beijing to appeal, she would have nothing to eat and drink in the future; her children would not be allowed to go to school; she would not live a normal life and her family would be broken apart. The police also verbally abused her. Finally they asked her, "Will you come to appeal again?" Ms. Zang replied, "If such a good cultivation method is still treated unfairly, I will come again, for sure."

That evening, Ms. Zang was taken to the Shandong Liaison Office in Beijing. She was locked up in the basement where many other practitioners were detained. Some personnel from the practitioners' local counties, cities or from their work units later escorted them back to Shandong Province. On October 3, Ms. Zang was escorted back to Zhucheng and detained for a month on a trumped-up criminal charge. Within a few days, one of the Dafa practitioners there was tortured to death. The other Dafa practitioners went on a 20-day hunger strike in protest. Ms. Zang was released, but she had to pay 300 yuan for her daily living expenses.

After her return home, the police came by to harass Ms. Zang every day. They also monitored her activities. In 2001, Zang Yuncong was forced to attend a brainwashing session and was pressured to write guarantee statements, "stopping Falun Gong practice," and "stopping appeals." In addition, she was forced to watch TV programs that defamed and lied about Falun Dafa. They threatened that if she refused to be "reformed" she would be sent to a forced labor camp.

On October 18, 2002, it was the time for harvest. The Female Affairs head, Fan Jirong, requested that Ms. Zang go to the Production Brigade office. As soon as Ms. Zang sat down, about seven or eight people came in and tried to arrest her and take her to a brainwashing session. Ms. Zang refused to cooperate. She said, "There is nothing wrong with practicing Falun Gong and with being a good person." They still forced her into the brainwashing session. She had only one shirt on. A sudden cold front came, so she worried that the ginger roots that she planted would be frozen in the ground. Ms. Zang asked to go home to change clothes and harvest the ginger roots. When Zang Yuncong returned home on October 25, her husband beat her.

Ms. Zhang Zhaohong is from Xinhua Village, Chengguan Town in Zhucheng City. She has been practicing Falun Gong for eight years now. Prior to taking up the practice she was very stubborn and had a bad temper. She was easily angered and often cursed others. These bad habits troubled her all the time. When she heard that Falun Gong could change all of a person's bad characteristics, she decided to practice Falun Gong. As a result, her temper gradually changed for the better. Once she did something that wasn't right; as a result, she injured her foot and some of the bones in her right foot were dislocated. Ms. Zhang realized that she had done something wrong. She made up her mind to follow Falun Gong practitioners' standards and to do everything well. Therefore, in the evenings, she would endure severe discomfort when doing the sitting meditation with her legs in the lotus position. Three times, she heard a slight sound coming from the bones in her foot. The bones naturally resumed their normal positions. After three days, her foot totally recovered. The power of Falun Gong amazed her.

On July 20, 1999, when Falun Gong was under nationwide persecution, Zhang Zhaohong was heartbroken. Teacher asks practitioners to be good people; was there anything wrong with that? Teacher also conveys to practitioners in his lectures that practitioners should not kill. Hence, she knew that the TV shows and newspaper articles sponsored by the government were not true. They were meant to slander Falun Gong. To help people know the truth about Falun Gong and not let them be deceived by the lies, Ms. Zhang started to "clarify the truth" about Falun Gong. She told people that Falun Gong is for improving a person's character and moral standard so that they become a better person after practicing.

On October 14, the police called Ms. Zhang and asked her to come to the Chengguan Local Police Station. The police asked her if she still practiced Falun Gong. Zhang Zhaohong said yes. Police officer Cao Jinhui scolded her loudly and put her in handcuffs. Headed by Cao Jinhui, three policemen took her and went to her village Council Office. After that, personnel from that office went to her residence and searched her home, without going through any legal procedures.

In the evening, Cao Jinhui, who was very drunk, ordered the others to use electric batons to shock her. Cao Jinhui also beat Ms. Zhang severely and struck her hard on the face. Furthermore, Cao hit her head against the wall. As a result, Ms. Zhang's head was injured and swollen in several places. After that, Cao kicked her legs and feet. He kicked her ribs, which caused her severe pain. This time, Zhang Zhaohong was detained for a month. After that, the Village Council members threatened that if she continued to practice Falun Gong they would not let her nephew go to school, they would not issue her brother a permit for having a second child, and they would cut the power and water supply to her residence. Furthermore, they would keep monitoring her.

Ms. Zhang decided to go to Beijing again to tell the national government officials that they should treat Falun Gong fairly. On February 7, 2000, she went to Beijing. On February 8, she could not find the Appeals Office; therefore, she went to Tiananmen Square to practice Falun Gong. Because of that, Ms. Zhang was arrested and sent to the Weifang Liaison Office in Beijing, which was filled with Falun Gong practitioners who had come to Beijing to appeal for justice for Falun Dafa. They confiscated almost all of their money, but Ms. Zhang still had about 200 yuan on her that the authorities had not found.

After she was brought back to Zhucheng, many people scolded and kicked her. Cao Jinhui grabbed her 200 yuan. After that, Cao used a rubber club to beat Ms. Zhang heavily. Her legs and her hips turned dark purple.

Once again Ms. Zhang was detained for another month. Many practitioners were then detained. They started a joint hunger strike to protest the persecution. As a result, the perpetrators ripped off the practitioners' clothes and forced them to stand outside in winter weather when it was snowing heavily.

A month later, Ms. Zhang was escorted to the village Council Office and detained in a room with only one stool inside. She was forbidden to sleep for several days and nights. One night, a female committee member brought her older brother and forced her brother to beat Ms. Zhang severely. To protest the Village Council's detaining her, Ms. Zhang started a hunger strike. When she was released she found out that the power supply to her home had been cut a long time ago. In order to clarify the truth of Falun Gong, Zhang Zhaohong went to Beijing to appeal three times.