(Clearwisdom.net) Ms. Duan is a 63 year old female Falun Gong practitioner. She looks young and healthy with high spirits. She told this reporter the reason why she is happy is that she practices Falun Gong. Her eldest daughter was illegally sentenced to a forced labor camp and tortured physically and mentally by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). This relentless persecution against her daughter didn't stop her from practicing cultivation. On the contrary, her whole family became Falun Gong practitioners and were blessed by the grace of Dafa. The following is an interview with Ms. Duan.
Reporter: Ms. Duan, where are you from and how old are you?
Ms. Duan: I was a farmer from Chenzhou, Hunan province, and I am 63 years old. I live with my children now in the city to help them take care of my granddaughter.
Reporter: You look younger than other people at your age.
Ms. Duan: My good health and vigor come from my daily steadfast practice of Falun Gong.
Reporter: Can you describe how you became a practitioner?
Ms. Duan: My eldest daughter regained her health after she began practicing Falun Gong in 1995. She then recommended it to the family. I didn't take it seriously because I was very busy with farming. In August 1996, the nine-day lecture series of Falun Gong was held in town. My eldest daughter and other practitioners advised me to attend the classes every day after my farm work.
Master has taken care of me even though I did not practice Dafa diligently. For example, we built a house the same year. Building the house was an exhausting task and could easily trigger my husband's bad temper. Because of my attachment to competition, I argued with him over one little thing and he threw a big piece of wood toward me from the roof, and it hit my arm. My arm started swelling instantly and it was very painful. Thinking of all the hardships I had endured, I felt so resentful and could not calm down, but sadly cried out loud. Two fellow practitioners visited me the next day and read Zhuan Falun to me. They said that they were enlightened in a dream by Master the night before about my tribulation. They helped me look inwards for several days afterward. With their help, I smoothly broke through the tribulation.
After July 20, 1999, slanderous statements and events of persecution against Falun Gong were reported widely on TV and newspapers. We were required to turn in our Dafa books, or the police would ransack our homes. We were also ordered to write a Guarantee Statement to stop cultivation. We knew that Dafa was good and told everyone to hide the books. We continuously heard that some practitioners who appealed to the government in Beijing to stop the persecution were jailed and their homes were ransacked. One young practitioner from our town has never been seen since his appeal in Beijing.
The 610 Office which is above the law and the public security bureau often ransacked our homes for books or Dafa related materials. If such materials were found, the practitioner would be jailed and fined. The fines were raised higher to discourage practitioners from practicing. The cultivation environment was completely destroyed.
Reporter: Do people still persist in practicing Dafa?
Ms. Duan: Yes. Those diligent practitioners like my eldest daughter did not give up regardless of the oppression. Of course, they endured severe persecution. I cannot remember how many times my daughter has been arrested and tortured and how often her home was ransacked. She later not only lost her job and her marriage, but also was put in a forced labor camp.
I tried to visit her in the forced labor camp but to no avail. I was completely in the dark about her condition, and every day I was very worried. During the last year of her detention, my daughter asked someone to smuggle to my sister her personal letter, detailing the tortures she had endured every day. The tortures include prohibiting her from sleep and use of the toilet, beatings, upright standing for long periods, and motionless crouching and squatting. She was also forcibly fed during her hunger strike.
We were so worried that we went to visit my daughter, and I could not believe how she looked! She was emaciated and had a row of teeth broken. I was distressed and responded: "How could you cruelly torture my lovable girl so badly? Don't any of you have parents and children? Why don't you hold me here instead of my daughter? You and the Communists will have your retribution!"
The wardens replied hypocritically that they tried to save her life. My son retorted: "You tried to kill her. If you wanted to truly save her, you should do it in a civilized manner. She went on hunger strike to protest your cruelty. Why did you force her to eat? You are responsible for her physical condition today."
One warden prevaricated: We did not do anything. We even advised her to eat. She accidentally broke her teeth and we will send her to the hospital to repair them. Another warden said that I should convert her. I immediately stopped him: "My daughter will not be transformed. It is a good thing to practice Falun Gong."
Reporter: People of your age must have gone through many Communist's movements, right?
Ms. Duan: I have seen many movements. Let me tell you some stories. My family was poor when I was a child. My mother fetched water for our landlords who were not healthy and had poor vision. The CCP cadres sternly rebuked my mother that she consorted with the landlords with no awareness. My mother was very scared because of her meek temperament, but she intrinsically felt it was righteous to help old people, especially the landlords who let us live on their place. I told my mother not to help the Communists persecute the landlords. She replied: "The landlords worked hard and lived frugally to buy the land. They did not violate any law. I will not do wicked things against my heart. The cadres knew that I could sing well and asked me to teach their team to sing. I asked them to resolve this issue." They replied: "It is the policy of the party and we cannot do anything about it. However, you can secretly fetch water for the landlords."
In a "criticizing meeting," people were tortured by all means, including beating and kicking. The cadres did not treat people as human beings. There were a few deaths from the tortures at the site. I sadly cried. There is a saying that a wicked person will sooner or later be punished for his misdeeds. Those cadre leaders died of various strange diseases and their children also suffered.
This story reflected another case which occurred in our neighboring village. A young cadre brutally tortured a landlady by tying her hands behind her back and placing a cat into her pants. He then beat the cat. In response, the cat scratched and bit the lady because of the pain. In the end, both the lady and the cat died from the tortures. Many people condemned the cadre and said he was not human. This young cadre later developed osteomyelitis and suffered for a long time before his death.
Reporter: You know the evil nature of the CCP, which is still persecuting Falun Gong. How did your family get the courage to practice cultivation?
Ms. Duan: My eldest daughter patiently clarified the truth to us after she was released from the forced labor camp. She wanted us to cherish this unprecedented opportunity and firmly believe in Master and Dafa, as justice will prevail over evil. She also advised us to utilize our wisdom and send righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil and save sentient beings. We encouraged each other to rid ourselves of fear and create a cultivation environment.
Furthermore, I could not practice cultivation without my husband's support. My husband was short tempered, but he was straightforward and never took advantage of others. He met a prophet when he was young and learned those techniques relating to fortune telling and feng shui. He also read an ancient book which could foretell events.
My eldest daughter lived with us after she was released from the forced labor camp. One night when she told my husband about the persecution against Falun Dafa and that she wanted him to remember Dafa is good, he said to her that he already knew it in 1953. He further said: "According to the ancient book, a missionary with high virtue would transmit the "Fa" to this human world at the Dharma's end. When one person practices cultivation the whole family benefit from it, but the cultivator would be jailed. I did not know it would be Falun Gong until the persecution began in July 1999. When you were in jail, your mom was worried, but I was not because you are not an ordinary person."
On one occasion, when my eldest daughter persuaded people to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations, one person argued that Falun Gong should not be involved in politics. My husband immediately responded: "You know, Falun Gong is not a political entity. It is to save sentient beings. Encouraging you to quit the party is to save your life."
When someone had a severe illness, my husband always recommended: "Your illness will be cured once you practice Falun Gong with my daughter. My husband has read a few Dafa books, and his hypertension was effectively controlled even though he did not practice cultivation. He passed away peacefully at 70 in 2008. The villagers all thought that it was a blessing from Dafa.
My son and his wife began practicing Dafa cultivation in September 2003. My two granddaughters, two nephews and younger daughter have read Zhuan Falun. My older daughter regained the job she lost. She rebuilt a new family and her husband also practices Dafa.
In 2005, my son distributed Falun Dafa informational materials in Guangdong and was arrested and taken to a forced labor camp. Our family was calm and continued practicing cultivation. We helped each other solve our daily needs and to rescue him. After my son came home, he practiced more diligently to make up for what he had missed during his detention.
Having a kind heart will be rewarded with good fortune! We are now very healthy and are doing well in our careers and school. Finally, a clear sky will show after clouds dissipate. The illumination of Buddha light sweetens the heart.