Declaration by a Falun Gong Practitioner's Husband

I am an employee of the Chishan Paper Manufacturing Plant located in Yuanjiang of Hunan Province, where I have worked for decades. Before 1997, my wife was ill and had to stay at home and so I was stressed with the financial burden of several thousand yuan [500 Yuan is the average monthly income for an urban worker in China] each year for medical treatments and medicine.

One day in 1997, a Falun Gong practitioner told my wife that Falun Gong could cure her illness and keep her fit. My wife thought it was worth a try and began to practice Falun Gong. It was miraculous. Within several months her many diseases disappeared. She has continued the practice to this day. In July 1997, the government placed a ban on Falun Gong, and forbade the practice. On December 17, 2000, the Beijing Police Department detained my wife Yang Yuzhen because she went to Beijing to clarify the truth, to say a word of justice, and to show that Falun Dafa is great.

When my wife was in Beijing, the local police station and the people from the security section of my work unit came to our home and confiscated Dafa books and Falun Gong materials. They claimed that they would cause Falun Gong practitioners to go bankrupt. After being detained in the Yangsiqiao Detention Centre for two months, the Beijing police took my wife back to Yuanjiang, where she was sent to the brainwashing class held by the Yuanjiang "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.] for 40 days. Altogether, she was detained for more than 100 days, costing us 5,000 yuan, of which 2,000 was called a "fine."

I have two children, one in college, the other in high school. Our financial situation is extremely difficult, but we were denied the minimum government aid we were entitled to. According to the director of my plant, "Those who practice Falun Gong can not have the minimum welfare. If your wife continues to practice Falun Gong, you will also have difficulty keeping your job and may be laid off." The leaders of the plant and the security section forced me to sign an agreement to disassociate with Falun Gong in order to keep my job. Under this threat, and with no other options, I signed against my will.

The Yuanjiang "610 Office" also used the same method to force Falun Gong practitioners to sign, threatening to delay releasing them from detention or prison. My wife couldn't imagine how practicing Falun Gong could be against the law, as nothing is wrong with Falun Gong. It can cure illness and maintain health. Thinking I had to take care of the family, I signed the so-called "guarantee statement" [A statement to declare that one is remorseful for practicing Falun Gong and guarantees not to practice Falun Gong again, not to go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, and to never again associate with any Falun Dafa practitioners] on her behalf without her consent.

I later recognised that practicing Falun Gong can cure illnesses and maintain health. Falun Gong teaches people to be good people and to do beneficial things for society according to "Truth, Compassion, and Tolerance." Why is the government so against Falun Gong practitioners? I regret signing that statement, and now, I declare that both my signature on her behalf and my own signature are completely null and void.

Since 1997, my wife has been practicing Falun Gong without stop. She practices the exercises every day, and has never been sick, taken drugs, or taken injections. She has never violated the law or done anything detrimental to society. She has been a model citizen. I hope our government will care for its people and safeguard justice. Only in this way can a government win the heart of the people, ensure them a secure and healthy life, and improve society.

Wu Yonggu, an employee from the Chishan Paper Manufacturing Plant, Yuanjiang City