Ms. Lu Zhongqin, 56, from Heilongjiang Province Recounts the Persecution She Suffered

My name is Lu Zhongqin and I am 56 years old. I live in Jixian County, Heilongjiang Province. I began to practise Falun Gong in 1994. Because of my belief in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, I have been harassed and detained many times. My home was also ransacked and my phone tapped. Moreover, my family members were implicated and live in worry and fear. My 10-year-old granddaughter is even afraid at just the sight of police officers and police cars.

In 2000, just one day after New Year's Day, the police in Fulitun Town began their mass arrest of practitioners. Altogether, 28 practitioners were taken to the detention centre, including elderly ladies in their sixties or seventies. As a result, dozens of families had a painful New Year holiday.
In order to awaken the local police and officials, I wrote and mailed letters to explain the facts about Falun Dafa to them.

Policeman Zhang Jingliang brought three men with him when he came to my family-run restaurant to check my handwriting to determine if the letters sent to them were from me. My home phone was tapped and I was monitored. I was asked to sign in with them every day. I refused, and the local police rushed to my restaurant to harass me. One policeman said, "If you don't listen to me, we'll arrest you." My whole family was made to live in fear and couldn't even sleep well.

Fuli Town Party Secretary Jin sat in my restaurant and wouldn't leave. He asked me to post a bond guaranteeing I wouldn't go to Beijing to appeal. Later they deceived me into going to the detention centre and thus arrested me. They didn't show any legal documents. I wasn't released until several days later.

On July 13th, 2000, two policemen from the Fuli Police Station broken into my restaurant again and arrested me. They asked me to sign a document saying I would give up cultivation but I refused. They then sent me to the detention centre. This time I was detained for 24 days. They threatened and harassed my family. They didn't show any legal documents when taking me away and then charged me with disturbing social order and threatened to sentence me to five years of forced labour. Even today I can't understand how I could disturb the social order while doing business at my own restaurant.

From 1999 to now, my home phone has been constantly monitored. The local police and authorities have sent numerous people to harass my family and relatives. My cousin lives in Daxing County. The local police even faxed the Daxing Police Department asking for information from my cousin, causing a great mental burden to my cousin and his family.

On November 7th, 2005, a group of 7 or 8 people from the local 610 Office¹ came to monitor me just opposite my home. At around 7:40 at night, they pounded on my door. I wasn't home at that time and my family refused to open the door. They threatened to pry it open. After they broke in, they turned my home upside down. My son's room was not spared either. They took away a computer, a Webcam, a speaker, an MP3 player, my ID card and other things. Geng Zhendong and Wu were among the group of people looting my house.

In order to avoid further persecution, I left home and am still wandering around as of today. When my granddaughter turned of school age, the local government refused to issue her residential card, so she couldn't attend school. They also forced my family to write "guarantee letters" to give up practising. My family had to use various connections and spend lots of money to get my granddaughter into school.

Note

1. "The 610 office" is 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.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2006/11/17/142653.html