My Eighteenth Birthday Wish: My Father's Release and the End of the Persecution

In a few days I will be 18 years old, becoming an adult. However, I don't expect it to be a "happy birthday" since my father is not here with me. He is persecuted simply because he tries to be a good person.

The earthquake on May 12th, 2008 is still like a dark cloud hanging over me. It was on June 27th that they arrested my father. Before we could get through the misery of the earthquake aftermath, another disaster happened to my family.

At around 2:00 p.m. on June 27th, my aunt and I were cleaning the house. Earlier that morning, my father was told by his school principal to go to school to pick up his salary check, but he never returned. My mother became quite anxious and went out to make a telephone call to him. After she left, someone suddenly knocked on the door, startling me. I asked, "Who's there?" An affable voice sounded, "We are here to deliver your father's salary check." I felt something was not right about this. My father had gone to pick it up himself. I peeked through the toilet window and saw several people outside the door, one of whom was in a police uniform.

For several years my family had been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party simply because my parents practised Falun Gong.

The group of people outside the door forced their way into the house. The person's affable voice turned into a roar.

When asked who they were, they replied that they were from the Public Security Bureau. One of them said, "Your father practises Falun Gong so we have arrested him." I said, "What is wrong with practising Falun Gong? He has become a better person, influencing our family to become more harmonious. Why do you want to arrest him when he is learning to be a better person?" Another man shouted, "Practising Falun Gong is against the LAW! I don't care if he wants to be a better person, but practising Falun Gong is NOT allowed!"

When they noticed our computer and some supplies, a man remarked, "This blank CD can be used at home for recording." Another fellow answered, "Since their offence is not a small one, we are free to take whatever we like." They went ahead and took four thousand yuan¹ in cash from our home and called it "a loot."

My aunt was so frightened that she couldn't resume the cleaning, so she lay down on the bed. One officer yelled, "Let's handcuff this stinky old woman!" My aunt was old enough to be his mother, yet instead of having respect for elders, this officer insulted her. One officer also wanted to take our rice cooker, but fortunately another guy spoke up, " Don't take the cooker. They need it to make rice." It seems that some people don't want to be bad.

An elderly man happened to come by our house. They dragged the poor innocent man into a room. I could not hear what they said, but I heard one of them shouting, "Doesn't matter what he does! We need to handcuff him to gather enough suspects!"

Finally, they confiscated about ten-thousand yuan worth of our belongings, as well as our four thousand yuan in cash, which were our savings from many years of work.

Thus, my aunt and I had narrowly escaped the fate of being used to make up the quota of suspects.

I recall one time while I was in the fifth grade when my father was arrested one night while he was trying to post materials exposing the persecution of Falun Gong. Then, around midnight another group of people came to arrest my mother. That memory stays well in my mind.

I know that the reason why my parents practice Falun Gong is because they want to be good people. They also want to help other people understand the evil of the Chinese Communist Party so that righteousness can prevail.

In a few days I will turn eighteen. It is a day for family gathering. My father is the head of our household, but he currently is in a detention centre, a place designed for criminals. The detention centre however, is now used to house good people, those who want to speak the truth. I said to my father in my mind, "Father, don't give up. You shouldn't give up. I support you and I always will, because you did nothing wrong."

My father's name is Wu Tingwen. He lived in Langfang City, in Yongqing County of Hebei Province. He was a teacher at the Beixinliu High School in Yongqing County, but due to the persecution, he had to transfer to Langfangshi High School. He is now illegally detained at the Langfang Detention Centre.

I sincerely hope others will lend a helping hand to stop this persecution. This is my eighteenth birthday wish.

Note

1. "Yuan" is the Chinese currency; 500 yuan is equal to the average monthly income of an urban worker in China.

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2008/8/18/184309.html