China’s Top Brass Rocked By Petition Letter

Villagers shock China’s elite by petitioning the arrest of a Falun Gong practitioner.
A village petition containing 300 signatures and thumbprints, criticizing the illegal arrest of Falun Gong practitioner Wang Xiaodong, has shaken the ranks of China’s top brass.

Why did so many people risk their lives to sign this petition? Because these villagers know that there is nothing illegal about practicing “Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance,” nor is there anything wrong with Wang’s aspiration to be a good person. They know in their hearts that practicing Falun Gong is good; therefore they are demanding Wang’s immediate release.

An entire family witnesses the miracle of Falun Gong

Wang Xiaodong, 42, from Zhouguantun Village, Hebei Province, is both a college graduate and a well-admired teacher. While attending college in 1997, he obtained a copy of Zhuan Falun—the main book of Falun Gong—written by its founder, Li Hongzhi.

After finishing the book during his summer vacation, he felt both excited and rejuvenated. He could hardly wait to tell his family members about the book and the practice of Falun Gong. When Wang got together with his family, he began reading Zhuan Falun to his mother, who was suffering from heart disease and stomach problems.

His sister, Wang Xiaomei, told an Epoch Times news reporter: “My mother had poor health and was afflicted with quite a number of  illnesses. A few days after my brother read [Zhuan Falun] to my mother, she became completely healthy and all of her illness disappeared. Without Falun Gong, our mother would not be alive today.”

She added: “My brother also read to the rest of us and everyone liked the book. As a result, our whole family started to practice Falun Gong. My brother used to be very narrow-minded, but after he started cultivating, he became very considerate of other people.”

When Wang Xiaomei was just three months old, she suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. The hospital’s prognosis was that she’d live, but she would remain in a vegetative state. Her mother replied: “Then staying in the hospital won’t do my daughter any good.” Wang interjected: “No problem, we are Dafa practitioners and believe in our master.” After practicing Falun Gong, Wang Xiaomei became very healthy.

After witnessing miracles like these, the whole family became even more diligent in their practice. The entire village recognized that they are a good family and admired them for following Falun Gong’s universal principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance.

Persecution of Falun Gong forces the Wang family into homelessness

On July 20, 1999, the then president of China, Jiang Zemin, ordered a brutal crackdown on Falun Gong. Wang Xiaodong and his entire family were forced into homelessness and suffered tremendously.

Wang Xioamei said: “After 1999, our whole family went to Beijing to petition and clarify the truth. Since then, we have not had one peaceful or calm day. I, along with my brother Xiaodong, were arrested on two separate occasions and sentenced to one year of forced labor. My other brother was also detained twice.”

From the spring of 2001 to the spring of 2002, Wang Xiaodong was unable to return to his village. He was forced to stay with relatives and friends, being careful not to stay too long. In 2001, due to torrential rains, part of his home collapsed. Since he dared not stay in the village, his parents, who are nearly 70 years old, were forced to camp outside in a field.

After Wang Xiaodong ventured back to his village, he was arrested and kidnapped by local police, along with his brother. After several illegal arrests and continuous harassment at home, Wang’s father became severely ill and died in February 2003, while Wang was still in a forced labor camp.

Although Wang Xiaodong was an excellent teacher, the authorities would not allow him to teach.  Instead, he was forced to earn a living by farming, doing dry welding, gardening, and selling fertilizer. Being unable to endure these hardships, his wife divorced him in 2011 and took away their daughter. Wang was left to look after their 6-year-old son.

In February 2012, 40 policemen illegally entered and ransacked Wang’s home. They kidnapped him and confiscated about 20,000 yuan (US$3,100) worth of his possessions, including computers, printers, cameras, etc.

Due to Wang’s arrest, his elderly mother and 6-year-old son were left unattended. The villagers were furious. In order to free their brother, Wang’s sisters started a petition and within one day they collected 300 signatures and thumbprints. The villagers who missed the opportunity to sign the petition asked the sisters to add their signatures the following day. With the petition in hand, the sisters asked the authorities to release their brother. The petition was later published on the Internet, on April 20

The local authorities, as well as the Botou City Public Security Bureau and China’s top national security agency, have been trying desperately to get their hands on the original petition, but to no avail.

Since May 15, local authorities have been harassing everyone whose thumbprint was on the petition. The Wang Xiaodong incident has allowed people to understand the tragedy and severity of the CCP’s brutal persecution of Falun Gong.

300 thumbprints cause an international uproar

Not only did the petition shock the CCP’s Political Bureau Standing Committee, it also caused quite a stir at home and abroad, with many human rights lawyers volunteering to defend Wang Xiaodong.

Wang Xiaomei was forced to leave home after the news story broke. She was later kidnapped on May 26, along with the friend she was staying with. Wang’s husband was forced into homelessness and the whole village is now being severely monitored.

The case against Wang Xiaodong has been recently returned to the Public Security Bureau, after the prosecutor cited a lack of evidence—according to a source familiar with the case. The source also stated Botou City public security officers were being asked to re-examine the case, due to an apparent lack of evidence. However, many people feel that the CCP’s backpedaling is mainly due to public pressure and the Internet attention that this event has received.

Author: Gu Qing Er, Translated by Natashe Yang from KanZhongGuo

Source: http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/12/5/29/n3599461.htm