(Minghui.org) Everyone makes mistakes and many of us may have harmed others in the past. It is especially the case in communist China where many may have followed the totalitarian regime to knowingly or unknowingly abuse the law and persecute the innocent. What should we do if that happened?
Painful Memory of Cultural Revolution
The 10-year Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) was a special era of chaos. Instigated by the regime to intensify class struggle, many people turned against their own family members, neighbors, coworkers, teachers, and students. It was commonplace to hold public condemnation sessions and unleash the violence against innocent people.
Wang Jiyu, one of the Red Guards, was mild in the beginning. After being criticized for lack of zeal in class struggle, he changed and fought more violently than peers. In the end, he killed a 19-year-old in a group fight in 1967. Wang was only 16 at the time.
But this painful experience has agonized Wang since then. In January 2011, he decided to publicly repent over the sin he had committed. “If there is retribution, I deserve it. In any case, I need to publicize this and save it as a record for history,” wrote the-then-62-year-old merchant. “History cannot be forgotten.”
Lei Yinglang, a 68-year-old resident in Taining County of Fujian Province, also expressed his regrets in 2013 over humiliating others in the Cultural Revolution. “Reflecting on what I did many years after those incidents, I now realized my actions were despicable and I am regretful about insulting others,” he said.
Chen Xilu is the son of Chen Yi, one of the founders of communist China. He also wrote an open letter in 2013 apologizing for his deeds in Cultural Revolution. “I bear direct responsibility for the denouncing and criticism, and forced-labor re-education of school leaders, and some teachers and students,” he wrote, “I actively rebelled and organized the denouncements of school leaders. Later on when I served as the director of the school’s Revolution Committee, I wasn’t brave enough to stop the inhumane prosecutions.”
“My official apology comes too late, but for the purification of the soul, the progress of society and the future of the nation, one must make this kind of apology,” he added.
Continued Tragedies
As the public praised above-mentioned individuals for their courage to own up to their mistakes, few people realized a huge mistake made by the communist regime has yet to be corrected. That is the persecution against Falun Gong.
The communist China started the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in July 1999 simply for their faith in the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The crime against innocent practitioners remains unabated today.
A large number of practitioners have been detained, imprisoned, and tortured in the past 23 years. In 2021 alone, 132 practitioners lost their lives to the persecution. As of today, the total death toll of confirmed deaths of Falun Gong practitioners is 4,884.
Among the deceased practitioner was Mr. Jiang Guobo, a former official in Weifang City, Shandong Province. “For upholding his faith, Mr. Jiang was arrested 13 times. He suffered 77 kinds of torture, including electric shocks, the tiger bench, and being force-fed toxic drugs, while serving two labor camp terms and a five-year prison term,” wrote a Minghui article about this death. “Even some inmates said they’d never seen anyone tortured so cruelly.”
Tuo Yuying, a judge of Huining County in Gansu Province, was diagnosed with cancer after participating in the suppression. Before she died, she apologized for sentencing innocent practitioners.
One Political and Legal Affairs Committee (PLAC) official in Guizhou Province also met with consequences after persecuting practitioners for their faith. His son was diagnosed with incurable disease and was on the verge of death. After learning the facts from practitioners, this official sincerely repented and begged Mr. Li Hongzi, founder of Falun Gong, for help. Later on, his son was safe again. Since then, the official found ways to protect practitioners, avoiding harming others and himself.
Since it took power in 1949, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has killed tens of millions of innocent people. The persecution of Falun Gong is just continuation of its track record of brutality and lies. By rejecting the CCP, repenting over their past deeds, and making up for the losses, people will be rewarded with blessings.
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Category: Perspective
