Over 1,500 Falun Gong adherents gathered on the National Mall in Washington D.C. on July 20 to remember those who have lost their lives due to the Chinese regime’s persecution. Among them was Liang Guiyu, a resident of New York’s Flushing, originally from Shandong Province, who personally knows ten Falun Gong practitioners who died for refusing to renounce their beliefs. Liang himself was also detained and tortured for his affiliation with Falun Gong.
July 20 marks the anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s launch of the persecution of Falun Gong 24 years ago. Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual belief rooted in traditional Chinese culture and is based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. Prior to the persecution, it was estimated that there were 70 to 100 million adherents in China. However, since 1999, millions of Falun Gong practitioners have become targets of a brutal suppression campaign aimed at breaking them physically, financially, and socially.
To protest the persecution, Liang Guiyu embarked on a 400-mile journey by foot from Shandong to Beijing one year into the campaign. He and many other adherents wanted to voice their support for Falun Gong to the central authorities in Beijing, hoping to convey that the persecution was unjust. Liang could not use public transportation as police officers were stationed at train and bus stations to apprehend Falun Gong practitioners attempting to make the journey.
Starting on July 10, 2000, Liang walked every day from 3:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. without any money. His family had taken his money away and monitored him closely after he had peacefully protested the persecution in Tiananmen Square the previous year. He survived by sleeping by the roadside at night and eating leftover food donated by others or provided by restaurants. Liang traversed forests, cemeteries, and crossed streams to avoid local police officers who were searching for him. Unfortunately, July in China was scorching hot that year, with temperatures often exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Liang resorted to pouring water over his head at gas stations and soaking his clothes in stream water to cool down.
After walking for ten days, he reached Qing County in Hebei Province, which was approximately 100 miles south of Beijing and 300 miles away from his hometown. Liang got slightly lost and asked a taxi driver for directions to Beijing. The driver reported him to the police, resulting in his capture and return to his village in Qingdao. There, he was detained for 15 days by local village authorities. During his detention, he was handcuffed to an iron pole in the courtyard for most of the day, enduring the intense summer heat. Local CCP officials humiliated him further by handcuffing him to an idling motorcycle on the roadside for approximately two hours in a public display of shame.
The torment continued until one day, in a desperate attempt to end his suffering, Liang rushed towards the iron pole, aiming to use his life as a means of resistance. Fortunately, he tripped before hitting the pole, sparing his life. However, during the fall, he saw the village officials watching him through the adjacent windows. He was subsequently detained for an additional 35 days but was no longer handcuffed to the pole. In September 2000, his family was compelled to pay 3,000 yuan (approximately $400) to secure his release.
In 2012, Liang’s wife, also a Falun Gong adherent, managed to escape to the United States, followed by Liang himself in November 2017. He currently resides in Flushing, New York, where he works at a windows company. In the evenings, he dedicates his time to calling prison officials in China to advocate for the release of detained Falun Gong adherents. His commitment has spanned over five years, calling China almost every night between 9:30 p.m. and midnight. The prison guards have grown fearful of the calls, with some even hanging up immediately or remaining silent rather than yelling and cursing at him as they did before.
This year marks Liang Guiyu’s fifth participation in the July 20 commemoration activities. He continues to speak out against the persecution of Falun Gong, determined to bring awareness to the ongoing human rights abuses perpetrated by the Chinese regime.
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