"After escaping from being brainwashed by the evil cult, I have a sense of relief that I have understood the problem clearly. I'm glad that I have finally broken free from the shackles of the evil cult!" said Mr. Jiang, a former Falun Gong follower. Being bewitched and deceived by the Falun Gong cult in the past, Mr. Jiang always saw things in an extreme and one-sided manner, so his ideas were completely detached from the reality. “Only after I had returned to my family and society as a person with normal thinking did I realize that we could find various shining points and beautiful things if we look at the world positively.”
Being led astray when young and energetic
Mr. Jiang is now 48 years old. He graduated from a university before returning to his hometown of Ji'an, working in a state-owned enterprise. He had a smooth life and career. One day in 1996, Jiang came across a Falun Gong book. Since he had practiced many other kinds of qigong but to no avail, he decided to turn to Falun Gong practice to see if it had any effect. As the Falun Gong book was very enticing to Mr. Jiang, he soon fell under its bewitchment and became a follower of the Falun Gong cult.
Around October 1997, some members from the Falun Gong cult organization found Mr. Jiang and brainwashed him. They exercised strict organizational control over Mr. Jiang, which made him feel depressed and numb. Thus he lost the sense of responsibility to society and his family, but had a morbid obsession with and madness about “practicing cultivation” and “spreading the Fa”.
Mr. Jiang said, "Although we attended various activities of the Falu Gong cult at our own expense, we felt very pure in heart and accepted its heresies wholeheartedly. That's because we had been brainwashed by them." He thought that being brainwashed was the most terrible thing, as those involved in it would never admit that they had been brainwashed.
Being imprisoned for obsession with the Falun Gong cult
Mr. Jiang became a radical person after being brainwashed by the Falun Gong cult. In 1988, he was promoted to be head of the Falun Gong assistance center in Ji'an, responsible for contacting Falun Gong cult members in Ji'an. From then on, Jiang visited all counties and districts to contact local Falun Gong practitioners. He set up a Falun Gong assistance center in each county or district and selected Falun Gong assistants. Besides, he regularly convened Falun Gong practitioners for centralized study, often organized various cult activities, and spread reactionary statements that threatened social stability.
Jiang said that Li Hongzhi and the core figures of his Falun Gong cult organization used the money conned from the Falun Gong practitioners to buy villas, luxury cars and Green Cards, and go to sex and gambling establishments. They squandered the money wantonly, with practitioners at the bottom becoming the targets of their exploitation.
During his practice of Falun Gong, his parents found something was wrong with him, so they tried to persuade him to quit practicing Falun Gong but to no avail. Their persuasion seemed of no use to a man brainwashed by an evil cult. At that time, Mr. Jiang, who was young and obstinate, often clashed with his parents over Falun Gong. Gradually, he fell deeper and deeper into the evil cult unconsciously and ended up being sentenced to five years in prison in April 2003 for breaking the law.
Returning to the right path after realizing his errors
When Mr. Jiang was in prison, his family didn’t give up on him. His father and brothers often visited him in prison, persuading him to return to the right path. They also told him that his mother, whose health worsened due to his imprisonment, had been paralyzed in bed.
Mr. Jiang, whose heart was greatly shaken, said: "It turned out that Falun Gong, which I had been obsessed with for so many years, had brought so much suffering instead of any benefit to my family." Finally, under the influence of family affection and the guidance of the correctional police officers, Jiang changed his attitude dramatically. He gradually recognized the harmful nature of the Falun Gong cult. Later on, he used his own experience to explain the nature and harm of Falun Gong to those still trapped in the evil cult, for which he gained recognition from the society and gratitude from families of those inspired by him.
In April 2007, Mr. Jiang was released one year ahead of schedule because of his good performance in prison. "When I returned home, life was a little difficult for me at first, but fortunately, the government cared about me and helped me solve many of my difficulties," Jiang said with gratitude. By now, Jiang has worked in an engineering company for more than 10 years. He is determined to make more contributions to society through his knowledge and skills.
A young man got addicted to practicing Falun Gong, so his mother asked Mr. Jiang for help. Mr. Jiang agreed without any hesitation and visited the young man repeatedly, trying to persuade him to quit the Falun Gong cult. Thanks to Mr. Jiang’s patient persuasion through his personal experience, the young man gradually improved his understanding and changed his attitude, no longer obsessed with Falun Gong. "People have to learn a lesson and become wise. Only by constantly learning to correct ourselves can we live a better life in the future!" said Mr. Jiang.
"I often reflect on myself. In the past, I had some wrong understanding about things. That’s why I became a believer in the heretical fallacies of Falun Gong. After gaining so much experience, I can see more clearly the detours I took in the past and the heresies of the Falun Gong cult." Whenever Mr. Jiang met a Falun Gong practitioner he knew before, he would take the initiative to persuade him or her to quit the evil cult and return to the right path.
