"My child and I almost fell into the same dreadful suicide as Chen Siying and her mother Liu Chunling without the government's help," Yan Baoshuang, a former Falun Gong member, cried her heart out while watching 12-year-old Chen Siying's scorched face and hands on a TV program featuring seven Falun Gong practitioners' suicide attempt at Tian'anmen Square on January 23.

Liu Chunling, 36, a Falun Gong activist, set herself on fire and was burnt to death on the eve of the traditional Chinese Lunar New Year. Her daughter Liu Siying also suffered from the same ordeal. The girl, with severe burns to her face, head, hands and tracheas, is now hospitalized in Beijing.

Yan Baoshuang, an 36-year-old divorcee and the mother of a 12- year-old son, joined the evil Falun Gong cult in 1999. She tried to indoctrinate her son with the Falun Gong doctrine and even enticed him to go along with her to Zhongnanhai, the site of the central government, and Tian'anmen Square to "protect the heresy" that year.

"It's me who almost ruined my son's bright life," Yan said, recalling her past nightmare and burst into tears again.

On May 2 last year, Yan once again led her son to Tian'anmen Square. She instigated him to hold up a 13-meter-long banner with her to advocate Falun Gong, believing that they will consummate their practice.

Yan was caught by police that day and was given to one-year detention in a penitentiary for labor education and rehabilitation.

Believing everything in the prison as evil, she was determined to fight against the education program.

"But penitentiary instructors' earnest education and warmhearted attitudes gradually changed my mind," said Yan. "Li Hongzhi is a super cheater, what he has preached was completely self-contradictory." Having abandoned the Falun Gong, Yan began converting her son's mind through letters and phone calls. Now her son is making progress in his studies and has a better attitude towards life in general.

Apart from saving her own son, Yan also assisted the penitentiary staff in educating other Falun Gong believers with her own experiences. She use to spend six days to uncover the real evil nature of the Falun Gong cult to an female member, which helped the woman turn away from the cult and its beliefs.

Yan said children are too young to distinguish between evil and justice, it was their parents' fault to make them believe in these malicious heretical ideas.

"Falun Gong heathens, please break off the black magic and save your own children from its' soul-destroying evil fallacy," she called out with emotion.

Injured Liu Siying is confined to hospital bed now, not able to enjoy the warming weather of the coming spring. But Yan Baoshuang' s son has recovered and went back to living a normal healthy life like most Chinese children.

(People's daily 2001/02/03)