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Witnessing History: One Woman's Fight for Freedom and Falun Gong
One woman's harrowing story of imprisonment and survival in the face of the Chinese government's persecution of Falun Gong
On May 23, 2000, the Chinese government sentenced Jennifer Zeng to reeducation through forced labor. Her fellow inmates were drug addicts, prostitutes, and traffickers in pornography. Jennifer's only crime was her belief in the three tenets of Falun Gong: Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.
Struggling with a life-threatening illness and a need to understand her place in the world, Jennifer had immersed herself in many Western and Eastern philosophies before finally finding the answers she was seeking in Falun Gong. A few short years later her newfound faith saw her blacklisted and imprisoned in a purpose-built labor camp. Jennifer was forced to squat for hours in the blistering sun, endure hours of physical and verbal abuse, and knit garments until her hands bled to feed the booming Chinese economy. During this time Jennifer saw many fellow Falun Gong practitioners tortured. Some died, many more remain in the camps today.
This is the powerful and moving story of how a bright, successful young scientist and happily married mother survived detention and torture, only to be forced to flee her family and homeland to seek asylum in Australia. A raw and compelling memoir, one which provides a fascinating glimpse into everyday life in China, Witnessing History also exposes a bureaucracy still struggling to disentangle itself from the constraints of Mao's Cultural Revolution.
On May 23, 2000, the Chinese government sentenced Jennifer Zeng to reeducation through forced labor. Her fellow inmates were drug addicts, prostitutes, and traffickers in pornography. Jennifer's only crime was her belief in the three tenets of Falun Gong: Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.
Struggling with a life-threatening illness and a need to understand her place in the world, Jennifer had immersed herself in many Western and Eastern philosophies before finally finding the answers she was seeking in Falun Gong. A few short years later her newfound faith saw her blacklisted and imprisoned in a purpose-built labor camp. Jennifer was forced to squat for hours in the blistering sun, endure hours of physical and verbal abuse, and knit garments until her hands bled to feed the booming Chinese economy. During this time Jennifer saw many fellow Falun Gong practitioners tortured. Some died, many more remain in the camps today.
This is the powerful and moving story of how a bright, successful young scientist and happily married mother survived detention and torture, only to be forced to flee her family and homeland to seek asylum in Australia. A raw and compelling memoir, one which provides a fascinating glimpse into everyday life in China, Witnessing History also exposes a bureaucracy still struggling to disentangle itself from the constraints of Mao's Cultural Revolution.
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First published March 1, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 28, 2010
An amazing book, I'm horrified that this sort of treatment of a countries citizens goes on in this day and age.
Thank you Jennifer Zeng for opening my eyes.
Thank you Jennifer Zeng for opening my eyes.
October 22, 2020
Great story of her journey to Falun Gong and all the hardships she and her fellow compassionate practitioners faced at the hands of the CCP.
July 3, 2022
Eye opening
January 5, 2008
This book really enlightened me to what was going on in China, but it's not a 'light' read. Not for the faint of heart. Thank god she gets out of China in the end.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews