“I write because I have things to say. I publish because I have debt to pay off. The ten-year catastrophe has taught some people to keep silence while the ten-year blood debts have also made the silent ones cry out repeatedly.”    Ba Jin (1904 – 2005)

“Under explosive indignation of the public, I was tortured for four, five hours. Wearing a tall hat, forcing to kneel down with head bowed (actually, a 90 degree bow), I was beaten, kicked and pinched. My hands were tied behind my back with ropes. Students poked my backbones with two military training rifles. They stuffed filthy dirt into my mouth and smeared it onto my face. They also spat on my body and in my face.”    Bian Zhongyun (1916 -1966)

“For the last forty years, I have been carrying a cross for our country, and I am still carrying it. I have the responsibility of voicing out the occurrence. And I am the only one in the family who can do it right. None of my children share the same feeling and understanding of mine. As I lived through that experience, my life is not worth living if I don’t say anything. This is an inescapable duty of mine.”    Wang Jingyao

“First, I’ve never in my life done anything harmful to people. I’ve been a teacher for forty years and been devoting myself in teaching and writing. I’ve never engaged in administration. Second, Chen Xujing and I are not very close. Our relationship is merely that of President to Professor. I’ve lived with blindness for over twenty years and a broken leg for six years, I never visited anyone. Third, I have already confessed all my social networks to the authority of Sun Yat-Sen University.”    Chen Yinke (1890 -1969)