Beijing Police Threaten a Chinese Student’s Family Because He Supports ‘Bridge Man’s Protest’ in the US

Han Yutao holds a flyer he distributed on his school campus on Oct. 18, 2022, expressing his support for the Beijing Siton Bridge incident that occurred in China. The Chinese police visited his family in Beijing on the next day. Provided by interviewee

A student in Bellevue College didn’t hide his identity when he supported a protest that occurred on Oct. 13 in China. The Chinese police immediately visited his family in Beijing. “I won’t keep silent,” he said.

Han Yutao, (Thomas) arrived the United States to attend college in September. In an interview with the Chinese language edition of The Epoch Times on Oct. 21, he expressed his desire to expose the evilness of the communist regime.

On Oct. 13, days before the regime’s national congress was to start, a man hung banners protesting Xi Jinping’s policies and lit a fire on the heavily guarded Sitong Bridge in Beijing.

Inspired by the incident, Thomas was encouraged to voice his support on the U.S. school campus. But the next day, his brother called him from Beijing on the 19th, and reproached him, “What have you done in the United States?”

The police visited his family, and obtained his contact information in the United States from his mother.

No More Silence

Han admired the courage of the “bridge man” in Beijing and tweeted his support online.

“But I was embarrassed by my own act. Why can’t I reveal my true identity to show my support?” he said.

He explained, “He’s brave. I don’t think I have the courage to do what he did. But, I am now in America, so I should not fear the CCP. I can’t keep silent.”

Han Yutao publicly expresses his support for the Beijing Sitong Bridge protest on the campus of Bellevue College, Washington, on October 18, 2022. The Chinese police visit his family in Beijing the next day. Provided by interviewee

“If evil dares to show its face, why can’t justice?” he said.

He decided to make flyers of support and distribute them on campus. He also made an online video that showed his face in which he said “I oppose Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).”

Soon after, he received a call from his brother who said the police had visited his family.

The police did not say why they were there. His brother said to him, “Don’t be a traitor … those people were paid, you weren’t.”

Thomas said: “My mother also said that I have put them into a dangerous situation. I don’t know if they were threatened. But I am not mad at what they said to me. I just listened quietly.”

The Evil Regime

The 23-year-old is a Beijing native. Han explained that he has learned about the CCP’s evil nature since he was young.

Both his grandmother and great-aunt were victims of the CCP’s persecution because of their belief in Falun Gong.

Falun Gong is an ancient cultivation practice, rooted in Chinese history and culture, that follows the universal principles of truth, compassion, and tolerance.

In 1999, the CCP initiated a persecution campaign against Falun Gong adherents just as it persecuted all true religions in China, including Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity, and so forth.

Because of the persecution, his great-aunt, who was in her 70s, died soon after she was released from two years of imprisonment in a labor camp.

Thomas still remembers how the police ransacked his grandma’s home without a search warrant.

Some of his relatives were also monitored by local police, “They can’t visit Beijing because of their belief in Falun Gong,” he said.

His parents were participants in the 1989 Tiananmen student protest. They survived because they stayed home when Beijing imposed martial law.

A relative who is a police officer told him how Beijing residents were killed during the June 1989 massacre.

“But they did not tell me anything about it until after I learned the fact myself. I don’t understand why they keep these significant issues from children,” he said.

He and his parents have traveled to 12 countries, and he’s aware of the free societies and the meaning of universal values.

“I have wanted to leave China since junior high,” he said.

Han Yutao holds a flyer he distributed on the campus of Bellevue College, Washington, on Oct. 18, 2022, that expresses his support for the Beijing Sitong Bridge protest. Provided by interviewee

The Lockdown Confirms His Plan

The zero-COVID policy in China woke him up and confirmed his thoughts about going abroad.

In the first couple months of lockdown, he consciously stayed home, he said. But gradually he realized the restrictions were not going to end.

The scanning of a QR code to go places became mandatory. He said, “Some people in the black security guard uniform started to show up, they shouted at you and gave orders constantly, I realized that I couldn’t stand it.”

Finally, when his community was totally locked down, an online map showed the area labeled in red (indicating a high risk area), and iron fences were set up around the perimeter. He said: “It’s like a concentration camp is built upon you, and one of these days it will be my turn. It’s a very horrifying feeling,” he said.

He said it was then he realized, “China is not a place for humans.”

Fear encircled him, and all he could do was pray every day. “It helped me a lot, otherwise I might have a mental breakdown,” he said.

Luckily, his application to study abroad was granted and he received admission to the school.

Being a Christian, he wants to be true to his own conscience. He said, “I won’t keep silent. Seeing all the bad deeds of the CCP, not saying a word about it … I can’t continue like this.”

He plans to come up with more slogans and distribute flyers in the city.

The Epoch Times called the Western District police station in Thomas’ hometown. The officer who answered said that he’s not aware of the matter and he did not know Han Yutao.