Marks from Falun Gong's flames not yet extinguished

BEIJING - Ten years after the tragic moment that changed her life, Hao Huijun, a former Falun Gong believer who survived setting herself on fire, is still struggling with remorse and pain.

"Please tell those who are still practicing Falun Gong to keep away from it and be sober-minded," Hao, 58, told reporters who visited her ahead of the Chinese lunar new year.

On Jan 23, 2001, Hao and six other Falun Gong followers, including her then 19-year-old daughter, set themselves on fire at Tian'anmen Square in Beijing to attain the "all-around fulfillment" claimed by Li Hongzhi, Falun Gong's leader.