Sweden: Promoting Falun Gong during the Tall Ships Race

Dubbed the 'Venice of the North,’ Stockholm was eventful in late July, 2007. Following the Tall Ships Race in Stockholm Bay on July 30th, all the sailing boats participating in the activity would leave Stockholm for the Baltic Sea to take part in the tournament. There were 116 sailing boats from 19 countries, a record high number participated. It was expected to attract over one million people to view the event.

During the period from July 28th to 29th, 2007, when the race was underway, a banner reading “Stop persecuting Falun Gong” was held up in the square in the central area of Stockholm. In addition, display boards introducing Falun Gong’s popularity around the world and exposing the Chinese Communist regime’s persecution against Falun Gong were displayed. In the meantime, practitioners were giving away truth-clarification material in several different languages to visitors from various places across the world, while other practitioners were demonstrating the five sets of the Falun Gong exercise. Falun Gong’s gentle and peaceful exercises along with beautiful music attracted a lot of visitors’ attention. They stopped to view the demonstration and asked for more information about the practice. Falun Gong practitioners patiently talked to them on the topics ranging from the Chinese regime’s persecution of Falun Gong to the inside stories of the regime’s harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners in forced labour camps as well as from the intrinsic evil nature of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to the necessity of conscious people’s calling for an end to this persecution. People signed the petition one after another to condemn the Chinese Communist regime’s atrocities.

A man told practitioners: “The reason for the Chinese Communist regime’s harvesting organs from living human beings is the intrinsic evil nature of the CCP. You’ve done the right thing. It is important to let more people know about the CCP’s evil nature. I’ll support you.”

In these two days, there were a special large number of Chinese tourists visiting the square. It is most people’s feeling that there have been a lot of changes in the attitude of the tourists from China this year. More and more Chinese tourists are willing to accept the Epoch Times, the Nine Commentaries on the CCP and other truth clarification materials. Some might stand in front of banners and display boards to attentively view truth-clarification materials and others might take initiative to talk to practitioners. After accepting a newspaper, a couple returned it to practitioners with two hands, and seriously told practitioners: “As I’ve got the software of breaking through the Chinese Communist regime's Internet blockade, I have access to all the information available. I know that your materials are very precious. I had better leave it to other Chinese people, as they really need it.” When talking about the big wave of Chinese withdrawals from the CCP and its affiliated organisations, the man pleasantly said: “We had declared our withdrawals from the CCP for quite some time. I think the campaign initiated by the Epoch Times for the Chinese people to declare their withdrawal from the CCP is very suitable for people like us who are faced with the adversary situation in China. Wonderful! Thank you very much. Please rest assured that I know what I should do to my relatives and friends around us now.”

Among the crowd was an elderly woman who was very excited to receive the “Nine Commentaries on the CCP” and other materials in Chinese. She stated that she would definitely read them thoroughly. When it came to the CCP’s atrocities, she said: “The CCP’s atrocities have existed not only one or two days. I’m in my seventies and I know the CCP’s intrinsic nature more than others. My son was illegally arrested and put into jail just because he supported the “June-4th Tiananmen pro-democracy movement.” Due to persecution, he was forced to leave behind his family and eventually escaped to Sweden. I should have been entitled to the full benefits, but affected by my son’s dissidence I only receive a pension of about 600 Yuan each month.”

One day, if nobody dreaded the CCP it would collapse right away, and I believe this day is not far away from now. As a matter of fact, the most pitiful persons are the Chinese people who have been deceived by the CCP. Back then, if I had dreaded the CCP, I would not have been overseas.” Since she didn’t have access to the Internet, she was very pleased to learn that the Epoch Times is available every week. She said, “I really need it. Since I have nothing to do at home at present, I have asked my son get me some prepaid telephone cards, so that I am able to chat with my old friends in my hometown over the telephone. With the newspaper, it would be much easier for me to explain the situation in the outside world to them.” She expressed her appreciation to me repeatedly and left happily.

When another young man from China passed the square and saw the activities held by Falun Gong practitioners, he approached them and said: “You are really remarkable. I will always support you.” As a practitioner talked about the great wave of Chinese people withdrawing from the CCP to him, he pleasantly said that he has already declared his statement of quitting the CCP for some time. Additionally, he raised his cell phone and told the practitioner with a smile that the number of the certificate of his withdrawing from the CCP is stored in it. He also expressed that he really hoped that he could see the practitioners whenever he passed the place.

After the two day activities came to and end, the practitioners were touched by the successful result. A western practitioner by the name of Mats said: “The Chinese Communist regime’s eight-year persecution against Falun Gong practitioners who believe in ‘Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance’ has helped more people around the world understand the CCP’s atrocities. Over the past eight years, Falun Gong practitioners around the world have persistently introduced the magnificence of Falun Gong and exposed the Chinese regime’s evil lies to the sentient beings. So far there have been over twenty four million Chinese people quitting the CCP and its affiliated organisations after they realised the intrinsic evil nature of the CCP. More and more sentient beings deceived by the Chinese Communist regime have awakened. The strength of justice has apparently become more and more powerful. We need to persistently explain the facts about the persecution to more people and expose the evil of the CCP to them so as to save more people deceived by the Chinese Communist regime’s lies.”