Finland: Practitioners Raise Awareness about Falun Gong and the Persecution in Rovaniemi

Rovaniemi, the capital of Northern Finland, hosted the annual “Children's Rights Day” on November 19, 2011. Local people came to downtown in groups of two or three, because Santa Claus comes to meet with children every year this time. At the same time, local Falun Gong practitioners held activities to raise people's awareness about the ongoing persecution in China.

The practitioners' information site displayed photos depicting Falun Dafa's widespread around the world and brutal persecution of practitioners by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Many passersby were drawn to the display panels, and many were shocked at the brutality of the persecution, and signed the petition to support practitioners' efforts to bring it to their attention.

An elderly Finnish woman viewed the displays and asked a practitioner what Falun Gong is about. She said that she couldn't understand why the CCP persecutes Falun Gong. After she learned of the CCP's history of killing people, she signed the petition to oppose the persecution.

A Chinese student and his Finnish girlfriend were drawn to the displays exposing the brutal persecution. The Chinese student attentively listened to a practitioner's explanation, and said that many people in China know that the CCTV's news is fabricated, but they are unable to get access to the real information about Falun Gong.

When the practitioner brought up the issue that many people fail to distinguish between the CCP and China, the Chinese student said, “Loving the country means loving the land, but doesn't equal to loving the CCP!” When he learned about the CCP's atrocity of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners, he was concerned that the practitioner may be retaliated against for exposing the CCP's crimes. He asked for an English version truth clarification DVD for his girlfriend before leaving.

A middle-aged Chinese woman came to the table and took a brochure with caution. Later, she returned and had a conversation with a practitioner. She said that a practitioner she knew narrowly escaped the CCP's organ harvesting during his detention.