Macao: Falun Gong Practitioners Commemorate 15th Anniversary of April 25

As the anniversary of April 25 approaches, Falun Gong practitioners in Macao held activities on April 19 at the pedestrian zone near St. Dominic's Church to commemorate the landmark event 15 years ago.

On April 25, 1999, over 10,000 practitioners demonstrated on Fuyou Street outside of the Zhongnanhai compound, asking that the law recognize their legal right to practice and that the practitioners detained by the Tianjn police department be released. The practitioners left peacefully after then-Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji met with their representatives, and agreed to release the Tianjin practitioners and assured the representatives that the government did not oppose Falun Gong.

Practitioners in Macao held activities to commemorate the 15th anniversary of April 25 at the pedestrian zone near St. Dominic's Church on April 19, 2014

Chinese tourists listen carefully to Falun Gong practitioners explain the facts	Taking souvenir photos

Reading posters that talk about Falun Gong and the persecution

The tribute took place during a three-day public holiday, and the pedestrian zone was filled with tourists from all over the world, including mainland China. Starting at 1:45 p.m. practitioners erected banners that said: “Commemorating the 15 th Anniversary of the Peaceful April 25 Appeal,” “Stop Persecuting Falun Gong,” “Falun Dafa is Great,” and “Bring Jiang Zemin, Luo Gan, Zhou Yongkang, Liu Jing, Zeng Qinghong, Bo Xilai to Justice.”

The set-up and banners prompted many Chinese tourists to take pictures. Two young men from Dongguan City, Guangdong Province, said, “We cannot get information like this in the mainland.” After reading the poster about the April 25, 1999, peaceful appeal and learning the facts about the persecution, they quit the Communist Youth League and took software to circumvent the Internet censorship and get more information later.

A young girl from Zhuhai City, Guangdong Province, took many pictures of the posters. She said, “Macao is good - there is more freedom here.” She renounced her membership in the Youth League.

Over 200 Chinese tourists quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations during the afternoon. Many took materials.

Every year, practitioners all over the world hold different events to commemorate the anniversary of April 25th. They have peacefully resisted the violent persecution over the past 15 years, and the historical significance of the April 25th appeal, which first focused international attention on Falun Gong, continues to grow.