Austria: Falun Dafa Practitioners Commemorate the April 25, 1999, Peaceful Appeal

Austrian Falun Dafa practitioners held a candlelight vigil on April 25, 2021, at the Chinese Embassy to commemorate the April 25, 1999, peaceful appeal.

On April 25, 1999, more than 10,000 Falun Dafa practitioners appealed at the National Appeals Office in Beijing. They asked that practitioners who had been illegally arrested in Tianjin be released, and sought the confirmation of their lawful right to practice their belief. Not long after, on July 20, 1999, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) ordered a nationwide crackdown of Falun Gong (also called Falun Dafa) practitioners.

An Austrian Falun Dafa practitioner read an open letter from the Falun Dafa Information Center about the April 25 peaceful appeal.	Falun Dafa practitioners doing the five Dafa exercises on the sidewalk on April 25, 2021.

The weather had been gloomy and cloudy for the past couple of days, however, the weather was bright and sunny on the day of the activity. The event fell on a Sunday when many people were out walking.

Practitioners began to make speeches at about 5 p.m. about the peaceful appeal that happened 22 years ago and condemned the CCP for committing atrocities against Falun Gong practitioners in China.

Practitioner’s voices echoed through the speakers, and people opened their windows to listen to the speeches. Some onlookers also signed a petition to express their support for Falun Dafa.

Austrian Falun Dafa practitioners have been peacefully protesting in front of the embassy for over 20 years. Many local residents have already understood the truth about Falun Dafa. Those who’ve encountered practitioners for the first time stated that they were very concerned about the organ harvesting from living practitioners in China.

An open letter read by practitioners said, “This is now the time for western countries to unite and disintegrate the CCP because it is threatening the freedom of everyone.”