On the morning of May 10th, Toronto Falun Dafa practitioners, their friends and family members, totalling about 500 people, gathered in front of Queens Park (Provincial Parliament)in Toronto to welcome the coming World Falun Dafa Day.
Practitioners held a group practise of the Falun Dafa exercises, and then a press conference. Member of Provincial Parliament Smithman gave a congratulatory speech saying, "In the free land of Canada, Falun Gong practitioners enjoy the freedom to practise their exercises. Falun Dafa brings beauty and harmony to Canadian society and has made contributions to the society..."
Accompanied with the song "Falun Dafa is good", the parade started. The leading group were young practitioners from the Minghui School. A few young practitioners walked in the front holding banners. Following the young practitioners' procession, was a colourful float. On the float, a group of "Heavenly Ladies" dressed in Tang Dynasty Costumes were arranged around a western practitioner sitting in the meditation position.
Behind the float, was a procession of practitioners in a variety of costumes from different nationalities of the world and the red ribbon dance team. It represented the countries that Falun Dafa is practised in. After the dance procession, Falun Dafa practitioners in yellow exercises suits formed a large procession.
Following the large yellow procession, there were numerous Falun Gong supporters holding little flags with the words "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance." The procession was composed of Falun Gong supporters and new practitioners who had recently learnt the exercises. At one point, two young college students spontaneously joined our parade and walked along with us. They said they grew up in Toronto and they were very happy to see so many Chinese in a parade so they came to support us.
The weather was sunny and pleasant during the parade. The air was full of songs and smiles. The people along the streets were moved by the happy parade and waved to the practitioners constantly. It seemed that the little flowers along the side walk were also very happy.
The circle route returned to Queens Park and the parade ended with smiles and waves to the pedestrians watching.
After the parade, the practitioners went to Chinatown to have lunch. Nine restaurants supported the parade. At the time when Chinese people in Toronto have been severely impacted by the SARS epidemic, Toronto Falun Gong practitioners made an effort to rebuild the image of Toronto based on the principle of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance". One restaurant owner said, "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance is good. I will learn Falun Gong in the future." The restaurant workers took photos with practitioners to commemorate this special event.
On May 13, 2003, Dafa practitioners from Ottawa and Montreal gathered in the rain at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, the capital of Canada, to celebrate the 11th anniversary of Falun Dafa's introduction. Although it was drizzling, colourful festival costumes and decorations, festive and happy atmosphere and novel and unique art performances fully displayed the peacefulness and goodness of Falun Dafa's "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance," and attracted many people to watch. The celebration lasted more than two hours, from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
With the help of a colourful huge balloon, a large-scale banner with the words, "Falun Dafa," "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" was hung in the sky. Dafa practitioners in bright golden T-shirts demonstrated the five sets of exercises to the beautiful exercise music. A photo exhibit introduced many precious historic scenes during the 11-year widespread of Falun Dafa. In front of the torch of Parliament Hill, seven large-scale handmade pink lotus flowers formed a "stage," Montreal Falun Dafa practitioners in traditional Chinese costumes performed the dance, "Ode to Lotus Flowers" and Fan Dance, "Coming for You." Ottawa practitioners performed guitar music and traditional Chinese martial arts. Practitioners also sang together, "Falun Dafa is good" and "Be Saved." The practitioners' wonderful performances earned high praise and loud applause from the audience who gathered in the rain.
During the celebration, tourists from different countries requested Dafa truth-clarifying materials to have a thorough understanding of Falun Gong. They expressed their understanding and support for Falun Dafa. At the same time, people also saw clearly Jiang regime's brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners who believe in "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance," and the fact that Jiang is going to be brought to justice around the world.
We also interviewed several Western and Chinese practitioners during the performance. One of the dancers, Montreal Dafa practitioner Yang Dongdong said, "As a beneficiary of Falun Dafa, I sincerely hope that more kind-hearted people around the world can share with us the goodness and happiness obtained from cultivating Falun Dafa. On the occasion of the 11th anniversary of Falun Dafa's introduction to the public, we hope to take this precious opportunity to convey the boundless beauty of Falun Dafa and Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance to Ottawa's people and more kind-hearted people in the world. This is my biggest wish."
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