Italy: A Letter from the Italian Falun Dafa Association to the French Consulate

The Italian Falun Dafa Association is sorry to hear that Falun Gong practitioners were recently unreasonably arrested and imprisoned in Paris. We would like to let you know the offensive methods used by the French police. As far as we know, these Falun Gong practitioners are from different countries and did nothing against the law. They were detained merely because they wore clothes printed with the characters of Falun Dafa or because they were together with Falun Gong practitioners. We express our concern at such actions that go against human rights. We ask you to immediately stop treating Falun Gong practitioners this way. We respectfully ask the French authorities to explain their actions and to publicly apologise.

Falun Dafa, also called Falun Gong, is a peaceful cultivation way based upon the principles of Truthfulness, Benevolence, and Forbearance. Falun Gong has won global recognition and acceptance, as it makes people healthy and upgrades their moral standards.

You must already know that Falun Gong practitioners have suffered from cruel persecution in China during the past four years. Four years ago, ex-President Jiang Zemin started this persecution, regardless of the objections of other government officials. Jiang intentionally tried to eradicate Falun Gong. He also spread hatred via the Chinese Embassies overseas. These embassies launched an enormous amount of rumours, threats, lies and even blacklists, adopting these methods toward the citizens and governments of other countries by diplomatic means and the use of economic pressure.

Falun Dafa practitioners have petitioned for world peace. During Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to France, Falun Gong practitioners from various countries volunteered to go to Paris to appeal against this persecution and to participate in the Chinese New Year celebrations. They did not expect to be the victims of irrational treatment meted out by the Parisian police.

We are not angry at the French government. However, we hope that you do not forget the many Chinese people who are being persecuted in China. They are now suffering inhuman torture in labour camps, psychiatric hospitals and detention centres. We are even more worried about France because these unfounded detentions link your country to this severe and ongoing persecution. We urgently call for immediate action to rectify your wrong conduct so that you can recover the dignity and reputation you lost internationally.

Thank you for your attention. We look forward to your answer and response to this serious matter.