Canada: 2004 Canada Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference Held in Montreal

On June the 20th 2004, Canada Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was held in Montreal, the second largest city in Canada. About 1,500 Falun Gong practitioners from Canada, the U.S. and Europe came to attend the conference. Falun Gong's founder Master Li Hongzhi sent a congratulatory letter to the conference.

The conference was held in the Hilton Hotel in downtown Montreal. Because French is the major language used in Montreal, three masters of ceremony announced the beginning of the conference in English, French and Chinese respectively. More than 20 practitioners from Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Edmonton shared their experiences.

The first speaker, Noah Chartieris, is a staff member in a private Catholic middle school in Montreal. He shared his experience in constantly explaining to students and teachers in his school that Falun Gong teaches the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance. He also introduced the brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China and asked the students and teachers to sign postcards to help rescue family members of Canadians persecuted in China. He obtained support from many of the students and teachers. He also teaches students the Falun Gong exercises. Currently, students come to learn the exercises after classes once a week. Noah also talked about his experience visiting Mexico. In the central university of the City of Guadalajara, when a lady obtained copies of the books Zhuan Falun [The main text of Falun Gong] and Falun Gong [Falun Gong's introductory text], she said, "This is the blessing from God." Before that, she thought about committing suicide, but now she found these elegant exercises and a new hope.

Many attendees were Montreal residents. Other practitioners also shared their experiences over the past few years in explaining to people from all walks of life how Falun Gong is slandered and persecuted in China. Ms. Zhang Liandi from Toronto is already in her 70s. Ms. Zhang and other fellow practitioners have continuously held peaceful appeals in front of the Chinese Consulate in Toronto 24 hours a day for nearly three years. She talked about the support they obtained from residents around the Consulate and even some staff members from the Consulate also expressed their friendly understandings.