Russia: Exposing the Persecution with Lotus Flowers at a Folk Festival in Saint Petersburg

On the 24th of July 2005, a celebration of folk art under the theme of "blowing the accordion" was held in Hestersterk, a town near St. Petersburg. Falun Gong practitioners were invited to take part in the festival where everyone dressed in traditional Russian costumes.

The practitioners set up desks and chairs and taught people how to fold paper lotus flowers. Visitors crowded the streets and many came to participate in our ‘petals of peace’ activity, including the festival organiser.

Music created by Falun Gong practitioners was played, accompanied by a voice-over that explained the origin of the ‘petals of peace’ activity. All over the world, people have been making paper lotus flowers as part of this project to call for an end to the persecution against Falun Gong and to highlight the plight of the many orphans left in China after the suppression against Falun Gong has taken the lives of their parents. The voice-over introduced Falun Gong’s spread around the world and revealed the Chinese Communist Party's six years of brutal persecution against Falun Gong practitioners, who believe in living by the principles of truthfulness, kindness and forbearance.