On Saturday the 22nd of March 2008, Falun Gong practitioners in the UK and supporters held a press conference at the Chinese Embassy in London to strongly protest against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s recent intensification of the persecution of Falun Gong in the name of the Olympics. Practitioners called upon the British government to see through the evil nature of the CCP and support justice. They also called upon the international community to stop the CCP trampling on human rights and the persecution of Falun Gong.
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The escalation of the Falun Gong persecution shows the evil nature of the CCP
UK Falun Gong spokesperson Helen first alerted people to pay attention to the recent escalation of the persecution, “Since the 20th of July 1999, the CCP has subjected Falun Gong practitioners to an atrocious persecution under ‘state terrorism’. The international society has hoped that hosting the Olympics this year will give the CCP authorities an opportunity to improve human rights. The CCP, however, not only did not improve its appalling human rights record, but also intensified the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners and their families in the run up to the Olympics towards a target to eliminate Falun Gong before August 2008. According to data published by the World Organisation to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPF) in March 2008, the CCP mass arrests of Falun Gong practitioners in the name of the Olympics is nationwide and systematic, mounting to a new round of escalated persecution. From the 1st of January 2008 to the 11th of March, 1,878 Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested across 29 provinces, cities and autonomous regions in mainland China. As such, we urgently call upon the international community to stop the persecution together.”
A Ms. Chen who recently came from China commented that the CCP intensified the persecution of Falun Gong, which it started almost nine years ago, in the run up to the Olympics. Many practitioners’ lives are in danger. Recently when she called the mainland, she was told that many practitioners in China are followed and are in dire situations. In order to maintain a so-called “stable” society under it totalitarian rule, the CCP wantonly persecutes religious followers, including Falun Gong practitioners. We protest here and call upon stopping the CCP regime’s persecution of Falun Gong. “It’s hard for practitioners in China to speak up in face of life danger under the CCP’s evil pressure. We overseas practitioners have opportunities to clarify the truth and expose the persecution in a peaceful environment. We need to let the whole world know about the bloody persecution against innocent Chinese citizens behind the CCP’s halo of Olympics. We hope the international community will not be deceived by the halo and stop the persecution together.”
NGO calls upon the British government to cancel the Olympic torch relay that will arrive in London
The vice president of the World Organisation to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong, John Dee, said in a speech, “We are less than five months away from the Beijing Olympics in August 2008. In mainland China the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners are intensifying. The number of practitioners arrested or tortured is on the rise on a daily basis, which makes it worse for hundreds of thousands of practitioners in China and their families. The CCP attempts to stamp out any perceived “threat” and wantonly arrests practitioners in the name of guaranteeing a successful Olympics.”
Mr. Dee called upon the British government and international society to act righteously and immediately. “China’s human rights violations in recent months have already attracted attention from the international community. The Olympic torch will arrive in London early next month. We ask the Brown government to cancel any planned ceremony so as to send a clear signal to the Chinese government: the CCP must stop its persecution of dissidents and followers of different faiths. We also call upon other countries to cancel their plans to welcome the Beijing Olympic torch. Together let’s apply pressure to urge the CCP authorities to give Chinese citizens the rights they deserve.”
Falun Gong practitioners called for an immediate stop to the persecution
Having learned about the intensified persecution in China, practitioners in the UK worried a great deal about the safety of fellow practitioners in mainland. Those who suffered the evil party’s persecution themselves took it even closer to heart.
Ms. Jiang, who was persecuted for nearly two years in a labour camp, spoke at the press conference, “The CCP intensified persecution of Falun Gong in the run up to the Olympics through mass arrests. There were also instances where arrested practitioners were tortured to death within a few days, which is horrific indeed.” She called upon an immediate stop to the persecution.
After the press conference, a Ms. Annie Young, who was also persecuted in a labour camp for two years, was interviewed. She said, just as reported, large number of arrests and kidnaps are happening all across China in the run up to the Olympics. It seems as if the persecutor is going mad. Annie spoke with a practitioner in Beijing last week, who told her anxiously that every practitioner around her was arrested recently.
Recalling the persecution she suffered in a Chinese labour camp, Annie said sadly, “The torture was done mentally and physically. It is very difficult to recover from mental torture.” She is worried sick about the safety of practitioners inside China.
The CCP will not succeed in its evil aim of persecuting Falun Gong
An elderly British practitioner, Robert Gibson, also experienced the CCP’s persecution first hand. For his unwavering participation in the silent vigil in front of the Chinese Embassy in London, Robert got on the CCP black list. At the end of 2002, he travelled to Beijing to clarify the truth of Falun Gong to Chinese government and people. Soon after he arrived in Beijing, however, he was taken away from his hotel, illegally detained for twenty hours, and illegally interrogated for eight hours.
Knowing very well how evil the CCP persecution could be, he was very concerned about the arrests. He felt, however, that the escalation of persecution is done out of fear. He said, “The CCP is afraid of Falun Gong because it is afraid of the truth, afraid that Falun Gong dares to speak the truth. Communism was defeated. The CCP regime lost its legitimacy. It must silence any different voice for fear of losing control. Meanwhile practitioners who believe in Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance would not give in to its brutal suppression, which makes it extremely fearful.” Robert also believed that Falun Gong’s belief in Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance follows god-revering traditional Chinese culture while the evil Communism propagates atheism, which is another important reason why the CCP persecutes Falun Gong.
Robert firmly believed the evil would not win over the good. The CCP will not succeed in its evil aim of persecuting Falun Gong.
More and more British people are learning the truth
This weekend is Easter long weekend. Passer-bys that day received the clear information conveyed by Falun Gong practitioners. Those who learned the truth signed on the anti-persecution petition form one after another.
Infected by the atmosphere at the press conference, a British lady Jenny took out her camera to snap the moving moment. When asked whether she knew about Falun Gong, she replied emotionally that she knew about the persecution. She had just returned from China. The situation there was shocking. She discovered that people still live in fears. Wherever she went, she saw a lot of soldiers in Tibet, in Beijing and on Tiananmen Square. The situation was horrible, really horrible. Everyone in the world should know about this. In the end she said, in her opinion “peaceful protests are effective. I believe many British have already known the truth.”
Mesut Turkan, a German who is studying in London, stopped at the press conference to learn the truth. He felt very sad about Falun Gong practitioners’ sufferings. He continued, “I think everyone should learn the truth. Everyone has the right to uphold his or her own belief. A government should guarantee the freedom of belief of its citizens.”
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