During Li Ruihuan's Visit, Falun Gong Practitioners from the UK Demonstrate the Exercises and Hold Peaceful Appeals

Invited by Lord Irvine, the Lord Chancellor of the British House of Lords, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Chairman Li Ruihuan went on a state visit to the United Kingdom starting from May 26. The delegation visited London and Oxford in England, and then Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland. Along the delegation's route, UK practitioners demonstrated the Falun Gong exercises and peacefully appealed for Falun Gong, requesting the persecution of Falun Gong in China to be ended.

1. Practitioners from England peacefully appeal for Falun Gong

On their first day of visiting, Li and his entourage visited the Thames. When their yacht slowly sailed toward the great bridge, the banners reading "Falun Dafa Is Good", "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" and "Immediately Stop the Brutal Persecution of Falun Gong" caught many people's attention. Some practitioners on the bridge waved towards the delegation on the yacht.

On the next day, when the delegation went to Downing Street to meet with Prime Minister Blair and in the afternoon to meet with the Lord Chancellor of the House of Lords, some practitioners quietly practiced the Falun Gong exercises outside. The practitioners' peace and serenity presented a striking contrast to other organizations' noisiness. Many passers-by asked with concern about the details of China's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.

On May 29, Li and his entourage visited Churchill Manor in Oxfordshire. When their motorcade drove towards the Manor, the delegation saw Falun Gong practitioners doing the exercises outside the Manor. Banners reading "Falun Dafa Is Good" and "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" were also very eye-catching. Contrast with the chaos of the "welcome team" called together by the Chinese Consulate, the practitioners' peace and serenity were readily apparent everyone present. Some policemen even told us the delegation's itinerary. This had a good impression of Falun Gong practitioners and showed us their warm courtesy.

2. Practitioners from Scotland hold peaceful group practice

On May 30, Li's delegation visited the capital of Scotland, Edinburgh. Learning that he would arrive at the Palace of Holyroodhouse at 3 PM, practitioners carried out a group practice at the site approved by police to welcome Li. A "welcome team" of Chinese students who were called together by the Chinese Consulate was also there outside the Palace. Interestingly, when practitioners first arrived, those Chinese students said: "Look, Falun Gong." It appeared that they were already very familiar with practitioners' yellow shirts. Practitioners also greeted them warmly and gave them truth-clarifying literature.

This time, practitioners did not display any banners or posters. They simply continuously practiced the exercises following the music, leaving a peaceful and serene impression. Even the Chinese students were enthralled by the exercises.

As the police vehicle leading the motorcade slowly drove close, the Chinese student welcome team started beating drums and gongs. It seemed that the students could not get enough of watching the Falun Gong exercises and even sometimes forgot to shout slogans. Meanwhile the Falun Gong practitioners still peacefully practiced the exercises.

Then, practitioners went to the Royal Garden because the delegation would go there in a short while. When practitioners arrived at the front entrance of the Royal Garden, those Chinese students also arrived. Many of them greeted the practitioners. Some Chinese students took pictures of the practitioners doing the exercises. Same as before, without any banners or posters, practitioners simply did the exercise quietly. After a little while, it suddenly rained heavily, but the practitioners were not affected at all, still doing their exercises. Those Chinese students who sought shelter quietly watched practitioners doing the exercises.

A practitioner's words resolved some onlookers' doubts: "We do not have any intention to oppose the government. We simply hope that the Chinese leaders could see the peacefulness and serenity of Falun Gong. We would like to let them know that many people overseas also love this practice. Falun Gong has never been against the Chinese government or been involved in politics. We are here simply trying to clarify the truth about Falun Gong and call for an end of the persecution. We hope that everyone will learn the truth about Falun Gong and choose a wonderful future for himself."

Source: http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2002/6/2/22689.html
Chinese version available at http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2002/6/1/31126.html