Sweden: "The CCP's Persecution has Promoted Falun Gong Worldwide!"

Sweden's largest health expo was held on October 10 and 11, 2009 in Solna, to the north of Stockholm. About 200 booths featuring health products and services presented a variety of offers that benefited healthy living. With miraculous healing power that improves mind and body, Falun Gong is very popular with the Swedish public. Each year the group is invited to take part in the expo and demonstrate the exercises on the stage of the exhibition hall.

Falun Gong practitioners demonstrate the exercises on the stage of the exhibition hall

Visitors show great interest in Falun Gong

Visitors learn to fold paper lotus flowers, while listening to a practitioner explaining the facts about Falun Gong and the persecution

With the host's permission, Falun Gong set up two booths at the expo. Photos on the left introduced Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) and its spread around the world. Leaflets in various languages, exercise videos and Falun Gong books were laid out on the table. Photos on the right exposed the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) brutal persecution of practitioners who follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. On the table were petition forms calling on the CCP to stop persecuting Falun Gong. Practitioners told people about the ten years of persecution and torture in China.

Swedish public supports Falun Gong

A well-dressed lady from Stockholm, Linda, talked with practitioners while her daughter learned to fold paper lotus flowers in front of the booth. Finally she and her daughter both signed the petition form to support Falun Gong. Shortly after they left, the two returned with a tall gentleman, Linda's husband Anders. After signing the petition form, he said, "I know very well that these things (CCP's persecution) are all true. Our whole family is behind you!"

Lars came from Gävle. When he saw Falun Gong's booth, he said excitedly that this was his first time at the expo. He did not expect to see Falun Gong here. There was a practice site near where he lived. Practitioners were all so kind. A local practitioner taught him the exercises for free. Later he was too busy to carry on. He said, "I have the book and exercise video. I will continue to practice when I get home." He added that he loved traditional Chinese culture but not the CCP, because it persecutes Falun Gong, persecutes good people.

An extra volunteer

That morning a middle-aged Chinese lady, Ms. Qiu, came up to the booth. Practitioners talked with her and learned that she had been in Sweden for over seven years and was working in a local hospital. She came with her sister, who went into another hall. She came to Falun Gong's booth to learn more about the practice. In the beginning, she spoke to practitioners from long-instilled CCP doctrines. She admitted that the CCP made mistakes but said that all those were understandable.

Patiently, practitioners told her about the persecution in China using their personal experiences. They exposed the evil cult nature of the CCP, citing the millions that had quit the CCP. She was shocked. Finally she asked whether she could sit down to chat more. Her Swedish was very good. A Western practitioner nearby told her that there are people practising in 114 countries and regions around the world. The book Zhuan Falun (the main text of Falun Gong practice) has been translated into over 30 languages and is published worldwide. In Sweden there are practice sites in more than 30 cities across the country. Most of the practitioners here are Westerners and their families. If Falun Gong was indeed like what the CCP made it out to be, why would so many people follow and like the practice? We had all benefited from Falun Gong.

Ms. Qiu learned that to make this expo a success, many Western practitioners prepared for a long time. A graceful practitioner named Tulla was in her sixties. To prepare for the expo on Saturday and Sunday, she stayed till late Friday night to set up. In the morning she came early again to continue setting up until all was ready. All these people were volunteers, who were doing everything out of their hearts. All they wanted to do was to tell more people that Falun Dafa is good! Witnessing all these things, Ms. Qiu was deeply moved.

Seeing a traditional Chinese practice so popular with Westerners yet suffering brutal persecution in China, Ms. Qiu felt very sad. So she became a volunteer in front of the booth. She took the initiative to help and answer questions when people came to the booth to ask for leaflets or to buy books or exercise videos. She also phoned her sister, "I won't go anywhere. I'll wait for you here at Falun Gong's booth. Come and find me when you are ready to go."

Quietly sitting in the audience to watch practitioners' exercise demonstrations, she said, "It seems to me that the terrible persecution the CCP waged on Falun Gong did not stamp the practice out. On the contrary, it served to advocate Falun Gong even further. It is the CCP's persecution that promoted Falun Gong worldwide. Now I will consider learning the practice too."