Houston Practitioners Attacked While Appealing in front of the Chinese Consulate

On both evenings of the past weekend (June 29 and 30), Houston Falun Gong practitioners encountered harassment and assault when they sat-in in front of the Chinese Consulate appealing for Falun Gong.

At 10 AM on Saturday, June 29, Falun Gong practitioners in Houston started their weekend of peaceful appealing in front of the Chinese Consulate. They practised the exercises and did the Fa Zheng Nian meditation. In the evening, most practitioners left. Four practitioners stayed behind to continue the appeal, displaying banners reading: "Take Action, Stop the Killing in China", "SOS, Urgent Rescue Falun Gong Practitioners Persecuted in China", "China: Stop Persecuting Falun Gong Practitioners", "Falun Dafa -- Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance".

Around 10:05 PM, while practitioners silently sat on their cushions with their eyes closed doing the Fa Zheng Nian meditation, someone threw eggs at them from a passing car. A male practitioner's hands and neck were hit. He had seen that it was a black car. A female practitioner's legs were also hit, but the practitioners were not affected and they continued to sit silently. However, the car turned around and came back. The people inside the car again threw eggs at the practitioners. The male practitioner's legs were covered with broken eggs. Some eggs hit the ground around practitioners. Not being moved at all, practitioners kept sitting in silently in the lotus position (legs folded on top of one another.)

The practitioners opened their eyes and saw that there were at least a dozen broken eggs around them. They immediately reported the incident to the local police and FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation). The FBI recorded the details over the phone. The local policemen also came to look at the scene, and practitioners described in detail what had happened. They also explained to the police why they were at the Chinese Consulate peacefully appealing for Falun Gong, as well as the situation of the ruthless persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. Practitioners gave the policemen some truth-clarifying materials. Policemen recorded details about what had happened. Another practitioner who had heard the news came over to photograph the scene. He also told the police about the incident he had witnessed personally at the "Garden Corner" park in Chinatown, San Francisco, where a group of hired hooligans beat Falun Gong practitioners. The Chinese Consulate had hired the thugs.

After the incident, a practitioner went to a hotel opposite to the Consulate to use the phone. Upon learning what had happened, the hotel receptionist expressed his deep concern and warm support to the practitioner. Seeing the broken eggs spattered on the practitioners' bodies and the surrounding ground, some passers-by expressed their concerns and sympathy. A kind-hearted man fetched towels from his car to help wipe up the mess. They all found it hard to understand why the peaceful practitioners encountered such harassment. Since Falun Gong has been suppressed in China, Houston practitioners have often held peaceful appeals and practised the exercises in front of the Chinese Consulate. Many Houston citizens have witnessed the practitioners' peaceful and serene demeanour. People have seen the manifestation of Falun Dafa and Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance from these practitioners.

Throughout Sunday, June 30, practitioners continued to sit-in in front of the Consulate and 13 stayed throughout the evening. Taking advantage of practitioners closing their eyes to do the Fa Zheng Nian meditation, two suspicious men about 30-40 years old watched every practitioner's face carefully and then left. Around 9:30 PM, the practitioners were again egged from a passing car. A few eggs hit a male practitioner's chest and neck. His neck turned red after being hit. A female’s knee and calf were hit. She raised her head and saw that it was a black car again. Practitioners reported this second incident to the police and the FBI. Policemen quickly came over to personally look at how hard they were hit and recorded the details.