United States: A Candlelight Vigil in Front of the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco to Call for an End to the Persecution

On July 20th, 2102, Falun Gong practitioners in San Francisco held a rally in front of the Chinese Consulate to protest the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s 13-year-long persecution of Falun Gong. Their candlelight vigil sent the message that the persecution is ongoing, that it needs to be paid attention to, and that it needs stop it.

Falun Gong practitioners protest CCP’s persecution in front of Chinese Consulate

At 7 pm, more than 200 practitioners from San Francisco and nearby areas gathered in front of the Chinese Consulate. Their banners read: “Stop the Persecution of Falun Gong,” “Falun Dafa Is Good,” and “Disintegrate the CCP and Stop the Persecution” in both Chinese and English. They lit candles to commemorate fellow practitioners tortured to death in China. So far, at least 3574 Falun Gong practitioners have been tortured to death in China.

Ms. Fang held a banner worded “Stop the Persecution of Falun Gong” in front of the consulate. She started practising Falun Gong in 1994. She said, “After practising Falun Gong, I understood how to be a good person. But after July 20th, 1999, hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners were persecuted. My sister was tortured to death for her belief in Falun Gong. My brother has been imprisoned in China for 12 years. I was beaten for appealing on behalf of Falun Gong.”

Ms. Fang has kept steadfast in her belief over the past 13 years and helps to explain the facts about Falun Gong to Chinese people. She said, “We come to the Chinese Consulate to protest the CCP’s persecution. We challenge the Chinese people to discover the true nature of the CCP and its crimes and to learn the facts about Falun Gong.”

Mr. Meng has practised Falun Gong for 16 years. He said that following Truth-Compassion-Forbearance made big changes in his life. Before practicing, he suffered from gastritis, cholecystitis, and hepatitis. These illnesses were gone after he practised Falun Gong for one month. More importantly, he understood the real meaning of life.

On July 20th thirteen years ago, the CCP initiated the persecution of Falun Gong. He was in China at the time, and his employer attempted to force him to renounce his belief. He said to his superiors and those he worked with, “Following Truth-Compassion-Forbearance is not wrong. Everyone should be a good person. I become healthy after practising Falun Gong.”

Mr. Meng said, “Falun Gong is blameless. I insist that the CCP stop the persecution of Falun Gong. I want the perpetrators - Jiang Zemin and others - brought to justice. It is a crime to persecute kind people.

“I challenge the Chinese people to find out what the CCP is really like. The CCP is a criminal organisation. It even condones harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners. Chinese people should quit the CCP and its affiliated organisations as fast as they can.”