Discussing the Hong Kong Trial's Regional and Overall Significance

The Hong Kong authorities began the court proceedings for the politically motivated trial against 16 Falun Gong practitioners on June 17, 2002. The defence for the Falun Gong practitioners have proven with video footage and clear-cut numbers that the Falun Gong practitioners could not have caused an obstruction to the traffic with their peaceful appeal through sitting meditation. The vacant space in front of the Hong Kong Chinese Liaison Office covered over 140 square metres, and the Falun Gong practitioners took up no more than 7 square metres. The false charge of the Falun Gong practitioners "assaulting the police" is even more of a blatant lie. Aside from the fact that the arrest itself was illegal, in the process of the arrest the police authorities used several violent methods against the practitioners. The video footage shows that the police used force to press down on the Falun Gong practitioners' pressure points around the neck and facial area, twisted their arms forcefully, etc.

It's self-evident that without the persecution there is no need to appeal. If Jiang had not initiated this campaign of persecution, then there would not be large groups of Falun Gong practitioners stepping forward to clarify the truth and expose the wicked persecution. The basis of law is justice and fairness, and this trial should never have happened. If things really went according to law, the person who should be indicted should precisely be Jiang, who has endangered the lives of hundreds of millions of people and created additional burdens for even more individuals and society as a whole. Those who should be indicted are in fact the "610 Office," the organization set up specifically to persecute Falun Gong under Jiang that is responsible for the state-run terrorism. Those who should be indicted are Jiang's accomplices in the Chinese Liaison Office. It should definitely not be those 16 practitioners who appealed peacefully for the sake of truth, the common good, and for the sake of those innocent Mainland Chinese Falun Gong practitioners who are being tortured and murdered.

The case that could have been resolved in two working days has been extended again and again without conclusion. Some of our practitioners living outside of China did not place enough importance on this case, believing that it's a regional issue or a matter of some individual practitioners' passing tests. It's only through introspection and careful thought in the last month or so that these practitioners have gained a clearer understanding of the significance of this event from the perspective of Fa-rectification.

The first thing to consider is Hong Kong's unique location. Hong Kong is located right next to Mainland China, and its unique location and historical significance have made it a "front line" in the process of Fa-rectification.

Jiang's political gang is trying desperately to extend its dark reach to overseas. Aside from using the Chinese embassies in various countries to stir up trouble, it aims to infiltrate the neighbouring countries and regions through political means, thereby expanding the reach of its evil power. Hong Kong and Macao are the first targets of this expansion. The greed of the evil is insatiable. Won't its second wave of targets be those countries in Southeast Asia such as Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, etc? Where would it go afterwards? Currently, the evil has interfered quite a bit already in Australia and New Zealand. However, as the evil is eliminated in great quantities in other dimensions, the situation of Fa-rectification will become better and better, and be manifested in this surface dimension.

In the last few years, some practitioners living outside of China have been to Hong Kong and their deepest impression was that the Hong Kong practitioners have done very well. Even though the pressure exerted by Jiang is quite intense and the antagonism shown by some of Jiang's followers in the Hong Kong government has become more and more obvious, Hong Kong practitioners have shown more and more determination and fortitude, doing better and better in clarifying the truth to the various segments of society.

I remember that during the December 2002 Fa-conference, when we passed out flyers to passers-by, nearly everyone refused. The people kept icy expressions on their faces, as under the Mainland's pressure everyone tried to keep a great distance from Falun Gong. In spite of this, we saw that the Hong Kong practitioners picked up the flyers that were discarded and continued to pass out flyers even after being refused time after time. Two years later when I returned to Hong Kong, my experiences were quite different. When the passers-by heard "Falun Gong," they would accept the flyer and express their thanks with words or just a simple smile and nod. When I clarified the truth to the taxi driver, it was obvious that he did not want to get involved, as he didn't say a word no matter what we said. But at the end, he said abruptly, "In my opinion Falun Gong cannot be beaten down." On the surface Hong Kong is basically the same: the roads, the scenery, and the people have not changed. But in the recent years, the truth is being spread, and the people's hearts are changing. All of these changes have occurred within the scope of Master's Fa-rectification, and they are the result of the Hong Kong practitioners' tireless efforts to clarify the truth to all segments of society deeply and in great detail.

In Hong Kong, what is even more amazing is the number of Mainland Chinese tourists. It's definitely true that you can't find a more concentrated population of Mainland Chinese tourists anywhere else. There's an endless stream of Mainland Chinese tourists at the famous Hong Kong tourist spots from dawn to dusk. The practitioners clarify the truth to the thousands of tourists everyday. Upon seeing hundreds and thousands of deceived beings leaning forward to look at the videotapes deconstructing the staged "self-immolation" and the display boards exposing the persecution, the practitioners are moved beyond words.

After thinking about it from different angles, we have been able to get rid of the previously incorrect understandings about this trial. We had mistakenly thought this trial was a test for a few practitioners to improve themselves, that this incident had little to do with me, and that this is something limited to the Hong Kong region. While sharing experiences, the practitioners involved looked inward and discussed many places for improvement.

Looking back today, in reality these practitioners did not do anything wrong. This incident was also not aimed at individual practitioners, since it is persecution against the entire body of Dafa disciples. The trial is in fact being delayed repeatedly to wait for Dafa disciples all over the world to clarify the truth together! This is not just aimed at various segments of Hong Kong but also at the governments, media, people and organizations in countries around the world.

Master said, "For certain cultivators who have grasped Dafa at different levels, the degree of steadfastness they display is different, too. Currently their feelings regarding the situation of Fa-rectification are also different, and their own situations will lead to their own different understandings, and some might feel that the situation is quite grim and difficult. For certain people, perhaps the situation has already become relaxed and easy. For certain people, they might feel that this is precisely a great opportunity to save sentient beings and clarify the truth. Different degrees of understanding and comprehension of the Fa will lead to different feelings about the current situation, and all of this is aimed at their different mentalities. Those who do well will change the environment around them, and those who do poorly will lead the environment around them to be altered by their thoughts. With Dafa disciples' different states of mind, they will have different feelings about the environment, so the state that each person displays will be different." ("Teaching the Fa at the Washington D.C. Fa Conference, July 22, 2002)

The trial in Hong Kong has been extended repeatedly, is it possibly because we have not clarified the truth in some areas that we should have, due to our insufficiently powerful righteous thoughts?

The judge yelled at the defence lawyer during the trial, "Fight like a man!" Even though it is unreasonable and rude for a judge to say this in that situation, but other than giving us a chance to remind the judge to uphold justice, is this a reminder that some of our practitioners have elements in their mentalities that lack righteousness and vigour? Is it possible that as a whole our Dafa disciples should become more like cultivators that embody "He comes with the Truth, which gives him full control" ("Tathagata")?

In the recent days, Dafa disciples all over the world as a whole have transcended the boundaries of regions and countries, proactively clarifying the truth to media and governments everywhere and awakening their sense of justice. Great quantities of telephone calls, faxes, emails, flyers and face-to-face truth clarification have linked together and greatly strengthened the righteous material fields. Those Dafa disciples in Hong Kong are also continuously purifying themselves, breaking through existing notions, strengthening righteous thoughts as a whole, and becoming more and more open and dignified in working together. Everyone has improved as a whole based on the Fa principles and this has been reflected quite positively in the performance of the defence lawyers.

Even though there are many places in our truth-clarification materials that are not sufficiently well designed and some details that haven't been handled appropriately, we are earnestly improving everyday, and every disciple is a part of this improvement. This earnest, compassionate effort has already resulted in many positive effects on society.

In Germany, the 70-year-old Mrs. Schuette said, "I'm now 70 years old and have gone through many things in the world. It is really terrible that a powerful country relies on its financial resources and power to compel others to accept its ideology. What is even more ridiculous is that the photos show so clearly that the streets are so wide, how could that be considered as an obstruction of traffic? Those people sitting there did not obstruct anyone. But there is an old saying in our Germany: If someone intends to beat others, would it be difficult for him to find a stick?"

In England, the government published its 11th biannual report on Hong Kong, expressing concern at Hong Kong beginning to suppress protests. The report explained how the Hong Kong government ironically later dug up pavement and erected barricades at the very spot where Falun Gong practitioners were arrested for obstruction. The British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw stated that, "It is vital... that the basic rights and freedoms afforded to the people of Hong Kong through the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law continue to be upheld." The report went on to say that the British government "believes that freedom of assembly and freedom of speech must not be compromised..."

In Switzerland, the Swiss chapter of the international Catholic peace movement Pax Christi sent a letter to the Hong Kong authorities, calling for the immediate dismissal of the charges against the Falun Gong practitioners.

Overseas Chinese newspaper World Journal stated in a report, "Even though today you may feel quite safe, tomorrow you may suddenly become the dictator's victim." Apple Daily said in its report, "Some government agencies, high-ranking officials, legislative representatives and most of the media received large quantities of protesting telephone calls or faxes from overseas, requesting their attention to the incident." It also noted, "A survey conducted this month queried more than one thousand residents. The survey indicated that the residents' approval rating of the freedom of public protest has decreased to 6.75, down three points from April. This is the biggest change in the four main indicators for freedom."

There are many positive reactions from different segments of society and media reports that could not be organized and translated for everyone.

Our gratitude is to Teacher for creating opportunities to participate in Fa-rectification by enduring on our behalf. We have understood in our hearts that in the various areas needed by the process of Fa-rectification, Dafa disciples in Hong Kong, Switzerland, as well as those in Europe, North American and other countries and regions will do even better, supporting with our words and actions the main body of our Dafa disciples -- the Mainland Chinese Dafa disciples.