Australia: Falun Dafa Radiates Brightness at the Grand Floral Parade in Toowoomba

By Practitioners from Queensland, Australia

Toowoomba, the second largest inland city in Australia, is located in the region of the famous Great Dividing Range in the Southwest of Queensland, with a population of close to 100,000. Toowoomba is known as the "Garden City" in Australia thanks to its pleasant temperate climate, which provides perfect condition for a wide range of plants and flowers. In spring when all the flowers are in bloom, the city is truly like a big garden itself.

On September 21, 2002 Toowoomba held its 53rd Grand Floral Parade, and thus declared open a nine-day long Carnival of Flowers.

As in the last two years, Queensland Falun Dafa practitioners participated with enthusiasm in the Grand Parade, and once again displayed the brilliance of Falun Dafa to tens of thousands of local people as well as numerous visitors from elsewhere, including Mainland China.

Posing before the start of the parade	On the way to the parade location
Falun Gong exercise demonstration during the parade	Traditional Fan Dance during the parade

At mid-day, the parade procession slowly marched into the crowded city centre, with our float gracefully moving along accompanied by the serene "Pu Du" music.

The 3-kilometre-long route for the parade was crowded with tens of thousands of people on both sides of the road. When the Falun Dafa procession passed by, there were constant applause and cheers from the crowd. Practitioners waved back with friendliness and smiles on their faces. There was such a wonderful atmosphere of happiness and harmony throughout the parade. When we passed in front of the central rostrum, the Master of Ceremonies announced loudly, "Here comes the Falun Dafa contingent. Falun Dafa follows the principles of Truth, Compassion and Forbearance. It helps people improve their health and morality, and enables people to gain happiness and inner peace. I believe if more people live by the principles of Truth, Compassion and Forbearance, our world would become an even better place. Please join me to give Falun Dafa a big round of applause!" Before he had finished, loud applause and cheers burst from the crowds. It was truly touching to see Falun Dafa being embraced by so many people. We waved our hands and fans in appreciation of their support and recognition. Many people in the crowds nodded their heads when they read our banners, especially the one which said, " The World Needs Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance." Some even came forward and said to practitioners that they totally agreed with what was said on the banner. One western lady cheered loudly in the crowd, " Falun Dafa is absolutely very, very good!"

In the crowds there were also quite a number of students and tourists from Mainland China. Many were very excited to see us and kept waving their hands while some others looked a bit at a loss, because what they were seeing was completely different from the propaganda they received in China, and they began to reflect upon what Falun Gong really was.

We believe that as the evil Jiang Zemin's lies are exposed one after another, more and more people will get to know the truth and Falun Dafa will undoubtedly continue to take root in the hearts of the people.

Queensland Falun Dafa practitioners, Australia