On October 16, the City Council of Clifton, NJ unanimously passed a resolution Protesting the Persecution of Practitioners of Falun Gong by the People's Republic of China.
In his speech, a representative of the Falun Gong practitioners expressed their appreciation for the City Council's actions of upholding justice and condemning the evil. He also requested to be able to demonstrate the Dafa exercises. The practitioner said, "The reasons that I would like to show you the Dafa exercises are the following: First to introduce to you the exercises that have benefited millions upon millions of people; second to express our support to the over 300 practitioners who have died during the brutal persecution and tens of thousands of practitioners being persecuted in China and to strongly condemn the state terrorism of Jiang Zemin's regime. I especially want to tell you all through the exercise demonstration that in this land of freedom we can freely practice and have our right to freedom of belief, however in China the people that are doing the same exercise are being beaten, arrested and tortured."
After the exercise demonstration, the Chairman of the County Council, Mr. Eagler said, "I thank practitioners for coming to Clifton today to introduce Falun Dafa to us and the residents of Clifton. I admire your courage in pursuing freedom of belief."
Former Mayor of Clifton Ms. Kolodzief said, "Before tonight, I had never heard that there are people on this earth who are persecuted because they follow Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance. I am honored to have the opportunity to be one of those that uphold justice."
Council member Mr. Kowal said, "Your coming has made us aware of the fact that Falun Dafa and practitioners are being persecuted. What I want to tell you is that, in America, in Clifton, you have the right and the freedom to practice your exercises and your belief."
Finally, Mr Tatarenko, the initiator of the resolution and a strong supporter of Falun Gong, commended, "Your exercises demonstrate that it is a beneficial and peaceful practice. The persecution against millions of practitioner is absurd and is a violation of the rights of freedom of religion and belief. I sincerely hope your efforts will continue."
