Il Tempo (The Time, an Italian newspaper): Falun Gong Practitioners Hold Peaceful Demonstrations in Front of the Italian Parliament Buildings

By Natalia Marra

September 26, 2001

They demonstrated peacefully in front of the Italian Parliament to support the Chinese practice of Falun Gong, which Beijing has banned and hunted as a "[Jiang Zemin government's slanderous term omitted]."

Yesterday, Italian followers of this widespread eastern teaching came out to the public, to protest the prohibition of this system in China by the ruling regime, which banned the movement as [Jiang Zemin government's slanderous terms omitted]

Over two hundred persons took part in the demonstration, combined of practitioners of the system and sympathizers of the teachings [...]

Even several parliamentary representatives showed their support for Falun Gong. The most honorable Marco Pannello took part in the colorful Falun Gong parade, which ended in front of the Chinese Embassy on Via Bruxelle (Bruxelle Street) in Rome.

According to data gleaned from the www.falundafa.org website, since the beginning of the persecution in China 1999, until August 15, 2001, more than 100,000 followers have been incarcerated; 20,000 of them are slaving in forced labor camps without due process of law.

The practitioners attracted the attention of Roman citizens by playing Chinese meditation music. [...]

The three teachings of Falun Gong, the Law of the Universe, are encompassed in three words: "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance." Parts of the teachings briefly explain the goal of achieving an ongoing change in a practitioner's life [...]

Besides the Italian representatives of the movement, there were also others from different regions. Chinese nationals also participated. They had been forced to flee the suppression and persecution in China which begun in 1999. Among them was a family from Taiwan, one from Korea and a woman named Lili Zhao, a young Chinese who had fled to Rome to escape the persecution in Beijing.

It is important to explain that we are not dealing with a sect, and, that besides Master Li, there are no other teachers. The principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance are practiced according to a canon which is not unlike that of Jesus of 2,000 years ago. During the time of Jesus' teachings, Buddhism had already spread to Mesopotamia and to the shores of the Mediterranean [Sea].

Prior to this gathering, the Roman Falun Gong practitioners had already participated in a sit-down strike. This peaceful protest in front of the Chinese embassy coincided with a hunger strike by the young engineer Lili Zhao who wanted to protest the ban of this movement in her Chinese homeland.

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