FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Washington, DC, August 27, 2001 -- After their appeal letter was rejected by the Chinese Embassy several times during their 7-10 days of courageous hunger strike in front of the Chinese Embassy, six Falun Gong practitioners have decided to take their appeal to the next level. They will travel to United Nations headquarters in New York to appeal directly to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Since the hunger strike began on August 17, reports of up to seven more practitioners' deaths have filtered out of China. U.S.-based practitioners are traveling to Washington to continue the hunger strike and demand an immediate end to the communist regime's persecution of Falun Gong.

"We have called for basic human rights with our lives. In response, we were met with the cruel faces of Chinese Embassy staff members. Our peaceful appeal letter was thrown out seven times. This hostile treatment occurs not only in Washington, DC, but worldwide," declared Jinwei Wang, 19, a student at Northern Virginia Community College who joined the hunger strike along with her mother.

The Washington, DC hunger strike is part of a global SOS! effort to rescue Falun Gong practitioners persecuted in China. In London, Toronto, New York, Australia, Japan, UK, Germany, Hong Kong, and elsewhere, individual Falun Gong practitioners have launched hunger strikes of their own, and hundreds have rallied at candlelight vigils. The practitioners gathered outside local Chinese embassies and consulates are demanding that Jiang Zemin's regime immediately and unconditionally release the 130 in the Masanjia labor camp and cease its inhumane campaign of harassment, detention, torture, and killing.

The Chinese government began its brutal persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999. Since that time, according to incomplete statistics, about 270 Falun Gong practitioners are known to have died; at least 100,000 have been detained; over 20,000 sent to labor camps without trial; hundreds sentenced to prison terms of up to 18 years; and more than 1000 have been illegally imprisoned in mental hospitals where they endure forced injections and psychological torture. Countless Falun Gong practitioners have suffered brutal beatings and physical abuse by the police. Their families have been broken. Millions of family members, relatives, friends, and colleagues have also been affected. And the persecution keeps intensifying. Government officials in Liaoning province have put forth the directive that "we would rather violate the law [than set practitioners free]; we absolutely do not [intend to] release these persons."

You are welcome to visit and interview the hunger strikers who are sacrificing for this great cause. You may also call 202-550-0562 for interviews. Video footage is available upon request by calling John at 703-207-9073 or 703-599-9077.

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a self-improvement practice of mind and body, based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance. It was introduced to the public in 1992 by Mr. Li Hongzhi. Since then, millions of individuals around the world have taken up the peaceful, meditative practice. Due to its popularity, the Chinese government banned the practice in 1999.

Posting date: 8/28/2001
Original article date: 8/28/2001
Category: News & Media Reports

 Yearly Archive  Printer Version

_____Related Articles_____ World Journal: Falun Gong Practitioners' Relay Hunger Strike [8/28/2001] Auckland, New Zealand: Practitioners Launch Hunger Strike in Front of the Chinese Consulate  [8/28/2001] Photo report: Hunger Strike in front of the Chinese Embassy in Australia Enters Fifth Day [8/28/2001] Photo report: Hunger Strike in Ottawa Enters Fifth Day [8/28/2001] Photo report: "We come here because we love life" [8/28/2001] THE WASHINGTON TIMES: Hunger Strikers Consider Change of Tactics [8/28/2001] Reuters: HK Falun Gong Members in 3rd Day of Hunger Strike [8/28/2001] Canberra-ABC News: Falun Gong Member on Hunger Strike Taken to Hospital [8/28/2001] Appreciation Letter from Practitioners in China to Overseas Practitioners on Hunger Strike [8/27/2001] Photo Report: Texas Practitioner Enters Fifth Day of Hunger Strike [8/27/2001]