July 1, 2002 (Falun Dafa Information Center) - By the evening of June 29th, a total of over 100 Falun Gong practitioners from eleven countries had been denied entry into Hong Kong by the Hong Kong Immigration Department. On the same day, Hong Kong Falun Gong practitioners delivered a letter to the government of the Special Administration Region, urging the government to abolish the use of Jiang Zemin's "blacklist," and allow Falun Gong practitioners access to Hong Kong during Jiang's visit.

According to witnesses, in the evening of June 29th, the Hong Kong Immigration Department rejected dozens more Falun Gong practitioners who had traveled there to join a peaceful appeal to stop the persecution of Falun Gong in the mainland. Those travelers included 16 Australian, 2 Japanese, 4 from Macao, and also others from the U.S., France, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapore, Korea, Indonesia, and at least 70 from Taiwan.

Visitors to Hong Kong Facing Stern Treatment, Luggage Searches, Eight Guards Per Person

According to sources in Hong Kong, the officials in charge of the Hong Kong Immigration Department are treating the detained Falun Gong practitioners with unusual sternness. Travelers' luggage is searched several times. Each person is escorted by 7 to 8 people. Five or six people are assigned to escort a single person to go to the restroom, and the door must be unlocked.

"This is how Hong Kong welcomes people who practice truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance [the core principles of Falun Gong's teachings]? This is how an open society welcomes those who would make a peaceful appeal to save the lives of thousands in China?" commented Sophie Xiao, a Hong Kong resident and spokesperson for Falun Gong in Hong Kong. "Falun Gong's appeals in nations around the world have been consistently peaceful, orderly, and law-abiding. What could Hong Kong fear, aside from the wrath of Jiang?"

According to the detained Falun Gong practitioners, many Hong Kong officials who had been following the order to block their entry showed sympathy and understanding toward the practitioners. Some said, "This is the order from above." Others said, "You've been through a lot, we're sorry."

On June 30, Hong Kong Falun Gong practitioners delivered a letter to the government of the Hong Kong Special Administration Region, appealing to their government not to trample on Hong Kong's rule of law by bending to Jiang's dictatorship. They urged the SAR to lift the ban and let Falun Gong practitioners to access the region. In the letter delivered to Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr. Donald Tsang, Hong Kong practitioners said bowing to mainland authority in this fashion damaged Hong Kong's free and open image. It exposes what analysts are calling Hong Kong's weakening record on human rights and rule of law.

"Many people have expressed concern about how these policies could affect Hong Kong's tourism," continued Ms. Xiao. "We're more concerned over how it affects Hong Kong's moral quality."

Falun Gong practitioners in Hong Kong announced that they intend to practice meditation and hold a candlelight vigil during Jiang's visit, protesting his persecution of Falun Gong in the mainland, and calling help from the governments and people all over the world to stop the growing scale of the atrocities committed by Jiang's regime.

A Global Pattern Appears as the Long Arm of the Communist Party Bends Democracies to its Illicit Agenda

This is not the first time that the Hong Kong government intercepted Falun Gong practitioners on a large scale. In January 2001, over ten Falun Gong practitioners were turned away after landing in Hong Kong and being identified as practitioners through an unknown means. Hong Kong citizens and Falun Gong practitioners alike criticized the action, which many said showed clear signs of pressure from Beijing.

More recently, dozens Falun Gong practitioners were denied entry into Iceland during a visit there by Jiang Zemin in mid June. IcelandAir said it was ordered by the Iceland government to cancel the flights of anyone appearing on a "list," which sources in Iceland say was given to the Iceland government by Chinese authorities. The list contained the names of both Chinese nationals and citizens of democratic countries in North America and Europe.

Similar reports of use of a "blacklist" were made in Lithuania and other European countries during Jiang's recent visit there.

Residents of Seattle, Washington, expressed concern over the detention of David Jerke, a Seattle-area Falun Gong practitioner, who traveled to Hong Kong this weekend. Earlier in the week, Ms. Dan Bihan, a 68-year-old U,S, citizen, was subject to rough treatment by Hong Kong police who wrapped her in a canvas tarp and hoisted her onto their shoulders to carry her onto a waiting plane. Like Mr. Jerke, she had also traveled to Hong Kong to take part in the Falun Gong activities there this weekend, but was stopped at the border when she was identified by authorities. Ms. Dan had previously traveled to Hong Kong on many occasions without incident.

"Where in the world is peaceful protest allowed these days?" asks Leeshai Lemish, a practitioner of Falun Gong in the U.S. "If a recognizably peaceful group of people wishes to make a public, peaceful appeal to a dictator with the lives of hundreds on his hands, and countries around the world implement his deceitful policies at will, haven't they become witting accomplices to the atrocities? Where will this end? How many more people must die, and how many more people must be affected before Jiang's persecution is stopped?"

(Clearwisdom.net)

AP photo: Hong Kong, Sunday evening, June 30, 2002--- Falun Gong practitioners sitting in lotus position in a candlelight vigil to protest [Jiang's] persecution of their fellows on the Mainland. The protest was held after Chinese President Jiang and Vice Premier Qian arrived in the territory to attend ceremonies commemorating Hong Kong's 1997 return to Chinese rule. Falun Gong practitioners said that more than 90 practitioners who intended to take part in demonstrations were barred from entry into Hong Kong.

Reuters photo (Bobby Yip): On June 30, 2002, the eve of the 5^th anniversary of Hong Kong's handover, Falun Gong practitioners sat in lotus position behind fences in a silent appeal for Beijing to stop its deadly persecution of Falun Gong. More than 100 practitioners joined the protest. At least 90 more practitioners hoping to take part in the protest were denied entry.

07/01/2002

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Almost 100 overseas Falun Gong [practitioners] had been denied entry to Hong Kong ahead of today's handover ceremony, with some forced on board flights, the group said yesterday.

Kan Hung-cheung, a Hong Kong spokesman for the group, said about 60 overseas [practitioners] were barred from entering the SAR yesterday. The actions took the number of those refused entry since June 22 to 98.

[...]

Sixty-seven of the Falun Gong [practitioners] were from Taiwan, 13 from Australia and the rest from Japan and the United States. The overseas [practitioners] intended to join demonstrations today.

About 200 Falun Gong [practitioners] yesterday staged a sit-in and group exercise outside Immigration Tower in Wan Chai to protest against suppression of Falun Gong on the mainland. The group also held a candlelight vigil in Statue Square, Central, last night.

Mr Kan said about 50 [practitioners] from Taiwan were forcibly put on flights home early yesterday. They were stopped after landing at Chek Lap Kok on a flight from Taiwan late on Saturday. Another 10 were refused entry during the day.

Another group spokesman, Hui Cheung Yee-han, said some [practitioners] complained they were covered with blankets and forcibly carried by police on to flights. "Some [practitioners] were even not allowed to make phone calls to their consulates in Hong Kong," she said. Mrs Hui said the overseas [practitioners] were turned away because of President Jiang Zemin's visit to Hong Kong.

Leo Wang, an Australian [practitioner], said no reason was given when he was denied entry at Chek Lap Kok yesterday morning. He said a dozen people who were not [practitioners] were also repatriated yesterday because their names were the same as some [practitioners]. "It suggests that the SAR Government had a blacklist of Falun Gong [practitioners]," he said.

[...]

American Edmond Lee Renke, who passed through airport immigration counters, said he saw a fellow [practitioner], Yang Xiangdong from Japan, being tightly wrapped in a blanket and carried out of an airport office yesterday morning.

(Clearwisdom.net) At 10:45PM June 29 2002, flight CI617 of Taiwan China Airline arrived at Hong Kong airport, and fifty-eight Taiwanese practitioners were refused entry into Hong Kong. Forty-eight of them were forced to take flight CI61810 back to Taiwan at 0:30AM June 30. It was arranged for ten other practitioners to leave Hong Kong airport at 10:15AM June 30. The immigration department used force to repatriate some of the practitioners, including using stretchers and canvas bags. These methods have damaged the reputation of Hong Kong as the "Pearl of the Orient." China's promise of "No Change for 50 years" was also challenged.

Police preparing to repatriate Taiwan practitioners	About one hundred police officers at the airport
Police using stretchers and canvas bags to carry practitioners to airplane by force
Police using stretchers and canvas bags to carry practitioners to airplane by force	A policeman taking video shots on airplane after the repatriation.

July 1, 2002 Posted: 5:25 PM HKT (0925 GMT)

caption: The Falun Gong is banned in mainland China, and practitioners says they fear it may soon be outlawed in Hong Kong as well

HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- As Chinese President Jiang Zemin's motorcade slipped out from the Hong Kong Convention Center, well hidden behind the bulk of the 27-storey Wanchai Tower some 100 [practitioners] of a group Beijing has [suppressed] sat in silent meditation.

"It's ridiculous," Falun Gong [practitioner] and spokeswoman Sophie Xiao said on Monday, clad in the bright yellow T-shirt that has become the movement's trademark.

"It's like Jiang Zemin is afraid of yellow."

The Falun Gong was one of many groups to take to the streets during Jiang's visit to the former British colony on the fifth anniversary of the handover to Chinese rule.

However, despite being restricted to a designated "protest area" well out of sight of the Chinese leader, the group's [practitioners] were keen to distance themselves from others using the anniversary to voice their concerns over such issues as democracy and the shaky Hong Kong economy.

"This is an appeal, not a protest," said one [practitioner]. "We're not a political movement -- we just want the truth to be heard and appeal for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China."

For three years China's ruling Communist Party has labeled the Falun Gong the state's virtual enemy number one.

[...]

Practitioners say theirs is a loosely organized spiritual movement, based on three guiding principles of "truthfulness, compassion and forbearance."

Xiao says the reason China fears the Falun Gong is simple and can be summed up in one word: "Popularity."

"In the 10 years since Falun Gong was founded, we have 70 to 100 million regular practitioners in China -- that's more than the membership of the Communist Party."

'Tortured to death'

Xiao says that scared by such a weight of numbers, China's leaders are encouraging often brutal methods in their efforts to wipe out the group.

"We have documented cases of 429 [practitioners] tortured to death by police since the [suppression] began in July 1999," she says, adding that unconfirmed reports from sources indicate that number may be closer to 7,000.

Although banned outright on the mainland, the Falun Gong remains legal in Hong Kong, which has a separate legal system from the rest of China.

However, Xiao says there are signs of a growing trend towards banning the group in Hong Kong as well and she says a controversial anti-subversion law backed by the territory's Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa could well be used against them.

She pointed to the trial last month of several [practitioners] arrested for holding meditation exercises outside the Chinese government liaison office in Hong Kong.

Barred

They have been charged with obstruction and assault against police officers -- charges that Xiao says are "absurd" and symptomatic of the massive political pressure she says Beijing is putting on the Hong Kong government.

In the run-up to the handover anniversary, the Falun Gong says almost 100 of its [practitioners] have been barred from the territory, among them the husband of Australian practitioner Amanda Dowie.

Although she was allowed into Hong Kong, she told CNN her husband John had become separated from her shortly after their plane from Australia landed at the weekend.

Since then, she said, she has only received a brief phone call from him, in which he told her he had been refused entry and was being detained pending his return to Australia.

The Hong Kong government says it never comments on individual cases.

[...]

http://asia.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/east/07/01/hk.falun/index.html

(Clearwisdom.net) The following text is the statement and defense of a wrongfully sentenced practitioner in a Chinese court.

Statement

"First I want to clarify that I am no criminal. I am a Dafa practitioner. What I did was to clarify the truth of Falun Dafa, to correct the mistakes made by the government, and to remove the poisoned thoughts from people's minds. If there were no suppression of Falun Dafa, we would not have to clarify the truth. It is Jiang Zemin who uses the government to suppress Falun Dafa, regardless of our national constitution. Under this suppression, numerous Dafa practitioners are being subjected to brutal persecution, even losing their lives. We are Dafa practitioners, benefiting from cultivation practice. We deeply understand that Falun Dafa is the real Buddha Law and the universal truth. However, we are forced to lose everything by the government. Without any concern for our own interest or advantage, we use our lives to safeguard the truth, to resist the evil, and to offer salvation to all human beings.

What we are doing is most magnificent and sacred. No matter how hard the government tries to arrest us, our Dafa conferences will resume; our printing machines will go on printing Dafa materials; we will continue handing out Dafa fliers and our radio stations will never stop broadcasting the truth about Falun Dafa. For the past three years, we have never stopped clarifying the truth of Falun Dafa. The magnificence of the Buddha Law is revealed. The righteous will never be overwhelmed by the evil. Nothing can stand in the way of Fa-rectification. Fa-rectification is not done by any human power. It is the demonstration of the great power of Falun Dafa in the minds of all practitioners and in the human world.

Therefore, to arrest us will never discourage us from clarifying the truth. To beat us cannot destroy our will. Our determination and firmness will not be overwhelmed by any human organization. Though we were arrested, we clarified the truth of Falun Dafa. Though we are standing here on trial, we are noble because we use our lives to keep our promise; our lives coexist with Fa-rectification. You do not decide what is right or wrong, but time and history will prove everything. The Heavenly truth will be revealed to all of us in the near future."

My Defense

"Though I stand here on trial, I am not a criminal. I am standing here as a Dafa practitioner. I feel inviolable sacredness and dignity in my mind. Nothing can change Dafa practitioners' firmness and righteous thoughts. No force can overwhelm the grand righteousness of Dafa practitioners.

During this morally corrupt age, it is the mercy of Buddha to introduce again the Buddha Law, that is Falun Dafa, to humans, offering a final chance to mankind. This should have been a generous hope cherished by humans. However, for his purpose of doing evil, Jiang has used the country, the government, propaganda, and his dictatorship to subject Falun Dafa and our Honorable Master to the most brutal persecution. Numerous practitioners have been arrested, beaten and even tortured to death. Many more were left homeless with their families broken. The fabrications and deceitful lies blinded countless people to the truth, and they lost their original, beautiful nature. So, those ignorant people committed unforgivable crimes. Many people are still fooled, remaining unawakened to the immediate retribution of good and evil.

Jiang has already become the biggest sinner of history. Jiang is using all possible means to poison the thoughts of people and to destroy human beings. Those blind to the truth still pander to Jiang for their own interest and advantages. They smear Dafa, slander the Supreme Buddha, and persecute Dafa practitioners. Their evildoing has angered Heaven and Earth. Through cultivation practice, Dafa practitioners are enlightened beings. To clarify the truth of Dafa and to offer salvation to those blinded by deceitful lies, we give up our possessions. With our righteous belief in Dafa and compassion for humans, we are performing magnificent deeds to safeguard Dafa. Some practitioners were arrested, others were beaten, and still others were tortured to death. Many practitioners just barely keep themselves fed, walking in their worn out shoes, handing out information materials to thousands of families and posting Dafa fliers on every street corner.

We are the disciples of the Supreme Buddha and are not fearful of death. What we do is not political, nor are we an organization of everyday people; we are simply clarifying the truth. What we do is the great performance of divine beings, capable of moving Heaven to tears. When history turns this page and all evil people are eliminated, you will see the greatness of our deeds, the magnificence of Dafa, and the mercy of the Supreme Buddha. The ignorant people under the control of evil laugh at us and say, "Why hasn't your Fa rectified everything yet?" At that historic moment when Jesus was crucified, people mocked him, "Aren't you able to redeem people? If you could get down from the cross, we would believe in you." Jesus said that He would come to life three days later. But at that time, who believed in Him? Miraculously, Jesus came back to life three days later. But those who sinned are still paying for their foolishness and ignorance.

After taking a glimpse at the historic past, now let's return to the present. Out of ignorance, some people consider Dafa practitioners to be obsessed. If the supernormal power of Dafa is revealed to humans now, what would happen to these ignorant beings? My mind is full of sympathy and regret because persecuting Dafa and sentencing practitioners to prison is the shame of all Chinese and the sin of human beings. People will pay for their ignorance, and walk their own paths based on their previous wrongdoing. One thought can decide their future. I hope you can think about your own future. Because of some predestined relationship, we come to you and tell you the truth of Dafa. Falun Dafa is the genuine Buddha Law, offering salvation to all beings. Why isn't our Fa-rectification finished? This is because of Dafa's compassion for all humans. Why are Dafa practitioners still under persecution? This is because we are bearing everything for all of you while suffering from the persecution. Among your confusion and bewilderment, we await the moment when you will think of Dafa in a positive or righteous way. Not fearful of death, we stand up and clarify the truth. To awaken your conscience and to reveal truth and righteousness to you, we are under brutal persecution and losing everything.

Human beings, wake up from your ignorance! It is the great mercy of the Supreme Buddha to leave the Buddha Law to everyone. The purpose of human life is to return to one's original, true self. The meaning of Dafa practitioners' lives is in clarifying the truth of Dafa. We coexist with Dafa. We wish that you could cherish this last chance to decide your future position. Whatever you do, you will have a beautiful future as long as you wake up to your conscience.

Finally, I want to tell you solemnly that Dafa and Dafa practitioners are innocent. Do not aid the tyrant in his tyranny any longer. Restore the reputation of Dafa, to our Master, and to all practitioners. Release all the innocent practitioners who have been arrested, detained, sentenced, and sent to labor camps. Seriously punish the evil ones who are persecuting Dafa practitioners and promptly stop this persecution.

Falun Dafa is good.

My Hope

The sun has have been shrouded by dark clouds for some time.
The beams of truth will penetrate the darkness.
Unshakable is my determination, never-degenerated my firmness.
Words of truth will last until eternity.
Only the body, not the mind, is imprisoned in the cell.
The twinkling stars in the sky reflect the purity of my mind.
Not fearful of any trial or penalty,
I hope that all beings can be redeemed.

(Clearwisdom.net)

Since Changchun practitioners successfully clarified the truth of Falun Dafa through a cable television broadcast on March 5, a new round of persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners was launched with all the policemen, "610 Office" members and people in charge of the neighborhoods and community involved.

The No.1 Division of the Changchun Police Department has conducted the most brutal torture of Falun Dafa practitioners in an apartment they secretly arranged on a hill near Jingyuetan. The following are some of the persecution cases that have occurred.

In mid-March, Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Yuhuan went to visit a fellow practitioner and was abducted by a policeman who had been waiting there. She was first sent to the No.1 Division, and then escorted blindfolded to the secret apartment on the hill near Jingyuetan. They made her sit on the "tiger bench" (see http://www.geocities.com/transrefs/Torture-tr.html ), and shocked her with electric batons. Then, with both her arms tied to her body, two policemen carried her and slammed her against a tree. At the time, she felt as if her internal organs had been broken into pieces. After suffering severe injuries from this, she was sent to the Shuangyang Detention Center, where she slept on a standing board. Her chest was hurt so badly after being slammed against the tree that two big swellings appeared on her skin and she ran a high fever for many days. Later on, she was illegally sentenced to the Heizuizi Forced Labor Camp. Falun Dafa practitioner Yang Yonglan suffered the same torture.

In mid-March, Falun Dafa practitioner Yang Shumin was brought to the hill near Jingyuetan and tortured secretly after being abducted by the No.1 Division. They made her sit on the "tiger bench." They pressed her to the ground with her arms tied and stepped on her face, head, chest and back. The rope cut deeply into the flesh below her shoulder blades. The bruises remained for many days and her arms and hands could not move normally. Currently, she is still being detained in the Shuangyang Detention Center, and her original sentence has since been extended.

In Mid-March, Falun Dafa practitioner Zhao Jian was violently abducted after several policemen threw her to the ground on the street. Since she didn't cooperate with the evil ones, over a dozen male policemen were exhausted before they could tie her up. The No.1 Division sent her to the secret apartment on the hill and tortured her by various means---making her sit on the "tiger bench", shocking her with electric batons, inserting her fingers into bullet shell casings and rubbing them violently back and forth causing extreme pain and laceration and holding burning cigarettes under her nose. Later on, she was illegally detained in the Shuangyang Detention Center. The original sentence has since been extended.

In mid-March, Changchun Falun Dafa practitioner Liu Xiue was abducted on the street. The Luyuan Police Department Branch found her street address by tracking her telephone. In order to avoid being persecuted, the practitioner jumped out of a window on the 2^nd floor of the police department branch. At the time, two policemen jumped from the window as well and captured her. In the Luyuan Police Department Branch, Liu Xiue was forced to sit on the "tiger bench" for five days and nights. Later, she was illegally detained in the Shuangyang Detention Center, and her original sentence has since been extended.

In mid-March, Changchun Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Lili was abducted in Nong'an by officers from the local police station. The police officers beat her up brutally for five days. Consequently, she was badly injured, which caused her to develop uremia. The police carried her to the hospital. In all, nearly 10,000 Yuan (equivalent to 20 months income of an average Chinese worker---by translator) of medical expenses were imposed on Wang Lili. When she recovered slightly, she was sent to the Shuangyang Detention Center.

In mid-April, the Zhengyang Police Substation abducted Falun Dafa practitioner Wang Shouhui and sent her to the No.1 Division. She was blindfolded and taken to the torture room on the hill near Jingyuetan, where she was made to sit on the "tiger bench" for two days. The police shocked her breasts, and the inside of her thighs close to her genitals with electric stun batons. Then they smashed her face, head and breasts until she vomited up nearly a litre of blood. The left side of her face was fractured, and her left eye was injured and she was unable to see clearly. She was then sent to the Shuangyang Detention Center, where her lungs became infected. The practitioner went on a hunger strike after her request to bring a lawsuit against the police was rejected. She was released when her life was endangered by the hunger strike.

In late April, Tonghua Falun Dafa practitioner Zhang Chunsheng was abducted and taken blindfolded to the secret torture room. He was forced to sit on the "tiger bench" for five days and nights. Then, hanging him from a leather belt, the police beat him with leather whips until his face and body were badly wounded. They later sent him to the Shuangyang Detention Center.

In November 2001, Nong'an Falun Dafa practitioner Zhou Yongping was abducted on her way to Changchun City from Jilin City. The No.1 Division took her to the secret apartment on the hill. After torturing her with various instruments, they placed her in the cold open air and poured water over her body. Every now and again, they touched her to see if she were frozen. Their means were extremely vicious and dirty. After the torture, she was illegally detained for over three months in the Shuangyang Detention Center before she was sent to the Heizuizi Female Forced Labor Camp.

Presently, Liu Zhe, Zhao Guifeng, Zhang Yufeng, Zhang Shuqin, Ma Yaci, Zhao Jian, Zhou Runjun, Wang Liping, Zhang Shuhong, Liu Yaqian, and Liu Gequn etc. are being illegally detained in the Shuangyang Detention Center.

(Clearwisdom.net) There have been over 100 female Falun Dafa practitioners illegally detained at the No. 4 unit of the Shijiazhuang Forced Labor Camp in the first half of 2001. The Labor Camp, located in Hebei Province, has executed orders from the "610 office" to force all practitioners to sign or put their fingerprints on the "five not-allowed papers" (i.e. 1. not allowed to practice, 2. not allowed to promote the practice, 3. not allowed to spread articles written by the teacher of Falun Dafa, 4. not allowed to stage hunger strikes, 5. not allowed to refuse to work). If anyone refused to follow these rules, they were mentally and physically tortured and beaten with electric batons and rubber clubs. The police threatened all of the Falun Dafa practitioners detained at the No. 4 unit of the Labor Camp: "If we can't brainwash you by all forced means, you will be sent to the Gaoyang Forced Labor Camp. There, if you are not killed, you will be driven insane."

According to incomplete information due to the constraints of conditions, the practitioners who were brutally tortured at the Shijiazhaung Forced Labor Camp in 2001 are listed below:

Zhang Chunying, a computer teacher from Shijiazhuang's 40^th Middle School, was tortured with rubber clubs, electric batons, and ropes. Her face became swollen, her arms were covered in burn marks, and her buttocks were beaten black and blue.

Ge Xiuli and Tu Hongcai from Jing County, Hebei Province, were beaten with rubber clubs. The policemen beat Ge Xiuli even after learning that she has a sensitive heart condition.

Li Xiumin, an employee at the Hebei Science and Technical University, was hung up by handcuffs and forced to stand with toes barely touching the floor for a long time.

Zhang Yun, a level II Police Supervisor at Huolu Prison, was beaten with rubber clubs and electric batons until her buttocks became black and blue.

Li Ping, an employee at the Shijiazhuang Bank-note Paper Printing Factory, was hung by handcuffs and tortured with electric batons and rubber clubs. Her hip became black and blue from the beating.

Li Baoyue from Quzhou County in Handan City, Hebei Province, was beaten in the face and hips with electric batons and rubber clubs. She became deaf from the severe beating and her hip was full of pus and blood.

Yu Fengyun is the wife of Tao Hongsheng. Tao was a management cadre from Hebei Security Hall in Shijiazhaung City, and he was tortured to death in 2000 at the Shijiazhuang Labor Camp. Now their family is lacking financial income and their two young daughters can only go to school with support from their relatives. Yu Fengyun was sent to the labor camp for two years simply because she posted a flyer on a telephone pole that said "Falun Dafa is good."

Li Mei (also named Li Peiqi) was beaten so badly that she fainted three times. Afterwards, her hip became swollen and full of pus and blisters. She had to be sent to the hospital to have the pus removed. It has already been three months and she has yet to recover. To once again try and force her to give up her belief in the principles of "Truth, Compassion, Forbearance," the vicious policemen hung her by handcuffs and forced her to stand without sleep for a long period of time.

All kind-hearted people, please take a look at these brutal accounts of the persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners. By doing so, you will be able to clearly distinguish the righteous from the evil and won't be deceived by the lies concocted by Jiang's political group of thugs. In the meantime, we give a full warning to the policeman and public security officials who are responsible for these brutal atrocities: good will be rewarded with good, and evil will be met with karmic retribution. We hope that you can wake up as soon as possible and no longer help the evil to commit bad deeds against Falun Dafa. We give you this warning compassionately out of concern for the eternal existence of your future.

(Clearwisdom.net)

• [Longkou City, Shandong Province] Authorities Plan on a New Round of Persecution
• [China] Chinese Authorities Close Down Internet Cafés - Citing the Fire Incident at a Beijing Internet Cafe as an Excuse
• [Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province] Police at the No. 2 Detention Center in Mudanjiang City Beat Falun Dafa Practitioners Without Restraint
• [Xiangfan City, Hubei Province] Falun Dafa Practitioner Abducted for Protesting Peacefully at Her Own Home Gets Out of Prison after Hunger Strike
• [Bozhou City, Anhui Province] Randomly Arrested People Are Tortured - the Persecution of Falun Gong Victimizes Everyday People
• [Tianjin Municipality] Police at the Shuangkou Forced Labor Camp Instigate Inmates to Beat Falun Dafa Practitioners
• [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Staff at the Etouwan Brainwashing Class in Qiaokou District Claim to "Do Whatever They Can"
• [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Police Conduct Door-to-Door Screening of Tenants in Rented Residences in Guanshan Area

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1. [Longkou City, Shandong Province] Authorities Plan on a New Round of Persecution

Since June 19, authorities in Longkou City, Shandong Province have begun a door-to-door registration of Falun Dafa practitioners according to previously registered name lists. A new round of persecution is being planned.

2. [China] Chinese Authorities Close Down Internet Cafés - Citing the Fire Incident at a Beijing Internet Café as an Excuse

At present, Internet cafes have been temporarily closed down in many regions. Starting June 18, Internet cafés in Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province were all sealed. The temporary shutdown has now entered the seventh day, and delivering information over the Internet at present has become quite difficult.

A while back there was an airplane crash in Dalian City, Liaoning Province. Why doesn't the government stop all planes from taking off? Clearly, citing the fire incident in a Beijing Internet café to put all Internet cafés in several regions out of business is merely an excuse. All practitioners should recognize that this is another form of interference. We call upon fellow practitioners to send forth righteous thoughts to break down this information blockade.

3. [Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province] Police at the No. 2 Detention Center in Mudanjiang City Beat Falun Dafa Practitioners Without Restraint

Recently Liu Jinqun, the deputy chief of the No. 2 Detention Center in Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province has led Hou Lijun and other guards to brutally beat Falun Dafa practitioners. They have viciously beaten and kicked practitioners, and stepped on the practitioners' heads and necks. The female guard Yu Derong has cursed Falun Dafa practitioners, and then struck practitioners on the shoulders and the back with heavy shackles to vent her anger. Falun Dafa practitioner An Fanglun had both her wrists and ankles shackled. The guard then directed several inmates to push An Fanglun onto the ground and beat him severely. Hou Lijun exclaimed, "You are not allowed to practice Falun Gong exercises. Otherwise, we will beat you up. I don't dare to beat female practitioners to death, but I'm ready to beat to death any male practitioners!"

4. [Xiangfan City, Hubei Province] Falun Dafa Practitioner Abducted for Protesting Peacefully at Her Own Home Gets Out of Prison after Hunger Strike

Falun Dafa practitioner Liu Weishan is an employee of Hanjiang Machinery Factory in Xiangfan City, Hubei Province. Her firm belief in Falun Dafa has infuriated the police at the local police station, who have constantly harassed her. In April 2002, police from Hanjiang Police Station came to her home to forcibly take Falun Dafa books. In May 2002, Liu Weishan protested at the doorstep of her own home against the unjust actions of the police by beginning a hunger strike, abstaining from both food and water. Thirteen days later, Liu Weishan resumed taking food and water and was recovering at home. Several days later, the Prosecuting Council of Xiangfan City issued a warrant and she was forcibly placed under arrest.

Eyewitnesses said that Liu Weishan was very weak and was carried into the police vehicle by several police officers. Liu resolutely refused to cooperate with the evil at the detention center, and went on a hunger strike abstaining from food and water to protest against the unjust custody. She was sent to the emergency room in the No. 1 Hospital in Xiangfan City for half a month of force-feeding. Although she was on the verge of death, her belief in Falun Dafa was as strong as ever. The police worried about taking responsibility, and had to send her home unconditionally on June 14.

5. [Bozhou City, Anhui Province] Randomly Arrested People Are Tortured - the Persecution of Falun Gong Victimizes Everyday People

Following instructions from the "610 Office" [an agency specifically created to persecute Falun Gong, with absolute power over each level of administration in the Party and all other political and judiciary systems], the police in Bozhou City in Anhui Province have escalated their arrests of Falun Dafa practitioners since March this year. The police have put anyone who looks like a practitioner under arrest. Jiaoling Police Station arrested Wang, who is in his fifties, but didn't get any result after interrogation. The police thought that they had never heard of Wang practicing Falun Gong before, and so he must be someone who is "under deep cover." Wang was then sent to the Qiliqiao Detention Center for torture and interrogation to coerce a confession. After failing to get the confession they wanted to hear, the police beat him without restraint. Wang was injured all over his body, and he kept yelling and cursing at the police. The police knew that Falun Dafa practitioners never even say a harsh word against others, yet they continued torturing him. Wang didn't stop cursing until he almost lost consciousness and was too weak to say anything. The police still didn't give up, and they handcuffed and shackled Wang [handcuffing is another form of torture used frequently by the police]. It wasn't until Wang's family members came to the detention center that the police were convinced that Wang was not a Falun Gong practitioner.

Wang's family members saw that Wang was disoriented and there were injuries all over his body. They were so angry that they filed a complaint against the police station and the detention center. The leaders of the police department later learned that Wang's son is a member of the railroad police force and they started worrying about the consequences of their actions. They didn't want this case to spin out of control, so, in exchange for the promise of settling in private with Wang's family, they arranged for medical treatment for Wang and apologized. The news that the police were randomly arresting and brutally torturing innocent people spread overnight through the entire police force and among the public. A senior police officer said, "We have now become a tool wearing a human mask and possessing no human conscience." Through this incident, kindhearted people have seen even more clearly the evil nature of Jiang's political group.

6. [Tianjin Municipality] Police at the Shuangkou Forced Labor Camp Instigate Inmates to Beat Falun Dafa Practitioners

There are five large teams in the Shuangkou Forced Labor Camp in Tianjin. Large Teams 1, 3, 4, and 5 all have Falun Dafa practitioners in illegal custody. Among these teams, the No. 1 Large Team is the most vicious. The police often instigate inmates to beat Falun Dafa practitioners brutally. Practitioners who have just arrived at the team will have to take the beating from police and other inmates. This is called "taking the turns." Practitioners are forced to bend down so their buttocks can be hit by planks or clubs, until some practitioners agree to "quit practicing." Other tortures, for example with electric batons, are also deployed frequently.

In the forced labor camp, the police often forced practitioners to stay up all night to do slave labor. The No. 3 and No. 5 Large Teams have kept tight control of any leakage of information, and details in those two teams are not yet available.

The forced labor camp can illegally extend the terms for Falun Dafa practitioners at its discretion without going through any legal procedure, or notifying the work units or family members.

7. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Staff at Etouwan Brainwashing Class in Qiaokou District Claim to "Do Whatever They Can"

The members of the Etouwan Brainwashing Class in Qiaokou District in Wuhan City, Hubei Province have claimed they "do whatever they can" to force Falun Gong practitioners to give up Dafa. Authorities have deployed so-called "crowd tactics," "fatigue tactics," and "physical penalty" and other tortures in order to break the strong will of Falun Dafa practitioners. The police and collaborators [former practitioners who now cooperate with the police in persecuting practitioners due to the extreme pressure and brainwashing they have endured] often attack individual practitioners in a ratio of three to one in order to deprive the practitioners of sleep. Some Falun Dafa practitioners have been forced to stand for six days straight.

8. [Wuhan City, Hubei Province] Police Conduct Door-to-Door Screening of Tenants in Rented Residence in Guanshan Area

Recently, the police in Wuhan have conducted a door-to-door search and screening of tenants in rented residence in Guanshan and neighboring areas. At the same time, surveillance and tailing were carried out against Falun Gong practitioners in these areas.

(Clearwisdom.net) As practitioners in China face tremendous pressure to give up their beliefs under the Chinese regime's brutal persecution, there are those who have given in and signed documents renouncing Falun Dafa. However, many of these people deeply regret doing so after they are released from detention and labor camps. "Solemn declarations" are the public statements made by such practitioners, often at great risk to their personal safety, to declare to the world that the documents they signed under duress are null and void and that they will continue to practice Falun Dafa.

Here are some of the Solemn Declarations from the practitioners:

• Solemn Declaration by Dafa Practitioners [05/09/2002]
• Solemn Declarations from Some Non-Practitioners [05/07/2002]

Please click here for more Solemn Declarations.

(Clearwisdom.net)

The rumor-fabricating media in China is becoming so ridiculous that even the most loyal communists don't believe their propaganda anymore. A practitioner's colleague said, "The propaganda stuff goes in one ear and out the other; no one takes them seriously, like in 1999." Commenting on the report that "Falun Gong plans to kidnap 500 young boys and girls," a fellow employee said, "I don't believe that! This lie is too ridiculous to believe. No way!"

During a casual conversation among co-workers, a lady said that after retirement she wants to enroll in a university for senior citizens and have some fun learning. A practitioner told her, "By the time you retire, the persecution of Falun Gong will have been stopped long ago and you will be able to practice Falun Gong every day in the park." The lady said, "That's right, after I retire, the first thing I will do is to study Falun Dafa. I really hope that justice will come soon!"

In the Northeast, a practitioner displays banners and other expressions loyal to Dafa in his house. Upon hearing this, the head of the local police station and several officers came to his house and saw Master Li's picture and other banners on the wall. When a police officer attempted to destroy the pictures and banners, the head of the police stopped him and said, "Don't do it. I think they are really good." The officer immediately backed off without a fuss.

Two women were chatting. One said, "Nowadays, the tax collection officials are like bandits. If the shop owner does not present them with something, they will arbitrarily remove valuables from the store to their truck." Another said, "Good people are easy targets for bullying. A Falun Gong practitioner in my village has done all good things and nothing bad, but he was sentenced to a one year stay in a forced labor camp. There are many persons who are committing bad deeds, but no police are trying to punish them.

Practitioners Exchange Insights

From Taiwan Falun Dafa Practitioners: Get rid of the attachment to time, and improve in Fa-rectification. Even when we are busy with work, as long as our thoughts are truly on Falun Dafa, and we wholeheartedly and benevolently want to save sentient beings, we will improve to the highest position of every moment. We will be participating in Fa-rectification with every minute and second that all of our thoughts, words and deeds remain on Falun Dafa.

From Taiwan Falun Dafa Practitioners: Since the government began allowing Mainland Chinese to visit Taiwan for cultural and learning exchanges, the number of Mainland Chinese visitors has been kept at about forty thousand. For the last six months, Falun Dafa practitioners in Taoyuan have been directly clarifying the truth to the Mainland Chinese Government officials and to the tourists in Zhongzheng Airport. With the common understanding of the importance for all fellow practitioners to send forth righteous thoughts, the environment for promoting Falun Dafa in the airport has become easier, and more people are accepting the truth-clarifying materials.

Media Report

Central News Agency, June 29^th Report: Customs officials at Hong Kong's International Airport refused entry to most of the over ten Falun Gong practitioners who came to Hong Kong yesterday evening. The group had planned to protest during Jiang's attendance at the fifth anniversary celebration of Hong Kong's return to Chinese control.

Latest News From China

Falun Gong practitioner Peng Shun'an from Wuhan City, Hubei Province was tricked to come to a police station in December 2001. The officers then sent him directly to a forced labor camp. Twenty days later he was tortured to death. The Chinese government claims Peng Shun'an died from illness, but cause of death and location as claimed by the police differs from that of the hospital.

On May 31, 2002, police in Anda City, Heilongjiang Province kidnapped a female practitioner, Zhong Bo, from her home, and tortured her to extract a confession. Zhong Bo was beaten until the corners of her eyes bled and her face turned black and purple. She fainted. Later, in order to avoid being murdered, Zhong Bo jumped from a window in the office of Politics and Security Division. She immediately lost consciousness and broke two ribs on her right side. She cannot take care of herself.

We have learned that on November 5, 2001 Jiang visited the famous Bolin Monastery, which has existed for more than a thousand years in Zhao County, Hebei Province. He expressed "interest in and understanding of" religions, and shamelessly claimed that he had a "predestined relationship with the Buddha." However, these types of actions and statements of his do not matter; it is already too late for him. No religion in the world can save him because he has committed countless unpardonable sins.

Retribution

Jiang has inflicted immeasurable pain on kind and innocent people. Because of his sins, Beijing was shrouded with unusual and incessant rain that started on June 21, 2002, and is forecasted to last through July 2. According to the Chinese weather department, Beijing is rarely without sunshine for 12 consecutive days. Also, due to this drastic increase, Beijing's cumulative rainfall for June is three times the normal average for that month.

According to news from Xinhua Net on June 26: Since the beginning of June, 54 million people in China have been affected by floods, with 471 people dead and 2.6 million hectares of farmland hit by the disaster, the total direct economic loss reached 17.9 billion Yuan. During the first half of 2002, 110 million people in 18 provinces were impacted by floods; 1.427 million people had to be evacuated in a hurry, 596 people died, leading to direct economic loss of 2.6 billion Yuan.

A true story: 60 years ago in a certain place in Northeastern China, the driver of a three-car horse-drawn carriage came across an abandoned infant along the roadside. On the bosom of the infant, there was a letter left by the baby's mother together with 300 Yuan intended as foster expense. The driver took the new quilt the baby was wrapped in and the 300 Yuan, then ran his carriage over the baby, killing it, and went on his way with the money and the quilt. When he reached the section of the highway not far from my hometown, all of a sudden there was a downpour with lightening and thunder. The driver, along with his horses, were struck by lightning and killed.

(Clearwisdom.net)

1. Getting Rid of Interference, Unwaveringly Strengthening Righteous Thoughts

Ever since the moment I decided to go to Iceland to send forth righteous thoughts in close proximity, various tests came, one after another. Some tribulations were obvious, while others were difficult to detect. Only when the great importance of using righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil factors in other dimensions that manipulate the head of evil is truly understood from Fa-principles, can one not be confused by any interfering superficial phenomena.

First, I met with interference coming from thought karma. For a few days, a thought kept lingering on my mind: "Look at yourself, sometimes you can't even guarantee that you'll do the global, four times daily sending forth righteous thoughts. Could you display your capability to the full extent in Iceland? If your state of mind is not good at that time, you may as well send forth righteous in front of the local Chinese Consulate." These types of self-doubting thoughts continued to flood me. I realized that my basic understanding about the trip to Iceland needed a breakthrough. Through studying the Fa with a calm mind, I discovered that this interference was originating from selfishness. Namely, I was attached to my own cultivation state, rather than truly considering the trip to Iceland from the needs of the Fa-rectification progress, or the angle of being responsible for all positive elements in the cosmos. As soon as I understood, from the Fa, that fulfilling the needs of the Fa-rectification progress is a sacred, duty-bound responsibility of Dafa practitioners, this interference disappeared instantly.

Following this was applying for a visa. After receiving my information, the clerk told me: "Since your time of applying for a visa is so pressing, we cannot guarantee you a visa before your prescheduled departing time (June 10^th)." I replied with a smile: "To tell you the truth, I've already purchased a plane ticket for June 10^th. I believe that you will surely approve my visa." Just as I expected, I got my visa the next morning.

When I told my husband about my plan of going to Iceland, as if begging me, he said: "Iceland is so far away-- just don't go. Jiang will be visiting the US in the next half year. You can go then, for I have nothing against this. Just don't go this time. This way, you can still read Zhuan Falun to me every day, and you can also teach me the exercises." This statement made by my husband, who is not a practitioner, was really not a small test for me. Luckily my head was clear at that time, so I instantly rejected the thought of "waiting". Meanwhile, I realized that my attachment to my husband's obtaining the Fa to cultivate was being used as a test. Even though my husband didn't understand this completely, he still saw me off and gave me a ride when I left for the trip.

The day before I left, I heard a practitioner telling me over the phone: "You guys probably won't be able to enter Iceland. Icelandic Consulates in some areas were already rejecting issuing visas. Those who had gotten visas will be facing the possibility of being barred from entering Iceland." I said to the practitioner: "No matter what news you read or hear, don't ever be affected by it. Just firm up your one thought: as a practitioner following Teacher's Fa-rectification path, only what Teacher says counts. Not only will we be able to enter, also not one single person will be left out from entering the country."

2. Omission in Understanding Created Loopholes for the Evil; Elevating as One Whole Body Enabled Eventual Entering through Customs

Before we left, in the discussion among practitioners, in our minds, we seemed to have tacitly acknowledged the obstacles that we were about to face upon entering Iceland. We even contemplated with human notions how we would deal with them while answering questions. Everyone seemed to think that entering Iceland was the immediate priority, and other issues should be avoided as much as possible. Dafa practitioners' tacit acknowledgement of the obstacles that we were about to face, as well as our anxious intention to pass into Iceland quickly, created loopholes for the evil to exploit.

When we made flight connections in Boston, under pressure by the Chinese Government, the Icelandic judicial department and Iceland Airline respectively gave each passenger an open letter. The limited police force in Iceland, the guarantee for public safety, and etc., were used as excuses to unreasonably request passengers to sign a document to guarantee that any passenger would not participate in any protest and demonstration during Jiang's visit in Iceland. We were also informed that if we refused to sign the document, we would not be allowed to board the airplane.

At the time, since everyone was afraid of encountering obstacles, and hoping to enter Iceland as soon as possible, many practitioners tried to pass the test with human cleverness. We all thought that our entering Iceland was for sending forth righteous thoughts and we didn't plan on protesting and demonstrating to begin with. Some practitioners realized that they should clarify the truth to airline workers. However, feeling that it would be difficult for the airline company to make any changes in such a short time (insufficient righteous thoughts), even though practitioners thought something was not right, we still all signed our names on the relevant documents. Afterwards, in our conversation with a lawyer, we understood that Iceland Airline had no right to ask passengers to sign any papers at all. This kind of action not only violates business ethics, it also violates the law.

Looking back, in fact, it's not that the contents of the signed paper matters-- what matters is that we should not have cooperated with or acknowledged this kind of request that didn't even comply with human legal law. Practitioners' tacit acknowledgement of the evil's arrangement had increased the difficulty of entering Iceland.

Once we arrived at Icelandic customs, our passports were unjustly taken away by the police, after which we were interrogated one by one. Then we were all taken to a closed, isolated school and guarded by the police, and they also claimed that we would be repatriated. Realizing the existence of loopholes in our xinxing, we started group Fa-study, group practice and sending forth righteous thoughts. We explained the true situation to the police, media, lawyers, American Consulate officials in Iceland, officials of the Canadian Consulate in Iceland, school staff and local people who came to support us. After several rounds of heart-shaking, soul-stirring big confrontations in another dimension, between the righteous and the evil, late that night the chief of police of the airport personally delivered our passports back to each and every one of us. He took pictures with us and shook hands with us, and then he sent practitioners off all the way to the town on a big bus.

As a matter of fact, in the Fa, Teacher has clearly told practitioners the three big things that Dafa disciples need to do at present: study the Fa, clarify the truth and send forth righteous thoughts. We cannot neglect any one of them. Wherever we encounter an obstacle, that is the place where we need to clarify the truth. Moreover, clarifying the truth cannot be obstructed by the old forces. The key to overcoming interference is practitioners' state of mind. While participating in Fa-rectification activities, practitioners should not be trapped by everyday people's logical deductions and various assumptions. When practitioners' xinxing reaches the level that they are supposed to reach as a whole, and do things without pursuing, Dafa will naturally display its boundless power.

3. Constant Righteous Thoughts

That night, after checking into a hotel in Reykjavik, I started to meditate and was completely in a wonderful, empty and light state, not feeling my body's existence in this dimension. Beyond the space of a small cosmos of boundless length and breadth is the boundless Dafa of truthfulness-compassion-forbearance. I felt the sacred solemnity of life being melted into the Fa and Teacher's infinite grace. Quietly, with tears flowing, what I broke through were levels after levels of heavens. Being tranquil, I was without a shred of distracting thoughts. After doing heshi and coming out of ding, I really understood this: We always said that we could give up everything and sacrifice everything for Dafa, but in fact, we are the ones who truly gain. Our lives, and everything we have was originally granted to us by Dafa's merciful creation.

We started to send forth righteous thoughts every hour or every half hour. During the break, we studied the Fa, practiced the exercises and kept purifying ourselves. After communicating with the police, we were permitted to send forth righteous thoughts at a location twenty meters away from a road where the head of evil would be passing. When we were about to sit down, the police let us advance another twenty meters from another direction. While sending forth righteous thoughts, I felt strong, pure energy flying out of my head and my palm.

On the day when Jiang was leaving Iceland, Dafa practitioners applied for a permit to a location where he would be passing. The police marked an area with yellow lines and requested practitioners to stay in that restricted area. Several police cars unreasonably blocked an intersection to prevent practitioners from entering the airport before Jiang took off. As if we had prior agreement, two American practitioners and I wanted to break through this unreasonable restriction. With strong righteous thoughts in practitioners' minds, after several attempts, a police officer allowed us to enter the airport. After we broke through this critical point, our mentality of zealotry was triggered and we failed to maintain righteous thoughts. Losing our righteous thoughts for one moment, we saw the police chief's car driving toward us, and we were forced to leave the airport, tailgated by the police.

We realized where the problem lay and understood the key of constantly maintaining righteous thoughts and not being moved by any single shred of human thought. We pleaded with Teacher to give practitioners another chance. Teacher saw our firmness, so on our way out of the airport, we came upon Jiang's convoy face to face. Coincidentally, a police car stopped in front of our car at that moment, helping us to extend our time of sending forth righteous thoughts in close proximity.

I've gained numerous understandings from my trip to Iceland and I cannot describe them all. Our Teacher, who treasures us more than we treasure ourselves, is still waiting for all practitioners to really step forward from humanness and return to the position where our lives originated. Beneath this infinite grace, what reason do practitioners have to not strive forward, to not cultivate steadfastly, and to not fulfill our sacred vows of assisting Teacher in rectifying the Fa with full confidence?

We obtained deeper understandings through the activities of eliminating the evil in other dimensions by sending righteous thoughts in close proximity to the evil head. Dafa disciples from all over the world gathered together for this task. As Dafa disciples during the Fa-rectification period we deeply felt that righteous thoughts and disciples themselves are a unity, which forms invincible power.

At the crowded square many people gathered to watch the practitioners performing exercises. People frequently approached practitioners for more information about Falun Dafa.

Male practitioners demonstrating exercises.	Female practitioners demonstrating exercises.	Teaching exercises on the spot.

Sticking to Dafa disciple's righteous thoughts at every instant

On June 3^rd we departed for our journey to Russia, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. At a club in St Petersburg we sent forth righteous thoughts in close proximity for four consecutive days. We then read Master's "Lecture at 2002 Boston Fa Conference" and held an experience sharing session the next day. We became aware of our shortcomings and realized that we should put equal emphasis on Fa-study, truth clarification and righteous thoughts.

On the afternoon of June 8^th a practitioner went to purchase train tickets to Latvia for our group. However he was told at the ticket office that cabins were sold out and only seats were available. Hearing this, the practitioner hesitated. There were 11 of us, including 4 senior citizens, the eldest of whom was 78 years old. At St Petersburg we hardly rested for four days and were all exhausted. How could they stand a 10-hour train journey on hard seats? Just then, a practitioner standing next to him pointed out, "What are you hesitating for? We have to get whatever tickets are available!"

After boarding the train we realized that our seats were located in the cabin car, and we were supposed to sit on the bottom beds, while the beds above us remained unoccupied. Thus, each of us had a bed to sleep in. We all slept well during the train journey. Upon reaching the capital, Riga, we had fully recovered.

We checked into a hostel near the train station. That afternoon, while we were still resting, the sky suddenly turned dark, followed by strong winds and heavy rains. It was as if the whole city was shaken up. Soon we heard the news that the evil head had arrived. Immediately we all began sending righteous thoughts, and we did not stop throughout the night.

The following day a group of four of us went to the riverbank to send forth righteous thoughts. The hotel where Jiang rested was just across the river. Some of us were leaning against the railings on the bank, and others were sitting on the benches, watching the hotel. A patrol boat moored up nearby and two armed policemen alighted from it, pacing back and forth in front of us. We realized that they were only carrying out their duties and that we should project the righteous image of Dafa disciples. Therefore we stood up, calmly walking along the bridge, towards the hotel on the other side of the river. When we got close to the other side, a bunch of stocky soldiers in neat military uniforms appeared. More soldiers joined this bunch later. What was more, the patrol boat also followed up. The four of us were still talking and smiling in a natural way. A male practitioner walked towards the soldiers, holding a camera in his hand. He asked a soldier if he could take a picture for us on the bridge. The soldier hesitated briefly, before he smiled and took a picture for us. Shortly afterwards, more and more soldiers gathered on the pedestrian area next to the bridge. We realized that the evil head was about to leave the hotel. We quickly walked towards the square near the hotel entrance. Soon the evil head's car came out and we sent forth righteous thoughts with pure hearts. All of a sudden the whole space around the square was covered by a righteous energy field, within which no evil could possibly have survived. After two or three minutes, an ambulance with a loud siren rushed in the direction of the evil head's car.

Upon returning to the hostel, we saw many people passing by, and realized that it was equally important to reveal the truth to the people of Latvia. Therefore we took out flyers from our bags and started handing them out to people in the street. Everyone accepted our flyers. People were very friendly and some of them even stopped and asked us about details. It was only after we showed them the Dafa website address on the flyers that they left happily. Soon we had given out all our flyers.

Before leaving for Estonia, we handed out flyers at the coach station to travelers. Almost everyone in the waiting room was reading the flyers carefully. Just before we left the waiting room, a pretty local girl stopped us and, pointing to the flyer in her hand, exclaimed, "This is great!"

It is equally important to study the Fa, clarify the truth and send forth righteous thoughts - our trip to Estonia.

It was already early evening when our coach arrived at Estonia's capital, Tallinn, a clean, quiet and elegant seashore city. While we were waiting for the bus to our hostel, passers-by were greeting us cheerfully. An aged couple even tried to talk to us in their very limited English. The old man was very pleased to meet us. We wanted to give them a flyer but we were not carrying any with us. But we did have in our hands some candies for them. The old couple left happily. When they were out of sight we truly regretted that we did not have a flyer for them. Indeed, as soon as a gap gets into our cultivation, we can miss some predestined persons at any minute. We must not let such incidents happen.

Upon reaching the hostel we started sending righteous thoughts. It was another sleepless night for us. Several practitioners were sending forth righteous thoughts every half an hour close to the hotel where the evil head rested. We used pure righteous thoughts to eliminate the evil elements in other dimensions that had been controlling the evil head in the human world. Apart from this the only other things we did were study the Fa and share experiences. The practitioners came from different regions and through experience sharing we all understood from the Fa principles the importance of sending forth righteous thoughts. We barely slept that night but our minds were very conscious. We understood further the importance of preserving a righteous energy field.

It was already 9 am when we returned to the hostel the next morning. We were about to take a nap after breakfast but a practitioner informed us that the evil head was going to leave that same afternoon for Iceland. We decided to go immediately. However, this time, we did not forget to bring Hong Fa materials with us. We were handing out flyers all the way to the airport.

Upon arriving at the airport we came to a café on the first floor. At the balcony we could see the whole airport. Each of us got a coffee and sat on a table at the balcony. There was already a China Airline aircraft down there, and a bunch of Chinese representatives were preparing to board the flight. The sun was almost baking the ground's surface. Soon, a red carpet was laid along the runway and military troops as well as government officials arrived. They stood under the baking sun for over two hours waiting. Then came the evil head's car. Suddenly the sun disappeared and chilly winds started to blow. Practitioners sent forth righteous thoughts. We felt our supernormal capabilities as they were sent out and the warm energy flowed through our palms.

Upon returning we split into a few smaller groups. Still, wherever we went we handed out truth clarification flyers. One group met a Chinese merchant and handed him a flyer. To their surprise the merchant dragged the practitioners to a residential zone, and told them that practitioners must persevere and the ultimate success would belong to them. After a meal in a restaurant, we gave the waiter a flyer when we paid our bill. On the way back, we went to a shop to ask for directions. When we were about to give the shop assistant a flyer, he held high a flyer given to him by others. We all smiled joyfully.

Hongfa in an ancient city - our experience in Estonia

It had rained for a whole day. We did not go out and made use of the time to do group Fa study. At night, after reading Zhuan Falun, we had a discussion on our recent two weeks spent in Europe. It became clearer to everyone that during this trip we had placed too much emphasis on sending forth righteous thoughts and did not aptly combine it with fa study and clarifying the truth. This is something we had neglected and hence everyone decided to go out on the streets to clarify the truth should the weather improve the next day.

Sure enough, the next day was a bright and sunny day. However as the flyers we had sent to the shop for photocopying would only be ready at one in the afternoon, we used the time in the morning to repeatedly study Master's "Lecture at the 2002 Boston Experience Sharing Conference." Then we set off. We split into three small groups and headed straight to a popular tourist destination in Tallinn - the ancient city. This is an old city built in the middle of the last millennium. It is very small and the buildings are old yet distinctive and scattered on both sides of a narrow stone road. Those in our group did not go into the ancient city right away. Instead we chose to practice the exercise movements and distribute flyers on a stretch of parkland close to the ancient city. As we practiced the standing exercises, passersby would follow us and stretch their arms, even a policeman on patrol. When all our flyers had been handed out, we went into the ancient city.

On reaching the public square at the heart of the ancient city, we were astonished to discover that it was crowded with people. There were all sorts of restaurants surrounding the square and outside the restaurants many chairs and tables were set up. People sat nearby drinking beer. On one side of the square there was an open air market with many stalls in it and tourists came in and out in an endless stream.(see picture) A stage was set up opposite the market and unexpectedly in front of it were hung Falun Dafa flags in all sorts of colors. On closer inspection, it turned out that a group of practitioners from Australia and Toronto had already begun a demonstration of the exercise movements. What a great opportunity to spread the Fa! And it did not take much effort.(We subsequently discovered from the Internet that practitioners from Australia had negotiated with the manager in order to use this stage). Hence, we immediately went on stage and started a new round of exercise demonstrations (see picture), first the young practitioners, next the elderly practitioners, followed by the female practitioners and finally the male practitioners. We demonstrated the exercise movements repeatedly in the following sequence, the standing exercises first followed by the Falun standing stance and lastly the sitting meditation. We attracted countless observers. Below the stage, practitioners seized the opportunity to hand out information in English, Russian and Estonian. People took the initiative to talk with us and some asked to learn the exercise movements on the spot (see picture). A young Estonian man shyly came forward. Using his limited knowledge of English, he repeatedly said: "I like this music very much," and asked whether there were any practitioners in Estonia. He had a Dafa flyer in his hand.

At night, when it was time to close the shops, the flow of people in the square gradually diminished. I then noticed that the same young man was still standing there quietly watching us, reluctant to leave. Several male practitioners were still meditating quietly on the stage. All of a sudden there came more than ten young men dressed in the same sportswear. Nearly everyone had a bottle of beer in his hand and they created an uproar. It was time to end the exercises. A male practitioner stood up and walked towards the group of young men. He led them to say "Fa-lun-Da-Fa-hao." Thus the young men shouted along with him: "Fa-lun-Da-Fa hao!" The chorus shook the entire square, once again attracting many people's attention. After yelling like this several times, one of the young men asked in English, "What does Falun Dafa hao mean?" The practitioner replied in English: "It means Falun Dafa is good!" With that, everyone cheered once again, pushing the day's activity to a climax.

Wherever we go, we bring the truth with us

On June 13^th, we boarded the plane back to Toronto. We transited at Helsinki. Just as a group of us settled down to wait at the transit lounge, two uniformed policemen (or soldiers) holding guns came to interrogate us. They asked: "Are all of you going to Toronto?" I looked at them, astonished that although they already knew our situation, they still bothered to ask. They continued: "We want to look at your passports. What is your nationality?" Another practitioner and I handed them our passports and replied at the same time: "We are Canadian citizens." They took a look at our passports and then left. We were shaken by the experience: There is so much human traffic in the airport. Since they knew that we were on our way back to Toronto (returning to our own country), they should know our identities, yet they still wanted to check on us--so what was their motive?! We are Falun Dafa practitioners. Wherever we go, we should act in an upright and dignified manner. Thus we took out the only shirt we had with the words "Falun Dafa - Truth Compassion Forbearance" printed on it and took turns wearing it. At the same time, we wore all our Dafa badges on our chest. A practitioner felt that there was a need to clarify the truth to the airport staff. Hence three practitioners went together to the customer service desk and asked to meet the airport manager.

Obviously, the staff on duty already knew our travel plans. He asked us directly: "Have you come from Estonia?" and said: "Today is Sunday; our airport manager is not around. There is only a manager on duty." We said, "Then we would like to meet the manager on duty." Thus, he made a phone call and arranged a meeting for us. After putting down the phone, he asked us our purpose for seeing the manager on duty. We then told him the truth and he seemed to be interested in understanding more about it. He leaned forward and continued to ask questions. At this moment, a Chinese holding a hand phone (and wearing an airport staff badge) came over. Immediately, the staff at the customer service desk changed the topic: "So all of you are heading for Toronto." This was unrelated to the topic we had just discussed. At once, we realized the dilemma he was caught in. The man spoke English with a prominent Chinese accent. We smiled knowingly and returned to our seats to wait for the manager on duty. The Chinese kept watching us from the customer service desk with a hostile look. We sat in our places, unmoved. A practitioner said: "In a while we should also clarify the truth to him." At that moment, the man unexpectedly came walking towards us. He asked us rudely: "How many of you are there?" We looked at him puzzled. He unexpectedly shouted sternly: "I am not from China. Tell me, how many of you are there?" We replied: "We have already been checked once, why are you still checking?" He actually shouted threateningly: "So you have chosen not to tell me!" obviously meaning that we will be responsible for any consequences from our actions. Then he left in anger. We know that everything we do is upright and dignified. Moreover, we had chosen to go on this trip together out of our own free will. Every one of us represents himself and is responsible for his own actions. Therefore there is no reason for us to answer his question!

At this moment, the manager on duty came along with his assistant. Both of them sat down with us at a table. We could tell that the manager appeared slightly nervous. One of the practitioners brought out a few copies of the truth clarifying materials with pictures and began to explain it to them in a very gentle tone. Gradually, they seemed to relax a little and started asking us questions and responding. Actually, in the course of their conversation, they expressed that they are deeply aware that Falun Gong is a human rights problem. It is not only China's problem but also a world crisis.

(Clearwisdom.net)

"The city of Vilnius is together with you all"

Prior to the Chinese president's recent visit to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, two groups of Falun Gong practitioners arrived for some advance preparation. They took on the responsibility of clarifying the truth about Falun Gong to the media and government.

Through the efforts of practitioners, many government employees learned the truth. They were very happy to offer their ideas, suggestions, and help to practitioners. Some NGOs also took the initiative to help practitioners. One government official said ebulliently, "The City of Vilnius is together with you all."

Although there was a language barrier, many Lithuanians showed their support by raising their thumbs up whenever they saw practitioners.

Falun Gong's press conference generated tremendous interest

On the morning of June 14^th, Falun Gong practitioners held a news conference in Vilnius. About 15 reporters from 10 media organizations attended. Falun Gong's news conference was positively reported the same day in the evening news program of Lithuanian TV-1. The next day, the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China by Jiang and his political clique of scoundrels was reported in detail in major Lithuanian newspapers with photos of the news conference. Later on, in order to expose the evil and clarify the truth about Falun Gong from another perspective, practitioners held a second press conference.

Reporters not interested in China's propaganda

Jiang and his entourage held a press conference on June 17^th when they were about to leave Lithuania. When asked if they would like to attend the Chinese president's press conference, reporters told practitioners, "No, we don't want to attend. We are not interested in China's propaganda. We are only interested in the peaceful protesters outside."

During Jiang's visit to Lithuania, there were daily reports about Falun Gong and other protesting groups but very little about Jiang's visit.

The evil cannot exist for long

June 15^th is the Independence Day of Lithuania. All flags were lowered to half-mast to remind people of the pain of losing freedom during the 1940 - 1991 Soviet occupation. Lithuanians showed their solidarity with practitioners when they learned about the persecution that is going on in China now. They used hand gestures to encourage practitioners to keep working hard for the freedom of belief and human rights. The evil cannot exist for much longer.

June 21, 2002

(Clearwisdom.net)

Teacher said in Touring North America to Teach the Fa,

"The third thing is your sending forth righteous thoughts. These are the three things that Dafa disciples need to do at present. Sending forth righteous thoughts is another really magnificent thing for our Dafa disciples. This overwhelming persecution of Dafa, of Dafa students, and of the world's people that has happened since July 20^th of 1999 is unprecedented. In history, the persecutions of Christianity, Buddhism, and other religions were never this evil. Back then there weren't massive media apparatuses like these, transportation means weren't advanced, either, and persecutions were limited to small regions. Today, China's area is vast, and the number of sentient beings who've been victimized is very large--in China alone more than a billion people have been directly victimized. But this persecution isn't limited to just China. This persecution is actually worldwide--the slander has poisoned people's minds the world over. Meanwhile, the lies and propaganda that have blanketed the earth have put enormous pressure on Dafa disciples.

[...]

"When Dafa disciples send forth righteous thoughts, pure and righteous thoughts, to clean out the evil's persecution of them, that's allowed--the old Fa-principles include principles like that as well. This is the same idea as approaching cultivation with righteous thoughts, or as saving sentient beings with righteous thoughts."

During the Fa rectification, I recently came to realize that Dafa has once again mercifully given practitioners another precious opportunity to eliminate evil in other dimensions. In Iceland, I found that the foundation of sending forth righteous thought is the most important. Whether or not we can keep a pure, compassionate heart to save sentient beings determines the effect of our sending forth righteous thoughts. If we have an attachment of pursuit (it is indeed a heart of selfishness), then we cannot focus our minds on sending forth righteous thoughts. Instead, we would appear to be agitated and anxious. As a result, we might become depressed or disappointed if our expectation is not met. Or we might slack off as soon as we got back from Iceland, thinking that we already did our best.

Recently, the clearwisdom website published an article entitled "Humbly Requesting Dafa Disciples Around the World To Send Forth Righteous Thoughts Together with a State of Mind of Divine Beings," (http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2002/6/18/23260.html) and other experience sharing articles written by practitioners who have participated in sending forth righteous thoughts in close proximity to where the evil gathers. All these articles helped to deepen my understanding of sending forth righteous thoughts. I came to enlighten to the following: We need to remove every human notion and use a pure heart to send forth righteous thoughts. No matter where we are, whether or not we have interference, we do not need to think or get attached to anything other than one pure thought, namely, eliminate all evil that damages Dafa, encompassing everything and leaving out nothing.

After I got back from Iceland, I realized that I needed to keep sending forth righteous thoughts. After finishing my work yesterday, my boss was satisfied and gave me another half-day off. I then continuously sent forth righteous thoughts for twelve hours in front of the Chinese consulate until 3:00 am (Beijing time 6:00 pm). However, once I got back, I slacked off without realizing it and developed the attachment of complacency. I thought to myself that I had accomplished a big task at this crucial moment. Most evil factors may have probably been eliminated. Meanwhile, I questioned the effectiveness of this several weeks' intensive sending forth righteous thoughts.

Upon reading articles on the Zhengjian website (Chinese version of Pureinsight.org) about the effect of kind thoughts on water, I suddenly realized that the real meaning of our sending forth righteous thoughts is far more profound than to simply eliminate the evil factor behind a certain individual. It is indeed to let every reachable dimension of every practitioner fill with the righteous thoughts of "eliminate evils that damage Dafa." If each practitioner's dimension is filled with the righteous thoughts of saving sentient beings and leaves no space for any evils, the righteous thoughts will be very powerful; and any evil will be eliminated. There is no reason for evil's existence in that dimension.

After I realized this, I found myself having no doubt about the effectiveness of my righteous thoughts. No matter whether I can see the direct results or not, I can send forth righteous thoughts firmly. We are eliminating evil and intensifying the righteous thoughts in our dimension until the force of Fa-rectification comes to the human world.

I had a grand new realization when I once again read teacher's article "The Effect of Righteous Thoughts." I hope our practitioners are not disturbed by interference, and will send forth righteous thoughts with a steady and pure mind. Our dimensions will be filled with the righteous minds of saving sentient beings. Meanwhile we need to study the Fa well and clarify the truth. Only by doing this will we not disappoint the many lives that have a high expectation of us.

(Clearwisdom.net) Teacher said: "It's hard to save people nowadays. You have to explain things to them by following the logic of their attachments. For the sake of saving them, don't create any obstacles for them." (Touring North America to Teach the Fa), "So in other words, when we clarify the truth to save them, we need to tailor it to the mindsets modern people have." (Fa-Lecture at the Conference in Florida, U.S.A.)

I have [acquired a] more direct and deeper enlightenment to the above-mentioned Fa-principle after actual experience. My father is nearly seventy years old this year. He is very stubborn and conceited after going through all kinds of tribulations in life. He had already started to cultivate Dafa, however under that kind of overwhelming pressure of the evil persecuting Falun Gong, hindered by his own human notions, and also the fact that fellow practitioners at home did not study the Fa well enough and did not do some things in ordinary people's life and work well, he did not admire Dafa from his heart.

All these internal and external factors finally led him to give up his cultivation. Whenever he felt personally hurt by the persecution, he dared not criticize the evil, but expressed his grievances against Dafa, Teacher and fellow practitioners at home. He also said something that was really disrespectful. I felt so bad hearing it, so angry in seeing it, and anxious in thinking of it. Besides, afraid that he would say something disrespectful of Dafa and Teacher, whenever I talked to him about Dafa cultivation, I always had my anger with me. I always seized upon his weaknesses and attachments, and used very unkind words to speak to him sarcastically, satirizing and laughing at him. I was very far away from cultivating compassion. I did not have a peaceful tone and did not have enough compassion, so I could not make him change from his inner heart. There was no fundamental change of his life's nature.

After studying the Fa, I gradually came to understand the harmfulness of my behavior. My behavior not only failed to persuade him; on the contrary it set up an obstacle in his mind and made him have negative feelings towards Dafa. And it may have finally made him lose the chance to be saved. Now that I have calmed down and thought carefully, I realize that as a Dafa disciple, it is very important to always keep one's self in the Fa. The fundamental purpose of the evil old forces is to destroy sentient beings, thus, they always makes use of the practitioners' omissions to damage Dafa. Teacher told us: "The old forces don't dare to oppose our clarifying the truth or saving sentient beings. What's key is to not let them take advantage of the gaps in your state of mind when you do things. " (Teaching the Fa at the 2002 Fa Conference in Boston) "It's best that Dafa disciples walk their own paths righteously and not allow the evil to seize any excuse to persecute you." (Touring North America to Teach the Fa)

So I started clarifying the truth by following what Teacher told us: "When we clarify the truth to save them, we need to tailor it to the mindsets modern people have." "You have to explain things to them by following the logic of their attachments." And I got very good results in clarifying the truth.

My father admired very much those who have their own specialties, especially those famous scientists. Once I told my father that there were lots of people coming from different walks of life who were learning Dafa. I said: "Actually there are many scientists who believe in Dafa and diligently cultivate Dafa too." I said: "Qian Xuesen (the Father of the Chinese atomic bomb) once said that the 21^st century is the century for the science of the human body." He himself believes in Falun Gong. There are thousands of overseas professionals of different areas who also cultivate Falun Dafa."

After I finished saying the above words, I saw his facial expression change greatly. His eyes lit up. Since then, my father obviously changed in his attitude toward Dafa.

He did not understand why Dafa practitioners study the Fa every day. Since he is a teacher, I said: "You are a teacher. You are very familiar with your subject. But why do you still have to make preparations for your lessons every day when it is the same content? What will it be like if you do not prepare your lessons for three days? It is even so for the every day human knowledge. Dafa is such a great and profound Fa that covers all the Fa principles from the lowest level to the highest realms. If you don't study it, how can you get to know all those unknown and high-level Fa principles? If you don't understand the high level Fa, how can you know how to cultivate yourself and what to do? When he heard this, he nodded his head and said yes.

Quite often when he said something that was disrespectful of Dafa, I would tell him the Fa principle of good is rewarded with good, and evil met with evil. However, he always said: "I am an ordinary person. A Buddha or God will not lower themselves to the same level as me." I advised him seriously that if someone refused to listen to this advice and insisted on defying the law, it is not that a God or Buddha would punish him, but rather, his own behavior would decide the terrible results. My peaceful and confident words made my father very surprised; he could hardly say a word for a long time. Besides, both individuals in our family and in our workplaces who persecuted fellow practitioners had received immediate karmic retribution. Seeing is believing. All the shocking reality was placed in front of him. When he saw and heard all of this, he once again felt greatly shocked.

Regarding his fear causing him to deny the evil persecution and instead complain about Dafa, Teacher and fellow practitioners, I said: "The evil is persecuting your family. As the head of this family, you dare not criticize these evil things directly and take the responsibility for your family, but on the contrary you feel angry with Dafa, Teacher and your own family. Aren't you bullying the good and fearing the evil?" My father thought for a while and felt it was true. He realized he was wrong. From then on, he did not argue any more.

As Dafa disciples, we not only supply my father with financial resources, fulfill all our responsibilities as sons and daughters, but also pay close attention to dealing well with our daily lives and jobs in the ordinary people's society so as to harmonize the Fa at the ordinary people's level. At the same time, we use our own words and behavior to exhibit the greatness and beauty of Dafa, making him experience and benefit truly from the Dafa disciples' "rationality," "wisdom" and "benevolence" and understand completely that Dafa transcends the concepts ordinary people. Then, from his heart, he will admire Dafa practitioners and then admire Dafa.

Recently, my father came to visit us. When we talked, my father said from his heart: "Dafa is true." My father not only said these words, but also changed fundamentally from his heart and became very respectful of Dafa. He [now] volunteers to clarify the truth to the world's people actively with his rationality and wisdom.

When we were sending forth righteous thoughts, we invited my father to join us. My father felt somewhat doubtful at the beginning and said: "I am not practicing Dafa any more. Does it work for me to send forth righteous thoughts? Am I entitled to send forth righteous thoughts?" I said: "You are eliminating the evil factors in other dimensions. It is not just for yourself. You are taking responsibility for others too. This is the most righteous and greatest thing. If you have a righteous mind, you will surely play a great role." My father learned the hand positions from us very and took it very seriously.

The next day, my father told us: "Last night, I had a dream where I saw a big snake, but I did not [come to know] how it was beaten to death." Hearing this, we told him: "It was the result of your sending forth righteous thoughts. It is not a dream; it is something that truly happened in another dimension. It is also the compassionate enlightenment given by Teacher who uses this to encourage you to believe firmly in Dafa." My father changed his state of mind [even] more greatly.

My father had given up his own cultivation, using as an excuse the fact that his family members did not cultivate well. We rectified ourselves and tried to think about others first. Hearing this, my father saw with his own eyes, and remembered it in his heart. Finally when he left, he said: "After going home, I will start to do the exercises." I felt so happy after hearing it.

My father is very enthusiastic with the Fa-rectification activities. Whenever there are new articles and lectures by Teacher, he reads them very carefully and thinks about them very seriously. He also participates actively in the Fa-rectification activities. He makes use of his widespread personal relationships to find out the facts about the persecution from the related departments. He often stands guard for us, and points out our gaps in cultivation when they appear.

(Clearwisdom.net) On the evening of June 21, 2002, the sky was clear and the breeze was gentle. Over 1400 practitioners came to Chientan Youth Activity Center in Taipei to have a group Fa study. During the study, practitioners exchanged understandings in small group discussions and concluded that the top three important tasks for Dafa disciples are: studying the Fa well, clarifying the truth and sending forth righteous thoughts.

Besides the normal Fa study group, this time a session of "Group Study and Discussion in Native Taiwanese Language" and a session of "Children's Fa Study Group" were set up to enable the practitioners to bring their family members to join different group classes and experiences exchanges. During the discussions, some practitioners talked about their own experiences and understanding; others listened with smiles on the faces. All attendees found some divisions between themselves and others and became more aware of their own attachments.

Sending forth righteous thoughts (1)	Sending forth righteous thoughts (2)	A Child studying the Fa
Children's Fa group study class	Studying Fa in native Taiwanese language	Morning exercises

One practitioner talked about her experiences of clarifying the truth to everyday people. She said when talking with people, one shall use a light tone and approach them naturally. If you talk about high-level principles at the beginning, it will push the people away and the effect will be negative. Other practitioners understood that because Taiwan and China have more and more economic and cultural exchanges, the propaganda from China is also poisoning some of the Taiwanese people. Clarifying the truth to Taiwanese people is also saving their lives.

That night, practitioners discussed how to send forth pure righteous thoughts and its importance. Some practitioners shared the magnificent scenes they saw when sending forth righteous thoughts and also pointed out that some practitioners' righteous mindset were not steadfast or pure enough so that the evil force took advantage of the gaps in their understanding. After the discussions, practitioners truly understood, "The only way to prevent the old, evil forces from taking advantage of the gaps in your mind is to make good use of your time to study the Fa." (Towards Consummation, June 16 2000).

For this activity, practitioners from north Taiwan area gathered on the lawn to send forth righteous thought before sunrise. During the day, practitioners read Teacher's new articles and shared their experiences in the hotel rooms. The sharing concluded at 9PM and all attendees sent forth righteous thoughts together. The practitioners said they benefited a lot from the experience sharing, Fa study and discussion. They also encouraged each other to progress diligently together.

(Clearwisdom.net) Over the past weekend (June 29 and 30), as usual, many practitioners in the Toronto area went to the Chinese Consulate to silently send forth righteous thoughts. Every practitioner dressed neatly and looked serene and peaceful. The entire field was so solemn that many passersby were moved.

(Clearwisdom.net) On June 29, 2002, about 60 practitioners from New Jersey and New York attended the Independence Day Parade in Montville, New Jersey. The City Council of Montville had passed the resolution that gave full support to Falun Gong and condemned the harsh, brutal and repressive practices of the Chinese Government against Falun Gong practitioners. One of the purposes of attending this parade is to thank the government and people of Montville for their support for Falun Gong. Promoting Falun Dafa to more local people is another aim.

During the parade, besides the exercise demonstration, practitioners performed the "Lion Dance" and "Heavenly Girl Dance," representing the traditional Chinese culture. The exercise demonstration gained a lot of applause from the audiences; the "Heavenly Girl Dance" and "Lion Dance" also left a deep impression with the people. Some practitioners also distributed truth clarifying materials during the parade to let more people learn the truth of how Jiang's regime illegally and brutally persecutes Falun Gong practitioners in China.

After the parade, the practitioners joined the holiday market and introduced the exercises to more people.

(Clearwisdom.net) On June 22, the First Cochranville Health Fair was held at Cochranville, a town close to the border between the states of Pennsylvania and Delaware. Practitioners from Delaware and Philadelphia came to join this event.

Cochranville is in the farm belt, and there are many kindhearted people there. Since the end of last year, with the help of local people, Falun Dafa practitioners from Delaware have come to hold activities once a week to promote Dafa. This year as summer approached, the local people used their spare time to open up a large area in the forest to prepare for the health fair.

With the help of local residents, the health fair committee invited Dafa practitioners to demonstrate Falun Dafa exercises to the fair attendees. We introduced Dafa to the local residents and demonstrated the exercises. Our practitioners' calligraphy deeply impressed the local people and was warmly received. Some bought Dafa books and some immediately learned the exercises. Practitioners taught the exercises very patiently and the people also learned them very attentively.

This health fair was held on the same day as the Chinese Culture Day in Delaware so we were shorthanded. Practitioners from Philadelphia came to support and thus the problem was solved. Splitting into two groups, we clarified the truth to Chinese people (who are the most severely poisoned by the evil propaganda) and also promoted Dafa to the local people in America. The effects were very good.

June 24, 2002 Major Business News

Foreign direct investment is generally agreed to have been one of the most important contributors to China's rapid economic growth over the past 15 years. China has become the world's second largest recipient of FDI, ranking behind only the United States. The $43 billion it received last year is more than the amount invested in all other Asian economies, excluding Hong Kong which functions as an entrepot for China and Asian nations.

In 1986, China received just $2 billion in FDI. But since then the amount has increased at a compound annual rate of over 18%, steadily rising from 1986 until 1997 with a slight decline since then, when measured using the value of the dollar in 1995.

Most experts expect FDI in China to continue to grow in the coming decade. Of a group of recognized authorities on China whom I surveyed a few months ago, 38% expected it to continue to grow by less than $3 billion a year, a similar percentage expected an annual increase of $4 billion to $8 billion, while 12% expected the increase to exceed $8 billion.

But experts are typically more reliable in interpreting and explaining the past than forecasting the future. That explains their general consensus on the crucial role FDI has played in China's economic growth so far. It also highlights the dangers Beijing faces if FDI begins to fall. According to my initial calculations, China's annual economic growth has been boosted by 0.9% to 1.6% for each $10 billion of FDI. That means if annual FDI falls by $20 billion, China's current 7.3% growth rate could be almost halved.

In forecasting what will happen rather than in explaining what has happened, the experts have frequently gotten it wrong. Consider, for example, their failure to forecast Japan's stagnation in the 1990s against that nation's background of remarkable growth in the 1970s and 1980s; or their failure to predict the plunge in the economies of Korea, Indonesia and Thailand during the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98, or the protracted slow growth of Germany in the 1990s.

Of course, this time the experts might be right, and FDI in China will remain at high levels or even increase in the coming decade. But equally they could be wrong again, and FDI could fall substantially, with serious consequences for China's economic growth.

The difficulty of predicting this with more certainty hinges on the many unanswered questions -- both inside and outside China -- that are likely to affect its attractiveness as an investment destination. These include whether the impending transition from a third-generation to fourth-generation leadership will bring harmony or friction, and whether the present unrest in rural areas spreads to China's cities, affecting political and social stability.

Other unanswered questions include whether China will move towards or away from a rule of law in which property rights are respected, equities markets expand, corporate governance becomes more responsive and transparent and corruption recedes rather than advances. The outlook for FDI in China will also be materially affected by whether the Chinese yuan remains stable while moving toward full convertibility, how far the huge volume of non-performing loans on the balance sheets of China's four state banks continues to grow and whether this triggers a financial crisis.

There is also the uncertainty over how far and how fast China will honor the market-opening commitments it made as part of its entry into the World Trade Organization. Indeed these may affect FDI in more ways than one. While there is disagreement over why FDI has had such a positive impact on China's economic growth, one possible explanation is that the preferential treatment accorded to foreign investors enables FDI to take advantage of opportunities within China that are inaccessible to domestic capital due to the internal trade barriers that currently exist among China's 31 provinces. But many of these may have to be dismantled as part of China's market-opening obligations following WTO entry. In particular, the international trade body's "non-discrimination" rule should end the current discrimination against domestic investors and so lessen the advantages that currently act as an attraction to foreign investors.

With increasing integration and competitiveness in global capital markets, whether FDI in China falls or grows will also depend on the environment in rival destinations for foreign investment, including the emerging markets of Korea, Russia, Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, Taiwan, South Asia and Latin America, as well as in the capital exporting nations themselves. And, of course, it will also depend on how investment is shared among these destinations.

Hence, China's ability to attract FDI in the future will depend on other countries' political stability, their development and protection of property rights, corporate governance, the rule of law and any discovery of natural resources. It will also depend, in particular, on China's ability to maintain reasonably harmonious relations with its neighbors, including the U.S., Japan, the European Union, Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

In the past, FDI has been lured to China by the attraction of its potentially huge market. But in most instances, that promise has not been matched by results. Thus far, very few foreign investors have made significant profits in China, although the accounting practices followed by their large parent corporations often tend to obscure this.

Nonetheless, this lack of profits means that some of the previous optimism is being replaced by increasingly hardheaded calculations of the costs and prospective returns that come from investing in China. That means the amount of FDI which flows into China in the future will depend to a much greater extent than in the past on the risk-adjusted, after-tax return on investment that China offers, relative to other opportunities available to investors elsewhere in a world of globally-integrated capital markets.

The ensuing stakes for China are immense. If the combination of internal and external factors influencing FDI in China moves in an unfavorable direction, China's currently high level of economic growth will be seriously eroded. This prospect will and should, as Dr. Johnson observed, "concentrate the minds" of China's policy makers.

Mr. Wolf is senior economic adviser and corporate fellow in international economics at Rand Corp., and a senior research fellow at the Hoover Institution in California.

Staff Reporter in Shanghai

06/29/2002

Page 7

Shanghai's cyber-police have launched a drive to ensure Internet firms censor anti-government news and viewpoints, and will shut down any which violate state regulations. A sweep of Shanghai-based Web companies is targeting sites that publish information about pro-democracy activists, advocates of an independent Tibet, and [practitioners] of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement. Zhang Xiaoyu, who heads the Internet News Division of the city's Propaganda Bureau, said his office "is checking Web sites for any materials related to Falun Gong [...]".

[...]

He said in addition to inspecting all Shanghai Internet cafes, authorities had decided to examine content on Web sites. Some companies had been ordered to stop publishing banned information.

The Shanghai Daily reported that Web sites publishing information from sources other than state-controlled media, such as foreign Web sites or newspapers, could be closed down.

The newspaper also said managers of Web sites had a duty to censor banned political and religious views from news and bulletin boards, and warned violators could also face being shut down.

07/01/2002

Page 4

Fears over a deterioration in freedom of speech have been voiced by the Hong Kong Journalists' Association, which says a series of incidents show the Government is taking a tougher stance to curb dissent.

In an annual report on the freedom of expression in the SAR, the press body called on the administration to pledge not to enact a proposed anti-subversion law which it said would further restrict press freedom.

Mak Yin-ting, who chairs the association, said the Government had become less tolerant of minority views.

"Instead of preaching tolerance towards such opinions, officials seem more intent on restricting the freedom of expression and assembly of those who do not agree with the general direction taken by the administration," she said.

The report said evidence that freedom of expression was "under siege" included proposed enactment of an anti-subversion law which the administration is required to implement under the Basic Law. Both the Government and Beijing have recently stated there is a need to legislate soon.

The group criticised the arrest and charging of three veteran activists for allegedly organising an "illegal assembly" because they had not given notice to police in advance of their planned activities.

The report also cited evidence such as the banning of demonstrations outside government headquarters, the barring of US-based dissident Harry Wu Hongda from entering Hong Kong, and the ban on foreign Falun Gong [practitioners] entering the SAR to demonstrate.

It also criticized police for arresting and handcuffing three journalists when they covered a police operation against abode seekers camping out in Chater Garden, Central, in April.

The association said the proposed anti-terrorism law would further curb press freedom. Ms Mak said the series of government moves would harm the SAR's international image.

[...]

07/01/2002

Excerpt from report by Radio TV Hong Kong audio web site on 1 July

About 100 Falun Gong [practitioners] continued their sit-in outside Immigration Tower. They displayed banners calling on President Jiang Zemin to stop the persecution of practitioners on the mainland.

They also complained that the place allocated to them for their protest was out of the sight of the venue for the fifth anniversary [of the handover] celebrations. They said it was another sign that Hong Kong's freedoms of expression and religious belief were slowly being eroded. Their spokeswoman is Sharon Xu:

[Xu] The Hong Kong SAR [special administrative region] government has been under a lot of pressure, restricting or even banning the group here, and I think that kind of pressure gets reflected in a lot of things that they do with us.

For instance, we have been trying to rent a public venue to hold a conference from the government. It was never successful. This time we had, I think, close to 100 practitioners overseas trying to come in and attend our activities, and they were barred from entering the territory. And basically this is a repeat of last year's incident where about 91 practitioners were refused entry. So all these [things] are telling us that the freedoms of Hong Kong that Hong Kong people are so proud of [are] really deteriorating. [End of recording]

[...]

1 July 2002 / 12:48 AM

About 150 Falun Gong practitioners demonstrated outside the Immigration Tower in Wan Chai yesterday as part of an attempt to petition President Jiang Zemin over treatment of the [practitioners].

The group held a candlelight vigil last night and planned to continue their protest overnight. They are hoping to petition President Jiang, who will attend the flag-raising ceremony near the Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai this morning, in a bid to ''stop China's suppression'' of [Falun Gong]. They are also protesting against the SAR government's alleged denial of entry to overseas practitioners.

Protest spokesman Kan Hung-cheung said that in the past four days, more than 100 Falun Gong practitioners from overseas were refused entry to Hong Kong, including 48 from Taiwan. He believed Beijing had exerted pressure on the SAR government to restrict immigration during the period of the anniversary.

Kan said the government's repatriation of Falun Gong practitioners was a backward step in Hong Kong's freedom and democracy.

[...]

http://hk-imail.singtao.com/inews/public/article_v.cfm?articleid=33341&intcatid=1

Monday July 01, 2002

The Ottawa Citizen reported that the Falun Gong meditation [group] has complained that more than 90 practitioners were barred from entering the territory where they hoped to protest while Jiang attends Monday's ceremonies that also will include Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa being sworn in for a second five-year term. "This is obviously suppressing dissident voices," said Law Yuk-kai, director of the Hong Kong Human Rights Monitor, after he was manhandled by police at one of several demonstrations marking the anniversary of Hong Kong's return from Britain to China on July 1, 1997.

[...]

One Falun Gong [practitioner], Australian citizen Leon Wang, was detained at the Hong Kong airport Sunday and he told The Associated Press in a phone call he saw two women being wrapped in plastic and carried onto an airplane after they refused to co-operate with officials.

"I'm here to meet some clients, but they didn't even ask me what I'm in town for," said Wang, a 31-year-old Sydney businessman who said he has traveled to Hong Kong several times before without problems.

Hui Yee-han, a Hong Kong Falun Gong spokeswoman, accused the authorities of tying the hands and feet of some overseas [practitioners] of the group as they tried to enter Hong Kong to protest against Jiang's efforts to eradicate Falun Gong in Mainland China.

Hui said since June 22, immigration authorities had turned away 96 [practitioners], including two Americans, 67 Taiwanese, 13 Australians, four Japanese, two Swedes, one Swiss, two Singaporeans and one Indonesian.

About 75 local Falun Gong [practitioners], however, were still able to stage meditation exercises outside Hong Kong's immigration headquarters Sunday.

[...]

Beijing has has carried out a [suppression] that Falun Gong says has left hundreds dead in police custody. The group remains legal in Hong Kong and frequently protests there against its suppression in China.

When Jiang last visited for an economic conference in May 2001, Falun Gong said 100 of its [practitioners] were turned away by immigration officials.

The Hong Kong Journalists Association and a British-based group called Article 19 - The Global Campaign for Free Expression voiced fears that the next five years under Tung's leadership will see erosion of local freedoms and autonomy.

They released a report, entitled The Line Hardens, that cited moves to enact an anti-subversion law, a tougher approach against Falun Gong practitioners and the barring of prominent Chinese-American dissident Harry Wu from visiting the city.

"Officials seem more intent on restricting the freedom of expression and assembly of those who do not agree with the general direction being taken by the administration," said Mak Yin-ting, the journalist association's chairwoman.

http://www.southam.com/ottawacitizen/newsnow/cpfs/world/020630/w063007.html

Monday, 1 July, 2002, 09:40 GMT 10:40 UK

[...]

"Hong Kong's government does not see the irony in prosecuting people for blocking the pavement, and then ripping it up itself "

Discouraging dissent

On Connaught Road on Sunday, workers were digging up a pavement to lay a flowerbed. Not to make the area more attractive, but to stop [practitioners] of the Falun Gong meditation movement staging demonstrations on the doorstep of offices used by mainland Chinese officials.

Sixteen Falun Gong [practitioners] are on trial, arrested for causing a public obstruction on this spot. Hong Kong's government doesn't see the irony in prosecuting people for blocking the pavement, and then ripping it up itself.

"The 16 practitioners should never have been brought to court to be tried," says Sharon Xu, a Falun Gong spokeswoman. "They were conducting a very peaceful sit-in petition, and were not any obstruction to anyone. I think this says that freedom of expression is slowly going away."

At Hong Kong's airport this week 100 Falun Gong practitioners coming from Asia and Europe to join local demonstrations were detained and then deported. Chinese dissidents have suffered the same fate.

Last week it was Harry Wu, an American-Chinese human rights activist. A clear message is being sent - if Beijing doesn't like you, you will find it hard to get into Hong Kong.

[...]

But most lawyers would say you should not be put on trial simply for being an opponent of the government in the first place. But increasingly it appears to be happening.

[...]

Worse to come?

Lawyers like Margaret Ng worry because the government is considering even tougher anti-subversion legislation.

"We understand the rule of law as a restraint of the government's power, as equality, as protection of individual rights," she says, "but C H Tung understands the rule of law to mean that the government will pass harsh laws to take away rights and make police officers exercise their maximum power to carry out policies of the government."

Five years on, many have serious concerns about civil liberties in Hong Kong.

They believe freedom of speech and freedom of assembly, the independence of the press, academia, and the prosecution system are being harmed.

These are the very liberties that have made Hong Kong one of Asia's richest cities. Without them it will be a poorer place.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/asia-pacific/newsid_2077000/2077589.stm