Washington State: Falun Gong Practitioners Conduct "Legislative Day" to Clarify the Truth to Legislators and Media and Appeal for the Rescue of Charles Li (Photos)

By practitioners from Washington State, USA

(Clearwisdom.net) On Thursday, February 6, 2003, Falun Gong practitioners from Washington State conducted "Legislative Day" at Olympia, the state capital. A "Legislative Day" is a way for nongovernmental groups to meet and talk with state senators and assemblymen. On this day, Falun Gong practitioners held a press conference on the Capital grounds, calling upon the public to help rescue Mr. Xiangchun Li (Charles Li). "Journey of Falun Dafa" Photo Exhibition and a reception to express gratitude were also held simultaneously at the "Women's Club" nearby.

Some practitioners preparing to meet legislators	Practitioners hold a news conference at the state government hall

Legislators and reporters visit the "Journey of Falun Dafa" photo exhibit and chat with practitioners	Visitors view the photo exhibit	A western practitioner performs with guitar to conclude the photo exhibition

From 8:30 am to 6 pm, Dafa practitioners separately visited 27 state senators and assemblymen or their assistants who represent their districts. With their own experiences in cultivation practice, practitioners talked to the legislators from different perspectives about what Falun Gong is, the worldwide spread of Falun Gong, the persecution of Falun Gong in China, as well as the current effort of rescuing US citizen, Mr. Charles Li. During the meeting, state government officials carefully listened to practitioners' words and asked many questions. They also provided many suggestions. Some showed their special interest in Asian culture, some asked questions about the persecution, some officials told practitioners that they would raise the issue of rescuing Charles Li to their congressmen.

At 1:30 pm, practitioners held a press conference at the Capital, calling on people from all walks of life to help rescue Mr. Xiangchun Li. Two reporters from The Olympian, the most important newspaper, came to conduct on-site interviews. At the press conference, practitioners clarified the truth from different aspects. They introduced the peaceful journey of Falun Dafa throughout the world, the Jiang regime's persecution which started in 1999, updated information about the Falun Gong family rescue effort in different places, and how US citizen Mr. Charles Li was unreasonably arrested in China. A western practitioner who had been detained for five days when she went to Beijing last February to appeal for Falun Gong also told of her plight in China. After the conference, reporters took pictures of practitioners' exercise demonstration and interviewed a few practitioners. The next day, in the "Legislation" column, the newspaper positively reported this press conference with an article entitled, "Falun Gong adherents bring plea to Capitol".

The "Journey of Falun Dafa" photo exhibition held at the "Women Club" also attracted many government officials, staff and reporters. Through viewing the photo exhibit, people learned more about Falun Dafa. A state senator especially came over to find out what Falun Gong is. He had been sent a Christmas card signed by many Chinese and western practitioners. He said that he felt honored to receive practitioners' greeting card and he loved the three words, "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance." That was why he came to find out more about Falun Gong. Practitioners accompanied him to view each photo and answered each of his questions. Later he tasted delicious Chinese food that practitioners had prepared and chatted with practitioners.

In the end, the "Legislative Day" was concluded with a lyrical guitar performance by a western practitioner.
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2003/2/9/44233.html

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