France: People of All Ages Support Falun Gong during the Haute Savoie Autumn Fair (Photo)
By a Swiss practitioner
(Clearwisdom.net) The village of Houte Savoie is located in Southeast France. It is adjacent to Geneva, Switzerland. Swiss Falun Dafa practitioners come here in the weekends to introduce Falun Dafa to the local people. An autumn fair took place here on the first Saturday in October. All the spaces were reserved but a last-minute withdrawal allowed us to set up a Falun Dafa information stand in the busiest part of the fair. The village mayor came to greet us and said, "This space is very good because you will have a lot of people passing here." Villagers and children looking at the photos depicting the persecution experienced by Falun Gong practitioners in China. Members of the public were immediately drawn by the photos of the methods of torture used by the Jiang regime to attempt to force Falun Gong practitioners in China to betray their beliefs. Many came to look for a long time, listened attentively to the practitioners' explanations and were truly touched. They asked what they could do to help as they signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution. Numerous groups of young people and children stopped in front of the photos with very serious and thoughtful faces. They asked, "Can we sign the petition?" A father who signed the petition told us that it was his little girl of eight years who had taken the flyer and had given it to him saying, "Daddy, you have to go and sign." Another little girl understood that in China there were policemen who beat and tortured people, while in the western world the police are there to help and protect us. She felt it is as if the world was the wrong way round in that far away foreign country. The upright actions of these children are particularly touching when one remembers their Chinese counterparts: the many children of Falun Gong practitioners who have become orphans due to the persecution in China. A policeman who was responsible for security at the fair came to the Falun Gong stand several times. He had already seen the exercise demonstration outside. He said was touched by Falun Dafa's guiding principles of Truth, Compassion and Tolerance, and is trying to put them into practice in his everyday life. Several people who were in a hurry promised to stop by later. They returned especially to sign the petition. One lady was unable to return, but the next day we met her by chance and so we were able to talk to her about Falun Gong and the persecution. Some who had practiced in the past came and told us that they always held Falun Gong in their hearts. They were very shocked by the torture photos. Thus people from this village and vicinity all learned about Falun Gong and were deeply moved. 
Chinese version available at
http://minghui.org/mh/articles/2004/11/6/88486.html
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