Falun Dafa Practitioners Invited to Speak at University of Virginia Human Rights Concert (Photos)
(Clearwisdom.net) (by Clearwisdom Reporter Liu Dong) On March 20, 2004,
many student human rights organizations at the University of Virginia held an
open-air human rights concert to focus attention on the human rights
violations around the world. Falun Gong practitioners of Charlottesville were
invited to give a speech on China's persecution of Falun Gong. From noon to 5 p.m., the concert was held at the open-air theatre at the
University of Virginia. Though it was windy, many teachers and students
concerned about human rights came to the concert. The band also attracted many
students. The teacher and students of a dance class came to present a folk
dance to the audience. The organizer knew a lot about Falun Gong. He even took photos of Falun
Gong appealing in front of the Supreme Court in Washington DC. He
enthusiastically invited the Falun Gong practitioners to participate in the
concert and arranged the time for practitioners to introduce Falun Gong and
the persecution. Falun Gong practitioner and post-doctoral student Cui Fushuang introduced
Falun Gong to the audience, "The Chinese government supported Falun Gong
before 1999, but because of his jealousy, the former president, Jiang Zemin,
banned Falun Gong on July 20, 1999. Since then, thousands of Falun Gong
practitioners have been arrested, detained, sent to forced labor camps, jailed
or even tortured to death. The persecution is not limited to China. Jiang's
regime has extended the persecution across the world. For example, in America,
the officials of the Chinese Embassy and Consulates frequently put pressure on
the American government not to support the human rights of Falun Gong
practitioners. They harass Falun Gong practitioners, and instigate hatred
against Falun Gong in Chinese communities." Dr. Cui told the audience an experience of his own. He said, "During the
Human Rights Summit between China and America in 2001, a few friends and I
participated in an appeal in Washington DC. After I returned to Florida, I
called my parents in China. To my surprise, my parents were very worried and
frightened, especially my father. This worried me because my father has a
severe heart disease. My father said that Chinese police told them that I had
been appealing in Washington DC. The police also said they recorded all the
phone calls I made to China and they knew about all my activities in America.
The police asked my parents to stop me from participating in any Falun Gong
appeal. Otherwise, the consequences would be severe. The police also mentioned
that my passport was going to expire soon. In early 2002, I applied for a
passport extension. Just as they warned in China, an official at the Houston
Consulate called me and asked me to give up practicing Falun Gong. I refused.
After that, my passport extension was denied. This brought me a lot of trouble
in my study and work." Dr. Cui continued, "because of this persecution, I haven't met my parents
for five years, and they can't see their grandson. But compared to the
experiences of many other Falun Gong practitioners in China and overseas, the
persecution I experienced is relatively minor. I hope all people can be aware
of the persecution and help to end it. You can contact the Bush Administration
and ask them to sponsor a human rights resolution at Geneva United Nation
Human Right Commission meeting. You can also call your congressperson and ask
them to support House Resolution 304." The audience gave a warm response to the practitioner's speech. Many people
came to the Falun Gong desk to ask for materials and sign their names on the
petition form asking for the release of American citizen Charles Lee, who has
been illegally detained for over one year. One lady came up to the practitioner and said, "Thank you for your
sharing!" Another Korean student introduced himself and said he was working on
a human rights project. He would like to invite the practitioner to give a
speech about Falun Gong. There were three Israeli practitioners in south Virginia participating in
the event. They drove one hour to join the concert. Though they practiced only
a short time, they were very active in introducing Falun Gong and exposing
Jiang's brutal persecution. Days ago, they drove 3 hours to join the St.
Patrick's Day parade in Norfolk. Practitioner Alon said, "I remind myself
every day: I am a Falun Gong practitioner, I will do well what I ought to do."
Singing for peace
Introducing China's persecution of Falun Gong to
students and teachers
Clarifying the truth
Israeli practitioners in Norfolk St. Patrick's Day
parade
Chinese version available at
http://www.minghui.ca/mh/articles/2004/3/23/70673.html
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