(Clearwisdom.net) Clearwisdom.net reporter Su Jing reports from Houston.

On April 25, 1999, more than 10,000 Falun Gong practitioners went to State Department Appeals Office located on Fuyou Street in Beijing to peacefully appeal regarding the unlawful detainment of practitioners in Tianjin. Their peaceful appeal drew the world's attention, but Jiang's jealousy and paranoia.

In the span of five years, Falun Gong practitioners have spread Falun Dafa and "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" to more than 60 countries and regions. Falun Gong practitioners have been peacefully resisting the persecution, and have embarked on an unprecedented journey.

April 25^th commemorative activities

At 4:00pm-6:00pm on April 24, 2004, practitioners gathered in front of the Chinese Consulate to send forth righteous thoughts and practice the exercises. There was a new banner that read, "Commemorate the fifth anniversary of 'April 25^th' peaceful appeal, call for the end of the persecution and bring the perpetrators to justice" in front of the consulate. As soon as the banner was unfurled, a young man who had been waiting aside walked up to a Western practitioner and asked, "Why are you sitting here?" The practitioner talked to him about Falun Gong and gave him some information and material. That young man listened attentively and kept taking pictures of the practitioners sitting in meditation. He left about 30 minutes later.

A graduate student whose research subject is Falun Gong interviewed several practitioners. She recorded the practitioners' different backgrounds, as well as the positive changes both physically and mentally they experienced after practicing Falun Gong.

Another person saw the practitioners doing the exercises so serenely and harmoniously, and took photos of them. A Falun Gong practitioner walked up to him to give him some material. He said, "Be quiet, please, the scene is so beautiful!" After he finished taking the pictures, the practitioner tried to give him the materials for the second time. The man said gratefully, "Thank you, thank you." Several people came to take photos or videotaped the scene.

From 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm, the practitioners held a candlelight vigil in front of a lawn at another place near the consulate. The practitioners displayed a row of candles at the roadside and peacefully sent forth righteous thoughts. It was so quiet, the only sound coming from the rain.

From 10:00 am to 1:30 pm on April 25, 2004, the practitioners went to the major supermarkets in Chinatown to distribute materials and clarify the truth. They also set up a Falun Gong information desk, and talked about Falun Gong to passersby. As copies of truth-clarifying materials and VCDs were passed to people's hands, more and more people are learning about the truth.

During these activities, some Falun Gong practitioners talked about their feelings regarding commemorating the fifth anniversary of April 25th.

Ms. Guo said, "I had just begun practicing Falun Gong when the practitioners appealed on April 25, 1999. Five years have passed. Over the past five years, I personally experienced and witnessed how Falun Gong practitioners have peacefully and rationally strived for their right to practice freely. From the April 25^th peaceful appeal to today's lawsuits against Jiang, the head culprit for persecuting Falun Gong, no matter where we go and what we do, whether it's peacefully appealing in front of the Chinese Consulate, distributing truth clarification flyers in Chinatown or exposing the persecution of Falun Gong in community activities, we have kept the same principles: peacefulness, rationality, kindness and tolerance. In these five years, the world's people have also witnessed all of this."

A Falun Gong practitioner from China said, "I started practicing Falun Dafa in 1996. I was able to understand clearly the true meaning of life, my character has improved, and my mind has become broader. I changed from a 'medicine bottle' to a healthy person without illnesses. Master saved me and so many other people. In Mainland China, I witnessed the immense power of 'Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance' awakening countless people's kind hearts; I saw the physical and mental benefits they have received. However, Jiang's group carried out a ruthless persecution against Falun Gong practitioners. On the fifth anniversary of April 25th, I have a lot to say. In the past five years, More than 100 million Falun Gong practitioners have persevered against the bloody suppression. With Master's teachings, we have become more rational and mature in these five years."

Falun Gong practitioner Julie and her husband Leon also shared their feelings. Julie said, "April 25^th is a monument in our hearts. Five years ago today, ten thousand Falun Gong practitioners walked to the State Department Appeals Office to appeal. They faced violence and autocracy peacefully and rationally, bearing the principle of 'Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance' in mind. During the five-year bloody persecution, Falun Gong practitioners have been unceasingly displaying Falun Gong's wonderfulness and peacefulness to the whole world, without resentment or regret. My husband Leon and I became practitioners at the end of 2001. In the past two years of participating in Fa-rectification and the cultivation process, in the face of Jiang and his followers' interference and damage overseas, we have been peacefully and rationally clarifying the truth to the public, so that countless people who have been deceived can see clearly the evil nature of the persecution. Rain or shine, when it was as hot as high as 114 F in Houston, My husband and I and our fellow practitioners have never taken a break, because we have righteous thoughts in our minds, and no violence or viciousness can cause us to waver. When we passed truth clarification material and VCDs to people, and when we saw them awaken, we saw the truth of Falun Dafa spreading in the world."

Mr. Song said, "In a span of five years, facing Jiang and his followers' lies and slander, in the face of attacks from the propaganda machine of an entire country and the most brutal torture, Falun Gong practitioners have gone through unprecedented tribulations, but we have resolutely adhered to the principle of 'Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance,' safeguarded Dafa, told the facts to the world's people, and peacefully and rationally resisted the persecution. More and more people have learned the truth. Lies cannot cover up the truth, and eventually the whole country will oppose the persecution."

No matter how Jiang and his followers have viciously slandered and persecuted Falun Gong and Falun Gong practitioners, the world's people have seen more clearly their true nature. Falun Gong and "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" have entered people's hearts. The far-reaching and profound principles of Falun Gong have attracted people from all walks of life to join cultivation, including professors, PhD candidates, graduate students, doctors, engineers, researchers, housewives and workers from every profession. Falun Gong has enabled millions of people to become healthier and improve their moral standard. This is a great, unprecedented monument in history.