By a Falun Dafa practitioner in Washington, DC
(Clearwisdom.net) On the morning of September 29, 2005, Falun Gong
practitioners in Washington, D.C., capital of the United States, held a press
conference at the Rayburn House Office Building to express gratitude to the
Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the U.S. government and
the U.S. Congress and other organizations for rescuing Falun Gong practitioner
Ms. Li Weixun from Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, China. At the press conference, Dr. Liu who teaches at American University, spoke on
behalf of Falun Gong practitioners in Washington. DC, "The United States
was established for those who escaped religious persecution 300 years ago. Three
hundred years later, the United States can still uphold freedom of belief and
human rights, and provide asylum for Falun Gong practitioners. The United States
will also be protected by Heaven." Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Li Weixun was detained numerous times by the
Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for persisting in practicing Falun Gong. She was
savagely tortured by the CCP police in early January 2002. She could not move
her arms or legs, and she could not talk or eat. When she was on the brink of
death, the perpetrators reluctantly approved medical parole and sent her to a
hospital for emergency treatment, only after strong repeated requests from her
family and friends. During her stay at the hospital, four police officers
watched her around the clock. Ms. Li successfully escaped the monitoring and
left China, and she obtained UN refugee status in Thailand. The plight of Li Weixun and other Falun Gong practitioners who live in exile
obtained recognition from the U.S. Congress and the U.S. government. Chairman of
the House Judiciary Committee James Sensenbrenner, who is very influential in
the U.S. Congress, sent a letter to the U.S. Congressional committee that is in
charge of accepting refugees, urging the congress to carefully deal with the
cases of Falun Gong practitioners' applications for refugee status. On September 21, 2005, with the help of the UNHCR, the U.S. government and
several non-governmental organizations, Li Weixun arrived in America and ended
her several years of homeless and life in exile and ultimately obtained freedom. At the press conference, Li Weixun said, "I'm very grateful to the U.S.
government, U.S. Congress and the people of the United States for rescuing and
helping me. The U.S. government has accepted me and other Falun Gong
practitioners before me and provided us with a basic living guarantee. This has
brought encouragement and good news to the righteous forces in the world and
victims, protesters and people who love freedom despite being under the control
of dictatorship. This is a good beginning." Regarding the present situation of the international community, Ms. Li Weixun
said, "Most countries' governments have been discussing human rights [with
the CCP] in private, but avoiding directly facing the Falun Gong issue. This way
of being manipulated by the CCP has obviously not been able to stop the
persecution. It should be noted that the CCP's genocidal eradication and
implication policies against Falun Gong practitioners is not only harming them
physically, but what is more shocking, it is destruction and slaughter of
people's spirits and beliefs! What is worth noting, is that if the international
community continues to show indifference and compromises like this, then human
beings will lose hope." Ms. Li continued, "However, the United States
did not keep silent, and thus has set a good example for other countries. I
believe the United States will do even better in the future." At the press conference, practitioners also responded to the question of many
people who are wondering if Falun Gong is getting involved in politics. Dr. Liu
said, "From the beginning of the persecution until today, Falun Gong
practitioners' aim has never changed and will never change, that is, to end the
persecution. We have never been interested in political power. All that we have
done is to let people see clearly the truth, so as to end the persecution
imposed upon Falun Gong practitioners." Dr. Liu said, "In the past six years, Falun Gong practitioners have
spent a lot of time and our own salaries, and practitioners inside China have
even risked their lives to clarify the truth to the masses of
Chinese people. Many people have learned the truth, but there are still many
people who do not want to listen. Because in the past years, the CCP's
propaganda inside China has made many Chinese people have a negative opinion of
us, even hatred towards us. They even believe that we are anti-China. Then why
do they have such opinions of us? I think it is because of the CCP's
brainwashing propaganda over the past several dozens of years, which has led to
people's confusion and mixing of two different entities -- China and the CCP.
Their way of thinking has even followed the CCP's line. Therefore, we feel it is
a very necessary step towards stopping the persecution, to help people learn
about the true nature of the CCP, how was it established, all the crimes it has
committed against the Chinese people and the warped logics it has instilled into
the Chinese people's mind."
Ms. Li Weixun speaks (on right)
Dr. Liu representing Falun Gong practitioners in Washington, DC
Posting date: 10/2/2005
Original article date: 10/2/2005
Category: Falun Dafa Worldwide
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2005/10/1/111594.html