(Clearwisdom.net) From the 21st to 24th of February 2005, an European Union conference was held in Strasbourg, France to discuss the resolutions of the International Human Rights Convention, which will be held in this March. European Falun Gong practitioners gathered at the EU Congress Hall to stage an anti-torture exhibition and an exercise demonstration to remind the EU and the world that the Chinese Communist regime have not let up in their campaign of genocide against Falun Gong. The number of kidnappings, illegal arrests and practitioners killed in this persecution has increased more quickly in recent times. The methods of persecution are various, brutal and savage. The persecution is spreading to other parts of the world: around the Chinese New Year, many practitioners around the world received phone harassment from the Chinese Communist Party. EU should uphold democracy, freedom and human rights and respond to the persecution.

Appeal in the harsh weather

Real-life models re-enacting torture used in China

More than fifty Falun Gong practitioners from France, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark took part in this activity. Although the weather was unusually cold, with wind and snow forcing another protest group to leave the square earlier in the morning, Falun Gong practitioners were not swayed and persisted with their appeal. Practitioners from Paris departed at 1:00 am and arrived at the site at 8:00 am. Many of them were older, but they were very active and did not lag behind the others in displaying banners, distributing leaflets and demonstrating the exercises.

Photo Displays

Group Practice

Beside the anti-torture exhibition were banners with huge slogans in Chinese, English, French and German, reminding people what is happening in China. The exhibition of photos showed the spread and popularity of Falun Dafa around the world, as well as the persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist regime. The attention of passersby was attracted by the Falun Gong exercise demonstration; many people in passing vehicles opened their windows and stretched their hands out to take a leaflet. People visiting the EU lingered in front of the anti-torture exhibition, they talked with practitioners and carefully read the posters about the methods of persecution used. At the end of the afternoon, a passing group of students eagerly stretched their hands out to take leaflets from the practitioners. A gentleman came out of the EU Congress Hall, grabbed the hand of a practitioner playing the role of a torture victim and tried to give her money. The practitioner thanked him and told him that she could not take his donation although she accepted his goodwill, saying the only thing that she wanted was that he supports Falun Gong and calls for justice for the 100 million practitioners who are suffering human rights violations.

Practitioners acting as the torture victims suffered greatly from the cold and shivered from head to foot. One practitioner said: "When she remembered that this has been happening to practitioners in Mainland China every day for almost six years, she finds the cold easier to bear and realises the importance of this activity to raise awareness and call for an end to these human rights atrocities.

German practitioner Wei Xiong, who was detained in Beijing for two years, also came to the site to expose the persecution to EU officials with her personal experience.

Source http://clearharmony.net/articles/200503/25175.html