By Minghui/Clearwisdom reporter Kerry Huang and Ying Wang in San Francisco

Practitioners demonstrate exercises

Practitioners protest the CCP's persecution

(Clearwisdom.net) The Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco was held on the evening of February 11, 2006. Due to pressure from the Chinese Communist regime, Falun Gong's application for participating in the parade was turned down by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

On the day of the parade, to protect the practitioners' right of freedom of speech, the San Francisco police provided a place on the parade route for the practitioners to express themselves. ABC, NBC, CBS and other TV networks, as well as the Associated Press, sent reporters to interview practitioners. Many people took pictures of the practitioners' exercise demonstration.

Reporter from ABC interviewing practitioner

Reporter from CBS interviewing practitioner

Reporter from NBC interviewing practitioner

KCBS reporter interviewing attorney representing the practitioners

Videotaping the practitioners exercise demonstration

At a little after 2:00 p.m., the practitioners went to their designated area. With golden exercise outfits on, the practitioners demonstrated the exercises and the waist drum performance periodically. Some women practitioners danced in colorful costumes, and young practitioners participated, as well. Practitioners put up all kinds of banners on the barricades to introduce Falun Gong, condemn the persecution by the Chinese Communist regime, and call for an end to the persecution that has been extended to outside of China.

Many spectators watch the practitioners

Spectators watch the young practitioners' dance

Flower basket dance

Young practitioners performing the ribbon dance

Chinese traditional drum

Spectators watching and taking pictures

Falun Gong spokeswoman Sherry Zhang pointed out that the organizer of the parade was directed by Rose Pak, who carried out the persecution against Falun Gong in San Francisco. The Falun Gong group has applied for participation in the Chinese New Year Parade since 2000 and was rejected in every year except for 2004. The application was approved in 2004, but only because the application was done under the name Falun Dafa instead of Falun Gong, and the review board didn't know that the two were synonymous. Ever since the persecution against the Falun Gong started in 1999, Rose Pak and other pro-communist persons have supported the Chinese Communist regime's persecution of Falun Gong in the Bay Area.

Sherry Zhang said that Rose Pak is a personal friend of Jiang Zemin, the main culprit of the persecution of Falun Gong. Personnel from the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco have even pronounced her as a tool in the persecution of Falun Gong.

After the persecution started in 1999, the Chinese Chamber of Commerce held a conference against Falun Gong in San Francisco. Practitioners were beaten up by a group of thugs when they were doing the exercises and distributing truth-clarifying fliers at the corner of Chinatown Park in San Francisco in October 2000. A witness said that after police apprehended the perpetrators, Rose Pak intervened, and eventually the perpetrators were released.

According to a report from the Sing Tao Daily on November 23, 2001, Rose Pak was praised and rewarded by the Chairman of the CCP Jiang Zemin, for hindering the passage of a resolution to protect Falun Gong practitioners' human rights in San Francisco. When she visited China, she received a welcome and treatment befitting visiting heads of state.

In February 2002, former Mayor of Beijing Liu Qi and Deputy Governor of Liaoning Province Xia Deren were sued by practitioners in San Francisco for torture and crimes against humanity. According to court records, Rose Pak sent a letter in the name of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the judge on their behalf. In the end, the Federal Court found Liu Qi and Xia Deren responsible for the charges.

Sherry Zhang pointed out that Rose Pak spread rumors before the parade, saying that Falun Gong would "stir up trouble". After Falun Gong's application for the parade was rejected, the media in the Bay Area paid a great deal of attention to the issue and interviewed the practitioners.

Sherry said, "Ever since the Chinese Communist regime started to persecute Falun Gong, they have kept making up lies to try to maintain the persecution. But the truth cannot be hidden forever. Each time they assault Falun Gong with lies, it backfires. Today, all of these prominent media outlets came and saw the peace and beauty of Falun Gong. Didn't this counteract what they were trying to do?"

Many spectators came and complimented our performance, and expressed that we belonged in the parade.

A spectator named Donna watched the practitioners demonstrating the exercises and traditional Chinese dances from the other side of the street. She said that she came from Sacramento for the Chinese New Year Parade after two hours of driving, and after seeing the Falun Gong group and the beautiful dances, she wanted to know more about Falun Gong. She said, "This group can participate in any parade in San Francisco except for the Chinese New Year Parade. I'm shocked."

Shanna from San Jose expressed that she knew about the persecution against Falun Gong. She said, "I know why the Chinese Communist regime would persecute Falun Gong. I am here to watch the parade. I think every group should be allowed in the parade, and so should the Falun Gong group. I know that people don't have human rights under the Chinese Communist regime. Not allowing Falun Gong group in the parade is awful, and this is in the U.S."

Practitioner Zhang Hong expressed that the Lunar New Year is something all Chinese people celebrate. She said, "Even though we didn't walk in the parade, we demonstrated peacefully to people the exercises of Falun Gong and traditional Chinese culture. We displayed a cultivator's sense of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" and shared our compassionate smile with everyone. We just want to let people know what Falun Gong really is. We simply practice "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance"."

Seeing practitioners distributing introductory materials, a local resident indicated that not allowing people who follow "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" to participate is wrong. He also said that the practitioners' performances were very touching.

The practitioners kept doing the demonstration to show people the beauty of Falun Dafa till the end of the parade. Two patrol officers gave their thumbs-up to the practitioners when they passed by.

Regarding the discrimination by the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, attorney Joseph Breall, who represents the practitioners, stated that a lawsuit against the Chinese Chamber of Commerce is expected to commence in April of this year.

Posting date: 2/15/2006
Original article date: 2/15/2006
Category: Falun Dafa Worldwide
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/2/13/120697.html

 Yearly Archive  Printer Version