By a German practitioner
(Clearwisdom.net) On July 25, the annual 30-day Bayreuth Festival,
featuring the operas of Richard Wagner, began in Bayreuth, Germany. The 2007
Bayreuth Festival attracted celebrities, dignitaries, the media, artists and
film stars from Berlin, Munich and all over the world. People going to see the opera stop and read the posters
exposing the Chinese Communist Party's atrocities At the same time, initiated by the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution
of Falun Gong (CIPFG) and supported by many human rights organizations, the
Human Rights Torch Relay lighting ceremony was held in Athens, Greece on August
9. Falun Gong practitioners in Bayreuth held a truth-clarification
display with information about the Human Rights Torch Relay, as well as
materials to help people learn about the tide of quitting the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP), and distributed the Nine Commentaries on the Communist
Party. They also handed out information exposing the eight-year
persecution of Falun Gong and the CCP's atrocity of removing organs from living
practitioners for profit in the organ transplant industry. By the third day of the opera festival, during which seven operas were
performed, many audience members told the practitioners who were distributing
leaflets: "I have already got a leaflet." "I've learned the news
and already signed the petition." "I will carefully read your leaflet
when I get home." "I signed the petition after reading your
posters." "You've done a very good job." "There should
definitely be someone doing this." "I am an artist. I went to Beijing
three years ago. The human rights situation there simply cannot be tolerated. I
will sign the petition." and "All four of my family members have
signed the petition." An elderly opera fan with a noble demeanour added,
"An Olympic Games without the Communist Party should be held." During the Bayreuth Festival, ninety percent of the people who signed the
petition told the practitioners that they had been to China. Many of them knew
about some of the worst cases of human rights there and were not surprised at
the CCP's organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners. However, though
it has been over a year since this most heinous of crimes was disclosed, CCP
hospitals, especially military hospitals, are continuing to do such operations.
Many people who attended the Wagner Opera Festival could not imagine such an
atrocity. The distribution of leaflets about the Human Rights Torch Relay and
boycotting the CCP's blood-stained Olympic Games and the collection of
signatures continued into the twelfth day of the opera festival in Bayreuth.
Many politicians and VIPs and their spouses accepted leaflets from the
practitioners, including German Chancellor Merkel, the incoming governor of
Bavaria, the Minister of Ministry of Interior, the EU President, the former
German Foreign Minister, the Minister of the Economic Department, the Mayor of
Nuremberg, the former Mayor of Bayreuth, leaders of all political parties, as
well as many movie stars and singers. Some asked for two copies, saying that the
extra one was for their friends. Other activities such as speeches, rallies and a photo exhibition were also
held in the city center of Bayreuth during the Bayreuth Festival. It is expected
that the Human Rights Torch Relay will continue for about one year and will
include over 100 cities in dozens of countries on five continents. By means of
the Human Rights Torch Relay, the CIPFG hopes to call on the international
community to pay attention to the CCP's violation of the spirit of the Olympic
Games, the infringement of human rights and the persecution of groups and
individuals in China. They hope to stop the CCP's atrocity of harvesting organs
from living Falun Gong practitioners and prevent the 2008 Olympic Games in
Beijing from deceiving the world and concealing the tragic crimes taking place
in China.
Posting date: 8/14/2007
Original article date: 8/13/2007
Category: Falun Dafa Worldwide
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2007/8/4/160171.html