Vancouver, Canada: Gunman Assaults Falun Gong Practitioner Outside Chinese Consulate -- Practitioners Ask Canadian Government to Help

August 2, 2007

(Clearwisdom.net)

The Falun Dafa Association of Canada has just released the following statement:

The Falun Dafa Association has learned that this morning around 5:30 am, three Asian men attempted to destroy Falun Gong protest boards in front of the Vancouver Chinese Consulate while practitioner Raymond Zhang was meditating. Moments later Zhang had a gun pointed to his head and was beaten severely. Zhang suffered head injuries and was quickly taken to the hospital. A police report was filed soon after.

Zhang is one of 80 practitioners who go regularly to the Vancouver Chinese Consulate site on Granville St. to protest the illegal persecution of Falun Gong in China, what the United Nations has called "cruel and brutal." Practitioners have been holding their peaceful appeal 24/7 outside the Consulate for six years now. Zhang's mother and sister have both endured torture by the communist regime. Daily vigils are also being held in front of Chinese Embassy and Consulate in Ottawa and Toronto.

Ongoing Attacks Against Falun Gong Practitioners in Canada

Across Canada incidents of assault, intimidation and harassment toward Falun Gong practitioners have been reported over the years. These incidents often involve the Chinese Embassy and consulates directly, or involve persons in the community directed by the Chinese officials, or caused by the hate propaganda against Falun Gong by the Chinese missions. In March of this year Ms. Jiyan Zhang, the wife of a Chinese diplomat in the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa defected and exposed the existence of a political office inside the Embassy specifically for spying on and attacking Falun Gong and dissidents in Canada.

In June, former First Secretary of the Chinese Embassy in Australia who defected in 2005, visited Canada and also told of the #1 mission of all Chinese officials in Canada and around the world is to protect the image of the Chinese communist party and threatening and attacking Falun Gong overseas.

"The Chinese Communist Party has always relied on violence, lies, and advocating atheism to maintain its power. They could not understand Falun Gong practitioners' peaceful efforts to protect their freedom of belief. Now they feel they can't let people know about what has been done to Falun Gong in China."

Besides violent assaults, in the past eight years numerous Canadian practitioners have suffered severe mental torment, such as blacklisting, surveillance, threatening of personal safety, and threatening the safety of relatives living in China. Reports filed at local police stations across the country show barrages of harassing phone calls and email attacks originating from China to homes of practitioners in Canada. Falun Gong practitioners have also been deprived of their legal rights and benefits, such as refusal or delay in issuing visas or renewing passports, and loss of membership in certain overseas Chinese organizations.

The hate propaganda pumped into Canada by the Chinese Embassy and consulates against Falun Gong practitioners has also caused severe harm and has damaged Falun Gong practitioners' reputations and mental well being, forcing them to face discrimination, physical attacks and isolation from other overseas Chinese.

Falun Gong is the #1 human rights violation in China today. China has not seen an attack on its people of such force since the Cultural Revolution, where every social, legal, and government apparatus is forced and manipulated to eliminate a targeted group from society. In March 2006 The UN Special Rapporteur on Torture reported that 66% of the victims of alleged torture and ill-treatment in China were Falun Gong practitioners. The report States: "The cruelty and brutality of these alleged acts of torture defy description."

The Falun Dafa Association of Canada calls on the Canadian government and police to investigate this latest assault and demand the Chinese communist regime immediately stop harassing, distributing hatred and attacking Falun Gong practitioners here in Canada or face expulsion. These officials must be taught that this is Canada, not China and unlike China, they must adhere to respecting human rights and will be held responsible if they break them.

Contact:
Sue Zhang
Falun Dafa Association B.C. Branch

More information: http://faluninfo.net

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