(Clearwisdom.net) On June 18, 2010, just a year ago, Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Ji Guizhen of Suzhou, China, was sentenced to three years of forced labor after a show trial. She was charged with possessing Falun Gong materials, discovered when her home was ransacked in July 2009. Her daughter Xu Anlan, a resident of Offenbach, Germany, asked for support from local Falun Gong practitioners. Since July 2010, practitioners have held a signature drive every Saturday and opened a booth in a pedestrian zone in Offenbach. In the fall of 2010, the signature drive was moved to downtown Frankfurt to take advantage of the much larger crowds and international visitors that come there, and especially to reach more Chinese tourists. After one year and 42 signature drives, more than 10,000 signatures have been collected.

Ms. Ji Guizhen with her granddaughter

Every Saturday morning, around 10:30 a.m., Falun Gong practitioners set up the yellow-white tent, display the signature book and informational materials that tell of the persecution of Falun Gong in China, and begin to demonstrate the exercises. The practitioners have become well-known on Zeil Street, the biggest shopping area in Frankfurt. They are well-accepted by the business community and other organizations that regularly show up every Saturday at that location. The practitioners are always there – even during freezing temperatures and downpours and on days when no other groups show up. It has been an entire year for the signature drive. Dominik, the organizer of the Saturday signature campaign, has experienced a lot over the past year.

Xu Anlan, Ms. Ji Guizhen's daughter, holds a petition calling for her mother's release

“In the beginning I was skeptical and had strong reservations because I knew nothing about the lady [Ms. Ji], and had just met Anlan for the first time. Secondly, I had heard negative information about that town [Offenbach],” Dominik said. Yet, they set up the booth every Saturday in downtown Offenbach, to tell the public of a daughter’s concern for her mother.

The early doubts by Dominik that the immigrant citizens in Offenbach wouldn’t be of much help disappeared rapidly. He said, “From our experience, the foreign-born citizens are much more willing to help than the Germans. This probably is because most of the foreigners understand suppression from firsthand experience in their homeland. The Turks stopped by with their families and signed the petition. Africans spoke with us for hours. One man from Iran shot a film and told us that he would put it on the Iran blog on YouTube. People from Albania shook our hands and thanked us. People from Amnesty International stopped by and praised us for our efforts. Even the vice mayor stopped by and signed our petition.”

Dominik has a lot to tell. “Locals in Offenbach were very helpful. Passers-by helped with parking, unloading and giving advice as to all we could do and say and told us of the best location for our informational booth. People took the signature forms home for their relatives or the people in their respective communities to sign. People took the signature forms to their mosques and their churches. One elderly German lady passed by and took a signature form to the weekly market to have all those she knew sign.”

Dominik at the Frankfurt booth

Dominik in conversation with a passerby at Zeil

People in Frankfurt sign the petition

In the fall of 2010, Frankfurt practitioners moved the informational booth to one of the largest of Frankfurt’s street malls. Frankfurt, as the European Trade and Banking hub, is constantly visited by a large number of international visitors. This is the place where one will meet people from all walks of life and cultural backgrounds.

“Here is the place where we can touch the hearts of more and more people, so they will get to know us and support our efforts. Every Saturday, more and more people sign our signature petition,” explains Dominik.

“It happens all the time that people will return one week later, bringing their relatives and friends to sign the signature petition. People will frequently ask what else they can do and how they can continue to support our efforts.”

Frankfurt is a favorite destination for Chinese tourists. In 2010, 80,000 Chinese tourists visited Frankfurt. Many of them stop at the booth. Here they can learn the true reason for the persecution of Falun Gong in China and what Falun Gong is all about. They gladly accept the informational materials and newspapers that were specially translated into Chinese. Here they can form their own opinions and decide what is right and what is wrong.

Passersby shopping at the Zeil notice the gentle exercise music and the practitioners performing the exercises outside the booth. Many among them are searching for an effective spiritual practice or a valuable exercise method that helps body and mind. Dominik was happy to share that since the beginning of the weekly signature drive, several new practitioners now come regularly every Sunday to the practice site in the park.

With strong hope in their hearts that the persecution in China will come to an end, Dominik and his fellow practitioners will maintain this informational booth until Ms. Ji Guizhen is released.