(Minghui.org) The number of Chinese renouncing their Chinese Communist Party (CCP) memberships increased exponentially in 2014. During the last quarter, over 110,000 people were quitting the Party a day, putting the cumulative total at over 190 million.
Chinese tourists, about 10% of the total population, offer a unique window into the changing sentiments in China today. This article gives a few such examples.
Heard in Hong Kong: Withdrawing from the CCP Is Common in China
Hong Kong Falun Gong practitioners held a march on December 7, 2014, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the publication of the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party – the book that triggered the grassroots movement of Chinese quitting the CCP.
A first-year undergraduate student from Guangzhou was very excited after watching the march.
“I knew about the book the Nine Commentaries. Some of my friends and I have renounced our memberships in the Party,” he said. “The book is well-known, and withdrawing from the Party is common in China. Many people who go to other countries like Hong Kong and Macao bring that information back to China.”
Ms. He from Zhejiang said she had just withdrawn her Party membership with the help of a Falun Gong practitioner.
“I admire the freedom of speech in Hong Kong. In China, such news is tightly controlled. I seldom hear of it,” she said.
A mainlander videotaped the Divine Land Marching Band during the 2015 New Year parade in Hong Kong.
“Touching, very touching. I am at a loss for words,” he said. “Every note moves my heart.”
Practitioner Canrong said that many Chinese people have already learned the truth about Falun Gong and the persecution and are eager to quit the Party. When she greets them and asks them if they wanted to quit, they agree without hesitation.
Practitioners in the 2015 New Year's parade
The parade also encouraged people to quit the Chinese Communist Party organizations.
Heard in Washington, DC: The CCP Is Not China
The National Air and Space Museum is usually the first stop for Chinese tourists at the National Mall in Washington, DC. Falun Gong practitioners try to reach them in a variety of ways. Banners, display boards, pictures, and radio broadcasts have all been effective at getting the message out.
Many visitors from China stop at the Falun Gong site when they first arrive. They take pictures of the banners and read them out loud: “There's only hope for China when the CCP disintegrates,” “The CCP is not China.”
Some have commented, “Exactly!” while others read the display boards silently.
A young man from the coastal area of China spoke with a practitioner for almost an hour.
Finally he asked, “What is your real purpose in asking people to quit the CCP?”
The practitioner answered, “It's not for power or money; we are simply helping our fellow Chinese. The CCP has killed 80 million innocent Chinese citizens over the past six decades. It persecutes Falun Gong practitioners and even harvests their organs for profit.
“Seeing through the evil nature of the CCP and dissociating oneself from the CCP offers a person fundamental inner peace and freedom. Our nation will have hope once we reconnect with our traditional cultural roots without interference from the CCP.”
The young man seemed pleased with the response.
Practitioners in DC maintain a daily presence outside the National Air and Space Museum to help Chinese tourists to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations.
A graduate student from Shaanxi Province told practitioners that he had read about the persecution by circumventing the Internet blockade. He emphatically agreed when a practitioner asked him whether he would like to quit the CCP.
Chinese tourists usually have very packed schedules and don't have much time to spend at the National Mall. Yet, some have chosen to allocate a portion of their precious time to practitioners.
A woman and her son rejoined their tour group after sightseeing on their own. Their fellow tourists quickly encouraged them to quit the CCP as well.
“You should quit the CCP. Don't miss out,” they said. The mother and son quit soon afterwards.
“You guys shouldn't miss out on the National Gallery of Art. You have all quit the CCP already,” said the practitioner who was with them.
However, the group was reluctant to go.
“No. It doesn't matter. Please tell us more. We like listening to you,” one of the tourists said.
Received in Singapore: A Note Requesting Help to Quit the Party Organizations
Mount Faber is one of Singapore's oldest hilltop parks. It's a good place to get a panoramic view of the central business district. Large numbers of tourists from China and around the world visit this scenic spot every day.
Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Dai found a note slipped under the cushion she was meditating on one morning. It read:
“Hello! I see you're busy, so I've jotted down this note. Please help me withdraw from the Youth League and the Young Pioneers [two organizations affiliated with the CCP]. I applied for Party membership, but never joined. I now announce that my application is invalid! My name is ___. I hope to see you again!”
The note left for Ms. Dai at Mount Faber in Singapore in August 2014
South Korea: Group Withdrawals
Falun Gong informational display boards next to a tour bus in Seoul, South Korea
A group of Chinese tourists saw Falun Gong banners as soon as they arrived in South Korea.
“Falun Dafa is good,” they read aloud.
Twenty-six out of the 30 quit the CCP. Some shook hands with the practitioners and thanked them profusely.
Ms. Gao said that she once helped 540 Chinese renounce their communist organization memberships in one day. She says that group withdrawals are a characteristic of the particular tourist site she maintains in Seoul.
Groups of tourists board their buses with Falun Gong materials in their hands. They read the materials before the buses leave. As the buses depart, some wave to practitioners or give them a thumbs-up.
(To be continued)
