(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioners from London gathered at St. Martin's Place on May 21, for an event to raise awareness of the 17-year persecution in China.
Falun Gong activity at St. Martin's Place in London, to raise awareness of the persecution in China.
The activity was widely supported by people from all walks of life. Many tourists and local residents signed the petition to support Falun Gong's peaceful resistance.
Philip and his daughter sign the calling for an end to the petition.
Retired engineer Philip had heard about Falun Gong before, but he was not aware of the brutal persecution that has been ongoing for so long.
“This must be stopped immediately,” said Philip and he and his daughter talked to practitioners for a long time. They could not understand why a government would suppress such a peaceful cultivation group. A practitioner explained that the teachings of Falun Gong, centered on Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, are opposite to the communist party's ideology, and the party is afraid of this traditional belief and of losing the control of people's thoughts.
Philip believes that he sees the reason of the persecution now. “This is due to the tyrants' paranoia. They are worried about losing their power, so they harass and suppress their own people. This is what Stalin did in Russia, and now the Chinese Communist Party has the same worry.”
McCoy hopes that his signature will help stop the persecution.
Retired librarian McCoy simply could make a connection between the persecution and the peaceful meditation in front of him. He'd heard about the persecution a few months ago, and today he signed the petition. “The persecution has gone too long. It is time to end the communist party,” he said.
Dan would like to learn more about Falun Gong.
Dan has seen practitioners' peaceful protests in front of the Chinese Embassy many times, and always wanted to learn more about Falun Gong. Today, he asked practitioners many questions, and signed the petition. “I should have come to learn earlier and done more to help stop the persecution,” he said.
Ms. Pitt condemns the state-sanctioned organ harvesting in China.
Retired physician Pitt was shocked when she heard about the state-sanctioned organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners in China. She said, “I feel shame on my Chinese colleagues [who are participating in the illicit organ harvesting].” She signed the petition calling upon British lawmakers to help stop the organ harvesting.
Mike, an American movie producer, is concerned about the human rights violations in China. He said, “Everybody should stand together and stop the human rights persecution in China.”
Two local school teachers praised the practitioners' efforts. “Well done. You should let more people know about the persecution,” one said when signing the petition. “We wish you success!”
After talking to practitioners for an hour, an Italian tourist, who had never heard about Falun Gong, signed the petition.
