Bern, Switzerland: Falun Gong Practitioners Raise Awareness of the Chinese Communist Regime’s Persecution

(Minghui.org) Swiss Falun Gong practitioners have introduced the spiritual practice to passersby on Kornhausplatz in the center of Bern at least once a month since September 2022. After hearing about the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution of Falun Gong, many passersby have said that Falun Gong should be promoted and the CCP’s brutality must stop.

Introducing Falun Gong to people and talking about the CCP’s persecution

Andrea was drawn over by the practitioners’ exercise demonstration on Kornhausplatz on November 5, 2022. She said the scene was beautiful, and she hoped that more people could learn about Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa. “The values of Falun Dafa, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, are what each of us should treasure in our lives. This is what we need as human beings,” Andrea said.

Andrea was aware of the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong. She knew that practitioners were persecuted in China and that many had been killed for living according to Falun Gong’s principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. She also knew that the majority of the victims of the CCP’s state-sanctioned organ harvesting were Falun Gong practitioners. She and her friend Louise signed the practitioners’ petition calling to end the persecution in China.

Andrea said she was indignant that the CCP conducted forced organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners for profit. She wanted to see the CCP’s crimes end. “I can’t turn a blind eye to this,” she said.

Andrea had some thoughts about why the CCP persecutes Falun Gong. “They [the CCP] clearly see that this practice makes people start to think for themselves, which is also an important theme in China. They [the CCP] do not want people to have their own ideas but want everyone to have only one idea, to be in line with them.”

Andrea hoped that practitioners would persevere, and said Falun Gong should be promoted. “Thank you very much for your dedication,” she said.

Falun Gong Benefits Society and Should Be Promoted

Sebastian Rumpf is a barber who runs his own shop. He had learned about Falun Gong from previous events and newspaper articles.“Falun Gong is very peaceful,” he said. “They [Falun Gong practitioners] have their own beliefs, lifestyles, and exercises, but this is not what [the CCP] wants. So they have become a target of the regime and are persecuted.”

“It’s too bad that something like this still happens today,” he said. He signed the petition and said he planned to share what he had learned with more people. “Because this is very important, people should speak out to support Falun Gong practitioners. They [Falun Gong practitioners] bring benefits to society. It should be promoted,” he said.

Resuming Falun Gong

Beatrice Mettler came across Falun Gong practitioners in Bern on November 26, 2022. She said that 10 years ago, she had learned Falun Gong in New York, and she has always remembered her experience.

“It was such a beautiful feeling,” she recalled. “The practice is so beautiful, people can feel the energy. It’s such a good energy and so calming. It’s like being charged. I always remember it. It is impressive and still fresh in my memory.”

When she saw the Falun Gong practitioners in Bern, she felt a connection and approached them. “My heart told me to stop, and I could feel the joy in my heart. I think it’s really great and was happy to have such an opportunity. It’s very good for me. It is a kind of impetus, and I plan to go to the Rose Garden to continue learning Falun Gong.”

She said that Falun Gong is peaceful, and the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong should not have happened and must be stopped. She signed the petition to support Falun Gong practitioners.

Background: What Is Falun Dafa and Why is the CCP persecuting it?

Falun Dafa (also known as Falun Gong) was first introduced to the public by Mr. Li Hongzhi in Changchun, China, in 1992. The spiritual discipline is now practiced in over 100 countries and regions worldwide. Millions of people who have embraced the teachings, which are based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, and have learned the five exercises, have experienced improved health and well-being.

Jiang Zemin, the late former head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), perceived the spiritual discipline’s growing popularity as a threat to the CCP’s atheistic ideology, and on July 20, 1999, he issued an order to eradicate the practice.

Under Jiang’s personal direction, the CCP established the 610 Office, an extralegal security organization with the power to override the police and judicial systems and whose sole function is to carry out the persecution of Falun Dafa.

Minghui.org has confirmed the deaths of thousands of practitioners as a result of the persecution over the past 23 years. The actual number is believed to be much higher. Countless practitioners have been imprisoned and tortured for their faith.

There is concrete evidence that the CCP sanctions the harvesting of organs from detained practitioners, who are murdered to supply China’s organ transplant industry.