Issued by Clearwisdom Net

My name is Hans Hogrefe, and I work in the office of Congressman Tom Lantos, who is the founding co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. I am proud to have the responsibility of helping the Congressman arrange the many activities of the Caucus, including events in support of Falun Gong.

Mr. Lantos could not attend the event today, and he sends his regrets. He also sends you his greetings and expresses his strong support for your cause. Mr. Lantos and many of his colleagues have long denounced the injustices of the People's Republic of China, including its treatment of Falun gong practitioners.

The Congressional Human Rights Caucus was the first forum in the U.S. congress in which Falun Gong practitioners came and discussed their peaceful meditation system and shared information regarding arrested family members. They gave reports of mistreatment, rape, and torture in prison.

In addition, the People's Republic of China has embarked on an intense media campaign, both in China and abroad, to defame Falun Gong.

It is very important that the U.S. Congress strongly condemn such outrageous behavior and stand with local officials and with the practitioners of the Falun Gong. Mr. Lantos and the Congressional Human Rights Caucus remain committed to highlighting the issue of the persecution of Falun Gong in China and abroad and remain committed to fighting for your freedom of religion and expression.

18 March 2005

At its sixtieth session, the Commission on Human Rights, in its resolution2004/46 entitled "Elimination of violence against women," encouragedthe Special Rapporteur to respond effectively to reliable information that comesbefore her and requests all Governments to cooperate with and assist the SpecialRapporteur in the performance of her mandated tasks and duties, to supply allinformation requested, including with regard to implementation of herrecommendations, and to respond to the Special Rapporteur's visits andcommunications;

The present report contains, on a country-by-country basis, summaries ofgeneral and individual allegations, as well as urgent appeals transmitted toGovernments between 1 January to 31 December 2004, as well as replies receivedduring the same period. Observations made by the Special Rapporteur have alsobeen included where applicable.

Due to restrictions of length of the report, the Special Rapporteur has beenobliged to summarize the details of all correspondence sent and received. TheSpecial Rapporteur wishes to emphasize that the omission of a particular countryor territory should not be interpreted as indicating that there is no problem ofviolence against women in that country or territory.

[...]

61. By letter dated 10 June 2004, sent jointly with the Special Rapporteur onthe sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography and the SpecialRapporteur on torture, the Special Rapporteur advised the Government that shehad received information concerning Z.Y., 4-year-old. It is alleged thaton 1 January 2004 she was taken from her home in Zitong town, Tongnan county,Chongqing city, by four police officers from the Tongnan County NationalSecurity Team. The police officer alleged to have been in charge of theoperation is known to the Special Rapporteurs. It is reported that both ofZ.Y.'s parents, Z.H. and W.Y., had been arrested previously,allegedly because they are practitioners of Falun Gong. In February 2002, it isalleged that her father, Z.H., was sent to Xishanping Labor Camp, where he wastortured and suffered a broken nose, missing teeth and injured ribs. He is nowreported to be detained at an undisclosed location. It is alleged that on 23December 2003, Z.Y.'s mother was taken into detention and tortured. She wasreportedly released after being on hunger strike for 54 days. It is reportedthat upon release she began to search for her daughter. W.Y.'s currentwhereabouts are reportedly unknown. In view of Z.Y.'s age and vulnerability,serious concern was expressed for her physical and mental integrity, and inparticular that she might be at risk of torture or other forms of ill-treatment,or of being trafficked.

62. By letter dated 20 July 2004, the Special Rapporteur advised theGovernment that she had received information on the following individual cases.

63. Q.Y., born in 1963, was an engineer and Vice-Director of the BasicConstruction Section of a food company in Guye district, Tangshan city, Hebeiprovince. She was a Falun Gong practitioner who was ordered in July 1999 by aTangshan city policeman and a local party commissioner (whose name is known tothe Special Rapporteur) to renounce Falun Gong. On the same day, she went toBeijing with her husband, W.J., to appeal to the Government to stop thepersecution of Falun Gong. Their 8-year-old-son remained alone at home. Theywere arrested at the bus station and escorted back to the Tangshan city policestation. Upon being released and returning home, they found their house had beenransacked and all the Falun Gong materials taken. On 19 February 2000, Mr. W.was again detained, although he was not charged. Mrs. Q. and another Falun Gongpractitioner went to Beijing the same day to appeal again to the Government. Thenext morning, while they were doing their exercises in Tiananmen Square, theywere attacked by police who beat them and dragged them to a nearby policestation. A few hours later she was again escorted back to Tangshan city,arriving at night. At the police station, she was handcuffed to an iron poleoutdoors, in the cold, where she remained for several hours. She was theninterrogated by police officials, including the Director of the First Division,who kicked her on her left side. Another director slapped her face so hard thatit became swollen. She was then bound with a rope, her arms drawn up high behindher back in a painful position. The next morning, 21 February, a policeman(whose name is known to the Special Rapporteur) and others went to Mrs. Q.'shome, reportedly to confiscate her property, but they found that the house hadalready been ransacked. They returned later for a more intensive search andconfiscated Falun Gong books and materials that had been hidden in the coalstorage. They also took the television and VCR. In protest, Mrs. Q. began ahunger strike on 24 February. That afternoon, she was sentenced with some 20other Falun Gong practitioners and sent to a detention center, where shecontinued her hunger strike. She was eventually sent to Ankang Hospital, whereshe was kept tied to her bed to prevent her from doing her Falun Gong exercises.On 18 August she was released without charge. During her detention, she wasexpelled from the Communist Party and fired from her job. On 18 September 2000Ms. Q. was arrested again and sent to the Hebei (Kaiping) Labor Camp. InOctober, her husband was sentenced to two years of forced labor for crimes hedid not commit. Beginning in mid-January 2001, persecution of Falun Gongpractitioners in the labor camp increased. Every time Mrs. Q. tried to do herexercises, she was punished by being made to stand outside in the snow or tiedup for half a day. On 21 February, she was taken to an office and tortured by acamp guard (whose name is known to the Special Rapporteur) and others. She wasgiven electric shocks, after which she went into convulsions and stoppedbreathing. She was sent to hospital for emergency treatment. Although sherecovered, there was permanent damage to her nervous system. She coughed bloodand had difficulty walking. On 24 April, she was again rushed to the hospitalfollowing further mistreatment in connection with her refusal to watch a moviedefaming Falun Gong. Her physical condition continued to deteriorate, and on 12May she was finally sent to an outside hospital where she was kept undercontinuous surveillance by the 610 Office. During this time, herhusband was still in the labor camp and her son was living with her elderlyparents. As a result of the stress, Mrs. Q. suffered a mental breakdown and wassent to a psychiatric hospital where she remained for six months. The 610 Officewould not allow her family to take her home. On 15 January 2002, she was sent toa brainwashing center where she remained for another six months, when she wasreleased. Mrs. Q.'s hair turned white while she was detained. She is mentallyconfused, has an irregular heartbeat and has trouble breathing. Her handstremble. Despite her debilitated condition, a police officer (whose name isknown to the Special Rapporteur) still goes to her home to harass her.

64. Z.Y., aged 48, was an employee at a rubber plant in Zhangjiakoucity, Hebei province. She lived in Gongrenxincun, Qiaoxi district, Zhangjiakoucity. In 1998, she was diagnosed with late-stage lymphoid cancer. It is reportedthat after she began practicing Falun Gong, she recovered and was able to resumeher work. On 20 July 1999, Z.Y. took her medical records to Beijing, hoping toshow the Government that Falun Gong could have positive effects. The Beijingpolice arrested her, and later ordered police from Zhangjiakou city to pick herup. After her return to Zhangjiakou city, she was detained and fined. She waslater released, but police officers from Beixincun police station continuedvisiting her home and workplace to harass her. She was detained on numerousoccasions and sent to brainwashing classes. On the night of 17 February 2004,Ms. Z. was arrested at her home by officers from the Dajingmen police stationand sent to Shisanli Detention Center. She began a hunger strike to protest thedetention. Then she was sent to Shalingzipiandi Legal School where she wasreportedly tortured. In mid-April 2004, when her family visited her, they found[her] to be in a state of mental confusion. The police refused to release her orprovide any treatment for her. She died on 4 May 2004. The Dajingmen PoliceDepartment did not notify Ms. Z.'s family that she was critically ill untilafter she had died.

65. L.S., aged 37, a resident of Luannan county, Hebei province, hasbeen arrested and beaten many times for being a Falun Gong practitioner. Whenshe went to Beijing to appeal to the Government to stop the persecution of FalunGong, police from the Tiananmen Square police station arrested her and detainedher for five months. At the time of her arrest she was two months pregnant.During her detention, she was kept in shackles, her hands attached to her feetso that she was unable to stand up. The police tortured her every day and whenher fetus was seven months old and viable, they forced her to have an abortion.She was then sent home, but two weeks later she was arrested again and sent to abrainwashing center, where she began a hunger strike to protest the detention.Because it was less than one month after the forced abortion, her mother came tothe center to look after her. Her mother appealed to the county government forher daughter's release, which was granted five days later.

66. In July 1999, S.J., who is in her 40s, from Gucheng, Qiansuo town,Suizhong county, Huludao city, Liaoning province, went to Beijing to appeal forFalun Gong, but was intercepted by police and escorted back to her home town. InAugust 1999, S.J. again went to Beijing to appeal to end the persecution. Shewas arrested and taken to the Suizhong Detention Center, where the policeallegedly took 2,000 yuan in cash from her. On 31 October 1999, S.J. was againarrested and sent to the Masanjia Labor Camp. She was later transferred toZhangshi Labor Camp, a youth correction facility, and then transferred again tothe Longshan Labor Camp, Shenxin Labor Camp, Dabei Prison and other places,where she was subjected to torture. Guards (whose names are known to the SpecialRapporteurs), allegedly following orders, pushed S.J.'s head down and stuffedher mouth with a towel so she could not scream. Then they jabbed her fingerswith needles and shocked her with three electric batons. They sent her to anunderground hospital in Shenyang city, where she was forcibly injected withdrugs. On another occasion, she was forced to disrobe and shocked with electricbatons all over her body for an entire night. The next day her face was coveredwith large blisters, badly swollen and bruised. She was also severely beaten andforced to squat for extended periods. One day the police took Ms. S. to anoffice where she was shocked with electric batons and tied to a bedpost. Theykept her there for two days and one night without allowing her to eat, sleep, orgo to the toilet. When she was finally released, several people had to carry heras she could not walk. During the 2002 Chinese New Year, Ms. S.'s familyreceived a notice from the labor camp requesting a payment of 1,500 yuan tocover "medical expenses" before they could take Ms. S. home. Oncehome, Ms. S.'s family found her to be mentally traumatized as a result of herexperiences. She had unhealed wounds around her genitals and needle punctures onher body. The entire family has suffered financially and emotionally because ofthe mental and physical injuries suffered by Ms. S., who nevertheless continuesto be harassed by the authorities.

67. By letter dated 15 October 2004, sent jointly with the Special Rapporteuron extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the Special Rapporteur onfreedom of religion or belief, the Special Rapporteur on the independence ofjudges and lawyers, the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection ofthe right to freedom of opinion and expression, the Special Rapporteur on theright to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and theSpecial Rapporteur on torture, the Special Rapporteurs expressed their concernat reports of systemic repression against the Falun Gong. Over the past fiveyears, hundreds of cases of alleged violations of the human rights of Falun Gongpractitioners have been brought to the attention of the Special Rapporteurs.Many of these allegations have been reported back to the Chinese authorities andare reflected in reports of the Special Rapporteurs to the Commission on HumanRights. The Special Rapporteurs are concerned that reports of arrest, detention,ill-treatment, torture, denial of adequate medical treatment, sexual violence,deaths, and unfair trial of members of so-called "hereticalorganizations," in particular Falun Gong practitioners, are increasing.They are concerned that these allegations may reflect a deliberate andinstitutionalized policy of the authorities to target specific groups such asthe Falun Gong. According to information received, on 10 June 1999 the CentralCommittee of the Chinese Communist Party established an office for dealing withthe Falun Gong, commonly referred to as the 610 Office (for the date of itsestablishment)...

[...]

An analysis of reports received by the Special Rapporteurs indicates that thealleged human rights violations against Falun Gong practitioners, includingsystematic arrest and detention, are part of a pattern of repression againstmembers of this group. Most of those arrested are reportedly heavily fined andreleased, but many are detained and ill-treated in order to force them toformally renounce Falun Gong. Those who refuse are sent to "re-educationthrough labor" camps, where reportedly torture is used routinely, resultingin many deaths. The Special Rapporteurs are further concerned at reports thatfew Falun Gong practitioners are prosecuted. When charges are laid theyreportedly include allegations such as "disturbing social order,""assembling to disrupt public order," "stealing or leaking Statesecrets" or "using a heretical organization to undermine theimplementation of the law." According to the information received, thoseprosecuted have been unfairly tried and many have received lengthy prisonsentences. In this respect it is reported that on 5 November 1999, a noticeissued by the Supreme People's Court instructed all local courts to do their"political duty" in bringing to trial and punishing"severely" those charged with "heretical organizationscrimes," "particularly Falun Gong," and to handle these cases"under the leadership of the Party committees."

68. On 8 January 2004, the Special Rapporteur sent a joint urgent appeal withthe Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedomof opinion and expression and the Special Rapporteur on torture, regarding C.S.a 61-year-old resident of Shenze county, Shijiazhuang city, Hebei province,who was reportedly detained in the Shijiazhuang Labor Camp because she allegedlypractices Falun Gong. On 8 April 2001, she was reportedly transferred to theGaoyang Labor Camp in Hebei province. It is alleged that as she went on a hungerstrike to protest the treatment received, she was force-fed human excrement onthree separate occasions, and afterwards suffered from serious diarrhea. As aresult, she was reportedly sent to the Gaoyang County Hospital for emergencytreatment. The attending doctor allegedly pointed out that feeding a personhuman excrement in that quantity can cause death. Upon being sent back to thelabor camp, she was allegedly continuously beaten by the guards, who are said tohave crushed her nipples, shocked her with electric batons while pouring wateronto her, used pliers to pinch her flesh, and buried her in snow until shepassed out. On 8 January 2004, she was reportedly still detained in the laborcamp, where she was believed to be at risk of being subjected to similartreatment.

69. On 15 March 2004, the Special Rapporteur sent a joint urgent appeal withthe Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, theSpecial Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom ofopinion and expression, and the Special Rapporteur on torture, regarding Y.T.,a 37-year-old Falun Gong practitioner from the Zuhai suburb of Guangzhou city,Guangdong province. On 23 February 2004, Y.T. is said to have been taken fromher home following an application for a passport. Her husband was reportedlyalso interrogated in connection with her passport application and detained forreeducation at the Chutou Law School, in Guangzhou Baiyun district. On 10 March2004, information was received that Y.T.'s health condition was critical. Shewas said to have been on hunger strike for 17 days to protest her detention. Herfamily had appealed to the police in Guangzhou city to have an investigationinto the legality of her detention, and was calling for her immediate release.Allegedly, no action had been taken as of 15 March 2004. It is believed that

Y.T. was detained in connection with her Falun Gong beliefs. Reportsindicated that she had been detained previously, including for a three-yearperiod for re-education, for this reason. During this time, she was reportedlysubjected to physical and psychological torture. It is reported that due to theill-treatment in detention, her legs were injured and she was unable to walk. Inview of the alleged detention of Y.T. and allegations of torture andill-treatment while she was previously in detention, concern was expressed forher physical and psychological integrity. Concern was also expressed for herfamily, who has allegedly been told that they should not report the case to theinternational community.

71. On 30 April 2004, the Special Rapporteur sent a joint urgent appeal withthe Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, theSpecial Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of physicaland mental health, and the Special Rapporteur on torture, regarding L.M., aged36, resident of Donggang city, Liaoning province. She was reportedly held inDabei Prison in Shenyang city. On 10 March 2004, a relative who visited herreported that she was carried to the visiting room wearing a large gauze mask,and that she was extremely weak and thin. It is reported that the guardsimmediately stopped the meeting when she said that she was dying, and sincethen, no information on her situation had been available. It is reported thatL.M. and her husband were arrested on 9 April 2002 and sentenced to 13 years inprison for producing and distributing materials about the alleged persecution ofFalun Gong. Since her arrest and detention at the Dandong City Police Station,and subsequently at the Dandong Detention Center and later Dabei Prison, L.M.had reportedly been tortured in an attempt to force her to give up Falun Gong.The methods of torture and ill-treatment alleged include electric shocks allover the body and beatings on her head with hard plastic baton handles. It wasfurther alleged that she had been denied adequate medical attention and as aconsequence she had suffered, among other things, high fevers which had damagedher lungs. Her health had reportedly continued to deteriorate. In view of theallegations of torture and the reported state of her health, concern wasexpressed for the physical and mental integrity of L.M. if she did not receiveprompt and adequate medical attention.

72. On 15 July 2004, the Special Rapporteur sent a joint urgent appeal withthe Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, theSpecial Rapporteur on the right to the highest attainable standard of physicaland mental health, and the Special Rapporteur on torture, regarding G.J.,C.Y., Y.S., G.B. and S.Y. According to theinformation received, in 2000, G.J., a resident of Luozhuang hamlet, Chengbovillage, Mengzhou city, Henan province, was arrested at home and taken to adetention center, together with her 8-month-old child, by the 610 Office inMengzhou city and officers from the Mengzhou city Police Station (whose namesare known to the Special Rapporteurs). She is said to have been arrested becauseshe is a Falun Gong practitioner. On 25 May 2002, after Ms. G.'s release, policeofficers (whose names are known to the Special Rapporteurs) took her to thepolice station, without a warrant. Ms. G. was again pregnant at the time. It isalleged that the police officers forced her to have an abortion so that shecould be sent to a labor camp. They are said to have forcibly given her aninjection to induce the abortion, watched the procedure and mocked her when shewas in pain. Then she was sent to a detention center in Jiaozuo city, Henanprovince. Later, she was transferred to the Shibalihe Labor Camp where she wasstill detained on 15 July 2004. Furthermore, it was reported that Ms. G.'sfather, G.X., her mother, S.G., elder sister, G.X., andbrother, G.H., had also been detained many times because they practicedFalun Gong.

73. In April 2001, C. Y. aged 46, resident of Xiaohaidi in Tianjincity Hexi district, was taken from her home and sentenced to two years of forcedlabor at the Tianjin City Jianxin Women's Forced Labor Camp No. 3 Squadron ofthe No. 6 Brigade, where she was tortured. On 13 May 2002, Ms. C. practicedFalun Gong exercises in the labor camp and, as punishment, the camp policeconfined her to a small dark room where they beat her and trampled on her arms.Then they handcuffed each of her arms to a bed, stretching her outspread-eagled. She remained handcuffed this way for 23 days. On 6 April 2003,C.Y. and another Falun Gong practitioner tore down the anti-Falun Gong slogansposted inside the Squadron. As a result, the guards dragged them into a roomwhere they stripped them down to their underclothes and tied up their hands.Then the guards dragged them into the hallway and ordered them to kneel down.When they refused, six policemen (including officers whose names are known tothe Special Rapporteurs) used six electric batons simultaneously on C.Y. Onepoliceman used the electric baton on her genitalia for 20 minutes. Then they didthe same to the other female prisoner. They then shocked Ms. C. again withelectric batons all over her body, to the point that her teeth became loose. Formore than one month afterwards, her right arm was paralyzed. On 15 July 2004,her whereabouts were unknown.

74. Y.S., in her 50s, was arrested by the Tianjin city, Hepingdistrict Public Security Bureau in November 2000 because she refused to give upFalun Gong. She was taken to a police station where policemen violently slappedher face. She was sentenced to 2 ? years of forced labor and detained at theNo. 4 Brigade of the Banqiao Women's Forced Labor Camp in Tianjin city. On 1June 2001, Ms. Y. was transferred to the Tianjin city Jianxin Women's ForcedLabor Camp No. 3 Squadron of the No. 6 Brigade. Because she refused to renounceFalun Gong, the female camp guards deprived her of sleep, allowing her as littleas two hours of sleep per day. In protest, Ms. Y. went on a hunger strike for 12days. Subsequently, the camp extended her term of detention. On 1 April 2003,the No. 3 Squadron attempted to brainwash Ms. Y. The camp policewomen draggedMs. Y. into a tiny, dark room and hit her all over her body with electricbatons. They exposed Ms. Ex.'s body in front of the camp's male disciplineinstructors to demonstrate their electric baton torture. Then they confined Ms.Y. to a 1.6 ft x 1 ft x 5 ft wooden cage where the 5-foot-7-inch tall Ms. Y. wasforced into a crouched position. Ms. Y. was subjected to this treatment foreight days. Afterwards she had significant muscular and skeletal problems. On 15July 2004, her whereabouts were unknown.

75. B., in her 30s, a resident of Tongue district, Tianjin city, wasarrested by the police who tied her up and subjected her to physical punishmentbecause she refused to read anti-Falun Gong articles. They then confined her toa wooden cage for more than a month. Ms. G. went on a hunger strike for 37 daysto protest this persecution. During her hunger strike she was handcuffed andtied up, and afterwards she was put in solitary confinement for more than amonth. Still refusing to abandon Falun Gong, police handcuffed her to aradiator, then handcuffed her spread-eagled between two radiators. Still later,the police handcuffed her and suspended her by her wrists, and subjected her tofurther torture. On 1 April 2003, the police shocked Ms. G. with severalelectric batons simultaneously. Then they put her in a wooden cage for severaldays. On 15 July 2004, her whereabouts were unknown.

76. On April 15, 2002 S.Y., a resident of Lianjiangkou, Jiamusi city,Heilongjiang province, was arrested at her brother's house by local policebecause she was a Falun Gong practitioner. She was sent to LianjiangkouDetention Center and two weeks later transferred to the Jiamusi Labor Camp. Uponher arrival at Jiamusi, she was tortured and forced to undergo brainwashing. InJuly 2002, the labor camp guards forced her to sit on a small stool and watchanti-Falun Gong videos. When she refused to watch, a guard (whose name is knownto the Special Rapporteurs) dragged her downstairs and handcuffed her to a bed.She began a hunger strike to protest the treatment received, so the guardsforce-fed her milk with salt, which was extremely painful. They subjected her tothis treatment for seven days. In November 2002, guards forced Ms. S. to sit ona stool with sharp triangular ridges across its surface for more than 10 hours aday. They made her put both hands on her thighs and did not allow her to move.Eventually, the skin of her buttocks tore and began to bleed. Meanwhile, she wasmonitored by several guards brandishing electric batons. Each time she moved,they shocked and beat her simultaneously. When she refused to read an anti-FalunGong article, they beat her again. At the end of November 2002, because Ms. S.still refused to watch the videos, a guard (whose name is known to the SpecialRapporteurs) cuffed her to a bed in an awkward, asymmetrical position, her handstied to two different steel bars. She was cuffed in the same position for twoweeks. The conditions in Jiamusi Labor Camp are very unsanitary, and for a longtime Ms. S. was not allowed to bathe. By February 2003, she had developedscabies, which prevented her from sleeping. At one point the guards sprayed herwith a chemical that caused her severe chest pains and rendered her unable tomove her head or hands. One morning in May 2003, Ms. S. began to practice theFalun Gong exercises. As soon as she was seen, two guards (whose names are knownto the Special Rapporteurs), rounded up some other inmates and they all beat hertogether. Then they dragged her to the second floor, where they forced her tosit on a cold cement floor with her hands cuffed behind her back for ten days.The nights were bitter cold, and she was deprived of sleep. On the tenth day,guards (whose names are known to the Special Rapporteurs) cuffed her hands in aforced backbend position (one arm is reaching down the back behind the head andthe other hand meeting it from the lower back). She was subjected to thistreatment for 13 days. After her hands were released, she was unable to move herarms and could barely walk. In June 2003, a guard (whose name is known to theSpecial Rapporteurs) slapped her face so hard that she temporarily lost herhearing. Ms. S. was not released after her term expired. On 15 July 2004, shewas still being detained in the labor camp, and her health was in a criticalcondition.

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Last August, Falun Gong practitioners from Taiwan successively came to Manhattan to clarify the facts about Falun Gong. Many were retired people and homemakers. Also, many practitioners who are teachers came to Manhattan several times to clarify the truth during their winter or summer vacations.

I. Taiwanese Practitioners Felt it Imperative to Clarify the Truth in Manhattan

An elementary school teacher whose surname is Zeng and who can speak English expressed that the truth clarification in Manhattan is very important. This summer vacation, he came to Manhattan for the third time, as this is the world's financial center, and many big companies have invested in China. Many Chinese people work in these companies. They have been deceived by the media controlled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and have a negative impression of Falun Gong, so they further affect other colleagues in those companies. The money they invest into China has been used to support the CCP to persecute kind people in China, such as Falun Gong practitioners who practice Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.

Some practitioners stayed for one week or two weeks, and some practitioners stayed for one month, two months or even six months in Manhattan at their own expense. They lived a frugal life. Those who stayed for longer periods of time rented a house and shared it with several practitioners. In the daytime, they took to the streets in Manhattan to clarify the truth and came back in the evening to prepare food for themselves. They went out every day despite the cold of winter or the heat of summer. They seized every moment here in hopes of bringing the wonderfulness of Falun Dafa and the facts about the persecution of Falun Gong in China to every predestined person in Manhattan.

Taiwanese practitioners hand out flyers on the street

One day in February, at dusk when it was snowing heavily, a practitioner from Pingdong, south Taiwan still handed out flyers on the street, disregarding the piercing cold, wind and snow. A police officer asked the practitioner, "Is it true that you can't go home without handing out all these flyers?" The practitioner relied, "No, I'm a volunteer. I want to go home after handing them out, because Falun Dafa is good." The kind police officer was very moved and said, "Let me help you hand out the remaining flyers. You'd better go home and have a rest!" He then took the flyers from the practitioner.

Three practitioners from Pingdong, south Taiwan are homemakers with grown children. They obtained support from their families and have been in Manhattan for a long time clarifying the truth. They took part in anti-torture exhibits on the streets in Manhattan every day to expose the CCP's brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. They sometimes acted as fellow practitioners suffering persecution in China, and sometimes handed out flyers or demonstrated the exercises. Other times they went to meditate in front of the Chinese Consulate. Rain or shine, they have never missed one day. Though they can only speak a little English, many people came to sign the petition to show their support. Some people hugged the practitioners and were moved to tears. Some wanted to donate money to help, but the practitioners declined. They only asked that people spread the truth to more people. Reporters from TV stations and news agencies came to conduct interviews and took pictures.

Once, while handing out flyers at a subway station, A Qin from Pingdong picked up a hundred dollar bill on the ground, and she immediately caught the attention of the person who lost the money. The person happily hugged A Qin and thanked her. He also signed his name to condemn the persecution. People nearby saw the Falun Gong practitioner's good deed, and they took the initiative to sign their names to support Falun Dafa.

As they have stayed in Manhattan for a long period of time, and the media have reported on them, many people know about these practitioners. On their way back home, a child always pressed her hands in front of her chest making the Heshi gesture of respect to them, and said loudly "Falun Gong." A Ying has been staying in Manhattan for nearly a year. A Qin and A Zhao have been here for six months. Though three of them took to the streets every day in the sun and wind, they did not use any skin care products to protect their skin. Even so, their skin became softer and smoother. Falun Gong practice is really miraculous.

Holding a display board

Meditating in front of Chinese Consulate

Street artist learns the truth

Practitioners who stayed shorter periods of time during their vacation went to street corners and bus stations or subway stations where there are lots of people every day to hand out truth clarification materials and hold display boards. Some demonstrated the exercises, some helped at the anti-torture exhibits. They noticed that office workers in Manhattan hastily come and leave work. Some of them looked indifferent the first few days, and then their attitudes gradually improved. They were willing to accept the flyers and learn the facts about Falun Gong. Every day, there would be people who encouraged and praised practitioners by saying, "Good Job." Some people who had read the flyers or learned the truth said, "Very good." Some people wanted to help Falun Gong, and practitioners then asked them to help clarify the truth. Some people saw the display boards depicting the suffering of practitioners in China and shed tears. Some frowned and wanted to know more about Falun Gong. Practitioners then asked them to go to Falun Gong websites.

The oldest practitioner who came to Manhattan during this summer vacation was in her 80s. Some children who came with their parents were only five to six years old. Each day, they stayed outside about ten hours clarifying the truth. No one complained about being tired. Everyone got up at 4:00 to 5:00 a.m. to practice the exercises to start the day's activities. Several practitioners expressed simultaneously that Falun Gong had saved their lives. Without Falun Dafa, they might still be lying in bed or would have lost their lives already. After practice, they became stronger than before when they were not ill. Therefore they came to Manhattan to tell people the wonderfulness of Falun Dafa, and help more people learn the facts about Falun Dafa, so that they will no longer be deceived by the CCP's lies, and will not miss such a wonderful opportunity.