On the afternoon of October 13, 2000, Falun Dafa practitioners in Singapore held a press conference at the International Conference/Exhibition Center. Among those invited were major international and local members of the media, such as Reuters, Agency France-Press (AFP), etc., and officials from foreign embassies, such as the British Embassy, and other governments stationed in Singapore, as well as the General Manager from the most prestigious publishing house of Singapore.
The conference began with the reading of an open letter from practitioners appealing to the people of the world. The letter states: "Through this conference, we hope to present to you the truth about Falun Gong and its plight in China, and to call on the minority group of people within the Chinese government to stop the brutal suppression of Falun Gong and to engage in peaceful dialogue with us to resolve the present crisis in China through your efforts, and efforts from other news agencies, heads of states, and all kind-hearted people of the world." The letter summarized the persecution suffered by Falun Gong practitioners in China in the past year. It states at the end: "As we in Singapore practice the same exercises, and have the same master as our fellow practitioners in China, we are in this human tragedy together. The continued persecution is a mockery to the governments around the world who have given recognition to Falun Gong in their countries, and an insult to the dignity of those in the world who have spoken out righteously. It is also a flagrant violation of the fundamental rights of a citizen."
"The atrocities must not last any longer. This is a persecution of not only Falun Gong practitioners in China, but also of the principle for human existence; 'That which represses the good must be evil'. Destruction of human morality is a blatant destruction of humanity. Therefore, we call upon all kind-hearted people to reach out your hands of justice to stop this human catastrophe for the sake of a peaceful environment, for the practitioners, for your eternal destiny, and for the future of humanity." The open letter-reading was followed by a slide show of the typical cases of persecution of practitioners and the massive arrests in Tiananmen Square from October 1st through the 9th, and a showing of the video "Falun Gong: The Real Story 2."
The wave of persecution by Jiang Zemin and his followers in the government has rippled to Singapore. Officials from the Chinese Embassy have interfered with and harassed the Singapore practitioners in their efforts to tell the truth about Falun Gong to the people and to reveal the untruthful reports by the Chinese media. Four practitioners from Singapore told their stories of being tormented in China, which moved many conference attendees. One of them said: "My experience in China is really nothing compared to the practitioners in China who received unspeakable physical and mental torture. I would like to let you know through my own experience what is going on there in that ridiculous, impersonal, and crazy place. The treatment the practitioners have endured are inhuman, resulting in many deaths and countless broken families." "Falun Dafa is indeed a great principle, and we should be able to distinguish good from evil and to stop the evil from doing more damage, because to be indifferent to evil is to encourage it, which will lead to our own demise," the practitioner told the attendees.
The press conference introduced Falun Dafa and how it has grown in popularity in other parts of the globe. Practitioners also demonstrated the exercises and answered questions. Through this conference, practitioners learned the necessity and the urgency of stepping forward to tell the truth about Falun Gong to the people; and that this is part of our cultivation practice.
Practitioners from Singapore
October 14, 2000
