This year, in the year 2000, the Canadian Federal Election was held one and a half years earlier than is customary. To attract more votes, for a two-week period, all 68 candidates in the 17 election districts in the Greater Vancouver area threw open their doors and held public debates that were accessible to all and were very well attended. In general, about 300 people attended each debate.
We Falun Gong practitioners at first were puzzled by the fact that so many nations were holding elections at approximately the same time. But then we realized that, as Master Li has said, nothing is accidental. We came to understand that these phenomena are due to celestial changes. At the same time, we were aware that social problems in any nation result from a decline in people's morality. The strength and prosperity of any country depends on her citizens' strong, upright moral character. Therefore, during this special period of time in history, we viewed these public debates in Canada as a great opportunity to enlighten Members of Parliament, whom we did not have access to in the past, about the truth regarding Falun Gong.
We attended a total of 16 debates. In 30 seconds or less, we gave a brief introduction, stating what Falun Dafa is about and that it is based on Master Li's premises of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance. We emphasized that the only way to ensure a country's and people's harmonious future is to awaken every citizen's righteous heart.
At these public forums, we seized the opportunity to speak about the human rights abuses against Falun Dafa practitioners in China. We urged the candidates to examine their conscience and asked them, if they were elected, how they would plan to deal with these issues in a public manner. Would they perhaps advocate a different policy than the present one of closed-door negotiations? All the candidates showed their concern and support for our issues regarding the Falun Dafa persecution in China. Many people in the audience were also sympathetic about the human rights violations in China. At the conclusion of the debates, we talked further with the candidates and handed much Falun Dafa material to them as well as to audience members so that everyone could deepen their understanding of Falun Dafa.
We combined this hongfa (Fa-promoting) with our cultivation and acted with a pure heart and with compassion. As cultivators, we do not have any political agenda, nor can we have any interest in politics. However, we hope that all sentient beings will have the opportunity to hear about the Great Law and hope that they will have a righteous attitude toward the Great Law. To let the public know the truth of the brutal persecution against Falun Dafa and its practitioners that is taking place in China is a genuine expression of great compassion by the cultivators outside of China. With a true cultivator's state of mind, we saw that some candidates answered our questions better and better. We sincerely hope that this opportunity of promoting Falun Dafa was really a process for people to gain a deeper understanding of Falun Dafa.
Vancouver Practitioners
Dec. 2, 2000
