The persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China has been going on for two-and-a-half years. For those of us who grew up in a Western country like Canada, it's very difficult to understand why the Chinese government is brutally persecuting Falun Gong practitioners.

Before July 20, 1999, Falun Gong was praised by this Chinese government for increasing the general health of its citizens and thus reducing the burden on the healthcare system. However, the number of people practicing, between 70 and 100 million, now exceed that of Party membership.

The government is spending billions of dollars on propaganda to demonize Falun Gong. The two-and-a-half-year-old persecution has seen over 350 tortured to death, according to international human rights statistics, although sources inside China say the number is more likely 1,6000. More than 100,000 have been sentenced to prisons, labour camps, and mental hospitals, to face torture and death. Hundreds of men, women, and children have been killed in police custody by orders from Jiang to "use whatever measures necessary to exterminate Falun Gong." He has broken his own constitution and all the international human rights treaties he has ever signed.

Killing innocent people is not only utterly devoid of conscience, it is a persecution against the basic right of existence of human beings. It is a persecution of the right to believe. We need to stand up to help the Falun Gong practitioners in China and protect the justice and basic moral values in human society. As teachers, we should listen carefully to the words of Martin Luther King, who said, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."