(Clearwisdom.net) On the third day after the release of Teacher's new article "Hurry up and Tell Them", a few Toronto practitioners from the SOS team made the two-hour drive up to the City of Orillia. We had set an afternoon appointment at one o'clock to see the mayor, Mr. Stevens.
The Orillia Mayor had given support to Falun Gong early in the persecution and quickly received pressure from the Chinese Government. At that time, without having the opportunity to know Falun Gong in depth, the Mayor was under pressure from a foreign government. When practitioners passed through his town last year with the SOS! Urgent Rescue Walk, they asked to meet with the Mayor. At that time, the Mayor did not know who to believe and said that he must think about whether to meet our practitioners. The Mayor took the time to read about Falun Gong for himself and come to his own decision. In the end, he personally attended the press conference of practitioners to show his support, he spoke out against the persecution and he wrote a very heartfelt letter to the Prime Minister of Canada, before the Prime Minister met top Chinese leaders and raised the Falun Gong issue last year. His sincere and kind-hearted actions touched practitioners. Since then, he has been a friend of practitioners and a supporter of their efforts.
Among those of us who visited the Mayor this time, three of us have family members who suffer as fellow practitioners in Mainland China. We briefed the mayor regarding these and other real cases of suppression, and we explained the brutal and difficult situation in which these people are immersed. Those innocent Chinese people who have contributed so much in their lives to their country and to their society are now suffering under this persecution simply because they are living according to the principle of "Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance" and striving to be good citizens. This oppressive way is depriving each of them of their human right to behave as a good person; any support for or spreading of this oppression would be a threat to all good people throughout the world, as such a principle is universal.
The mayor said that he could well understand our situation and he was very sympathetic. As a sincere Christian, he said he would relate a Chinese practitioner--who would act from her belief in Falun Dafa and refuse to write the so-called "Repentant Statement"--as acting similarly to a person who would not betray God. He was then shocked to hear that the smiling lady in his office, a senior citizen, Ms. Zhang Youfin, had been a victim of the Jiang regime's persecution and that her husband, a retiree in his seventies and an ex-official had been forced to divorce her under the regime's coercion. Mr. Stevens insisted that Ms. Zhang go into further detail and he listened intently to her story. The mayor mentioned that Orillia was asked to become a sister city with Yancheng City in China, and he said that he would start the relationship to promote ideological exchange with his counterpart in China, such as telling them how Falun Gong is handled differently here in Canada. He asked us what he would like us to say to this Chinese Mayor. We told him, we want him to know that the persecution of Falun Gong is hurting not only practitioners but all Chinese people, as well as the economy and business as well. Stopping the persecution of Falun Gong is the best thing for China and Canada encourages you to take this action. The Mayor listened, nodded, and said he would pass this message on. He then invited the local newspaper and radio reporters, who were outside waiting to interview when we finished our meeting to come upstairs and do their interviews in his office. The mayor expressed his support for us to the media and commented about how he had been pressured by the Jiang regime to rescind his support. The reporters were very surprised that the Chinese Embassy would apply such pressure to Canadians officials. The mayor showed the reporters the propaganda materials and commented how ridiculous it was that they were sending such propaganda. He did not allow the reporters to make copies of the hate materials however, and said that he would make sure that the materials were not distributed any further. The mayor could see clearly their affect in inspiring hate in Canada against innocent people. The Radio reporter commented, "Is this even legal in Canada?" When asked by the reporter whether he would take back his support of Falun Gong, the mayor replied unequivocally, "Absolutely not!" He also mentioned that he would display the lotus flower and poem given by practitioners in a place of honour in the Mayor's office.
In regards to Falun Gong, the Mayor said, "It is good." He was displeased by the Jiang regime's propaganda and said that he wrote to the Chinese Embassy in reply to the propaganda and told them the materials were unacceptable and he did not want to receive them anymore.
Finally, while we took a group picture together with him, the mayor insisted that Ms. Zhang sit in the mayor's chair while he stood behind her. The meeting and the interview lasted for one and a half hours.
After this meeting with the mayor, we realized deeply the importance of having face-to-face meetings for clarifying the truth. The Chinese dictator's underlings constantly distribute their propaganda overseas, and many government officials and representatives have been receiving slanderous materials from the Chinese Embassies. Teacher encourages us to act solidly and "hurry up" in clarifying the facts. In doing so, all overseas practitioners must contact local administrative officials and representatives to clarify the truth face-to-face to be truly effective during this important time. The outpouring of our pure goodness and the reflection of our righteous thoughts in all of our actions will break away from the evil's arrangements, as well helping officials to understand Dafa. Such efforts throw light upon the truth, allowing officials to be clear about the evil of the persecution in spite of the pressure placed upon them. The process of our SOS initiative for our suffering relatives back in China is an excellent approach for presenting the facts. Recounting the experiences of those who went through the torture of the Chinese persecution of Dafa disciples serve as sharp swords to "shred apart the rotten demons' lies".
8/28/2002
