(Clearwisdom.net) The first World Religion Day was held in Berlin at the end of May 2003.
More than two hundred thousand people from Germany and the neighboring countries participated in the
activities. Dafa practitioners from Berlin utilised the opportunity to clarify the facts, and
collect signatures to rescue Ms. Xiong Wei, a Dafa practitioner who lived in Germany and is
currently being detained in a Chinese labour camp for distributing Falun Gong flyers. During the
activities, practitioners met many people from remote areas where there are no practitioners.
Through these contacts, people had an opportunity to bring the truth back to their areas. Almost all
of the people signed their names to rescue Xiong Wei without hesitation. Practitioners also
explained the details of the lawsuit against Jiang Zemin and most people understood why this had to
be done. Many have already obtained an understanding about the human rights situation in China. After signing her name, one woman asked for a batch of signature collection
forms. She volunteered to collect signatures for Xiong Wei's case. A pastor offered to give the
practitioners an opportunity to collect signatures at their group gathering. Some people telephoned
practitioners, expressing their willingness to provide continuous support.
On Friday, about 25 thousand people attended a large meeting entitled "Human Rights".
During the meeting, a spokesman from the International Society of Human Rights said, "Many
people are talking about globalization. However, they talk about globalization related to economic
factors only, but not about human rights. This is just like a man with only one eye." At the
end of the meeting, the attendants moved towards the Dafa practitioners who were collecting
signatures there. They formed a line, waiting to sign their names. One practitioner commented
afterwards, "I have never seen people wanting to sign their names so enthusiastically. It seems
that they were waiting for this opportunity. Many of them expressed their sincere thanks after
receiving the materials that clarified the facts about the persecution. I felt they were truly
waiting for us." A lot of people also asked practitioners what they could do after signing
their names.
Interestingly enough, two practitioners who were collecting signatures at two far apart locations
had similar dialogues with Chinese passers-by. Both of the passers-by said, "I can not
understand why our government has to invest in a country that tortures its own citizens. I would not
invest a penny in a country that commits human rights violations."
One gentleman added, "I think politicians have not said enough about human rights in China.
They should have done more, and unite with other countries in this regard."