(Clearwisdom.net) On the central alleys in front of the National Palace of Culture in Sophia, the capital of Bulgaria, Falun Gong practitioners marked the eighth year of the persecution of Falun Gong in China. The persecution started on July 20, 1999 at the decree of the former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Jiang Zemin and led to thousands of deaths and broken families.

Practitioners lined up six big posters which were divided in three topics: the spread of Falun Dafa in over 80 countries, the CCP's persecution in China and the CCP's cruel organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners.

Many citizens and tourists in Sofia lined up before the panels and asked many questions about the persecution and what Falun Dafa is. Hundreds of signatures were collected within only a few hours. A man from New Zealand said he had already signed a similar petition in his home country and gladly signed the Bulgarian petition. Many people were shocked by the cruelty of the persecution. One man, who said he already heard about the persecution, stayed until the end of the activity and listened with great interest to the explanations of the practitioners. After he heard the details about the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China, he asked: "How could the doctors harvest organs from living people?" There were also people who, after learning that the crimes are done by the Communist regime in China, immediately signed the petition. Moreover, some wanted to learn how to practice Falun Dafa, and asked where they could learn the exercises. A child asked if there are children who became victims of the persecution. After learning about how children in China have been orphaned, beaten by the police, and kicked out of school because of the persecution, he also supported the petition.

The event continued until late in the evening. When it became dark, the practitioners lit candles on the ground in front of the posters, forming the words "Falun Dafa." The glowing letters drew the attention of many passersby. All of them supported the efforts of the practitioners to stop the persecution. The practitioners explained that the candles were also to commemorate the 3,045 fellow practitioners in China who were tortured to death upholding their belief in the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.