(Clearwisdom.net) In 1999, I was a young government clerk. I learned about Falun Gong for the first time when the news was broadcast about people appealing for Falun Gong in Beijing. On October 1, we were informed by the office that we should work overtime to serve as "companions" for Falun Gong practitioners who had been picked up in Beijing and confined in a building. We were told to take turns eating and sleeping beside them.
That assigned duty messed up my schedule, so at first I was not very friendly toward those Falun Gong practitioners. After I stayed with them for some time, however, I discovered that they were very kind and sincere. They did not look or act like criminals at all. I then complained to the office, saying, "This policy of 'accompanying' them is illegal. We are restricting their freedom, and they are being illegally confined." My supervisors said, "Don't talk like that. We have no choice in this matter. This is an order from our superiors."
During my interactions with practitioners, I saw that they were genuinely trying to be good people according to the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and that Falun Gong is good way of cultivation. I also realized that they were not interested at all in political power or social status. They merely wanted to be good people. How wonderful that is! If everybody behaved according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, we would not have so much corruption and all kinds of chaos in society.
My job is related to legislation. Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution states: "Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of religious belief. No state organ, public organization, or individual may compel citizens to believe in, or not to believe in, any religion; nor may they discriminate against citizens who believe in, or do not believe in, any religion." This means that practicing Falun Gong is not against the law. Article 35 states: "Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession, and of demonstration. Therefore, making and distributing Falun Gong material is also legal.
I learned over the Internet that Falun Dafa is a high-level cultivation way of the Buddha school and has spread to over 100 countries. In Taiwan alone, over 500,000 people have learned Falun Gong. That is one out of every 110 people. This number reveals just how popular Falun Gong is. All my fellow citizens should remember that Falun Gong is cultivation and that Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.
Written May 23, 2010
