(Minghui.org) The Tamsui Environmental Art Festival was held at Tamsui’s Golden Waterfront Plaza on October 14, 2023. The Tian Guo Marching Band and celestial maiden dance team composed of Falun Dafa practitioners were once again the parade’s finale. They were warmly welcomed all along the parade route.

The parade started at the Golden Waterfront Square, followed Tamsui Old Street, and ended at Tide Watch Square. The entire route was lined with spectators, and it was estimated that more than 10,000 people participated in the event.

The Tian Guo Marching Band participated in the Tamsui Environmental Art Festival parade on October 14.

Parade-goers welcomed practitioners and took photos of the Tian Guo Marching Band.

The band played “Falun Dafa Is Good,” “Drums and Trumpets Shake the World,” “Deliver Treasures,” and “Triumph.” They were applauded and cheered all along the parade route. Many people gave them a thumbs up and some danced in time to the music. Some followed the band and took photos or video recordings of their performances.

The celestial maidens that followed the band handed out origami lotus flowers with the words “Falun Dafa” printed on them. The flowers were very popular and people asked for them.

At the end of the parade, several people greeted the band members. A woman said she’d seen the parade in Tamsui for the first time last year and really liked the Tian Guo Marching Band. She said, “This year I’ve come especially to hear the Tian Guo Marching Band perform.”

Ms. Huang Shu-nyu, the band director, said their performances have always been popular with audiences at the Tamsui Arts Festival, so band members from across Taiwan were asked to participate this year. She said, “This year is our grandest procession yet. Some members of the band set off from Pingtung, the southernmost tip of Taiwan, and traveled to Tamsui in northern Taiwan early in the morning, hoping to let the residents and tourists know that ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.’ We hope people have a bright future. We are grateful for the great weather today. There are more spectators here today than I’ve seen in years.”

Ms. Lin, a spectator, was happy to see the band perform and clapped in time to the music. She said, “The music is soothing and they are so professional. I think it’s great to be able to walk in the parade while playing an instrument.”

Ms. Lin was happy to see the Tian Guo Marching Band perform.

After hearing that Falun Gong practitioners live by the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, Ms. Lin was impressed and said, “We need to promote Falun Dafa’s principles more in Taiwan. I really hope that Taiwan will have such an atmosphere. We need to be more tolerant and forgive others, because no one makes mistakes on purpose. We really need to widely promote Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.”

Referring to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution of Falun Dafa, Ms. Lin said that the people of mainland China also need freedom of belief. She encouraged practitioners to expose the persecution.

Every Country Needs Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance

Mr. and Mrs. Lian spoke highly of the band’s performance. “It was uniform and touching,” said Mrs. Lian. “In fact, every country and place needs Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. It depends on a person’s own choices and whether they want it or not. There is always good and evil in the world. It depends on which direction you choose and what everyone does.”

Two high school students said that they thought the Falun Dafa procession was great and agreed that everyone has the right to choose what they want to believe and that everyone should have freedom of speech and belief.

Two high school students praised Falun Dafa.

Ms. Hou said that Taiwanese society is in great need of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. “Everyone wants to do good deeds and believes that good deeds will be rewarded. It is rare to see a team with so many people. Thank you for the performance. Thank you for your hard work.”

Ms. Liu, a nurse, complimented the band on its powerful and uniform performances. She said, “It is very difficult for so many people to perform so uniformly. They were the finale, and I saw them in the waiting area for two hours before they set off. I was touched. The band is awesome, performed extremely well, and is very capable. I am happy to see them.”