Kassel, Germany: Falun Dafa Well-received at International Earth Day Event

(Minghui.org) Falun Dafa practitioners participated in the International Earth Day event held in Kassel, Germany, on April 23, 2023. They demonstrated the exercises to showcase the beauty of Falun Dafa and raised awareness of the ongoing persecution of practitioners in China. Many people signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution.

International Earth Day is celebrated every year on April 22. The event held in Kassel on a sunny Sunday this year was the largest of its kind in Germany. Approximately 180 organizations, institutions, and groups gathered at the Orangerie in Kassel to introduce visitors to subjects related to ecology, society, politics, and culture. Practitioners set up a booth to introduce Falun Dafa.

Practitioners’ booth at the International Earth Day event in Kassel

While practitioners were still setting up, people were already interested and asked for information. Practitioners demonstrated the exercises and told people about the persecution of Falun Gong (also called Falun Dafa) that’s been carried out by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in China for over 23 years.

Many People Want to Learn the Exercises

Many people stopped at the display board that exposed the organ harvesting from living practitioners by the CCP and asked for more information about it. After watching the exercise demonstrations, many inquired about local practice sites.

When practitioners explained the facts about the persecution in China to an elderly couple, they asked why they hadn’t seen any reports about it in the mainstream media in Germany and where did they get their information. A practitioner explained that the CCP has censored such information since the beginning of the persecution. Practitioners in China risk their lives to send firsthand information out of the country.

A veterinarian was angry about the CCP profiting from organ harvesting from living practitioners. She demanded accountability for those involved.

A young person who signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution asked for more information about Falun Gong. A practitioner showed him the Falun Dafa website, and he seemed very interested. He stood nearby and quietly observed the practitioners doing the exercises.

Many people signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution,

Practitioners also taught people how to fold paper lotus flowers. It was a popular activity. Grandparents brought over their grandchildren to handcraft lotus flowers. While folding the flowers, practitioners talked about Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, the principles of Falun Dafa, which were printed on the flowers. They also explained that, in traditional Eastern culture, the lotus flower symbolizes rising above adversity and remaining untainted, like the lotus that emerges from the mud.