(Minghui.org) Practitioners held activities in five cities in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on Saturday, June 17, 2023. They demonstrated the Falun Dafa exercises and told people about the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s persecution of their faith. People expressed their support for practitioners’ efforts and signed a petition calling to end the persecution.

Practitioners hold an event in Dortmund to introduce Falun Dafa and tell people about the persecution.

People in Düsseldorf sign the petition to end the CCP’s persecution.

Practitioners demonstrate the Falun Dafa exercises during an event in Essen.

People read display boards in front of the Cologne Cathedral.

People learn about Falun Dafa and the persecution at an event in Duisburg.

Practitioners set up a booth and display boards in front of the Cologne Cathedral and on pedestrian streets in Düsseldorf, Essen, Dortmund, and Duisburg. These five cities are all located in the densely populated Ruhr area, and the distance between them is only ten minutes to an hour’s drive. This area is known as the heart of German industry and is one of the most economically developed areas in Europe.

The events were held on the weekend, and the streets were filled with people shopping and traveling. Many people stopped and read the display boards or talked with practitioners, and some learned the exercises on the spot.

People Condemn the Persecution

Zdenko condemns the CCP’s persecution.

Zdenko, who immigrated to Germany from Croatia, lives in Essen. He stood for a long time in front of the display boards about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Dafa, carefully reading the information. When he learned that the CCP persecutes people who believe in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, he said, “I lived in a socialist country before, and I know that there was no freedom for people there.”

After signing the petition, Zdenko said, “The German government cannot turn a blind eye to [the persecution in China] and continue to invest there. I hope more people will sign and support you. I wish you success!”

A father and his three daughters spent a long time at the information site in Düsseldorf. When he learned that Falun Dafa’s guiding principles are Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, the father said that it is important to live by these universal values. People all over the world can unite under these values, he said.

He hopes the CCP’s persecution will end soon. He and his three daughters all signed the petition to support practitioners’ efforts. Before leaving, the father took a few informational materials and said that he would tell his friends about Dafa.

People Learn the Exercises

Because practitioners have been raising awareness in these cities for years, many people already knew about Falun Dafa and how the CCP persecutes it. After a well-dressed lady signed the petition, she said that she knew about the persecution and had purchased a copy of Falun Dafa’s main book, Zhuan Falun. A young man named Benjamin told the practitioners in Dortmund that he had downloaded and started reading the book Falun Gong. He talked with practitioners to get updates about China’s current situation.

A tourist (right) follows practitioners’ exercise movements in front of the Cologne Cathedral.

Some people wanted to learn the exercises. A woman saw practitioners doing the exercises in front of the Cologne Cathedral, so she stood by and followed along with the practitioners’ movements.

A man (second from left) meditates with practitioners during the event in Dortmund.

During the event in Dortmund a man asked a practitioner if he could meditate with them. Afterwards, he told the practitioner, “I never thought I could meditate in such a noisy place in the city center.” He said that the atmosphere of the practitioners’ meditation was peaceful.