Switzerland: Elected Officials Support Efforts to End the Persecution During Events in Bern

(Minghui.org) Practitioners held a series of activities in Switzerland’s capital, Bern, on July 22, 2023, to expose the CCP’s (Chinese Communist Party) 24-year-long persecution of Falun Dafa (also called Falun Gong). Elected officials sent letters of support and condemned the persecution. 

Practitioners went to the Chinese Embassy in Bern on the morning of July 22, 2023, and read a letter in German and Chinese, to tell the embassy staff about Falun Dafa. They urged them to quit the CCP and not become the regime’s scapegoats.

A practitioner reads a letter addressed to the Chinese Embassy staff in Bern, urging them to help end the persecution of Falun Dafa.

That afternoon practitioners held activities at Kornhaus Square in Bern. They demonstrated the Falun Dafa exercises, held a rally and distributed fliers to tell people about Falun Dafa and to expose the CCP’s ongoing persecution, particularly the forced organ harvesting which targets Dafa practitioners and other prisoners of conscience.

Practitioners held events in downtown Bern on July 22, 2023 to tell people about the decades-long persecution in China.

Practitioners demonstrate the Falun Dafa exercises.

Many people stopped to read the display boards and talk with practitioners.

People signed the petition to help end the persecution of Falun Dafa.

Swiss Politicians Thank Practitioners for Their Efforts to Expose the Persecution

Many Swiss elected officials sent letters of support for the practitioners’ efforts to end the persecution.

Christa Markwalder, member of the Swiss National Council

Christa Markwalder, a member of the Swiss National Council, was unable to attend the rally in person, but said in her letter of support, “I hope that through my letter I will give you more courage and I thank you for defending human rights.” 

She hopes that practitioners will keep up the good work, and, “Have the courage to stand up against persecution and injustice; courageously defend their own human rights and those persecuted. We will continue to use humanitarian courage to ensure the physical and mental security of all people and safeguard universal human rights.

“Human rights, including freedom of expression and religion, upholding human dignity and ensuring physical and mental integrity – applicable to members of all religious and spiritual groups, such as Falun Dafa practitioners, should not be influenced by the preferences of a particular regime. Organ harvesting against one’s will is the largest and most intrusive violation of human rights.

“I wish you continued courage to bravely defend your human rights in Switzerland and China!” 

Dr. Bernhard Hauser, Member of Parliament of the State of St. Gallen

Dr. Bernhard Hauser, Member of Parliament for St. Gallen, said that China, under CCP rule, endures the most human rights abuses in the world. “Clear and broader action is needed to resist the CCP regime, because the systematic persecution of Xinjiang people, Falun Gong practitioners, and the current threat to Taiwan will not be tolerated,” he said. 

Dr. Hauser added, “I thank all those who have given [support] for Falun Gong, which is freedom of expression around the world.” 

Former St. Gallen legislator Eva Keller

Eva Keller, a former St. Gallen state legislator, believes that more people should be made aware of the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong. “The human rights violations should be exposed and publicly condemned,” she wrote. 

Ms. Keller also believes that “the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners by the CCP is still beyond words. The world’s most populous country, which tramples on human rights and increasingly flouts the rule of law. 

“Although Falun Gong is not the only one persecuted, we must not forget them, because we rarely see their news in prominent places in the media. I thank you for your dedication to human rights and the rule of law, especially for Falun Gong. It is only when the crimes of human rights violations are made public, that a turnaround is possible. The worst thing is to forget the persecuted. Thank you for sharing this.”

Everyone Should Follow Falun Dafa’s Principles

The melodious music as practitioners demonstrated the exercises attracted young Claudia. “They are so relaxed,” she said. After listening to an introduction, she was very interested in Falun Dafa. She said that after going through a challenging time she hopes to find, “A way to relax and calm down.” 

Claudia said that Falun Dafa’s principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance are great. “I think these are very important, and everyone should follow then. This is something that each of us should follow and practice on a daily basis,” she said.

She added that while everyday life can be busy, “We should be aware of these messages [Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance].”

Public Condemns the CCP’s Persecution

Referencing the CCP’s crime of organ harvesting, Rosemarie exclaimed, “It’s crazy. It’s something I could never imagine. It creeps me out that so many people are imprisoned, just waiting for patients that need their organs, to come to China looking for a matching organ. Where are the morality and ethics? Do people only care about money and power?”

Pierina Raemy and her friends watched as practitioners did the exercises and then they listened to the speeches. They talked with practitioners who were passing out flyers. After reading the information, they signed the petition calling for an end to the persecution.

Pierina said, “There is such a thing happening in this world, people are imprisoned, they are murdered so cruelly. The persecution cannot continue. I hope that practitioners will no longer be persecuted, no longer suffer, and are no longer murdered.”

It Is Our Responsibility to Make the Truth Known to More People

Jonathan asked whether the Chinese practitioners would ever be able to return to China. When he learned that some practitioners had not been able to return to China for more than 20 years, he said, “I sincerely hope that practitioners can return to China one day.” 

He also plans to tell more people about the persecution of Falun Dafa. “I think this is the responsibility of young people like me. We must not ignore this persecution, but should spread the information through social media and tell our friends and relatives.

“It is only possible to change all this if people understand what happened. If people do not know that Falun Gong is being persecuted, they will not do anything [to stop the persecution]. We should let more people know.” 

“Falun Dafa Is An Ancient Wisdom”

Sarah Schuerch wanted to learn more about Falun Dafa. She not only signed the petition but also wrote down the time and location of the local practice site. 

She said she’d heard about Falun Dafa before and was interested in knowing more. She believes that the Falun Gong exercises are “very simple, but very influential.” She feels that she can practice Falun Gong in her daily life: “It raises awareness and makes me calmer,” she said. 

Sarah added, “Falun Dafa is an ancient wisdom. Practitioners’ persistence in exposing the persecution for 24 years shows this point even more: Falun Dafa must be very good, which is why Falun Gong practitioners can persist for so long.”

Background: What Is Falun Dafa and Why Is the CCP Persecuting It?

Falun Dafa (also known as Falun Gong) was first introduced to the public by Mr. Li Hongzhi in Changchun, China, in 1992. The spiritual discipline is now practiced in over 100 countries and regions worldwide. Millions of people who have embraced the teachings, which are based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, and have learned the five exercises, have experienced improved health and well-being.

Jiang Zemin, former head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), perceived the spiritual discipline’s growing popularity as a threat to the CCP’s atheistic ideology and on July 20, 1999, he issued an order to eradicate the practice.

Under Jiang’s personal direction, the CCP established the 610 Office, an extralegal security organization with the power to override the police and judicial systems and whose sole function is to carry out the persecution of Falun Dafa.

Minghui.org has confirmed the deaths of thousands of practitioners as a result of the persecution over the past 24 years, though due to the difficulty in getting information out of China, the actual number is believed to be much higher. Countless practitioners have been imprisoned and tortured for their faith.

There is concrete evidence that the CCP sanctions the harvesting of organs from detained practitioners, who are murdered to supply China’s organ transplant industry.