(Minghui.org) January in Bulgaria is very cold, with plenty of snow, strong winds, and temperatures regularly below freezing. Despite these winter conditions, Bulgarian Falun Dafa (also known as Falun Gong) practitioners held several informational events to raise awareness of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution in China. Many people were willing to support the practitioners’ cause.

The practitioners displayed banners and other informational materials to draw attention to the ongoing persecution, including the cruel methods used on practitioners in attempts to force them to renounce their faith. They also collected signatures on a petition that calls for an end to the CCP’s human rights violations, including the persecution of Falun Gong.

Even in the cold, passersby stop to sign the practitioners’ petition.

Bulgarians Are Appalled by the CCP’s Atrocities

Falun Dafa practitioners from nearby towns and cities gathered at the Kamenitsa stairs in the city of Plovdiv on January 13, 2024, to host their first information event of the new year. There is a lot of foot traffic at that location, and many pedestrians were willing to stop and learn more about the persecution.

Two friends stopped by the booth and picked up informational brochures. They asked a practitioner for more information after reading them.

“That is appalling,” one of them said. “We had no idea the CCP was committing such the atrocities !” They both signed the petition and wished the practitioners success in their cause to raise awareness of the CCP cruelties.

The practitioners’ banners calling for an end to the CCP’s forced organ harvesting from Falun Dafa practitioners in China caught the eye of a mother and her young daughter. The mother asked for more information and heard about how the CCP forcibly removes organs from living practitioners to sell for high profits. She said she was “shocked to learn of the atrocities being committed against Falun Gong in China” and showed her support by signing the petition.

A mother and her child support the practitioners in their quest to end the CCP atrocities.

A Ukrainian woman and her boyfriend listen to a practitioner’s explanations.

A young man and his girlfriend Viola stopped at the booth. He signed the petition asked about the importance of signatures. He wanted to know how his signature could help the practitioners in China. The practitioner explained that each signature would be a symbol negating the CCP’s influence and help keep people overseas from unknowingly participating in its crimes.

The young man and Viola study the materials at the Dafa information booth.

A man with a child in his arms who was begging up and down the street stopped to learn about the persecution of Falun Gong in China. He was thoughtful as he listened to the explanation and signed the petition.

A man holding his child chooses to support the practitioners in China by signing the petition.

Passerby: “Fear Prevents People from Seeing the Truth”

Strong winds on January 27 forced the practitioners to pack up their large banners as they again gathered in Plovdiv at the same location. Although they only set up a petition-signing booth, that didn‘t keep passersby from stopping and talking with practitioners.

Nikolai came over to the booth after recognizing that the event was for Falun Dafa. He said that he had heard about Falun Dafa at the Beglika Festival and had intended to try the exercises. He said that he had never had a practice capture his attention for so long until now. He purchased a copy of Zhuan Falun, the main book of Falun Dafa’s teachings, and inquired about the location of the practice site in Plovdiv.

Nikolai signs the petition.

Vanya stopped by to get more information about the practitioners’ cause. She was already aware of the damage that communism could do to a society. She was happy to support the practitioners in China and commended the practitioners for their efforts to bring people the truth.

“The seeker of truth is an awake and active person; he does not allow himself to be manipulated,” she said. “Fear prevents people from seeing the truth, from knowing it.”

Vanya signs the petition and wishes them success.

One woman told the practitioners that she trades in food supplements from China, but she had no idea about the persecution, which has been largely censored by the CCP and the information kept within its borders. “So this is the dark side of China,” she said. She also signed the petition.