The Netherlands: Rally and March in Recognition of Practitioners’ Protesting the Persecution for 25 Years

(Minghui.org) To mark 25 years of working to end the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution, Falun Gong (Falun Dafa) practitioners held a peaceful protest on Dam Square in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, on July 20, 2024. They also held a march to call for an end to the CCP’s brutality.

Practitioners set up display boards and large banners on Dam Square before the rally started at noon.

Peaceful protest on Dam Square calling for an end to the CCP’s persecution

People sign the petition calling for the persecution to end.

Silvio Verbeek, Vice President of the Falun Dafa Association of the Netherlands, spoke. He said, “When the CCP began to persecute Falun Gong on July 20, 1999, there were nearly 100 million people in China practicing Falun Gong, which was the largest group the CCP wanted to eliminate. The persecution spread to every city and province in China, targeting not only Falun Gong practitioners but also their families and supporters. It has been 25 years, but the persecution is still going on.

“For 25 years, practitioners in China have risked their lives and endured cruel persecution while continuing to tell the world the truth about Falun Gong and expose the nature of the CCP through various means. This selfless compassion is a role model for the world and deserves our deep admiration. Today we call on the CCP to immediately stop persecuting Falun Gong, and remind those who are associated with the CCP and allied with it to quickly stay away from this most evil regime.”

A Falun Gong practitioner read a letter sent by former Dutch MP Harry van Bommel, condemning the suppression of Falun Gong and urging the Dutch government and the European Union (EU) to take action to help stop the persecution. He wrote, “I strongly condemn the CCP’s continued persecution of ethnic minorities, including Falun Gong practitioners, which is a clear violation of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China and international conventions; I condemn the CCP’s campaign to eliminate Falun Gong in the country since 1999.

“1. I call for the immediate release of all Falun Gong practitioners imprisoned; express serious concern about the theft of organs from Falun Gong practitioners and other ethnic minorities;

“2. I call on the embassies of the member states and the EU Delegation to China to monitor the trials of Falun Gong practitioners by the CCP, provide assistance to Falun Gong practitioners, visit their conditions in prisons, and publicly condemn torture and other coercive tactics to force Falun Gong practitioners to give up their beliefs;

“3. I urge the EU and its member states to raise the persecution of religious minorities, especially Uyghurs and Falun Gong practitioners, in every political and human rights dialogue with the Chinese authorities;

“4. I call on member states to consider imposing targeted EU sanctions on individuals and companies involved in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners, including visa denials, asset freezes, criminal prosecutions or international criminal charges.”

Mr. van Bommel also wrote: “You are here to show solidarity with all Falun Gong practitioners who have been persecuted in China for the past 25 years, and this persecution continues to this day. I join you in condemning this persecution and I call on the Dutch government and the European Union to take effective measures to stop it. Only by uniting can governments take effective action against China.”

Another practitioner read a statement from Hans Noot, director of the non-governmental organization Gerard Noot Foundation for Freedom of Religion and Belief and associate director of Human Rights Without Borders, which supports practitioners’ protesting the CCP’s persecution and organ harvesting.

The statement said: “In the 1980s, China faced a severe shortage of voluntary organ donations. To solve this problem, the [Chinese] government began to use organs from executed prisoners. By 2005, the Chinese vice minister of health admitted that 95% of the organs came from executed prisoners. In the early 2000s, there were allegations that the Chinese government forcibly harvested organs from living Falun Gong practitioners.

“Subsequently, the investigations of David Matas and David Kilgour attracted widespread attention from the international community. Their book Bloody Harvest, published in 2006, revealed that many Falun Gong practitioners were killed for their organs and sold for transplantation.

“In 2019, independent investigations such as the China Tribunal led by Sir Geoffrey Nice concluded that forced organ harvesting occurs on a massive scale, not only from executed prisoners, but also from living, healthy Falun Gong practitioners, Uyghur Muslims, Tibetans and Christians. Organ harvesting has become a big business for Chinese government officials and wealthy recipients, all at the expense of living victims.

“We human rights activists reiterate our message to governments, the public, the medical profession and especially the main culprit, the Chinese Communist Party: this must stop. The doctors who perform these operations and the organizations that trade in organs in the West and elsewhere need to be prosecuted. Organ harvesting is a form of pure human depravity. We uphold Mahatma Gandhi’s assertion that ‘the true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.’”

March Through the Center of the City

At 2 p.m. practitioners carrying banners that read “Falun Dafa,” “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance,” and “Please Help Stop the 25-year-long Persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist Party” set off from Dam Square. They proceeded down Oude Doelenstraat, a famous street in the center of Amsterdam, Kloveniersburgwal canal on the east side of central Amsterdam, and then entered Chinatown along Nieuwmarkt. Many people along the route stopped to watch and took flyers that practitioners were handing out.

March in the center of Amsterdam

Many Chinese read the practitioners’ banners and learned about the CCP’s persecution. From Chinatown, the practitioners headed down Damrak Street, the main route from the Amsterdam Central Train Station to Dam Square. The many tourists on both sides of the road stopped to watch.

Practitioners clarified the truth to people along the route and distributed flyers. Many people signed the petition to stop the CCP’s organ harvesting.

Robin and her friend Alana

Robin and her friend Alana noticed the Falun Gong rally at Dam Square. Robin said, “Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are very important. If we find peace in everyone’s heart and share peace with each other, humanity will become better.” She said she opposes the persecution of Falun Gong and any form of persecution, killing, and war.

Alana said that Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance teach people to do things in the right way, with kindness and mercy, which is very admirable. She said that the persecution of Falun Gong is terrible and crazy and that it was right that practitioners protested the persecution. “Don’t give up!” she said.

After learning about the CCP’s live organ harvesting, Raymond was moved to tears and said, “Those people steal other people’s organs to make a lot of money, which hurts my heart. Seeing the photos of these victims, I seem to see their broken families. Are they [the CCP] demons or human beings? I think those who do this to people are not human beings, but demons. Stop the persecution of Falun Gong immediately. Everyone must stand up to end this.”

Radu Cezar from Romania

After Mr. Radu Cezar from Romania signed the petition condemning organ harvesting, he took out 20 Euros to show his support. The practitioners thanked him but said they do not accept any money. They said that if he wanted to help, he should tell his friends and family about the persecution of Falun Gong, so that people all over the world can come together to resist the CCP. He said he would definitely do so, that he now lives in the UK and has spoken to practitioners there and learned about Falun Gong. He was very interested in the exercises and had already started practicing them.

Venkata Shiva opposes the CCP’s brutality.

Venkata Shiva, who’d just graduated from college, was traveling in Europe during his summer vacation. He spoke with practitioners after the rally at Dam Square. When he heard about the CCP’s crime of harvesting organs from practitioners while they are alive, he expressed indignation and shock, saying that this was a crime that humanity cannot tolerate. He encouraged their efforts to resist the persecution and expose the CCP’s atrocities.

A tourist from the UK wished practitioners success in their efforts.

A woman from London, UK, stopped at the information booth and encouraged practitioners to persist and keep exposing the CCP’s atrocities. She said it might be difficult, but they should persist: “This regime [CCP] uses torture, enslavement, and even cuts up people’s bodies to harvest their organs. This is evil! I wish you success in your fight against the persecution!” She also said how much she liked Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.