Protesting CCP atrocities and calling for action to rescue persecuted Falun Gong practitioners in China

From 7:00 a.m. on March 16 to 7:00 a.m. on March 18, Falun Gong practitioners from Washington, DC and nearby areas held a 48-hour continuous sit-in on Lafayette Square in front of the White House, to condemn the Chinese Communist regime's atrocities at the Sujiatun Concentration Camp and to call on the U.S. government and all other countries to take immediate action to stop the arbitrary killing of practitioners in China. On the evening of March 16, practitioners held a candlelight vigil to commemorate practitioners persecuted to death by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

Late at night, the appeal continues

At noontime on March 16, practitioners and representatives from all circles in Washington, DC held a press conference on Lafayette Square. The square is surrounded by the office buildings of major media outlets, government institutions and think tanks. As the rally was held during lunch break, there was a continuous flow of pedestrians, many of whom stopped to read the banners and posters and/or listen to the speeches.

D. J. McGuire, Executive Director of China e-Lobby said in a statement, "We rally here today to express our outrage at the Chinese Communist regime's Sujiatun Concentration Camp. While we all shocked by it, we are not surprised...the inhumane Chinese Communist regime must be held accountable."

Dr. Torsten Trey is a German-American. He said, "I am a doctor, and my mission is to save patients' lives. When I hear that Sujiatuan Concentration Camp has harvested organs from healthy people, I am very concerned. Such a barbaric practice is completely against humane conscience and the professional values of doctors." Dr. Trey also called on all people around the world to come forward to resist the persecution of Falun Gong and to say "No!" to the CCP's atrocities.

Attorney Jason Dzubow is of Jewish heritage. He said, "I was not surprised when I first heard about the Sujiatun Concentration Camp, as the Chinese Communist Party's persecution of Falun Gong is well known. The annual Human Rights Country Reports of the Department of State lists tens of hundreds cases of persecuted Falun Gong practitioners every year. For simply practicing Falun Gong, they are tortured and killed, and tens of thousands have been imprisoned.

Dzubow said, "I am of Jewish descendent, my family immigrated to the U.S. from Europe before World War II. Some of my family members stayed in Europe and were all killed [by the Nazis]. Therefore, I am greatly concerned about the Sujiatun case, and I think that all Americans will be very alarmed by this news."

A gentleman from California, Mr. Noland, came to Washington, DC to attend a conference. He ran into the press conference during his lunch break. He was shocked by the posters which illustrated torture cases in China. After learning the truth, he immediately phoned a relative in California to tell them about the CCP's atrocities against Falun Gong. He then asked practitioners for more details. Mr. Noland said that he cannot imagine that the CCP can so brutally persecute practitioners for doing meditation. He said that he would write to his representative and the President, urging them to stop the CCP's persecution of peaceful Falun Gong practitioners.

At the press conference, New York resident Mr. Xueshan Teng said that one year ago, his friend's wife was abducted and detained in the Masanjia Forced Labor Camp for her belief in Falun Gong. The camp refused his friend and their child's requests to visit her, with all kinds of excuses. Upon hearing about the atrocities in the Sujiatun Concentration Camp, his friend is very worried about his wife's situation.

Mr. Teng said, "I cannot express enough my friend's sorrow and outrage. People living under the evil CCP's tyranny have no human dignity. Before they are persecuted to death, their organs are harvested for commercial interests. Please think about how much pain and agony these Falun Gong practitioners are enduring as I speak. My friend hopes that his wife and more Mainland Falun Gong practitioners will receive help from the U.S. and all kind-hearted people worldwide, before they are sent to concentration camps and killed."

 

Attorney Jason Dzubow said, "My colleague, Attorney Gao Zhisheng published an open letter last year to detail the torture and killing of Falun Gong practitioners in China. For this very reason, the Chinese Communist regime confiscated his license and shut down his business. In January, the regime also tried to assassinate him by staging a car accident."

D. J. McGuire, of China e-Lobby, stated, "We have seen that the Chinese Communist regime is exporting its persecution overseas and infiltrating the U.S."

Just this past February, Dr. Peter Yuan Li, the chief technical officer of the outspoken Epoch Times newspaper and a Falun Gong practitioner, was assaulted at his Atlanta home. In addition, several cases have been reported in which CCP secret agents have broken into offices of the Epoch Times in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan.

Attorney Jason Dzubow said, "I am honored to represent Falun Gong practitioners in the U.S., to sue the Chinese Communist regime for its repeated attempts to harass and suppress them. The case is now in process in the Washington, DC Federal Court."

McGuire said, "If the Chinese Communist regime exists for one more day, it means that more people will die. We should not only be outraged, but we should also speed up our actions to bring freedom to China, safety to the U.S. and peace to the whole world."

McGuire said, "Despite these terrorist atrocities, we don't feel desperate or simply outraged as we gather here. We are full of hope, as we know that these barbaric activities are not a reflection of strength but of desperation. It is not the normal behavior of a stable regime, and the Chinese Communist regime knows that it is approaching to its doom."

Jeff Chen, spokesman for the Washington, DC Falun Dafa Association, said, "This genocide is challenging basic human conscience. We all know the tragedy that happened in Nazi concentration camps. Today, more than 9 million Chinese have quit the Chinese Communist Party and its affiliated organizations. As the regime knows it is approaching its doom, it has launched a series of crazed activities. The last measure of the regime is to slaughter all kind-hearted Chinese and destroy good traditional values."

McGuire said that the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party has inspired 9 million people to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations. In addition, the numbers suggests that the Nine Commentaries have been spread to every corner of China.

Practitioner Jared Pearman said, "Sujiatun Concentration Camp is not only killing individuals, it is a genocide, a crime to eliminate these people from the Earth. This cannot be tolerated from any human standard."

Pearman called on President George Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to investigate this case and expose the crimes of the CCP.

Pointing in front of him, Pearman said, "In this area not far from us, the administration is planning to build a monument to the worldwide victims of Communism. Behind us is the World War II Memorial. We hope that we will not [have to] build another memorial in the future and we do not want one for us. We hope that such tragedy will not happen again."

Mr. Pearman called on President Bush and Secretary of State Rice to communicate with the CCP leader Hu Jintao immediately and demand the shutdown of the secret concentration camp, and to meet with representatives of practitioners to discuss a concrete plan to end the persecution. In addition, he also called on the U.S. government to cooperate with the United Nations to investigate the situation of Sujiatun and launch rescue efforts.

Attorney Jason Dzubow said, "We jointly demand that the governments of the U.S. and countries around the world come forward to say 'No!' to the Chinese Communist regime. What is happening in China should not happen to anyone in the future. I want to say to President Bush and Secretary of State Rice: If they meet Hu Jintao next month, they must clearly state that the U.S. will not tolerate such a large-scale slaughter and genocide."

On March 16, the Washington, DC Falun Dafa Association wrote a letter to President Bush and delivered the letter to White House. The association called on the White House to take immediate actions to end the secret Sujiatun Concentration Camp, which is reminiscent of the Nazi's Auschwitz, and urged President Bush to take all possible effective measures to publicize the truth of the Sujiatun Concentration Camp. The letter stated that President Bush should summon the Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. and question the regime on this case.

At the rally, Falun Gong practitioner and renowned tenor Guan Guimin played a musical composition he wrote two year ago, entitled, "Please Sit by My Side."

Mr. Guan said, "I come here to tell the public of the atrocities of the Chinese Communist regime. Though the regime can try everything to hide the evidence, it cannot eliminate the evidence. Because it has committed crimes, there must be some evidence. I am sure that people with a sense of justice will come forward to expose this case further, and more news will come out soon.

"China has a saying: To prevent people from knowing [of a bad deed], one can only not do it [the bad deed]. I believe that the truth will come out one day. Today, people's indifference to social injustice has reached a shocking extent. If such an appalling phenomenon is allowed to exist, it will be a disgrace to human beings."

Mr. Guan hoped that he could awaken those lost people with music.

He said, "As a human being, from the President to the general public, everyone should pay close attention to this case."

A former CCP intelligence worker recently revealed that in Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, the Chinese Communist regime has established a concentration camp to persecute Falun Dafa practitioners. According to this source, about 6,000 practitioners are being detained at the camp and no prisoners have come out the camp alive. It is said the camp has a large amount of medical workers and a crematorium, and practitioners are being arbitrarily killed and their organs are harvested for commercial interests.

As soon as the news was exposed, it raised great concern among people from all circles. Overseas Falun Gong practitioners have taken immediate action to investigate and expose the abhorrent situation.

On the afternoon of March 13, U.K. Falun Gong practitioners held a press conference in front of the Chinese Embassy in London to expose and protest the Sujiatun Concentration Camp's inhuman atrocities: Organ harvesting from practitioners alive, arbitrary killing and cremating their bodies to dispose of the evidence.

Peter Jauhal, president of the U.K. Falun Dafa Association, said in a speech, "Since the Nuremberg Trials against Nazi war criminals concluded in 1946, people around the world have been unanimously hoping that concentration camps similar to Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Dachau will not appear again. The truth is that such a camp is operating in China right now.

"Information about the Sujiatun is limited so far. It is said that no detainees have ever left the camp alive. International media and all governments should pay serious attention to this case and take constructive actions to investigate and stop such a barbaric practice. If the international community remains silent toward the genocide of Falun Gong practitioners, the result will be a terrible tragedy," Peter said.

Lord Avebury, Vice Chairman of the Parliamentary Human Rights Group, sent a statement to the press conference to express his concern. He stated that the international community and the U.K. government should investigate the case and loudly condemn the brutal practice. The case should be discussed at the upcoming United Nations Human Rights Convention.

In a letter to the Chinese Ambassador, Mr. John Dee, deputy director of European Friends of Falun Gong, wrote: "This heartless crime and barbaric killing of Falun Gong practitioners at the Chinese Communist Party [CCP's] Sujiatun Concentration Camp is only speeding up its demise. More and more people in the world will see clearly the evil nature of the CCP and more and more Chinese people will quit the CCP. Now nearly 9 million Chinese people in China have quit the CCP. The demise of the CCP is impending. We believe that all those who have committed such crimes will be brought to justice and this day is not far away."

Chinese version available at http://www.minghui.org/mh/articles/2006/3/15/122940.html

New Zealand: Practitioners Rally in front of Chinese Embassy to Protest Atrocities

New Zealand practitioners and other citizens recently rallied in front of the Chinese Embassy in Wellington to protest the illegal detention, arbitrary killing and organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners. Practitioners from all over New Zealand participated in the event.

During the rally, renowned law professor Yuan Hongbin made a special trip from Australia to attend the rally. In his speech, he strongly condemned the inhuman atrocities of the Chinese Communist regime and called on the international community to investigate the Sujiatun Concentration Camp. In addition, a representative of practitioners read the announcement of the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong regarding the case.

At the end of the rally, a parade was held to raise public awareness of the Sujiatun Concentration camp.

Chinese version available http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2006/3/18/123167.html

Portland, Oregon (U.S.A.): Rally to Raise Awareness of the Sujiatun Concentration Camp

Upon hearing of the atrocities of the secret Sujiatun Concentration Camp, on the afternoon of March 11, Oregon practitioners rallied in downtown Portland to raise awareness of the case. They distributed fliers and clarified the truth to passersby, calling upon all kind-hearted people to pay close attention to the genocide in China and to help end the atrocities.

Practitioners displayed many posters which read, "Stop the Chinese Communist Party's Genocide of Falun Gong," "Exposed: Secret Death Camp for Falun Gong in China" and "Stop Killing Falun Gong Practitioners and Harvesting Organs." The practitioners' activities attracted many people' attention. After listening to the practitioners' explanation, they were shocked and indignant over the atrocities.

A person of the Christian faith was very sad upon hearing the case. He said that the persecution must be stopped. "People's morality is so low today, God will not allow this to continue long. Please give me more fliers; I will distribute them to more people so that they will know about this as well," he said.

In about 2 hours, practitioners distributed several hundreds fliers. During conversations with passersby, they sensed that many Americans have a clear understanding of the evil nature of the CCP. Many of them believe that people should not do business with the CCP.

One gentleman said, "I can feel that the Communist Party is infiltrating this country. We do not need cheap products, we should be satisfied with what we have. Otherwise, our greed will be taken advantage by the Chinese Communist Party."

At 2:00 p.m. on March 16, a house hearing, "Monitoring Respect for Human Rights Around the World: A Review of the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2005" - was held at the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, DC. Nina Shea, director of Freedom House gave a testimony and called for investigation of the Sujiatun Concentration Camp.

Ms. Nina Shea said, "Though still being investigated and yet to be verified, a report has surfaced that is so grave it warrants mentioning here: According to a Chinese journalist who recently escaped to the United States, a concentration camp, Sujiatun, in the city of Shenyang, has been specially constructed to hold some 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners from northeast China. The camp is said to have a large staff of doctors, whose job there is to conduct experiments on the prisoners and kill them efficiently. It is said to include a crematorium to dispose of the evidence.

"The journalist, working with a network of informants, states that the Chinese government uses the prison to conduct a business in selling organs harvested from those who are killed inside. In light of Harry Wu's past reports on organ harvesting from executed prisoners in China, this story must be taken seriously and investigated."

The hearing was hosted by Christopher H. Smith, Chairperson of the House Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations. Barry Lowenkron, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, Bishop Thomas Wenski, Chairman of the US Bishops' Committee on International Policy, Ms. Elisa Massimino, Washington Director of Human Rights First, Sharon Hom, Executive Chair of Human Rights in China, Ms. Nina Shea, Director of Freedom House, and Ali Al-Ahmed, Director of the Gulf Institute, each gave testimonies.

Congressman Smith pointed out that human rights are not a compromise or welfare given by a government, but are the basic rights of everyone based on human beings' dignity and worth. Smith said that some human rights are fundamental and are the foundation of other rights. Among them, the right to live is the foremost. If one's life is endangered, all other rights will become meaningless. Therefore, every life is of paramount importance.

On March 8, the Department of State issued its Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2005, in which it detailed human rights violations in Zimbabwe, China, Burma and Cuba, among other countries.

Although it is already mid-March, snow is still everywhere in St. Paul. In the world of snow and ice, Minnesota practitioners held a press conference in front of the State Government Building to protest the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP's) Sujiatun Concentration Camp, which routinely kills practitioners and harvests their organs for profit.

Asian American Press Reporter interviews practitioners

A practitioner gives a speech at the press conference

Clarifying the truth to people

Practitioners braved the cold weather to raise public awareness of the inhumane atrocities taking place in the Sujiatun Concentration Camp. When a regime persecutes practitioners of "Truthfulness, Compassion and Tolerance" using extreme and brutal measures, when it makes a profit by harvesting organs from live people, when it slaughters kind-hearted civilians, people cannot remain indifferent. If mankind does nothing in the face of brutal atrocities, mankind will no longer have true peace and happiness and the world will have no hope or future.

Though it was very cold, there was a constant stream of people in front of the State Government Building. Among them were students, seniors, tourists, reporters and civil servants. The practitioners' colorful banners and posters gave every individual who came to the building a good opportunity to learn the truth. Some talked with practitioners, some received practitioners' newspaper or fliers, and some signed a petition upon learning of the atrocities. Many expressed their outrage and thanked the practitioners for their peaceful protest, which gave them the opportunity to learn about the situation in Sujiatun. A reporter from the Asian American Press was very interested in the event and conducted an in-depth interview at the site.

At the same time, some practitioners went inside the building to deliver truth-clarifying packages to government officials, requesting them to pay attention to the situation at Sujiatun and to take appropriate action to end the atrocities.

In a speech at the rally, a practitioner said, "We will try our best to let the public know about the genocide of Falun Gong in the Sujiatun Concentration Camp, and we will take all possible peaceful measures to resist the persecution and stop the CCP's atrocity."

It was shocking to learn that in a secret concentration camp in the Sujiatun District in Shenyang City, at least 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners are locked up. Their internal organs are harvested and sold for profit, and their murdered bodies are cremated to destroy the evidence. Practitioners in Dallas, Friends of Falun Gong at the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) and a representative of a non-governmental organization held a press conference in front of the UTD Student Union at noon on March 16, 2006. They strongly condemned the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP's) atrocities and called on the international society to immediately investigate, stop the killing and rescue the practitioners being tortured and murdered for profit.

In the press conference, Ms. Fu, President of the Friends of Falun Gong UTD, introduced the shocking inside story about the brutality at the Sujiatun Concentration Camp, and called on all UTD faculty and students to condemn the CCP's barbarity and help rescue those practitioners being persecuted in China.

Ms. Zhang, a practitioner and information specialist, said in her speech, "Concentration camps for detaining Falun Gong practitioners were reported a few years ago. AFP reported on October 1, 2000 that two concentration camps were established to imprison Falun Gong practitioners. One was in Northwest and the other in Northeast. Each camp can imprison 50,000 people. Minghui.org (the Chinese version of Clearwisdom) reported on October 6, 2000 that a concentration camp was established in Xinjiang to imprison practitioners. Insiders disclosed that practitioners were taken to Xinjiang by train. But no further information was available because no one comes out of there."

Practitioner and computer engineer Mr. Sun introduced Falun Gong and explained why Falun Gong is persecuted in China and why many people had not heard of Falun Gong after it began to be persecuted for nearly seven years. Mr. Sun said that even in China many people do not know that other people are persecuted because of personal belief. It is because of the information blockade in China. The CCP spent a huge amount of money to filter information over the Internet and demonize Falun Gong. The CCP breeds hatred towards those it does not like. It also forces western countries and media to keep silent on the Falun Gong issue with economic enticement. Mr. Sun called on people to spread the facts to more people.

Dr. Wu, a teacher in a local community college, said in her speech, "After the Nuremberg trials of Nazi war criminals, people hoped that concentration camps like Auschwitz and Buchenwald would never again appear in the future. Unfortunately, a similar concentration camp is running under the control of the CCP in China and the genocidal policy of Jiang Zemin, and the CCP is being applied to kill practitioners. In addition, the CCP is gaining a profit from the victims by harvesting their internal organs. This clearly exposes the CCP's evil nature. I call on the international community and human rights organizations to investigate the Sujiatun Concentration Camp. I urge all kind-hearted people to help end the CCP's killing of innocent people."

Practitioner Ms. Hu said, "The CCP's persecution of Falun Gong has continued for nearly seven years. Such a brutal persecution is beyond normal people's imagination. More people should know about this. I call on the Chinese people stop being so numb, pay attention to the practitioners being tortured and help end the brutal persecution."

Mr. Mike Ghouse, president of the Foundation for Pluralism, attended the press conference and gave a speech. He said that he was shocked after hearing of the brutal persecution against Falun Gong practitioners. He expressed the concept that when an unfortunate incident occurs, for people with righteousness, they at least can speak out. If everyone keeps silent, when an unfortunate thing occurs to you, no one can speak for you. Mr. Ghouse called on people to be courageous and speak out for righteousness.

At noon, many faculty members and students passed by the Student Union. They stopped to learn about the event when they saw the banners and posters for the press conference. When they saw the practitioners' exercise demonstration, they could not accept the fact that that CCP brutally persecutes such a peaceful practice. Many students signed a petition calling for a halt to the CCP's killing of innocent people.

The 554-meter-high Taiping Hill on Hong Kong Island is the best spot for a bird's eye view of Hong Kong, and also a popular tourist site. Every day tens of thousands of tourists come to appreciate the night scene of Hong Kong. Another important focus here is a Truth-clarification Information Center set up by Hong Kong Falun Gong practitioners three years ago after having endured numerous difficulties and pressure. A group of Falun Gong practitioners have been persisting in clarifying the truth every day despite cold winds and hot weather, to the Chinese tourists who can only stay for 15 minutes at this tourist spot.

Chinese tourists attentively read the facts about Falun Gong

Falun Gong practitioners hold truth clarification display boards to see the Chinese tourists off

At the initial stage, practitioners faced trials from all sides. The police often used various excuses to try to not let the practitioners display truth clarification materials. A practitioner whose surname is Zhou recalled the difficulties and trials at the time. Once, a police officer attempted to confiscate the TV set used for playing the truth-clarifying videos, using the excuse that no private materials are allowed to be displayed on state-owned land. A woman practitioner managed to hold the TV set on her shoulder to continue playing the truth-clarifying video for 30 minutes. Many tourists came to watch. The practitioner clarified the truth to the tourists and the police officer. Someone in the crowd said, "If no display is allowed on the ground, then hang it up in the air." The practitioner was inspired and hung the TV set on a pole. The location was even more conspicuous and the tourists could see the TV even better.

The general manager of the Kangwen Office, who is in charge of the Wanchai District, refused to meet with practitioners several times. The practitioners made persistent efforts and eventually gained an opportunity to meet him in person to clarify the truth to him. He gradually came to understand Falun Gong and the practitioners. Though Hong Kong practitioners have broken through with strong righteous thoughts, if the practitioners had even the slightest human thought or fear, the situation would have become serious. Hong Kong practitioners have bravely made it through with righteous thoughts.

Practitioner Zhou recounted a lot of touching feedback. Many Chinese tour guides initially had hostility toward Falun Gong, but gradually they understood the truth. Some tour guides told her, "I want to practice Falun Gong." Practitioner Zhou asked them, "Why do you want to practice?" They answered, "I simply feel that Falun Gong is great, and that Falun Gong is righteous."

At the scenic spot, as soon as they got off the bus, many people were immediately attracted by the truth clarification display boards and facts about Falun Gong. Some asked practitioners secretly, "Does the Minghui website (Chinese version of Clearwisdom.net) still exist? Why haven't I seen it for quite some time?" Some tourists made the Heshi gesture of respect to practitioners. Some tourists asked a tour guide when the bus would come. The tour guide told the tourists, "You just watch the TV here, and I'll tell you when the bus comes."

Every day, practitioners hired a taxi to help transfer the truth clarification materials up the hill in the morning and then back down the hill in the evening. Though there are a lot of difficulties and the practitioners face financial difficulties, they are still persistent. A Western Falun Gong practitioner named Jeff from Washington, DC has been staying in Hong Kong for over a year. He loves Chinese culture and came to this Chinese land. He overcame barriers in the language and lifestyle and different ways of thinking. Though he disliked to pressure others to accept flyers, gradually he assimilated to the Eastern culture. He always smiled and took the initiative to hand out truth clarification materials to tourists. He also joyously hummed a Chinese song urging people to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). One Chinese tourist said, "The CCP is so bad; I've quit and all my family has quit."

Practitioner Zhou said they have been persisting in truth clarification there for over 1,000 days without complaint or regret. They hoped their efforts and kindness will awaken Chinese people's sense of justice and conscience.

Practitioner Zhou stated that every day tens of thousands of Chinese tourists come to visit, but there are only two or three practitioners at each information center doing truth clarification and holding display boards. Taiwanese practitioners often spend their holidays or take leave from work to travel to Hong Kong to help. Each practitioner uses their own money to buy their air ticket to travel abroad to take part in truth clarification activities.

Many Chinese tourists ask Falun Gong practitioners how much money the U.S. or Taiwanese government offered them to do this. Sometimes someone would ask how much money the practitioners are paid for distributing materials here every day, 500 yuan? Actually many practitioners have not even had enough sleep each day, because from early morning to late at night, they spend over twelve hours outside clarifying the truth. All the money the practitioners spend is saved from their own salaries, and they do all this voluntarily, from the compassion in their hearts.