The Sun Herold (Biloxi, Ms.): Chinese dissidents protest crackdown on meditative exercise

Tuesday, Aug 19, 2003

Breaking News

BILOXI - Three Chinese seeking to raise awareness about a [..] communist crackdown on the practice of Falun Gong, a meditative exercise, quietly went through the motions across from City Hall on Thursday.

The stopover in Biloxi is part of a peaceful protest occurring in cities across the nation that will culminate in Washington, D.C.

The arrest in January of Dr. Charles Li, a U.S. citizen, in China at The Guangzhou Airport spurred the action, although the activists said practitioners of Falun Gong have been persecuted by the Chinese government since 1999. [...]

[The] three practitioners who came to Biloxi said Falun Gong is based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. Falun Gong practitioners contend that the government ordered the crackdown because it felt threatened by the image of hundreds of people amassing to go through the exercises.

Jeff Yeh, Jason Wong and Sunny Sun began their trek in Texas, where they live, and plan to connect with other protesters in Kansas City, Mo., before moving on to the nation's capital. They brought with them a petition that they asked people to sign.

Falun Gong has roots in traditional Chinese culture, but it is distinct and separate from other practices, such as the religions of Buddhism and Taoism, according to information provided by the protesters.

http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/breaking_news/6570731.htm