(Clearwisdom.net) On Monday, March 15, 2004, the first day of the 60th annual United Nations Human Rights Commission meeting, more than five hundred Falun Gong practitioners arrived from more than 20 countries around the world, including Switzerland, Germany, France, Austria, the UK, Holland, Belgium, Italy, Greece, Slovakia, Russia, Lithuania, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Ireland, Taiwan, the US, Australia, and Israel. They held a parade in downtown Geneva, held a press conference on the Places des Nations in front of the UN building, Geneva, and performed the Falun Gong exercises. They wanted to appeal to the United Nations, governments and non-governmental organizations to help bring an end to the persecution of Falun Gong in China. At the press conference at 12:00 p.m., two members of the Swiss Parliament Ms. Maria Roth-Bernasconi and Mr. Ueli Leuenberger and the Co-Chairman of the European Falun Dafa Association Mr. Peter Jauhal gave speeches respectively. Below is the speech given by Mr. Ueli Leuenberger.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I hereby offer my support in your fight for the respect of human rights in China. I also express my support for women and men who take action worldwide in favour of human rights.

Those who practise discrimination, suppression, imprisonment, physical torture and psychological torture, those who aim at the elimination of women and men because they belong to a particular philosophical, political or religious trend, must meet with wholehearted disapproval and condemnation.

I regret that too often the demand for the respect of human rights, for the respect of freedom of conscience, expression and association, must give way to purely pecuniary considerations, influenced only by economic interests.

I often have the impression that the greater a country is, with immense markets, the more the Charter of human rights is put away in the cupboard, not to annoy powerful economic partners and not to shut the doors to future profitable markets.

How can we see otherwise, for example, the attitude of the French authorities during the demonstrations for the Chinese New Year in Paris?

How can we see otherwise, for example, the chill of certain political groups in Switzerland, when one speaks of human rights in China?

How can we see otherwise, for example, the tremendous difficulty experienced by the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in broaching the subject of the suppression of Falun Gong?

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is rightly universal. To demand its respect on a universal level is therefore not only normal but constitutes a duty.

China is a great country. A China which respects human rights could only increase in importance and grow in stature before worldwide public opinion.

The integration of respect for human rights in the Chinese Constitution, decided upon yesterday by the Chinese parliament, must be followed up without delay by concrete acts.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I wish you strength and courage to continue your fight. I wish you success in your commitment.

In conclusion, I assure you that my thoughts, like yours, go to all those who are suffering through lack of respect for human rights, in China of course, but also everywhere in the world!