(Clearwisdom.net) On the evening of April 25, 2009, Falun Gong practitioners in San Francisco Bay Area held a candlelight vigil to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the April 25 group appeal of ten thousands of Falun Gong practitioners in Beijing, China. They also commemorated the thousands of fellow practitioners who have lost their lives due to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)'s persecution of Falun Gong. They called for justice and conscience to stop the CCP's persecution.

Ms. Chen Jiaqi who participated in the appeal demands immediate end to the persecution

Ms. Chen Jiaqi started to practice Falun Gong in 1996 and participated in the April 25 appeal in 1999. She said, "The CCP has persecuted Falun Gong for ten years. I demand that the CCP stop the persecution immediately. The purpose of that appeal was to have a peaceful practice environment."

Ms. Chen said, "I hope that all staff in the consulate see that Falun Dafa practitioners overseas behave similarly to those in China. We don't have slogans but only demonstrate the grace of Falun Dafa peacefully. We demand an immediate end to the persecution. It cannot continue."

Falun Dafa upgrades morality and makes people behave with kindness

Ms. Zhang Hong, a practitioner in the bay area, said, "April 25 is a day worthy of commemorating. It is the first time that Chinese people expressed their righteous request in a peaceful and rational way. Falun Gong practitioners want others to know that they are good people and live by following Truth-Compassion-Forbearance."

She continued, "Falun Gong has been spread to more than eighty countries across the world, even as it has been persecuted in China for ten years, because Falun Gong helps people behave with kindness and be good people. I call on all kind-hearted people around the world to stand with us and demand that the CCP stop the persecution of Falun Gong immediately."

April 25 appeal established a moral milestone

Mr. Zhang came to the USA in 1994 and is a computer engineer in a government office. On April 25, 1999, he saw the news of ten thousand Falun Gong practitioners appealing in Beijing from local Chinese TV news.

He said he knew that the CCP is evil and listened to the news in a reverse way. He became more interested in knowing Falun Gong when the CCP slandered it. He said so many people practice that it must be good. He went to a local bookstore and bought the book Zhuan Falun. He read it through quickly and started practicing Falun Gong.

Where are human beings from and where do they go? He found the answer in the book and his view of the world changed.

Mr. Zhang experienced the June 4, 1989 massacre on Tiananmen Square and knew all about the CCP's violence and inhumanity. Falun Gong practitioners follow Truth-Compassion-Forbearance, which is far different from the CCP's promotion of violence and inhumanity. Thus, the CCP wanted to persecute and suppress Falun Gong.

Mr. Zhang said, "Many people think the CCP would have not persecuted Falun Gong if the practitioners did not appeal. Actually the CCP had persecuted Falun Gong since 1996. For example, Falun Gong books were not allowed to be published; secret police harassed practitioners at practice sites occasionally; and the media broadcast propaganda articles slandering Falun Gong sometimes.

"The CCP just used the April 25 appeal as an excuse to initiate the full-scale persecution. Appealing is a basic right for Chinese citizens stipulated in the Chinese constitution. The CCP violates the constitution and demolishes morality. During each movement, the CCP forced people to go along with it, and facing the CCP's violence, many people yielded.

"Many practitioners benefit from the practice in health improvement and improving their character. Some people recovered from terminal illnesses after practicing. This is why Falun Gong practitioners do not compromise but safeguard human morality while facing the totalitarian CCP regime and the brutal persecution.

"In the past ten years, Falun Gong practitioners have not compromised but became more steadfast. They established their own media, including newspaper, TV, radio station and the world-renowned Shen Yun show. Falun Gong has become more and more popular, and the journey of Falun Gong practitioners has become a model for Chinese people not yielding to the totalitarian regime."