The Art of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance in Wollongong, Australia (Photo)

(Clearwisdom.net) The Art of Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance International Exhibition was recently held at the Old Court House in Wollongong, Australia, from January 27 to February 5, 2012. It was the second time the art exhibition was held at this location. News of the exhibition reached far and wide throughout the Illawarra region thanks to mainstream news coverage by The Mercury newspaper.

An article in The Mercury newspaper told the story of a local Falun Gong practitioner, Jielin Li, who fled China as a refugee after three years in a labor camp.

The exhibition was opened by the Mayor of Wollongong, Cr Gordon Bradbery, on January 28, and was attended by several prominent public figures including Bishop Peter Ingham, and Teresa Tran, local human rights activist for the Vietnamese community.

The Mayor gave a colorful and insightful introduction to the exhibition attendees.

“It’s wonderful how, in the medium, the color, the textures, the symbols, and the imagery bring all these things together to represent their story.”

“Truth, compassion, and tolerance, as far as I’m concerned, are three precepts that are most important for any society, that we always need to explore, the frontiers of our understanding, whether it be of the universe or the creation or whether it be our own self-control, discipline, and the human mind.”

Along with many who attended, Bishop Ingham seemed to be impressed with the collection.

“It’s a classic communist way that they cannot tolerate someone who has a different ideology, and sadly, they are persecuting their own people. All [Falun Gong] are really doing is helping people to be much better citizens. In other words, in many ways, the communists should be happy that people are bringing tolerance, compassion, and truth. But of course, a part of the problem with communism is, it’s a lie.”

The gallery, located in the heart of the seaside community, attracted community groups, travelers, and many local residents.

After visiting the exhibit, many people expressed their support for Falun Gong to the curators. Some bought Zhuan Falun and others started to learn the exercises.

The organizing group is working to share the exhibition with many more communities throughout New South Wales, Australia.