(Minghui.org) On October 20, 2013, over 3,000 Falun Gong practitioners attended the “Stop the Persecution, Bring the Criminals to Justice” rally at Marina Green Park in Long Beach, California. As witnesses and survivors of the persecution, over 100 Falun Gong practitioners who had been tortured in China for their belief stood next to the stage. Many more survivors of the persecution stood in the crowd.
More than a dozen of them briefly described their personal experiences. They also showed their scars, loss of teeth, and other marks of injury from torture.
The audience and guest speakers were all deeply moved by the courage of these Falun Gong practitioners. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher was one of them. Though planning to speak once, he took the microphone to speak two more times, and teared up as he shared a personal story with the audience.
On October 20, 2013, over 2,000 Falun Gong practitioners gathered at a rally in Long Beach in the Los Angeles metropolitan area to expose the crimes of the Chinese communist regime. Falun Gong practitioners received many local proclamations.
Personal Accounts of Persecution Present the Big Picture
When the Master of Ceremonies asked for a show of hands of those who had been arrested at least three times, about 80 out of the 100 responded. When asked, “Who lost their jobs or pensions due to the persecution?” again, about 80 people raised their hands. How many were tortured during pregnancy? About 8 women raised their hands.
How many had their blood drawn and blood type tested? Over half. We now know that this was done to qualify them for forced live organ harvesting.
The rally presented the big picture of the persecution of Falun Gong with individual accounts of persecution.
A survivor demonstrated his loss of teeth due to torture. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
Ms. Jana Li from Beijing:
“Due to my firm belief in Falun Gong, I have been arrested three times and sent to a mental hospital once. Two policewomen from the Beijing Forced Labor Camp used two electric batons to shock me on my back, neck, and arms. My back and arms were scorched black all over, like I had been bar-b-qued. Due to torture in the mental hospital, I lost my memory partially for several years.”
Mr. Wang Weiyu:
“I was expelled twice from Tsinghua University just because I practiced Falun Gong. Then I was put in prison for eight and a half years. I was forced to sit constantly for a period of six months. Once I was shocked with electric batons for more than 10 hours.”
Mr. Li Sushen:
“I'm a writer and a painter. I was in jail for more than six years. I was brutally beaten and tortured, including electric shocking. I was severely injured.”
A Falun Gong practitioner re-enacts the torture she personally experienced. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
According to Shizhong Chen, the Master of Ceremonies and organizer of the rally: “For each Falun Gong practitioner who was able to escape the persecution and speak today, we know that there are 10,000 or even 100,000 who cannot leave China. This shows how extensive the persecution is!”
A teenage girl recalled her experience of the persecution when she was in China. (Photo courtesy of Epoch Times)
When recalling the tortures they suffered, many survivors choked up and paused, including this teenage girl:
“When I was four, I was doing the exercises and meditation with my mom in a park in China. Then the police just forced us into the police van and took us to the brainwashing and detention centers. I remembered a few times the police broke into our house. They took my mom away...”
Mr. Chen Jin from Fuzhou City, Fujian Province:
“When I was in prison, I was pushed down on the ground. I was forced to sign my death certificate so that my death would count as nothing.”
Ms. Wang Chunying:
“I was persecuted for five years in Masanjia Forced Labor Camp. The guards' goal was simple: to force me to abandon my belief in Falun Gong. Because I refused, they tortured me. I was stretched between two beds for six hours. I was also deprived of sleep for six days and nights.”
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher Extends His Speech Twice
California Congressman Dana Rohrabacher is a senior legislator on the Foreign Affairs Committee. He joined the rally after attending church that Sunday.
“We as Americans owe it to the rest of those people who suffer. If we are grateful for our own freedom, let it be expressed in solidarity with those who suffer under tyranny,” he said.
He pointed out the fundamental reason for the persecution: “We know that in China, Falun Gong are targeted even beyond what some of the other faiths are... The Falun Gong, in particular, because the communist leaders, the gangsters who run that country, you are an affront to them because your religion is coming from the soul of China. And they don't want to admit that that is a threat to them!”
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher had his photo taken with survivors of the persecution. (Photo courtesy of the Epoch Times)
As he walked off the stage, his chief of staff introduced the survivors of the persecution to him. He stopped to have a photo taken with the group, taking several people's hands at one time. Many of the survivors cried and expressed their appreciation and respect.
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher and Falun Gong practitioners (Photo courtesy of the Epoch Times)
Congressman Rohrabacher was very touched. He asked the Master of Ceremonies if he could say a few more words. He started by saying: “I thought I would say one other thing to you." He choked up and had to pause. The audience gave him warm and encouraging applause.
Congressman Rohrabacher then shared a personal story about his father, who was from a poor farm in North Dakota and had served in the Marine Corps during World War II.
While working as a speech writer for Ronald Reagan, Congressman Rohrabacher invited his parents to a breakfast at the White House when Reagan was inaugurated for the second time.
They ended up sitting next to Elaine Chao, who later became the Secretary of Labor, and her parents. When Congressman Rohrabacher's father learned they were originally from Shanghai, he explained that he was the first one to land his plane in Shanghai.
Ms. Chao's parents said, “Oh yes, we remember those days. They were horrible days. The armies had mutinied, and people were being killed and murdered, and chaos had broken out. But when the Americans arrived, [the Congressman chokes up again] we knew that the situation would improve and that we would survive because the Americans were there.” [warm applause]
Since the Congressman's father had lived in Shanghai for a year and was used to communicating with Chinese people who knew little or no English, he spoke to Ms. Chao's father in a similar way, talking slowly and loudly about his new electronic watch and pointing to it, as if he couldn't speak English very well.
Knowing that Ms. Chao's father was a wealthy businessman who spoke very good English, the Congressman could not hide his embarrassment over his father's behavior.
However, as they were leaving, Mr. and Mrs. Chao grabbed the Congressman's arm and said, “We saw that you were embarrassed about your father. Don't ever be embarrassed about your father! He's the one who came to save us!”
This brought Congressman Rohrabacher to the conclusion of his message at the rally: “We are all Americans now, of every race and religion. It's up to us to come to the people of China and help save them from this horrible tyranny. Not to ally ourselves to make profit, but to create a freer and more peaceful and prosperous world. Thank you all very much. God bless you.”
On behalf of the survivors, the Master of Ceremonies offered three hand-folded paper lotus flowers to the Congressman for his three children to thank him for taking his time on Sunday to join the rally to support Falun Gong.
In addition to Congressman Rohrabacher, many other guests spoke at the rally, including Dr. Robert Garcia, Deputy Mayor of Long Beach; Long Beach City Councilwoman Dr. Suja Lowenthal; Ms. Denise Fernandez representing Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez; Dr. Torsten Trey, Chairman of Doctors against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH); and Mr. Greg Autry, renowned entrepreneur, writer and educator and representative from Amnesty International.
Dr. Robert Garcia (left), Deputy Mayor of Long Beach, and Long Beach City Councilwoman Dr. Suja Lowenthal (right) attended the rally with proclamations for Falun Gong practitioners.
Category: Rallies & Protests
