(Minghui.org) Falun Dafa practitioners gathered in front of Chinese embassies and consulates in Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Dusseldorf, Munich, and Vienna on April 25, 2024, to mark the 25th anniversary of the April 25 Appeal in Beijing. They called on the public to jointly help stop the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s persecution of Falun Dafa (also called Falun Gong) practitioners.

Event Outside Chinese Embassy in Berlin, Germany

Falun Dafa practitioners peacefully protest outside the Chinese Embassy in Berlin on April 25, 2024.

Falun Dafa practitioners demonstrate the exercises outside the Chinese Embassy in Berlin on April 25, 2024.

Practitioners held a commemorative event on the Jannowitz Bridge (German: Jannowitzbrücke) opposite the Chinese Embassy in Berlin. They demonstrated the five sets of Falun Gong exercises accompanied by the soothing exercise music, and spoke with passersby about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong. Many people who learned the truth signed a petition to support Falun Gong and call for an end to the persecution.

Practitioners speak with passersby about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong.

Fahim was passing the Jannowitz Bridge when she saw practitioners demonstrating the exercises. Fahim is from Iran and was in Berlin doing short-term research after receiving her PhD.

“This was the first time I’ve seen Falun Gong, and I feel very attracted and inspired,” she said. “I want to know more about Falun Gong. It is very new, and I think meditation is very helpful to people. I also want to know more about what’s happening in China.”

When she learned that Falun Gong practitioners have persisted in peacefully resisting the persecution for 25 years, she expressed her admiration. “I think this is very useful,” she said. “A peaceful method can be very powerful.”

In Front of the Chinese Consulate in Munich, Germany

Falun Gong practitioners held a commemorative event in front of the Chinese Consulate in Munich, the capital of Bavaria, on April 25, 2024. Ms. Karmen, a market researcher who lives nearby, has often seen Falun Gong practitioners peacefully protesting in front of the consulate. She came over to ask the practitioners about the situation and then signed a petition to support the efforts to resist the persecution.

Ms. Karmen was surprised that Falun Dafa practitioners meditated calmly on the cold ground no matter how bad the weather was. She wished the Falun Gong practitioners all the best.

Falun Dafa practitioners commemorate the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Consulate in Munich, Germany, on April 25, 2024.

A passerby signs a petition calling to end the persecution.

Falun Dafa practitioner Bernhard (on the right)

Bernhard, a Falun Dafa practitioner, said, “Today is the 25th anniversary of the April 25th Appeal. Every year on this day, I come to the Chinese Consulate to participate in a peaceful protest to expose the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. I hope the persecution ends as soon as possible and people can practice it freely in China.”

Bernhard recalled that he was a new practitioner 25 years ago when he heard that the police in China had used water from hoses to drive away Falun Gong practitioners who were practicing the exercises in parks. Later, Falun Gong practitioners were beaten and arrested in Tianjin. On April 25, 10,000 Falun Gong practitioners went to Beijing to appeal. “I was surprised that so many practitioners went to Beijing to peacefully appeal without an organizer,” he recalled.

“I had started practicing Falun Gong in 1998, and every experience I gained from it was very positive,” he said. Bernhard recalled that when he learned that the CCP had begun to persecute Falun Gong and he saw some pictures that were being circulated he felt very shocked. “This was the biggest shock I had ever experienced in my life. My heart was moved by the large-scale persecution of hundreds of millions of Falun Gong practitioners, and I felt that I had to do something,” he said. So he decided to travel to Tiananmen Square in Beijing to petition.

In 2001, Bernhard and a number of other Western Falun Gong practitioners went to Tiananmen Square in Beijing. They went after the first group of Western Falun Gong practitioners had displayed banners emblazoned with “Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance” in English and Chinese on Tiananmen Square. Many of the practitioners in Bernhard's group were intercepted at the airport and sent back directly. Forty to fifty Western practitioners were arrested. Bernhard managed to reach Tiananmen Square, but he was severely beaten by the police and his clothes were torn. He was later deported to Germany. “That event had a great impact. Almost every major German media had in-depth reports on it, and they competed to interview us,” Bernhard recalled.

At the Chinese Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany

Falun Dafa practitioners commemorate the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany, on April 25, 2024.

A practitioner talks to a passerby about Falun Gong. 

Near the Chinese Consulate in Hamburg, Germany

Falun Dafa practitioners commemorate the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Consulate in Hamburg, Germany, on April 25, 2024.

At the Chinese Consulate in Dusseldorf, Germany

Falun Dafa practitioners commemorate the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Consulate in Dusseldorf, Germany, on April 25, 2024.

Event in Front of the Chinese Embassy in Vienna, Austria

On April 25, 2024, Falun Gong practitioners commemorated the 25th anniversary of the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Embassy in Vienna.

Falun Gong practitioners commemorated the 25th anniversary of the April 25 Appeal in front of the Chinese Embassy in Vienna on April 25, 2024. They demonstrated the Falun Gong exercises and distributed leaflets to passersby. Practitioners also gave speeches during the event, telling the public the story of Falun Gong practitioners’ peaceful appeal on April 25, 1999, and about the brutal persecution launched by the CCP three months later.

A man signed the petition to end the persecution and told practitioners that he had seen practitioners’ activities in front of the Chinese Embassy in Vienna a long time ago. He was very moved after witnessing Falun Gong practitioners persisting in clarifying the truth for so many years. He thanked practitioners for their efforts and wished them all the best.