(Minghui.org) Practitioners participated in the Retrouvailles Cultural Festival on September 5 and 6 in Liège to introduce Falun Dafa to the community. Many people stopped at the booth and asked about the practice; quite a few said they agreed with Falun Dafa’s guiding principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and signed petitions urging to end the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution.

With a population of about 200,000, Liège is one of the largest cities in Belgium. The Retrouvailles Cultural Festival, which began in 1992, celebrates culture, sports, society, and the environment. Over 300 organizations participated in the festival this year, and it attracted more than 35,000 attendees.

The Falun Dafa booth was a peaceful oasis, and many people stopped at the practitioners’ booth to experience this traditional Chinese cultivation practice. During the two-day event, over 50 people registered to visit the local practice site to learn the Falun Dafa exercises.

Falun Dafa practitioners participated in the Retrouvailles Cultural Festival. (Minghui.org)

Universal Values

Stephanie began practicing Falun Dafa two months ago. (Minghui.org)

Stephanie, a high school English teacher, heard about Falun Dafa two months ago and began practicing the exercises.

“When I do the exercises, I can calm down and forget about issues that are bothering me,” she said. “I feel very good both physically and mentally. My heart becomes purer and my spirit clearer.”

She bought a copy of Falun Dafa’s main book, Zhuan Falun, and said she likes the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, because they are much needed in society. “If more people could follow these principles, the world would be a better place,” she explained.

As a teacher, Stephanie believes it is important to teach children these principles. She said that children face a lot of pressure in today’s society, and such positive information would help them grow and make society more peaceful.

Sophie and her mother were interested in learning about Falun Dafa and talked with a practitioner. She saw similar Falun Dafa activities when she lived in Canada, but did not understand what Falun Dafa was. After talking with the practitioner and learning more, she said, “These values [Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance] are crucial; they are humanity’s most basic principles. If people can be sincere, treat others kindly, and have tolerance, the world will be better.” She believes if more people behaved this way, the relationships between people would be harmonious, and the overall environment would improve.

Sophie said she had previously heard of the CCP’s suppression and forced organ harvesting in China. She said more people need to know about these horrifying facts. As the information spreads further and more people pay attention to this issue, the situation will change.

Local resident Pauline Nicola and her friend also agreed that Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are very important. She said that kindness is an indispensable quality, tolerance is equally important, and being genuine brings us together. She said we should be kind and also maintain respect and tolerance towards others.

Her friend added that kindness is being friendly to everyone. They both agreed that these values are simple yet important in life.

Christiane is very fond of traditional Chinese culture. (Minghui.org)

Christiane, 92, who was accompanied by her granddaughter said, “Authenticity, kindness, and tolerance are the meaning of life.” She added that she admired Chinese culture, “Ancient Chinese culture is one of the most intelligent and advanced civilizations.”

Christiane also emphasized her love for traditional culture, not modern politics. She mentioned her renewed interest in traditional techniques like acupuncture, and ancient Chinese inventions. She believes that while many civilizations have experienced rise and fall, traditional cultural values should not be underestimated.

Josy purchased a copy of Zhuan Falun at the event. (Minghui.org)

Josy, a high school sociology teacher, said that he recognized the values of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance in his teaching. “As a teacher, I must remain authentic and bring these values to my students,” he explained.

He purchased a copy of Zhuan Falun and said he hoped to learn more about Falun Dafa. Josy explained that he meditates regularly and tries his best to put these principles into practice in his daily life. He said that maintaining Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance is the direction he strives to follow towards becoming a better person.

Social worker Bernard (Minghui.org)

Bernard, a social worker, was surprised by the CCP’s suppression of Falun Dafa and said, “The persecution of Falun Dafa reminds me of the totalitarian methods of Stalin or Hitler.” He signed the petition to end the egregious human rights violations.

People Sign the Petition and Support Human Rights

People sign a petition to support practitioners’ efforts to end the persecution. (Minghui.org)

Three young people, Kenza (middle), Kinan (left), and Amine (right), believe that paying attention to injustice in the world is important and cannot be ignored. (Minghui.org)

Three young people, Kenza, Kinan, and Amine, said this was the first time they heard about Falun Dafa and the persecution, including the organ harvesting atrocities in China. Kenza was saddened by what she heard and wanted to express her support by signing the petition. Kinan hoped the petition would help raise awareness of what was happening in China. Amine said he was sad to hear that people were being persecuted and even killed because of their spiritual belief. He hopes the petition promotes change and improves the situation in China.

They all agreed that it was important to pay attention to injustices happening in the world and that they could not ignore them. They were shocked when they learned that the persecution has gone on for 27 years. Amine said he hadn’t expected the CCP’s persecution to be so severe and found it hard to believe that people would be killed because of their beliefs.

Nadia Benary and her husband, Vincent Staff, stopped at the Falun Dafa booth and read the materials. Nadia’s work involves teenagers and she had no prior knowledge of the CCP’s organ harvesting in China. She was shocked to hear this and asked: these activities are merely personal cultivation and do not harm anyone, so why are they prohibited?

Nadia added, “In Belgium people can freely practice but practitioners are persecuted in China, which is unimaginable.” She thanked practitioners for sharing the information and signed a petition to end the persecution.

Gauthier signed the petition to support the practitioners’ efforts to end the persecution. (Minghui.org)

Gauthier, a gardener in his 20s, said he learned about the persecution of Falun Dafa during a geography class in high school a few years before when his teacher discussed human rights issues in various countries. Gauthier said that Belgium's educational environment is relatively open, and schools allow free discussion of various countries’ political and social issues. He believes that it’s necessary to discuss and understand these issues.

Gauthier signed the petition and said he hopes more people pay attention to this issue. “Living in a free environment, I may not know the true extent of the persecution,” he continued. “Therefore, I hope to do my best to support practitioners’ efforts to expose the persecution.”