On August 20, the hunger strike of 10 US practitioners in front of the Chinese Embassy entered the fourth day. From 12 PM to 1:30 PM, a press conference was held at the Tiananmen Garden in front of the Chinese Embassy. The media present included CNN, RFA, FOXNEWS, Washington Times, ZDT German TV, FSN, APTN, AFP, and VOA.
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At the press conference, Shean Lin from Birmingham, Alabama, on behalf of the practitioners participating in the hunger strike from five states, read the statement "Hunger Strike for Justice, Appeal for Peaceful Dialogue."
"We strongly demand the Jiang Zemin regime release 130 Falun Gong practitioners who are illegally detained at the Masanjia Labor Camp of Liaoning Province. As of today, they have been on hunger strike for more than three weeks to protest the illegal and extended detention imposed on them.
"The lives of these 130 practitioners are in danger and the situation is very urgent. It is not only because of the prolonged hunger strike, but also because they are eyewitnesses of horrible and vicious brutality and killings at the Masanja Labor Camp. The Chinese authorities claimed that they would rather violate the law than set these practitioners free.
"These 130 Falun Gong practitioners should not have been put into the labor camp in the first place. Now, they have chosen to call for justice with their lives, as they hunger strike for their fundamental right to live with dignity. But their voices can hardly be heard because the Jiang Zemin regime has sealed off all information to the outside world.
"Therefore, in this free world we have decided to launch a hunger strike in front of the Chinese Embassy in Washington DC to call for justice for the 130 lives. The atrocities and deliberate violation of law displayed at the Masanjia Labor Camp are the epitome of the nationwide brutal persecution of Falun Gong in China. We hope the world can understand from our efforts what Falun Gong practitioners are going through in China, and we also hope that the world can hear through us their cry for justice.
"Practitioners in the United States have peacefully appealed in front of the Chinese Embassy for nearly two years, yet the embassy officials have repeatedly rejected our appeal letters. For the sake of justice and conscience, we hereby call on the Chinese Embassy to hold a peaceful dialogue with Falun Gong practitioners."
Practitioner Sam Lu who participated in this hunger strike also gave his speech at the press conference. His wife (also a Falun Gong practitioner) has been illegally sentenced to a labor camp in China.
Practitioners held banners that read "Urgent Rescue: Hunger Strike Petition in Front of the Chinese Embassy. Call for Immediate Release of 130 Practitioners Who Have Been on a Hunger Strike Over 20 Days at the Masanjia Labor Camp in China." "Hunger Strike Petition"...
After the press conference, reporters conducted detailed interviews with practitioners on the hunger strike, and expressed their support of the practitioners. The reporters from the Washington Times said this was their second interview, and they hoped to obtain more detailed and current information. A reporter from Europe residing in Washington DC planned to write a special report on Falun Gong. A Hong Kong reporter rushed to the conference to conduct an interview after learning the news.
Finally, a representative of the practitioners again attempted to submit a petition letter to the embassy, but the embassy personnel rejected the letter for no apparent reason. The practitioners and some reporters witnessed the entire process.
We hope more media can advocate justice, truthfully report the story of Falun Gong, and help to appeal for an immediate end of the brutal persecution of Falun Gong.
Category: Rallies & Protests
