(Minghui.org) The usually slow winter tourist season in Europe has seen an unusually high volume of Chinese tourists this year. Instead of delegations, most are regular Chinese families with kids on winter break.
At the tourist sites, Falun Gong practitioners provide facts and ways to quit the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its affiliated organizations. As more and more Chinese have learned the truth via different channels inside and outside of China, advocates within the tourist groups often echo the facts and urge their fellow traveling companions to keep an open mind.
As a result, many have chosen to renounce their memberships as a way to separate themselves from the control of the CCP.
Western practitioners have joined the efforts to clarify the facts at tourist sites, including young practitioners from Switzerland, Italy, and Germany. A Chinese tourist was moved to tears when speaking to a Swiss practitioner. An Italian man helped four Chinese tourists to quit the CCP. Three Chinese renounced the CCP together with the help of a German young man.
A Swiss practitioner, with her two-year-old girl, often distributes Falun Gong informational materials at tourist sites in Zurich.
Chinese tourists have shown a preference for Falun Gong materials. Many asked practitioners who greet them with brochures, “Is it about Falun Gong? If so, I will take it. If not, I will have to see what it is.” Some stated upfront, “I only take Falun Gong materials. Don't give me anything else.”
Oftentimes, as soon as practitioners start stating facts about the CCP or the persecution, some in the tourist groups agree, resulting in vigorous discussions. They tell each other how bad the CCP is and how still being a Party member will not bode well for one's future when the CCP gets paid back for all its crimes, including the persecution of Falun Gong.
They comment: “Falun Gong shows us the way out. Why shouldn't we quit the CCP for our own safety?” Other chime in, “Of course. Let's do it now. There's no question about it!” After quitting, they tell the practitioners, “Take care. Happy New Year!”
A group of 20 Chinese tourists all quit the CCP, leaving just one – the tour guide. Before they all left, a practitioner continued speaking to him. He said, “I don't need to quit the CCP. I never joined it.” But he had joined the Young Pioneers and the Youth League. He said he thought he had resigned because he was over age for the two groups.
The practitioner told him that when he joined the Youth League and the Young Pioneers, he had made a vow to dedicate his life to those CCP organizations and those vows didn't become invalid just because he was over age. “Your association with those organizations is not cleared yet,” said the practitioner. The man paused.
When the practitioner offered him an alias to register on the Epoch Times website to state his renunciation, he responded, “I quit. I want to have nothing to do with the CCP!” Then he shouted, “Viva Falun Gong!” Other tourists laughed and applauded for him.
Many tour guides are no strangers to Falun Gong practitioners' truth-clarification sites. They have used aliases such as Hao Dao (good guide), An Dao (safe guide), and Fu Dao (fortunate guide) to quit the CCP and its affiliated organizations.
Practitioners have seen instances where a woman persuades her husband to quit the CCP after she has done so, or a mother suggests that her daughter do the same.
A van full of young men in their 20s arrived at a tourist site in Europe, and a practitioner greeted them with truth-clarification brochures. One young man said, “Is this about quitting the CCP? We are not against it. We don't need to read these. We all know about that.”
The practitioner asked them, “Do you guys circumvent the Internet censorship and browse overseas websites?” They smiled. Although they weren't Party members, they all quit the Young Pioneers for a better future.
A practitioner was once explaining the facts to a group of young Chinese. A relatively older person in the group said, “We should all listen carefully and respect them. What are they [Falun Gong practitioners] doing this for? They volunteer their own time and stand out here in the rain. They don't charge us, but tell us something good for our own safety!”
When the practitioner thanked him, he smiled and said to his group, “Listen well. Whatever she says, do it.” The young people quit the CCP youth organizations.
Bird flu has been a hot topic for tourists from Shanghai. When practitioners mentioned to tourists that the CCP propaganda reported two cases of bird flu, the tourists erupted, “That's not true. How can we trust the TV? Why would Shanghai close its poultry market for three months just for two cases? No way!”
After talking about it with practitioners, the tourists saw the bird flu cases as another instance of bad fortune brought about by the CCP. Chinese tradition believes in accumulating virtues for one's safety and fortune, and the persecution of Falun Gong will certainly incur retribution. Busloads of tourists from Shanghai quit the CCP to distance themselves from any future retribution targeting the CCP.