(Minghui.org) “I have finally gotten a chance to see the renowned Falun Gong parade. It is full of righteous energy,” a visiting Chinese professor excitedly said to her daughter and grandson, watching the Divine Land Marching Band going through downtown San Francisco on July 18, 2015.
The parade was one of the events held all over the world at the 16th anniversary of the peaceful resistance against the persecution of Falun Gong, which was launched on July 20, 1999.
The Chinese professor pointed at a banner in the parade, and read it aloud: “Heaven will eliminate the Communist Party and bless China.” She went on: “That is well said, as the Chinese police ignore the real criminals, but persecute good people. The government even harvests organs from Falun Gong practitioners for profit. It is truly horrible.”
There were four sections in the parade. The Divine Land Marching Band, the Falun Gong banner team, exercise demonstration team, and the float formed the first section. The participants in the second section held the photos of those who have died during the persecution, and re-enacted the tortures and organ harvesting. The third section informed the public about the recent flood of lawsuits against Jiang Zemin, the former head of the Communist Party, who launched and directed the persecution. The last section supports the 200 million Chinese withdrawals from the Communist Party and its associated organizations.
The parade started at the United Nations Plaza at noon, and went through several major streets in the downtown area, and ended in Chinatown. The participants held a rally after the parade in Chinatown.
Many people took photos and videos of the parade and expressed their support to Falun Gong's peaceful resistance. Olga, a local resident, followed the entire parade. “Harvesting organs from living people is evil. We must do something to stop it. The U.S. and the United Nations, and everyone should help to stop this crime,” Olga said.
Demonstrating the exercises at the United Nations Plaza before the parade
The start of the parade
Going through downtown San Francisco
A Falun Gong practitioner is talking to tourists about the persecution.
The Chinese professor was happy to learn that more than 80,000 Falun Gong practitioners had recently filed lawsuits against Jiang Zemin, the former communist dictator.
“He should be brought to justice,” she said to the Minghui correspondent. “A lot of Chinese people say that Jiang was born in this world just to bring disasters to China.”
The lawsuits against Jiang was one of the major themes of the rally after the parade. Four Falun Gong practitioners, who filed the criminal complaints against Jiang, told the attendees about their experiences of being tortured.
Rally in San Francisco Chinatown
Shen Yueqian was a successful businesswoman with a happy family. But her happy life was ruined in the winter of 2011. Her six-year old daughter saw her mother being taken away by eight policemen, and her house being ransacked.
Ms. Shen was first imprisoned in the Beijng Women's Labor Camp, where she was deprived of sleep, and shocked by electric batons. She was later transferred to a women's labor camp in Inner Mongolia, where she was forced to do heavy labor, beaten by several officers while locked onto an iron frame. She was imprisoned there for two years.
Ms. Wang Xin and her husband were arrested in November 2011, and her house was searched. Her husband's brother was jailed in labor camps in Liaoning Province for three years. To force him to renounce Falun Gong, the policemen in the labor camp tied his hands and feet together and hung him up, which led to paralysis of his lower limbs.
Ms. Li Mingfeng said at the rally that practicing Falun Gong healed many of her illnesses. She was arrested and imprisoned in a labor camp in Tianjin in 2002. She was forced to stand outside in the cold winter, deprived of sleep, and forced to do heavy labor.
Ms. Yao Yuanying was jailed in a detention center in Beijing in October 2011, where she was given a small amount of low quality food everyday. She was later transferred to the Beijing Women's Labor Camp. Policemen forced her to sit on a small stool more than 10 hours everyday, which caused swelling and congestion in her legs and back.
Ms. Yao Yuanying is telling her experiences of being tortured.
Ms. Yao was also forced to watch and read materials that slandered Falun Gong and its founder. In the hot summer and cold winter, she was forced to do heavy labor in the field. She was only allowed to have three or four hours of sleep every day, and she could not take a shower for months.
Ms. Shen Yueqian said at the end of her speech: “The persecution is too severe and has lasted too long. It is time to bring it to an end. More than 80,000 practitioners have filed lawsuits against Jiang, and more than 200 million Chinese people have quit the Party. Let's all stand together to support the lawsuits, and witness the historical movement of Jiang being brought to justice.”
Category: July 20 Events
