On September the 3rd, Falun Gong practitioners from Hamburg and surrounding areas are here again with their information booth; they are in downtown Hamburg in the most favoured shopping area, the Mönckebergstraße monk mountain street. The Ida-Ehre Platz is across from a large department store and provides the perfect opportunity to tell people the truth about the illegal organ harvesting on living people. The large table is covered with information material about the organ removing, as well as what Falun Gong is all about.

For a few years, Berlin has been staging an event called “Long Night at the Museums,” which took place for the 20th time on August 26th, 2006. This event drew quite a lot of people and not only citizens of Berlin, but also tourists. Therefore, a permit request for a Falun Gong information booth and a candlelight vigil at an advantageous location was filed.

We are here today to express our deep concern at the arrest of the Chinese human rights lawyer Mr Gao Zhisheng by the Chinese authorities on August 15th. We strongly urge China to release him immediately and to allow him to continue his career as a human rights lawyer. Gao Zhisheng was kidnapped by plainclothes policemen while visiting his critically ill brother-in-law at his sister’s home in Shandong province when twelve policemen burst into the home and took him away without any explanation and without providing any legal documentation to support their actions.

On September 2nd, 2006, the Moscow City Festival took place. Hundreds of thousands of Moscow residents held various activities at over three hundred spots to mark the 859th anniversary of the establishment of the City. Falun Gong practitioners in Moscow participated in the activities in different communities.

French Falun Gong practitioners held activities in the famous Human Rights Square in Paris, exposing the Chinese Communist Party’s barbaric crime of setting up concentration camps in which they harvest Falun Gong practitioners’ organs when they are still alive, and at the same time condemning the brutal persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.

At the invitation of Hamburg City Government and Chamber of Commerce, high level political and economic figures attended the Hamburg Summit held on August 13th, 2006, including Wen Jiabao, Li Lanqing, former head of 610 office, and Bo Xilai, Chinese Minister of Commerce, both of whom have been sued in many countries for torture and crimes against humanity.

On June 21st, 2006, Ms. Melanie Fleck, VP of the Austrian Art and Cultural Society ARS CARA, opened the three day Austrian Arts and Cultural Exchange Society “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” Exhibition at Castle Oberkapfenberg. The opening speeches were very profound, as the speakers were deeply impressed and moved by the beauty of the paintings, and even more appalled and moved by the unimaginable inhumanity of the persecution. In addition, a musical performance lent a deep ambiance and special clarity to the event.

With the completion of the annual Slovakian nationwide summer tour to introduce Falun Dafa and expose the persecution of the practice in China, I have returned to my home with sunburn. However, some episodes that happened during the tour still vividly linger in my mind. During the tour, every one of us gained a lot of experiences and learned a lot from it as well. During the tour, many Slovakian and Chinese people changed their mentalities and the lies fabricated by the Chinese Communist Regime were exposed. It helped us realise the importance of explaining the facts about Falun Gong to people.

On June 16th, 2006, the Austrian Arts and Cultural Exchange Society ARS CARA opened the 7th International “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” Art Exhibition in Austria. This time the exhibition was held at the Kuenburg Art Centre in Payerbach. The opening ceremony was held in a dignified atmosphere with musical accompaniment.

The Chinese government is accused of abominable crimes. It is accused of harvesting organs from imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners. This results in the death of these people. Beijing is denying this. But, independent experts have found proof of the allegation ... It is very rare to discover dead bodies that show clear-cut organ removal. But it is not unheard of. In April the body of a retired elementary teacher from the Guizhou and that of her cousins was found. Both Falun Gong practitioners had not returned from a trip to the mountains. Months later their dead bodies were found. The police said in their report that the cause of death was “Suicide.”

An event called ‘China Time’ is scheduled to take place in Hamburg between September 13th and October 1st. A series of events has been planned to celebrate twenty years of friendship between the cities of Hamburg and Shanghai. Due to this event, Falun Gong practitioners have redoubled their efforts to bring to light the persecution of Falun Gong in China.

“What are they doing? Is it a real surgical operation?” a group of children were shocked by what they saw. Even though pouring rain started to fall, they stood quietly and waited for a reply. They were puzzled by the scene on Marktplatz Basel, Switzerland where a “surgeon” was “performing an operation” on a man lying on an “operation table” covered with a bloodstained blanket. Beside the operation table was a “Chinese policeman” waving a police baton.

The Chinese Communist Regime has been persecuting Falun Gong for seven years. In these seven years, I was illegally sentenced to a three-year term in a labour-reform camp, then another two-year term in a labor-reeducation camp. During the five years I was imprisoned: I was mercilessly tortured by the evil communist party and suffered from a total loss of vision in my left eye, and upper and lower tooth migration and dislocation. Today, I will reveal to the international community how the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) used the government to mercilessly torture and persecute me.

From June 12th to the 17th, 2006, the Cultural Society ARS CARA (Austrian Arts and Cultural Exchange Society ARS at www.arscara.at, in German only) showcased the international “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” art exhibition in Café Kandinsky, in the 7th District of Vienna. Many people attended this ceremony. A singer and musicians performed during the opening ceremony for human rights.

On August 26th, Falun Dafa practitioners held an activity in the city of Leipzig, which Goethe called “Little Paris”. Leipzig played a pivotal role in the movement to overthrow the centralisation of the Communist regime in the past. In particular, practitioners exposed the CCP's trade in organs harvested from living Falun Gong practitioners in labour and concentration camps.

On August 19th and 20th, Falun Gong practitioners arrived in Cork. With a population of 120,000, Cork is the second largest city in Ireland. On the busiest street in downtown Cork, practitioners informed local residents about the Chinese communist regime's organ harvesting from live Falun Gong practitioners. People were extremely shocked by the atrocities in China.

Falun Gong practitioners from Hamburg and the entire North German area organised an information day in downtown Hamburg, close to the central train station. The intent was to inform the citizens of Hansestadt about organ harvesting from live Falun Gong practitioners and the continued persecution of Falun Gong in China.

From June 1st to the June 14th, 2006, the International “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” Art Exhibition made a special showing in the Eisinger Gallery and the Raiffeisen Bank in the town of Gloggnitz. The bank in particular opened new opportunities to reach people and let them hear about the true situation in China.

Falun Gong practitioners were invited to attend a community gathering organised by the Right of Abode Association in Hallunda, a town in the suburbs of Stockholm. Through demonstrations of the Falun Gong exercises, a display of information boards and folding paper lotus flowers, practitioners introduced Falun Gong and the ongoing persecution of the practice in China.

Irish Falun Gong practitioners gathered at the Chinese Embassy in Ireland on the morning of August the 24th, 2006 to protest against the Chinese communist regime’s detention of Gao Zhisheng, a civil rights lawyer. An open letter addressed to the Chinese Embassy was read out in the rally and an excerpt is reproduced here.

On August 26th, 2006, Falun Gong practitioners in the Netherlands set up information boards and photos in the centre of Rotterdam and performed a simulated demonstration of organ harvesting from a living victim to expose the bestial nature of the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. Practitioners also performed demonstrations of the five Falun Gong exercises.

On August 27th, the 2006 UK Falun Dafa cultivation experience sharing conference was held in London. More than the two hundred practitioners from all over the UK attended the conference. Twenty western and Chinese practitioners shared their experiences of practising Falun Dafa and understandings gained through studying the principles

On August 19th, 2006, an annual culture festival opened in Sweden’s third largest city, Malmo. Performing groups from different ethnic origins and different countries participated in the activity, which added a multicultural flavour to the festival. Falun Gong practitioners’ waist-drum troupe and the heavenly beauty dancers attracted people’s attention.

“This is one of the approaches for us to stop this persecution; the persecution has spread so widely, like it is operated by mobs, I am not sure if it is useful but I want to try. You are trying hard for this, it’s really good". She also wanted to say to the Chinese people that, “I think we can not turn a blind eye to this, this is very important, we all have seen what had happened during World War II due to people’s silence towards the atrocities. I think it is important for us to take an initiative to stop this atrocity instead of blindly shying away from it.”

From May 26th until May 28th, the international “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance” Art Exhibition was held in Amstetten City Hall. The exhibition was advertised in many regional newspapers, a reputable national daily newspaper and also by a regional television station. Many visitors came to see the artwork and signed the comment book.

On August 19th, 2006, practitioners held monthly activities in Parade Square in downtown Zurich, the largest city in Switzerland. They displayed banners reading “The Chinese Communist regime Harvests Organs from Living Humans” in Chinese, German and English, and “Heaven Eliminates the CCP” in Chinese. Some practitioners handed out leaflets in front of the information booth, while others demonstrated the five sets of Falun Gong exercises to music behind the display board.

On Saturday August 26th, UK Falun Gong practitioners held a march through central London, letting people know about Falun Gong and the persecution that has been waged against the practice for the last seven years. A particular focus of the parade was letting people know how the CCP harvests organs from living Falun Gong practitioners and sells them for vast profits.

Another event occurred not long ago. It happened to a mother and a one-year-old child when they passed by a practitioner who was distributing Falun Gong materials. The mother wanted to refuse the material, but the child said in decent Chinese, “Falun Dafa is good". The mother was astonished and asked what the child had just said. The practitioner explained to her what the child said was Chinese, meaning “Falun Dafa is good.” After listening to the explanations, the woman accepted the newspaper from the practitioner right away.

One passer-by couldn’t contain her tears after hearing that Chinese doctors, who should maintain life, remove organs from live Falun Gong practitioners. They could not believe that these doctors could cruelly commit such crimes. Many gave their signature in the hope that our government would do something to stop such heinous crimes.

From August 7th to the 10th, a group of Falun Gong practitioners organised a tour across Moravia to let people know of the ongoing terrors of organ harvesting in China. Everywhere they went they displayed banners and posters exposing the issue and depicting the horrors of the persecution and news about organs being taken from unwilling Falun Gong practitioners.

From May 18th to May 21st, 2006, the Austrian Arts and Cultural Society ARS CARA, arranged in Schottwien, a small village in Lower Austria, an international art exhibition with the title “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance,” under the theme “Art for Human Rights". There were many visitors for the opening ceremony and a song was performed by a choir.

On August 11th, 2006, in the afternoon, Falun Dafa exercise filled the streets of Jungfernstieg. Passers-by walked around in an endless stream, they stopped in front of the information boards detailing the CCP's crime of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners. Sadness, anger, shock was written on their faces and many signed our petition.

On Friday July 14th, Falun Gong practitioners arrived in the town of Svitavy. Their banners, displayed in an ancient archway, drew the attention of passers-by. That way people of Svitavy could find out about the ancient meditation practice of Falun Gong and its on-going persecution in China. Those who wished to protest against it were encouraged to sign a petition. Other people were given leaflets with information about secret Chinese death camps where many Falun Gong practitioners have their organs removed while still alive.

Bulgarian practitioners held a photo exhibition and poster display to promote Falun Gong practice and expose the persecution in the city of Shumen. The practitioners performed the Falun Gong exercises, handed out leaflets with information about the practice, and revealed the facts about the continuing seven year persecution by the Chinese communist regime.

A Swedish female athlete stood for a very long time listening to what was said about organ harvesting. A practitioner asked her if there is a hope for a Swedish victory in the championships in the evening. She said very firmly: “Who can care about victory after watching these cruelties!” Her genuine heart of concern could not be mistaken.

After seeing the Falun Gong group in the parade, many Germans came to the Falun Gong stand and wanted to know more. After the horrible practice of organ harvesting on live Falun Gong practitioners was revealed, Falun Gong practitioners are trying to expose the CCP’s crimes to the whole world and hope to bring an end to this persecution.

Scottish Falun Dafa practitioners set up a stall on Edinburgh’s busy main shopping street during the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The activity was held to raise awareness of the horrific allegations that thousands of living Falun Dafa practitioners have had their organs harvested and sold for profit for medical transplants in China.

The Austrian Arts and Cultural Exchange Society ARS CARA, arranged at the European Museum for Peace, located in Castle Schlaining in Burgenland [a state in Austria, translated as land of the castles], the international “Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance" art exhibition, under the theme “Art for Human Rights". Visitors were visibly moved by the paintings.

On August 15th, 2006, Falun Gong practitioners held an exhibition of paintings with the title "Truthfulness, Compassion & Tolerance” in Cambridge. The opening ceremony was attended by MP David Howarth, Mayor Robert Dryden, Ms. Joanne Gray of Cambridgeshire Council, Mr. Jim Stirmey of Wesley House, a Cambridge city councilor and several local artists.

Falun Gong practitioners held an activity in Tuebingen, exposing the Chinese Communist Party’s atrocious crimes of harvesting organs from Falun Gong practitioners. Many people, after seeing the display boards and the torture re-enactment, came over to sign the petition.

I am a Falun Gong practitioner in Ireland and would like to correct a word that was misused in this article,where Falun Gong was described as a 'sect'. This is a word that the Chinese Communist regime uses to defame Falun Gong and incite hatred among the Chinese people. Therefore, I would strongly ask you to correct this word and clarify to your readers as soon as possible. Although I was hurt by the use of the word 'sect', I still felt grateful to you for publishing information on organ harvesting of living Falun Gong practitioners in China.

The first of Austria’s ten planned “Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance” art exhibitions was held at Castle Kornberg, which is located in Austria’s State of Steiermark. Due to a newspaper article published a day earlier, many people visited the exhibition. Two ladies traveled over a hundred kilometres to see the artworks after reading the article.

During a visit by staff from the Society of Threatened Peoples, Klaus Deuchert, a thirty year member of this human rights organisation and Christian group, associated with the regional Wanne Eickler group, said that they had made inquiries since July 30th, 2006, about the horrible human rights situation in China, where Falun Gong has been banned since 1999.

From the 4th to the 9th of August, 2006, The "Journey of Falun Dafa” photograph exhibition was held successfully in an exhibition hall in Vladivostok town centre. Many interested visitors, who came initially to see the pictures, learnt the Falun Gong exercises on the spot. Lots of children also learned to fold paper lotus flowers during the exhibition.

On the 5th of August 2006, Falun Gong practitioners from two different cities came to Lahti by car to introduce Falun Gong and expose the brutal persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist regime People all said it is terrible. They couldn’t understand why the Chinese Communist regime wants to persecute such a good cultivation way.

On August 5th, 2006, Berlin practitioners organised an activity in the centre of Berlin to inform people about the persecution of Falun Gong in China. A large cultural event was taking place and loud music was playing. However, we did not let the music deter us and many people came to our stand to find out why Falun Gong is being brutally persecuted.

On August 12th, 2006, Dutch practitioners held a picture exhibition in Dam Square Amsterdam, exposing the Chinese Communist Party’s cruel persecution and the atrocity of organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners, at the same time supporting the twelve million courageous people who have quit the Chinese Communist Party and other associated organisations.

Every year, between July 25th and August 28th, the Richard Wagner Festival is held in Bayreuth, where Richard Wagner lived from 1872 until his death in 1883. The German government sponsors the month-long festival, to which leaders from other countries are often invited. Practitioners displayed photos and distributed leaflets, to inform festival-goers about the persecution.

From August the 11th to the 13th 2006, in Poland’s capital Warsaw, Falun Dafa practitioners from Poland and other countries held a series of events to promote Falun Dafa and expose the persecution to the people of Poland. This was the first time European practitioners gathered together for such a large-scale activity in Warsaw.

One after another, people signed to condemn the persecution and support a comprehensive investigation by the international community into the CCP’s atrocities. According to some, Communism is simply totalitarian tyranny. It persecutes people, not allowing any different voices. Wasn’t the former Soviet Union exactly like this?