Netherlands: Dutch and German Falun Gong Practitioners Participate in the Asian Festival in Mondo Verde Park

In the suburbs of Landgraaf, near the borders of The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany, is a beautiful park surrounded by mountains and rivers called Mondo Verde. It is home to impressive buildings, such as the splendid Portuguese palace, the delicate and unsophisticated Japanese Tea House, and the exquisitely carved and classical Chinese yard, as well as symbolic buildings, such as the Italian palace hall and the Siberian blockhouse. Inside the park are flowing rivers, waterfalls, wildflowers and grasslands, as well as a man-made tropical rainforest where many animals and birds have made their homes. The park is peaceful and naturally beautiful. Its name, Mondo Verde, is very suitable: it means “green world”. Falun Dafa practitioners’ activities in the park this May fitted very easily into the harmonious and peaceful atmosphere.

The Asian Festival was held from May 15 to May 25 in Mondo Verde Park. During this time, there were displays of Asian culture and arts, such as martial arts, Karate, Indian dances, a Japanese tea ceremony etc. German and Dutch Falun Gong practitioners were also invited to participate in the Asian Festival to demonstrate the five sets of Falun Gong exercises. The graceful Falun Gong exercises and music echoed through the park, making the tourists feel peaceful and at ease.

However, something unexpected happened in such a beautiful environment. On the day before the Mondo Verde Asian Festival, the event organizer J. Nonneman received a fax from the Chinese Consulate asking him to cancel the Falun Gong demonstration. He rejected this irrational request and this incident was extensively reported by Dutch media; it became a talking point throughout the whole of the southern part of the Netherlands. One after another, tourists who watched the demonstration, asked, “Why is something as harmonious as Falun Gong banned [in China]?” One couple said, after learning the facts of the persecution, “What Falun Gong brings us are all wonderful things. The propaganda by the Chinese government is fake. I believe you will surely succeed.” Visitors came one after another.

The weather was overcast and cool on the first weekend and it started to rain when practitioners demonstrated the sitting meditation exercise. All other demonstrations stopped leaving only the six Falun Gong practitioners left in the park. The second day when we sat in mediation, dark clouds came again. Rain and wind came together. All practitioners had the same thought – the rain will stop. After the one hour of mediation was over, the rain indeed stopped and when practitioners opened their eyes, they saw a lot of tourists watching them, some still holding umbrellas. On the second weekend, practitioners from many other cities also joined the activities.

Falun Gong is not affected by wind or rain but sitting quietly in mediation affected people throughout the park. They truly felt that Falun Gong is not just another way to keep fit and healthy, but a genuine cultivation practice. Since this time, other groups came to talk with practitioners and ask for materials; some even came to learn the exercises. Various TV stations reported on Falun Gong as a genuine cultivation group. When the Asian Festival was over and when practitioners said goodbye to the Park’s management, they said, “You may come and practise Falun Gong in our park anytime.”