The 2002 Australian Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference was successfully held in Sydney November 9 and 10 (Saturday and Sunday). Practitioners from Sydney, other areas of Australia and other countries including New Zealand, Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, United States, Canada, etc., attended the annual conference. The following is a series of reports about the activities during the conference.
Forming Words and Demonstrating the Exercises
From 8:30AM to 9:45AM on November 9th, more than five hundred Falun Dafa practitioners gathered at Tumbalong Park in Darling Harbor to line up and form words and to perform the exercises. A large banner with yellow English words against a blue background “FALUN DAFA.” Below the banner, practitioners in yellow suits formed the words reading, “ALL OVER THE WORLD”. Along with the peaceful music, the practitioners demonstrated the Falun Gong exercises.
Australian Channel 9 TV station interviewed and recorded video programs at the site.
Press Conference
November 9th 11:30AM, practitioners held a press conference entitled “Rescue Our Family Members in China” on Sydney City Town Hall Square.
Australian citizen Mrs. Dai Zhizhen, holding her two-year-old daughter Fadu in her arms, showed the audience her family photo taken before her husband was murdered. She told the audience that her husband Chen Chengyong was repeatedly detained and tortured because of practicing Falun Gong. In the end, he was killed in custody and the police disposed of his body in a remote suburb. He died at the young age of 34 years old. After she learned of his death from the internet, the Chinese government wouldn’t even allow her to collect her husband’s remains from the cremation. Only after the Australian government interceded with the Chinese government on her behalf did she get his ashes after eight months. She now uses her experience to help people understand how cruelly the Jiang regime is persecuting Falun Gong practitioners in China.
Australian citizen Esther Wang made a speech while holding up her family photo and stated “Please help rescue my family members detained in China.” She said, “Because I am a Falun Gong practitioner, the Chinese Consulate refused to grant me a visa to visit my father in China who was in critical condition at that time. The Chinese Consulate postponed the process for three months and even after my father died, I still can’t go back to China to attend the funeral service. My mother was detained for 6 months because of distributing 30 plus Falun Gong flyers. Later she was sentenced to three years of forced labor. This January, my sister was detained because of meeting Falun Gong practitioners. She was charged to three years of forced labor after being detained for three months. My brother-in-law was also locked in a detention center. The police are preparing to charge him long term after finding so-called “evidence”.
Mr. John Deller, a representative of Falun Dafa in New South Wales gave a speech. He said, “The true peace comes from everyone’s heart, not government meetings or war. I hope more and more Australians will experience the Truth Compassion Tolerance with their hearts. They shall take the lead. This shows that you are against persecution and support the peace.”
Australian ABC Radio and an ABC TV Station interviewed practitioners and reported the press conference.
“Truth Compassion Tolerance in The World” Grand Parade
Shortly after 12PM, over one thousand practitioners began the grand parade in the center of Sydney. The parade started from City Town Hall Square and proceded slowly south down George Street. The procession was composed of five sections. The leading section consisted of practitioners holding large banners “Truth Compassion Tolerance in the world”. The second section was composed of 26 female practitioners in Tang Dynasty costumes and Heavenly lady costumes. Last was “Truth Compassion Tolerance in Australia” followed by practitioners holding 40 city name boards.
“Rescue Australian’s Family Members” banner followed, with 20 practitioners holding boards with their family members’ names and photos.
Another group followed from “Minghui School.” Young practitioners joined the parade with colorful balloons and three big boards saying, “Truth Compassion Tolerance”.
Candlelight Vigil on Sydney City Town Hall Square
Candle light vigil commemorate practitioners killed in China
From 6PM to 9PM that evening, about 400 practitioners held a candlelight vigil on Sydney City Town Hall Square to commemorate over 500 practitioners being persecuted to death by Jiang’s Regime.
Conference Photo Album
http://www.falunau.dyndns.org/ausweb/WeeklyAlbum/
Posting date: 15/Nov/2002
Original article date: 13/Nov/2002
Category: Events
