(Clearwisdom.net) On February 25, 2005, Australian practitioners started a 2-day anti-torture exhibition at the City Square in downtown Melbourne to expose the brutal persecution of Falun Gong by the Jiang Zemin regime and the Chinese Communist Party. On the morning of February 25, it was very dark and cloudy, and rained on and off. Practitioners, however, were not disturbed by the bad weather and started the exhibition as planned.
A gentleman hugs a practitioner "actress" to express his respect. |
Torture re-enactment |
Torture re-enactment |
People learning about the persecution |
A lady signs a petition to express her support to Falun Gong |
Group practice |
The exhibition consisted of 4 parts: torture re-enactment, Falun Gong exercise demonstration, a photo display and "Petals of Peace" booth. The whole site was spectacular: while the anti-torture exhibition featuring real-life models was shocking, the exercise demonstration was peaceful and serene, which cast a dramatic contrast with the brutality exposed by the exhibition. Passersby, which included people from all walks of life, stopped in succession to find more. Most of them expressed their opposition to the brutal persecution.
A middle school student said that people can't even torture small animals like this, not to mention other people. After viewing the anti-torture exhibition and the photo display, a middle-aged man walked to a practitioner who was demonstrating "hanging" torture and gently hugged her to express his respect. A young girl watched the exhibition for a long time, while a practitioner told her about Falun Gong. The girl then said that she wanted to learn the practice. A retired teacher said: "I have been watching Falun Gong for a while. I was quite angry 2 years ago when I heard that Melbourne's native Chinese Mayor didn't allow you guys to participate in a festival parade. I called city hall to ask them why... They should understand that this is Australia, not China." A producer of an ethnic TV station was shocked by the brutality revealed by the exhibition. She said: "I will bring your stories to TV." A company owner told practitioners that such a persecution must be ended immediately and he wanted to donate AUD 50,000 to help practitioners...
Two western practitioners took turns talking about what Falun Gong is and why the Chinese Communist Party would persecute Falun Gong. One of them was one of the 36 western practitioners who went to Tiananmen Square to appeal for Falun Gong. Her personal experience touched everyone at the site.
Practitioners teach people how to fold paper lotus flowers |
Kate shares her experience in China |
Kate's story reaches many people |
As the exhibition went on, the clouds gradually disappeared and the sun started to shine. More and more people opened their hearts to Falun Dafa, and the list of names on the petition became longer and longer. When the exhibition was just about to conclude, city hall called the practitioners and said that the exhibition could continue the next day.