(Clearwisdom.net) On the afternoon of August 4, 2007, Falun Gong practitioners held a rally in front of the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver. They protested the Chinese Consulate for continuously spreading hate propaganda overseas to smear Falun Gong. They also protested the incident that occurred on August 2 when three gunmen violently assaulted and intimidated a peacefully-protesting Falun Gong practitioner in front of the Chinese Consulate. The practitioners called on the police to conduct a thorough investigation so as to bring perpetrators and instigators behind the scenes to justice as soon as possible. The chairman of the trade union at the British Columbia Hospital, a former MP and the chairman of Friends of Falun Gong and other dignitaries attended the rally.

At 5:30 a.m. on August 2, 2007, three Asian men intimidated and violently assaulted a Falun Gong practitioner in front of the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver. The thugs tore up the persecution-protest display boards, and kicked several large holes in the blue wooden hut that has sheltered practitioners who have maintained a vigil there for five years. One of the men held a handgun and confronted practitioner Mr. Zhang Chunyu, who was meditating. The man held his gun to Mr. Zhang's temple, and shouted, "Go away, you should not be here." He then punched Mr. Zhang in the eyes and head, causing Mr. Zhang to sustain a fractured bone under his left eye and bleeding in his left eye.

A representative from the Falun Dafa Association read a statement at the rally. The statement said that incidents of assault, intimidation and harassment have often occurred against Falun Gong practitioners during the past few years in Canada. These incidents have often been directly linked to the Chinese Embassy and Consulates, or residents of the community who were under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials' direct command, or caused by hate propaganda against Falun Gong spread by the CCP diplomatic missions.

Over the past eight years of the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong, many practitioners in Canada have also been subjected to serious spiritual persecution, such as the CCP's blacklist, being monitored by CCP special agents, and receiving physical threats, and threats against their family members in China. Falun Gong practitioners have often been harassed by phone calls originating in China, and have had their email accounts attacked. Some practitioners have been deprived of their rights. For example their visa applications and renewals of Chinese passports are denied or delayed, and the Chinese community does not recognize Falun Gong due to the CCP's instigation.

The Falun Dafa Association of Canada called on the Canadian government and police agencies to pursue responsibility of the assault incident, and stop the Chinese Consulate officials from harassing practitioners and spreading hatred.

The chairman of the trade union at British Columbia Hospital Fred Muzin said that this was an unusual intimidation incident. The gunmen's purpose was to scare these protesters into leaving the site. The violent attack on Falun Gong practitioners is not only a human rights violation against a single group, but a human rights violation against all Canadian people.

Former MP Cima said that the attack on Falun Gong is not the first and we should learn a lesson. She called on Canadian Prime Minister Harper and the Foreign Affairs Minister to investigate every individual who works in the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver, and put all perpetrators in jail. She said that Falun Gong was being attacked, which means that no one else is safe.

The chairman of Friends of Falun Gong Sadie Kuehn said that it is known that the Chinese Consulate set up a video camera to monitor Falun Gong practitioners' protests. If we want to know who the gunmen were, the simplest way is to ask the Chinese Consulate to make its videotape open to the public, and then everything will be clear. Moreover, the Chinese Consulate serves on the soil of Canada and should abide by the law, cooperate with the police and hand over the videotape to assist in the investigation.

She said that the CCP is undoubtedly persecuting Falun Gong practitioners in mainland China. However, Canada does not allow such a thing to happen. She called on the three levels of Canadian government and the judicial system to seriously investigate this vicious assault incident, punish the perpetrators according to the law, and ensure that Falun Gong practitioners' human rights are not violated.

Falun Gong practitioner Zhang Chunyu also attended the rally. He said that he still felt horrified recalling the scene. Zhang said that it is very simple to see who was behind this incident. It was those who do not want to see Falun Gong practitioners protesting at the Consulate. Zhang said that he will not be intimidated, and will continue protesting there.