(Clearwisdom.net) Recently, arrests of Falun Gong practitioners and death cases have occurred more frequently in China. It was heard that the situation was related to a secret order from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Political and Judicial Committee on February 19, 2008. Falun Gong practitioners in Melbourne held a rally on March 20 in front of the Chinese Consulate to protest the CCP's escalation of the persecution under the excuse of "preparation" for the Olympics. They also called on Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who will visit China next month, to put forward the Falun Gong human rights issue and help stop the CCP's nine-year-long persecution of Falun Gong.

Falun Gong practitioners in Melbourne held a rally on March 20 in front of the Chinese Consulate to protest the CCP's escalation of the persecution under the excuse of "preparation" for the Olympics

Local Falun Gong spokesperson Ms. Ana Vereshaka said that the CCP's recent arrests of Falun Gong practitioners under the excuse of "preparation" for the Olympics occurred not only in Beijing, but is part of a new round of persecution throughout China, including 29 provinces, cities or autonomous regions. During the first few months this year, 1878 Falun Gong practitioners were illegally arrested. In Beijing alone, more than 156 practitioners were taken away.

Ms. Vereshaka said, "The CCP not only persecutes Falun Gong in such a way, but also adopts violent suppression against other Chinese people, including Tibetans, petitioners, religious people, and dissidents. The CCP has abandoned its promise to improve human rights and instead is using the Beijing Olympics as a tool to consolidate its control."

She called on all countries to protest the genocide in China, since the CCP cannot deny critics from other countries due to the approaching Olympics. "We call on Prime Minister Rudd to request that the Chinese government release Falun Gong practitioners unlawfully imprisoned and end the persecution of Falun Gong during his visit to China."

Ms. Wang, who came to Australia from China recently, narrated her suffering when she was brutally tortured by the CCP: "I was a teacher. I was arrested twice for practicing Falun Gong. I was deprived of sleep for more than twenty days in a forced labor camp. I was forced to sit on a stool for a long time. I was imprisoned for more than three years after the first arrest. My son was three years old then. When I was released, he was seven years old and could not recognize me."

The rally caught the attention of local mainstream media, such the Times, AP and local TV station.