(Clearwisdom.net) The Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG) sponsored Global Petition Against the Persecution of Falun Gong was promoted and has received public attention in Yilan County in northern Taiwan. On April 21, 2008, members and volunteers of CIPFG visited Yilan County Magistrate, Lu Kuo-Hua and Education Bureau Chief, Wen Chao-Shun and asked the magistrate to sponsor the Global Human Rights Torch Relay (HRTR) on June 3. The HRTR is an activity aimed at exposing the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) persecution of human rights and to call for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong.
Magistrate Lu, after learning about the persecution of human rights and Falun Gong in China, said that human rights is an absolute universal value. He believed people around the world should support human rights and freedom and it's everyone's responsibility to respect human life. Mr. Lu said he supports meaningful activities such as the HRTR and it would be his honor to sponsor it. He agreed to run during the activity and hoped residents in Yilan County would join this great project and all run side by side.
Both Lu and Wen signed the Petition and condemned the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong. They expressed their hopes that the CCP would stop the persecution before the Olympic games begin.
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Yilan County Council and Magistrate Condemns the CCP's Persecution of Falun Gong
On May 22, 2006, the Yilan County Council passed a motion to "Condemn and call for the international community to stop the CCP's violence against Falun Gong." On July 30, 2008, the Yilan County Council passed a motion to condemn the Hong Kong government for accepting from the CCP a list of Falun Gong practitioners' names, and using it to reject their visa applications. The Hong Kong authorities also prevented Falun Gong practitioners from boarding planes to Hong Kong, and forcefully deported them upon their arrival at the Hong Kong international airport. The Hong Kong government has violated the human rights of over 800 practitioners from Taiwan who wanted to attend the annual protest rally on July 1.
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On July 31, 2007, Mr. Lu said that the deportation of Taiwanese Falun Gong practitioners on July 1 was a mockery of Hong Kong's claim to freedom and democracy. Lu hoped the Hong Kong government would not succumb to pressure from Beijing and should hold on to its belief in freedom and democracy in the future.
Background on 'HRTR' and 'Petition against persecution of Falun Gong'
The Human Rights Torch Relay (HRTR) is a global grassroots campaign to raise awareness prior to the 2008 Beijing Olympics of the Chinese communist regime's human rights crimes, thus providing a platform for all persecuted groups to speak out. The HRTR strongly condemns the arrest of 1878 Falun Gong followers since January 1,2008; the Chinese regime's ruthless crackdown in Tibet; the support of corrupt regimes in Burma and Darfur; and the persecution of Christians, lawyers, reporters and all who have effectively become "prisoners of the Olympics". These unlawful arrests are clearly a consequence of China's pre-Olympics 'whitewash' strategy.
The HRTR will eventually span 6 continents, 40 countries and an estimated 150 cities worldwide--including over 40 U.S. cities--to raise awareness of these issues. The relay started in Athens on Aug 9, 2007, and continued into over 20 countries in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South America, and the US.
The Tibetan, Burmese, and Vietnamese communities, the Darfur Support Network (Sudan), Chinese democracy groups, student groups, former Olympians, and representatives from both the sports and political arenas are among the relay participants. The HRTR was initiated by the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG).
On January 1, 2008, the CIPFG initiated the Global Petition Against the Persecution of Falun Gong. The CIPFG submitted the public opinion to the IOC, UN commission on human rights, international human rights groups, and governments hoping the world can help to stop the persecution of Falun Gong and demand the release of imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners unconditionally.
Category: Rallies & Protests
