Thursday, July 12, 2001

On July 3, Fairport resident Louise Huang joined more than a dozen people in New York City to start a historic 250 mile "SOS! Urgent: Rescue the Falun Gong Practitioners Persecuted in China" walk to DC.

The two-week long trek seeks to raise global awareness of the brutal persecution of innocent people who practice Falun Gong in China. It symbolizes the courage and determination of the many Falun Gong practitioners in China who have walked hundreds of miles to their capitol, Beijing, to appeal the ban on Falun Gong.

This is a continued effort for the 28-year old woman. Before her arrival on this land of freedom, Louise had traveled thousands of miles from her hometown in Southern China to Beijing to appeal for her right to practice Falun Gong. Her peaceful exercise of her constitutional rights cost her a hefty price.

She was detained three times by the police, lost her job, as well as her freedom. She was followed wherever she went and was even denied of her right to visit with friends. The police threatened to put her in the "re-education" classes and labor camps. Through the efforts of her family in the US, she escaped the [party' name omitted] regime's nightmare and lived with her family ever since last July.

But not everyone is as luck as Louise. A horrifying report from China cast a chilling shadow to our celebration of freedom.

Fifteen innocent women died around June 20 in Wanjia Labor Camp in Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, China. The Chinese government claimed that this is a mass suicide, while the Falun Dafa Information Center spoke to family members of the victims who indicate these females were tortured to death.

With all channels for independent investigation blocked and authorities actively trying to cover up the facts, the truth is hard to know. Louise can only agree with the US Department of State when it stated on July 5, "The point is that these people should never have been incarcerated in such camps in the first place."

Two years too long! Ever since the [party' name omitted] regime's July 20, 1999, crackdown on Falun Gong, at least 253 Falun Gong practitioners died in police custody, while tens of millions are continuously enduring physical and mental torture. The US Department of State has called on China, "on a urgent basis, to allow unrestricted visits to these camps by the International Red Cross and other impartial international bodies to look into the treatment prisoners receive." Louise and her fellow walkers have sent out an urgent call for the international community to rescue the Falun Gong practitioners persecuted in China.

You may not walk with Louise physically, but you can still help. You can call or write to your congressperson to take action, you can join Friends of Falun Gong, an independent non-profit organization, or simply call a friend to share the story. For more details, please visit www.faluninfo.net and www.fofg.org, or call 1-866-FG-Friend.

Together, we can make a difference. Together, we can help put an end to the torture and killing of innocent people who practice Falun Gong!