(Clearwisdom.net) On the morning of March 2, 2003, the "Rescue Charles Li and North American Falun Gong Practitioners' Family Members" Press Conference was held at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. About 200 people including Falun Gong representatives, American and Chinese community organizations attended.

People from all circles attended the press conference

Dr. He Haiying, President of the Global Mission to Rescue Persecuted Falun Gong practitioners, spoke first at the press conference. He said that US citizen Charles Li's arrest in China was not just a Falun Gong issue. It was an extremely serious matter. In a sense it was also a question involving international relationships. The world consensus also realizes this issue and hopes that our efforts will facilitate Charles Li's release and reunion with his fiancée in the US as soon as possible.

Following Dr. He's speech several Falun Gong practitioners presently living in North America testified about their concerns for their family members in China, the persecution and the maltreatment practitioners suffered in prisons, as well as their aspirations to stop the persecution and rescue their family members. Christina, of "Friends of Charles Li," read a statement about rescuing Charles Li and talked about the responses they had received from US congresspersons, government officials and the general public. One US western Falun Gong practitioner played a song he wrote to rescue Charles Li.

After listening to the testimonies of the speakers, the press conference attendees signed their names in the signature book to rescue Charles Li. Many people conversed with Falun Gong practitioners after the press conference and expressed their concern over the current situation of Falun Gong practitioners in China.

Mr. Fang Jun, a prisoner of conscience who was just released from China on January 24, expressed his view about Charles Li's arrest saying, the "Chinese government did not give any legitimate reason when they arrested him. It has been one month now. I still have not heard the Chinese government offer any reason for arresting this US citizen. It is so bizarre. I hope the Chinese government releases Charles Li soon."

After talking to Christina for a while, a gentleman in charge of a Chinese organization took a photo with Christina in front of a "Rescue Charles Li" Poster. He said, "I am surprised that there are so many practitioners' families being persecuted in China in addition to Charles Li. This persecution of Falun Gong must stop."

Several local Western newspapers and TV stations and three Chinese news media attended the press conference and conducted interviews.