(Clearwisdom.net) On January 15th 2005, Falun Gong practitioners from nearly twenty European countries gathered together at the British Commonwealth of Nations office in Whitehall for a press conference. The purpose of the press conference was to expose the persecution against Falun Gong and to highlight the support of western officials such as Lord Hylton, who issued a statement to the press conference calling for an end to the human rights abuses against Falun Gong practitioners in China. Later, a large-scale parade was held in the center of London. The parade set off from Whitehall and passed through several tourist attractions, including Trafalgar Square.

The parade was based on three themes. The first theme signified the spread of Falun Gong throughout the world and the benefits it has brought to the society. This procession was led by three practitioners carrying signs with the words, "Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance," the universal principles. A group of practitioners followed them displaying placards and banners explaining that Falun Gong is a peaceful cultivation practice with more than 100 million practitioners in over 60 countries in the world. The next procession showed the beauty of traditional Chinese culture. It was led by a waist drum troupe and followed by a traditional Chinese dance team.

Processions displaying the beauty and sacredness of Falun Dafa

The second theme depicted the persecution that has been going on in China for more than five years, and the third theme brought to the public notice of the lawsuits launched against Jiang Zemin and his followers in the persecution. Female practitioners carried posters showing photos of those practitioners who have been tortured to death. Some posters exhibited the brutal torture methods used to coerce practitioners to give up their practice. Two methods of torture were reenacted by practitioners on a float at the end of the procession. Human rights organizations have verified that at least 100 methods of torture have been used by Jiang's faction to torture Falun Gong practitioners in China. More than 38,000 cases of mistreatments of Falun Gong practitioners are documented.

Many people stopped to watch the parade and take truth-clarifying newsletters, which introduced Falun Dafa and gave a brief history of the practice from its first introduction to the public in 1992, to its present worldwide spread. The newsletter also covered information about how former Chinese leader Jiang launched the persecution campaign against Falun Gong in 1999. At present, over 1,200 practitioners are verified to have died from the persecution. The actual death toll is estimated to be around 10,000. Most deaths have occurred in police custody.

Exposing the cruel persecution that has been going on for more than five years in China

When the procession passed by the Chinese Consulate, European Falun Dafa Association and Deputy President of European Friends of Falun Gong, a non-governmental organization, delivered an appeal letter to the Chinese authorities, calling on them to stop the serious human rights violation against Falun Gong practitioners. European Friends of Falun Gong is composed of a group of non-practitioners who oppose the persecution. Because the consulate staff refused to open the door, the letter was put in the consulate's mailbox.

Through this event, practitioners hoped to allow more people to learn about Falun Gong and the persecution occurring in China. When all the world's people get to know that such a peaceful practice, one that follows the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance and teaches people to always consider others first, is encountering persecution by Jiang regime's, the human rights violation will not be able to continue. After the parade, practitioners spread out and demonstrated the Falun Gong exercises and clarified the truth to people in different locations in London.

Source: http://clearharmony.net/articles/200501/24506.html