(Minghui.org) Falun Gong practitioners from Gothenburg and nearby cities gathered to hold a peaceful rally in front of the Chinese Consulate in Gothenburg at noon on Friday, August 12, 2016.

The rally was organized to draw attention to the situation of Falun Gong practitioner Mr. Wang Zhiwen, who has been illegally imprisoned and persecuted in China for more than 15 years. Mr. Wang was recently barred from leaving China to reunite with his family in the United States.

Falun Gong practitioners from Gothenburg and nearby cities hold a peaceful rally in front of the Chinese Consulate in Gothenburg on August 12.

Several of the practitioners who attended Friday’s rally had met Wang Zhiwen in China before the persecution began. Among them was Anders from Gothenburg, who said that it was important to urge the Chinese authorities to let Mr. Wang leave China to reunite with his family.

The Chinese authorities stopped Mr. Wang, who lives in Beijing, from leaving China by invalidating his passport. He had been imprisoned for 15 years and was subjected to severe abuse including torture.

Anders said that he had been to China three times before the persecution began to meet and practice with Falun Gong practitioners there. He said that Mr. Wang, who was a volunteer coordinator for the Falun Dafa Association, was always at the gatherings. Anders said that Wang Zhiwen has suffered terribly since the persecution was launched in 1999. He has not committed any crime and was put through a televised show trial soon after the persecution began.

Anders said, “It is sad that the persecution is still going on after so many years.” When asked what he would say to the Chinese Consul General and the staff at the Consulate, he replied, “I would like to tell them not to listen to the Chinese regime’s lies and propaganda about Falun Gong. They should use their own common sense and understand that Falun Gong practitioners are totally peaceful and just want the freedom to practice in China.”

Anders said that the Chinese authorities should give Mr. Wang a new passport and let him reunite with his daughter in the United States.

Anders (left) says that they held the rally because the Chinese authorities stopped Wang Zhiwen, a Chinese Falun Gong practitioner, from leaving China by invalidating his passport.

Ms. Lei, another Falun Gong practitioner at the rally, met Mr. Wang in 1995. She saw him every year when she visited China, before the persecution began.

Ms. Lei remembers Wang Zhiwen as a very kind man. She would like to tell him not to give up and to know that there are many Falun Gong practitioners who support him and look forward to seeing him again very soon. Her message to the consulate staff was that they should tell the Chinese regime to immediately end the persecution started by former Chinese Communist Party leader Jiang Zemin.

Ms. Lei (right) met Mr. Wang when she visited China before the persecution began. She wishes to tell him not to give up.

Later that day, Falun Gong practitioners mailed a letter to the Chinese Consul General, specifically addressing Mr. Wang Zhiwen's situation.

During the rally, many passersby expressed their support and asked for more information about Falun Gong and the persecution.

Falun Gong practitioners in Gothenburg mail a letter to the Chinese Consul General, which specifically addresses the situation of Wang Zhiwen.

Original article in Swedish