(Minghui.org) Practitioners held activities in St. Martin’s Square in Central London on May 13, 2023 to celebrate the 31st Anniversary of Falun Dafa’s introduction to the world, and to wish their founder, Mr. Li Hongzhi, a happy birthday. Some politicians sent greetings and expressed support for World Falun Dafa Day.
Practitioners celebrated World Falun Dafa Day with activities in St Martin’s Square on May 13, 2023. They demonstrated the exercises, and gave dragon dance and drum performances to wish Master a happy birthday.
Representatives from the Falun Dafa Association and the Friends of Falun Gong gave speeches and read the congratulation letters sent by officials.
Benedict Rogers, a human rights activist, and vice chairman of the British Conservative Party Human Rights Commission
Benedict Rogers, a well-known British human rights activist, and vice chairman of the British Conservative Party Human Rights Commission, came to the press conference and gave a heart-felt speech.
He congratulated practitioners for the various activities they organized worldwide on World Falun Dafa Day. He expressed his respect for practitioners, who have displayed perseverance while facing the horrible injustice and inhuman treatment in China.
Simon Cheng, founder of Hongkongers in Britain
Simon Cheng, founder of Hongkongers in Britain, came to show his support. He expressed his congratulations to the practitioners worldwide on this special occasion and offered them his unwavering support.
He reiterated his promise that he would stand with practitioners and speak out for their rights.
He wanted practitioners to know that they were not alone, and that their courage, perseverance, and determination in their belief encouraged everyone. He said that he and his group would fight with the practitioners for their right to freedom of belief and cultivation.
He suggested that people unite together and transcend the differences to safeguard their religious freedom and human rights on World Falun Dafa Day, and that people work together to create a world for the values of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance to grow prosperously, where no one would be persecuted for their belief.
Enver Tohti, former surgeon from Xinjiang, said that the appearance of Falun Dafa applied an emergency brake to stop the fall of morality in China.
Enver Tohti, a former surgeon from Xinjiang, attended the event. He was once forced to participate in harvesting organs from prisoners on death row without his prior knowledge. He deeply regrets it. He has been exposing the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) crimes for many years.
He said that in China he was brainwashed by the communist ideology, and joined the activities as a red guard to sabotage traditional values. He expressed his deep regret for that. He expressed his gratitude to Falun Dafa for putting an emergency brake on the fall of morality in China. He said that he came to support Falun Dafa and spread Falun Dafa’s values so that more people could be saved, and people could be led to Heaven, not continue marching to hell.
Practitioners gave out fliers to passersby, and gave lotus flowers to people who stopped to learn the facts about Falun Dafa. Many people signed the petition to help end the persecution.
Sisters Learn About and Express Interest in Falun Dafa
Nadezhda and Stancheva Vyara were excited to hear about Falun Dafa.
Nadezhda and Stancheva Vyara, twin sisters from Bulgaria who now live in London, heard about Falun Dafa in Chinatown and signed the petition.
They said they were happy to see practitioners and the celebrations on World Falun Dafa Day, and cheered the dragon dance team and drum team performances. They then joined practitioners and did the exercises.
They said they were surprised to feel the strong energy as practitioners did the exercises. They were happy to learn that there were Falun Dafa books and exercise demonstration videos online that could be downloaded for free. They saved the address. They exchanged their contact information with local practitioners.
Writer: Fear is the Tool Used by People Who Have Real Fear
Birhana Stenmans, a writer in the arts, was attracted by the practitioners’ activities. She praised the practitioners and said that every practitioner displayed their belief, which was beautiful. She said that such an ancient tradition shouldn’t be taken away, and the path leading to freedom might be very long but we must remember fear is the tool used by those who have real fear inside them.
Hannah Hlaronde (right) and Birhana Stenmans (left)
Birhana’s friend, Hannah Hlaronde, is a freelance writer. She said that spirituality was most important because people were losing it nowadays. She wanted to join practitioners and said she would let her friends know about the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, because in this noisy world people were forgotten and felt lonely. It was good for people to see that people around them were still human in this digital world, and want to change, which was absolutely beautiful.
The Power of Falun Dafa
Rachel Veazey, 40, manages an organization that serves deaf and hearing-impaired artists. Her husband has practiced Falun Dafa for 25 years, and she’s seen the power of Falun Dafa through her husband, and started practicing two years ago.
Rachel Veazey said that Falun Dafa helps her handle challenges with compassion.
Rachel talked about how she started practicing Falun Dafa. She came across difficulties and felt like she was at a crossroads in her life. She thought of her husband’s compassion and how he cultivates himself. Falun Dafa brought him peace, guided his thoughts, led him to live morally, and helps him look at everything calmly.
She said that her husband often helped her analyze things rationally, which touched her. She started to read the Fa teachings and immediately felt calm. She then started to practice the exercises. She felt that cultivation brought her energy and kept her calm and steady, and improved her health. She hasn’t had any migraine headaches for two years. She said that she could now meet challenges in a more calm and rational way.
When she mentioned Master’s birthday, Rachel became emotional and nearly cried. She said that she was very thankful to Master for presenting Falun Dafa to the public. She wants to thank Master for bringing cultivation to the world and helping people to return to their original selves.
Young Practitioner: From Depression to a Positive Outlook
Sunil Patel, 24, manages a family business with his father. After he left school he fell into a deep depression and isolated himself in his room for 5 years. When he saw an interview with a Falun Dafa practitioner on the Internet, he saw hope, because he had been searching for the truth of life and the universe. He visited the Falun Dafa website and began practicing.
Sunil Patel
Sunil said that Falun Dafa showed him the truth about life and the universe. He became open and positive and came out of his depression. He started to take responsibility for his own behavior and looked within rather than looking outward and blaming others when issues arose.
He used to avoid any social interactions. He started working hard and being actively involved in social activities. His family is very happy with his positive changes and encourage him to practice Falun Dafa. He also hopes that he can help those who are in the same situation he was in and find the purpose of life. He is grateful to Master for his compassion and love. He wishes Master a Happy Birthday!
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