|
In August 2003, the car tour
around the US to rescue Charles Lee left San Francisco, and on the way
northward. The car tour traveled through Portland in Oregon, the capital
city Olympia, and the city of Tacoma in the state of Washington, and
arrived at Seattle on August 17. Five members of the car tour and local
practitioners jointly held a press conference to clarify the truth, and
call for people from all walks of life to extend their help to rescue
Charles Lee. At the press conference, Ms. Shen Shumin from California talked
about the persecution she had suffered in China. During the Chinese
Car Tour
Members at Olymia
|
Spring Festival
in 2001, prior to the staged "Self-immolation in Tiananmen
Square," the Chinese authorities arrested and abducted Falun Gong
practitioners on a large scale, in order to block the news, and created an
environment for staging the tragedy. Police broke into Ms. Shen's home,
and smashed the windows, her whole family had to spend seven days and
nights in the cold wind during the Chinese Lunar New Year. Whenever
"sensitive days" approached, she would be abducted and detained.
Shen Shumin also told us the story of a fellow practitioner Ms. Zhu at her
practice site who was illegally sentenced to four years in jail, and whose
father could not bear the attack and passed away. Shen Shumin said that
countless families of Falun Gong practitioners have been torn apart under
the terror in China.
Steve from California and two Western sisters Dafa practitioners talked
about the abduction and illegal detention they suffered during their
peaceful appeal in February 2002 in China. They called for people from all
walks of life to show concern for the persecution that American citizen
Charles Lee is suffering. They said, "We are here to offer an
opportunity for fellow practioners in China who have no chance to voice
their appeals."
Ms.
Shen Shumin speaks at the press conference
|
Seattle practitioners also read several supporting letters from
government officials in Washington. State Senator Mr. Richard Conlin
expressed in his letter, "I was shocked to learn about the physical
and mental torture Dr. Charles Lee is suffering; I believe that people have
the right to choose their beliefs and practice, but should not be
subjected to persecution for doing so."A press conference is held in
Seattle, and many public officials send letters to express their support.
Washington State Representative Mr. Eric Pettigrew said in his letter,
"Your rescue effort through a car tour is a great tradition that the
American people protest against injustice. You will ultimately win, and I
have no doubt about it!"
Many visitors were moved by the practitioners' experience. An American
who came to Seattle to travel from the
Clarifying the
truth to tourists
|
city where Charles Lee lived said
surprisingly after learning about the detailed information, "I just
came back from Nanjing, China, but I didn't know that Charles Lee is being
detained there. I indeed saw quite a few police in Nanjing." He
signed his name to show his support for Charles Lee and said that he would
bring the news home and tell people and the government about it."
One visitor asked a practitioner after the press conference, "Can
you achieve any effect by doing this?" The practitioner said,
"Every righteous voice is a piece of strength." He said
agreeably, "I've signed my name to support you. "
To the accompaniment of the Dafa music "Pu Du," more and more
people learned about the truth and joined us to appeal for the rescue of
Falun Gong practitioners.
|
