(Minghui.org) European practitioners held rallies, marches, and gathered in front of the Chinese Embassy to expose the ongoing suppression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), during a three-day event in Czechia’s capital city of Prague on July 21-23. The activities were well received by local residents and tourists.

Rally at Prague’s Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí) on July 23, 2023.

Group exercises at the Old Town Square on July 23, 2023.

Rally at Wenceslas Square (Václavské náměstí) on July 22, 2023.

The Tian Guo Marching Band performed at the city square, Hradčanské náměstí, before the parade on July 22.

The parade procession crossed a famous tourist attraction, Charles Bridge (Karlův most) on July 22.

Banners were displayed during a rally on July 22.

Passersby watched the event at Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí) on July 22.

Pedestrians signed petitions urging to end the suppression in China.

Senior Purchasing Analyst: The Benefits of Falun Dafa

Senior purchasing analyst Thao Phuong Nguyen.

Thao Phuong Nguyen is a senior purchasing analyst living in Czechia. When she signed a petition to end the persecution, she said her mother practices Falun Dafa, and she likes the practice very much.

She said that Falun Dafa is very harmonious and peaceful. “It’s teaching people to look into their souls,” she explained. “If something bad happens to you, you respond with love and patience.”

Ms. Nguyen said her 65-year-old mother went through many tough periods in her life. After she began to practice Falun Dafa she developed patience and understanding about what is happening in the world. Although she is not a practitioner herself, Nguyen says she has witnessed the positive changes in her mother.

In the past, her mother suffered from a sleep disorder and never had a good night’s sleep. She was in distress and there were other pressures in her life. Her mother became positive after she began to practice Falun Dafa. Reading the Falun Dafa books also made her focus more on the spiritual aspect of life instead of the materialistic world. “From her soul she is spreading something positive. Even her health improved,” Nguyen added. “She can sleep now. Yes, Falun Dafa is really amazing because we tried many things to help our mother, but nothing worked.”

She signed a petition because she said what is going on in China is horrible. “I think what the Chinese government is doing is wrong. What happened to human rights? Where is democracy? Where is the freedom of the people? Falun Dafa practitioners are not harming anyone. They only spread love, the truth, and forbearance, and patience—all these are good values.”

She could not understand why the CCP would do this. “They cannot even give us a reason. There is only cruelty,” she continued. “What Falun Dafa practitioners do is protest in harmony and peace.”

Kindness is Our Birthright

Life trainer Piet Schaub said he likes Falun Dafa very much.

Piet Schaub, a life trainer from Switzerland, saw the event with his children. Having lived in China for six years, he was glad to see practitioners bringing traditional Chinese culture to Europe. He knew about the persecution and immediately signed the petition.

He said that it’s important to support freedom, and end crimes such as organ harvesting. In the past 24 years, the CCP suppressed Falun Dafa practitioners for their belief in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and the Party censors information. “Kindness is our birthright, and as human beings we should all live from our hearts in peace and respect for one another,” he said.

Because of this he said it’s important to tell people about the persecution. Mr. Schaub said he’s interested in meditation and could feel strong energy as the practitioners did the exercises. “We have a very high energetic level here,” he said. “Most people don’t understand that we are all connected. We are vibrant beings, all connected through the greater whole. We all come from the same source, call it god, call it Buddha, call it the cosmos, I call it the universe.”

It Is Important to Know the Facts

Anja Brolowski from Germany said everyone should have human rights.

Coming from Göttingen in Germany, Anja Brolowski was glad to see Falun Dafa practitioners at the event. She said everyone should have basic rights and live freely, and that it is wrong for the CCP to suppress practitioners because of their belief. “This is a really bad situation,” she added. “People born there (communist China) do not know what freedom is, but those who were born before (the CCP took power) know what freedom means. One should be free.”

Brolowski said it is important to see more activities like this, that are exposing the CCP’s brutality. They help people know that “those things may seem ‘far away’ but are not far away, and you see them right at your doorstep.” It is critical to help more people know this, she said.

High school student Hans-Jürgen and college freshman Gustav Schmidt are both from Berlin, Germany. They and their friends all signed the petition calling to end the atrocities in China.

Hans-Jürgen said he hoped other people can live a happy life. He liked Falun Dafa practitioners’ activities because through them he learned about traditional Chinese culture. He also said it is unacceptable for the CCP to persecute practitioners for their beliefs in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. “The persecution is really terrible,” he said.