(Minghui.org) Falun Dafa practitioners hosted a seminar at the Salle du Moulin des Évêques City Hall in Agde, a coastal city in southern France, on the evening of November 28, 2023, to expose the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution of the spiritual discipline. Mr. Gilles D’Ettore, Mayor of Agde, some city government staff, and residents of Agde and surrounding cities attended the meeting.
A practitioner described what Falun Dafa is, how Falun Dafa is now practiced in more than 100 countries around the world, and how it has been persecuted in China since July 1999. Several practitioners recounted their personal experiences of being tortured while they were detained and jailed in China or that their parents were imprisoned in China for practicing Falun Dafa. After the meeting, many attendees signed a petition to end the persecution.
Mayor of Agde: We should expose the facts about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Dafa
Mr. Gilles D’Ettore, the mayor of Agde, said in his opening remarks at the seminar that many French people including him didn’t know about the persecution of Falun Dafa because the Chinese Communist Party may have covered up many things. “In the name of humanity, we should expose the facts,” Mr. D’Ettore said, “As the mayor of Agde, I have the obligation to serve the public and those who are being persecuted with courage and safeguard human rights.”
He shook hands with a practitioner who recounted his personal experience of being jailed and tortured in China and praised him for his courage.
It Is Important to Spread the Truth
After the seminar retiree Bernard Lavayssières said that the persecution is a cruel reality, and he hopes it ends soon. What touched him was that a practitioner persisted in his belief even though he was tortured. “Usually a person will deny his thoughts when experiencing pain; however, this may also be the magic of Falun Dafa. These people have endured such persecution and can still stick to their belief, which is very strong,” he said.
Mr. Lavayssières said he recently watched a program on ARTE (Association Relative à la Télévision Européenne) and learned that there are people in China who are willing to risk their lives to tell people about Falun Dafa. He was very moved. He believed that this must be a very important thing, that (Falun Dafa) changed the lives of these people and had a great impact on them. At the same time, he also saw the evil nature of the CCP, which persecutes practitioners through illegal imprisonment and sentencing. Lavayssières believes the (persecution) will eventually end and it is important to tell everyone what is happening in China.
He also expressed an interest in learning Falun Dafa. He said, “Practicing Falun Dafa can make one healthy. Perhaps by practicing, I can get closer to God. The three words Truthfulness, Compassion, and Tolerance are very important to people all over the world and are good qualities for self-improvement.”
City Government Staff: All People Should Know About the Persecution
Eric Rinzo works for the city government. When he learned there would be a seminar that evening about the CCP’s persecution of Falun Dafa, he decided to attend.
Rinzo wanted to know what really happened. He said so much is covered up, he feels it was important for the truth to spread and be known to people from all walks of life around the world. He said that it is important to tell people the truth about the persecution of Falun Dafa. “We must realise that this is real. By (understanding) the truth, people will no longer turn a blind eye to the facts.”
Practitioner Recounts His Personal Experience
Wang Zhe who currently lives in France, told attendees that he was beaten and shocked with electric batons in a Chinese labor camp, and nearly died. In 2001, he was imprisoned in a labor camp for distributing a CD that explained the truth about the Tiananmen self-immolation. He was later illegally sentenced to three years in prison.
While in the labor camp, he saw with his own eyes the prison guards beat Falun Dafa practitioner Chen Baoliang to death, but the prison guards claimed that Chen died of a heart attack.
Ding Lebin called for the rescue of his father, Ding Yuande who was arrested along with his mother Ma Ruimei on May 12, 2023. His mother was released on May 24 but his father has been detained in the Rizhao City Detention Centre since June 3.
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