The Global Human Rights Torch Relay comes to LondonA grey wintry day in London was brightened by a torch of hope on Thursday, October 25. The torch is the symbol of the Global Human Rights Torch Relay. This event draws attention to the human rights abuses committed by the ruling party of the next Olympics host country, China, and resolutely states that "Olympics and crimes against humanity cannot coexist in China."
UK Falun Gong practitioners joined other groups who are persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), such as Tibetans and Burmese, in the torch relay to let more people know about the human rights abuses that they are suffering. The event also gathered hundreds of people, VIPs, Olympians and NGOs in Trafalgar Square, who showed their concern over the human rights abuses by the Chinese Communist regime.
One of the event organizers Zek Halu said, "Why do we need this Human Rights Torch Relay for the Olympic games in China? We need it because the Olympic charter calls for the establishment of a peaceful society, concerned with preservation of human dignity. We all know that the Communist regime in China does not care about human dignity and does not care about creating a peaceful society in its own land. Citizens in Communist China do not enjoy the protection of human rights as we do here in the free world."
The Global Human Rights Torch Relay started in Greece in August and passed through 17 European countries. Britain was the last European country the torch visited on its 100-city relay around the world. The relay will end in Asia in August 2008, as the Beijing Olympics are due to begin.
The Vice President of the EU Parliament, Edward MacMillan-Scott said at a press conference before the event: "Since 1999 when the repression began, over 3,000 Falun Gong practitioners have died under torture ... in my view that constitutes genocide. So when people describe the Olympic games in 2008 as the 'genocide Olympics' they normally mean, as does Mia Farrow, in reference to Darfur. When I say the 'genocide Olympics' I mean genocide inside China against religious groups, especially Falun Gong."
Edward MacMillan-Scott speaks at a press conference before the torch relay
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Lord Avebury(left) and Chairman of the Greater London Assembly Brian Coleman speak at the Human Rights Torch Relay in Trafalgar Square
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A European Choir perform the theme song of the Human Rights Torch Relay |
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Other speakers at the pres conference and event included Member of European Parliament Robert Evans, Lord Avebury, Lord Hylton, Chairman of the Greater London Assembly Brian Coleman and Olympian Ghefari Dulapandan.
Annie Yang, who spoke at the press conference before the relay, spent two years in a forced labour camp in China for her belief in Falun Gong. In the labour camp, she was only allowed to sleep for 2-3 hours each day, she was given very little food (a half piece of bread at each meal) and at most 500 ml of water each day, despite the very hot temperatures. She was not allowed to wash or change her clothes and was forced to sit upright on a small stool, without moving, for 20 hours each day. She also could not close her eyes or move without permission from the drug addicts who were in charge of watching her.
The day before this event, Ms. Yang learned that a Falun Gong practitioner she had met in the labour camp had just died while in detention. She said "Even last week, the police went to my parents home, still searching for me, asking them where I am. So the situation for practitioners in China is still very dangerous."
The event in Trafalgar square also had musical entertainment including renowned flautist William Bennet, traditional bagpipe music, the London band "Lion Hearted" and a European Choir which sang the theme song of the Human Rights Torch Relay and other moving songs to raise awareness about the genocide against Falun Gong practitioners in China.
Thirty-eight year old Sicilia Sansom travelled from Stockholm to London to perform with the choir at this event. She said "We were invited to come here to sing in this Torch Relay. I think this is a very important event, because it brings up the human rights issues in China. When Beijing received the honor of hosting the Olympic games they said they would improve their human rights issues. And today we know from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the UN and Reporters Without Borders, that the situation has become worse in China with regards to human rights. So I want to support this event."
The event was organized by the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong but other NGOs also spoke out against the atrocities of the Chinese Communist regime, including the Burmese Muslim Association, the Federation for a Democratic China, the Federation of Saying "Good-bye" to the CCP and Free Tibet.
After the music and speeches, balloons were released and the human rights torch was lit. Representatives wearing traditional English, Welsh, Scottish, Irish and Greek costumes, each holding a lit torch, symbolized the harmonious spirit of the Olympics and led the parade.
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Edward McMillan-Scott MEP (right), Vice President of the European Parliament and Ghefari Dulapandan, Olympian swimmer, light up their torches in Trafalgar Square
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The parade passed through central London to the Chinese Embassy
When asked about the parade, a 28-year-old bystander named Michael said, "I know what China does to their people and it's crazy that there's going to be Olympic games there."
Kolja, a 35-year-old artist from Berlin said of the Torch Relay, "I think it is very needed because China is a very harsh regime. There's no human rights, no freedom, so it's out of order to have the Olympics there."
 The parade containing hundreds of supporters went through the busy centre of London and ended at the Chinese Embassy in Portland Place where a candlelight vigil ended the event on a sombre note in the wintry twilight.
Taiwan: 7000 Athletes Support Human Rights Torch RelayThe Human Rights Torch Relay global tour recently received wide support from athletes participating in the 2007 Taiwan National Athletic Games. October 21-22, about 6000 athletes signed a petition to support the torch relay. By the time the Games ended on October 25, more than 7000 signatures had been collected and about 600 athletes had agreed to participate in a symbolic run when the torch visits Taiwan next year.
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People in an endless stream came to sign a petition in support of the Human Rights Torch Relay
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Tianyin Chorus sang the theme song of the Human Rights Torch Relay
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The torch was lit in Athens on August 9, 2007, and during the past two months, it has visited many cities in Europe, receiving wide support from elected officials, social elites, human rights groups, and the general public. The torch will visit Taiwan in June 2008. The torch relay was initiated to raise public awareness of the persecution of Falun Gong. In July 1999, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Jiang Zemin launched the brutal persecution of Falun Gong. To date, it has been verified that more than 3,100 practitioners have died due to this persecution. In March 2006, it was revealed that the CCP had set up concentration camps to systematically harvest organs from living Falun Gong practitioners. In July 2006, after a careful investigation, Canadian human rights lawyer David Matas and former member of Canadian Parliament David Kilgour concluded that organ harvesting was happening in China. To investigate the persecution of Falun Gong and the organ harvesting atrocities, the Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (CIPFG) was established in April 2006.
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Ando Kan and Lai Ching-Te (left), assistant directors of CIPFG Asia
Ando Kan signed his name to support the Human Rights Torch Relay |
During the National Athletic Games, CIPFG volunteer Ms. Cai repeatedly announced, "Please tell our fellow citizens that a Human Rights Torch is being relayed around the world to raise public awareness of the human rights atrocities in China. While Beijing had pledged to improve human rights, they in fact have been deteriorating. The group which has been persecuted most brutally is Falun Gong, and the CCP even harvests organs from living Falun Gong practitioners."
During the Taiwan Games, many people visited the Human Rights Torch Relay booth and signed the petition in support of the torch relay. The CIPFG prepared 5000 Human Rights Torch balloons, and all of them were distributed. Many supporters said that they knew about the persecution and the organ harvesting atrocities, and that the Human Rights Torch Relay was very important.
Researcher's Investigation Points to CCP Involvement in Organ Harvesting Crimes
According to a New Tang Dynasty Television (NTDTV) report, a Japanese enterprise in Shenyang City, China recently acknowledged that it had been involved in the human organ trade. The legal representative of the company has been arrested. The company's website has been shut down. The company's website once clearly stated that their human organ trade was supported by the CCP authorities behind the scene. Dr. Liu, from the California Natural Rehabilitation Medical Research Institute, said that he had searched websites last year to learn about the situation. He found out that the organ transplantation centres he had searched had all received organs from the CCP authorities.
Ins March of 2006, a reporter who escaped from China and the wife of a cornea transplant surgeon publicly revealed that the CCP harvested organs from living Falun Gong practitioners. Dr. Liu began investigating this incident. He searched websites numerous times to learn about the situation, and downloaded some information about organ transplant centres that invited organ transplant businesses from foreign countries. Dr. Liu gave some examples of websites that invited Japanese customers.
Dr. Liu said: "On the first page of the website, it stated clearly that their organ transplants are supported by the government. Those organs are provided by the government and can be guaranteed. But after the crime of organ theft was exposed to the public, I have been unable to access those and some other web pages."
Dr. Liu contacted a website named "Yuesheng International Health Service Centre" to learn more about the organ transplant centre. He asked questions such as "How long does a patient who needs a kidney need to wait?" He received a response soon from professional personnel.
Dr. Liu said: "The response was very professional and very clear. One is that you can come to China at any time. After you arrive in China, you only wait for two weeks, at most four weeks, before you can receive a kidney transplant. As a doctor, I raised two doubts: one is that the waiting time is so short. It is very clear that they have a rather large organ bank. Since the CCP's persecution of Falun Gong, and CCP's crime of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners were exposed, the website has since been deleted. This shows that they felt the information was self-incriminating.
An official from the Chinese Medical Association promised on October 5, 2007 that prisoners will not become the donors for organ transplant, but he did not mention anything related to the atrocity of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners who have not committed any crimes. People who are concerned about this should call on the international community to continuously exert pressure on the CCP authorities to stop the brutal atrocities that are secretly going on as soon as possible.
Facts about just one case of persecution:
Ms. Yang Chongyu from Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, Died as a Result of Persecution in a Mental Hospital and Forced Labour Camp
Falun Gong practitioner Ms. Yang Chongyu was 53 years old. She used to be an officer at the local tax bureau. She went to Beijing in 2001 to appeal for justice for Falun Gong. On the train to Beijing, she exposed the CCP's use of propaganda and told people how it had framed Falun Gong. She publicly explained the truth about the persecution, which led to her arrest. While illegally detained, Ms. Yang refused to give up her belief in Falun Gong. She was sent to Wanchun Mental Hospital in the Wenjiang District.
In the hospital and under heavy guard, practitioners were administered psychotropic drugs three times a day. If they refused to take the drugs orally, they were injected with large doses. Following these injections, they would remain in a drugged state the entire day, semi-conscious and unable to move, or they would be subjected to electric shock treatments, which would also make them lose consciousness. The hospital officials did not allow practitioners to speak with one another. One day while they were sharing experiences with each other despite the order, the doctor dragged Ms. Yang Chongyu away for an electric shock "treatment" and then dragged practitioner Ms. Chen Jinhua to see Ms. Yang Chongyu's alarming appearance after the electric shock--her face was green, her lips were black, and she was unable to move.
Ms. Yang Chongyu and Ms. Chen Jinhua were both sent to Nanmusi Women's Forced Labour Camp in Zizhong, Sichuan Province, on July 3, 2007.
Ms. Yang Chongyu was forcibly injected with large doses of drugs and was forced to take many unknown drugs in the hospital, which made her suffer mentally and physically. After she returned home, she was often harassed and threatened by the authorities, who attempted to coerce her into giving up her belief in Falun Gong. She refused and continued to do the three things a practitioner is supposed to do. Ms. Yang Chongyu died on September 12, 2007. Although she was 1.60 meters (5'3") tall, she weighed a mere 30 kg (60 lbs.).
Estonia: Former Prime Minister Calls For An End to CCP Atrocities
A reporter for Clearwisdom recently interviewed Mart Laar, the first prime minister of Estonia after the Baltic country gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. During the interview, Mr. Laar expressed his support to the Human Rights Torch Relay and appealed to people around the world to pay close attention to the persecution happening in the Communist China. He commended the courage of the Chinese people who have openly denounced the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). He also encouraged Chinese people to be fearless and take solid steps to end the CCP atrocities.
Mr. Mart Laar, former prime minister of Estonia |
Though the CCP pledged to improve human rights in China when it was applying to host the 2008 Olympic Games, former Prime Minister Laar said that the there was no evidence that the CCP would fulfill its pledge. Mr. Laar believed that the Human Rights Torch Relay would remind people around the world about human rights atrocities happening in China. "It is very effective and very necessary," Mr. Laar said.
Mr. Laar said that the magnificent Chinese history and culture had been mostly destroyed by the CCP. "This destruction can be called the largest damage to the world civilization." He pointed out that history is repeating: During World War II, nobody believed the existence of concentration camps and the Holocaust. Today, organ harvesting is happening and people are still questioning the credibility of the allegation.
Mr. Laar stressed that people in the free world should help people who are still under the communist reign of terror. On the other hand, ignoring their suffering is very dangerous and will harm the whole free world.
He continued that the 27 million Chinese who had withdrawn from the CCP and its affiliated organizations have made a courageous and correct choice. He said: "A classic communist tactic is both persecuting the individual and his family members... In fact, they [the CCP] fear the public. Once the fear among the public vanishes, the CCP reign of terror will collapse."
Mr. Laar said that Estonia lost 20% of its population when it was controlled by the Soviet Union. "It is now widely recognized that communism is anti-humanity. Without violence and terror, communism will not exist," Mr. Laar concluded.
Mart Laar served as Estonian prime minister from 1992 to 1994, and he was re-elected in 1999. He successfully led the economic and politic reformation in Estonia and laid a good foundation for the country to become a member of the EU. He is also a productive historian and is currently serving has a member of the Estonian Parliament.
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