Germany: Five Hundred Residents of Osnabrück, a Town in Lower Saxony, Show their Support by Signing our Petition

On Saturday October 22nd, Falun Gong practitioners from the cities of Bremen, Hannover, Bielefeld, Münster, Gütersloh, Braunschweig, Bramsche and Göttingen met on “Grosse Strasse,” a street in Osnabrück, to raise awareness about the human rights violations against Falun Gong practitioners in China. An information booth was set up in front of the shopping centre. It was a great spot because it was close to an intersection within the pedestrian shopping area. Many people came from different directions in the city and could see us very well.

All day long, the street was very busy. Many interested people came to our booth where we collected signatures and asked many questions. Several interesting conversations were generated between practitioners and the public.

1. A middle-aged, deaf-mute lady excitedly came to our stall and tried to repeatedly say, “Why is this happening? They are so peaceful.” She was talking about Falun Gong practitioners. Since she could not understand us very well, she took a lot of printed material.

2. A little girl sat in front of the information booth all by herself and curiously watched everything. Her mother stood a little distance away and was watching her. One practitioner talked to the girl and explained to her why people in China are being persecuted.

3. Another practitioner had seen a six year old girl start to cry after she had looked at the displays. Unlike behaviour usually seen in children, her crying was not loud, but rather quiet and private, with her tears silently running down her face. The practitioner approached the girl and explained to her about Truth, Compassion and Tolerance. Later, the girl’s mother returned and told us that she would explain everything to her daughter again once they got home.

In the evening, when we had already started to take everything down, a woman came by on her bike. In passing, she asked what we had been doing. A practitioner called out, “Collecting signatures”. She stopped her bike and signed the petition.

Many children came with their parents and asked us questions. The parents did not complain when their children were looking at the torture exhibition and posters. Rather, they took the time to rationally explain to their children: “This is what’s happening in China right now. They put up this booth to explain to people what’s going on, that it is evil and that it has to be stopped.”

Before this exhibition, one practitioner had doubts about the torture exhibits. She thought that it might result in negative opinions about Falun Gong. However, by the end of the day, she had completely changed her mind.