Thousands of Chinese New Year greetings, in prose and poetry, in calligraphy, e-cards, and bright Flash animations, have streamed into the main Falun Gong website Minghui.org (“Clear Wisdom” in English), wishing a happy Chinese New Year to Li Hongzhi, the founder of the Chinese spiritual discipline. The greetings also provide a snapshot of a vibrant community of believers in China [ Original Chinese | English Translation ] who are gaining support among the Chinese people in spite of 11 years of persecution.
Minghui editors report receiving over 10,000 submissions. The greetings come from small towns and big cities and from every corner of China. Some are from individuals, but often the greetings are from groups of practitioners who identify themselves either by their location or their profession. While some of the greetings are very humble—nothing more than an email message, others are elaborate and beautiful productions.
[ Article follows Photo Gallery ]
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Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, involves practicing five meditative exercises and living according to the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. After Mr. Li Hongzhi first began teaching it to the public in China, Falun Gong became extremely popular—in early 1999 the New York Times, citing China’s sports commission, reported that 100 million people in China had taken up the discipline.
That popularity scared then paramount leader Jiang Zemin and he set out to “eradicate” Falun Gong. Since then, Falun Gong practitioners have been subject to kidnapping, arbitrary imprisonment, forced labor, torture, and execution through the harvesting of their organs as the authorities have sought to stamp out their faith.
In April 2000 the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) claimed that 98 percent of Falun Gong practitioners had abandoned their beliefs. Over the years some journalists and academics have echoed the claim that the practice of Falun Gong has been wiped out. For example, Andrew Nathan, a prominent scholar, wrote in the spring of 2010 that “the regime has been totally effective in suppressing the Falun Gong.”
The greetings published by Minghui contradict Prof. Nathan’s claim.
Practitioners who have sent their gratitude and respect for Mr. Li on the occasion of the Chinese New Year via Minghui.org include those from the military, judiciary, universities and the education system, and from central government agencies in Beijing and agencies all over China.
Minghui editors report receiving over 10,000 submissions. The greetings come from small towns and big cities and from every corner of China. Some are from individuals, but often the greetings are from groups of practitioners who identify themselves either by their location or their profession. While some of the greetings are very humble—nothing more than an email message, others are elaborate and beautiful productions.
[ Article follows Photo Gallery ]
[etssp 217]
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, involves practicing five meditative exercises and living according to the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. After Mr. Li Hongzhi first began teaching it to the public in China, Falun Gong became extremely popular—in early 1999 the New York Times, citing China’s sports commission, reported that 100 million people in China had taken up the discipline.
That popularity scared then paramount leader Jiang Zemin and he set out to “eradicate” Falun Gong. Since then, Falun Gong practitioners have been subject to kidnapping, arbitrary imprisonment, forced labor, torture, and execution through the harvesting of their organs as the authorities have sought to stamp out their faith.
In April 2000 the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) claimed that 98 percent of Falun Gong practitioners had abandoned their beliefs. Over the years some journalists and academics have echoed the claim that the practice of Falun Gong has been wiped out. For example, Andrew Nathan, a prominent scholar, wrote in the spring of 2010 that “the regime has been totally effective in suppressing the Falun Gong.”
Paying Respect
The greetings published by Minghui contradict Prof. Nathan’s claim.
Practitioners who have sent their gratitude and respect for Mr. Li on the occasion of the Chinese New Year via Minghui.org include those from the military, judiciary, universities and the education system, and from central government agencies in Beijing and agencies all over China.
