WASHINGTON, D.C—A rally was held in front of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office near Dupont Circle on the afternoon of Jan. 29.
The event protested the actions of the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), which recently aided the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the cancellation of seven upcoming, sold-out shows of Shen Yun Performing Arts in Hong Kong.
The CCP has also sought to turn public opinion against the New York-based company that promotes traditional Chinese values.
The rally was also held in support of the upcoming rally in Hong Kong on Sunday Jan. 31, to demand that the Hong Kong government immediately rectify the wrongful decision, allowing the Shen Yun shows to be staged in Hong Kong as soon as possible.
Professor Nie Sen, of Catholic University in the U.S. compares the cancellation of the show to Beijing’s attempt to pass Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 in 2003, which prompted half a million people in Hong Kong to take to the streets.
He said, “The public here in Washington D.C. are watching the development of the incident in Hong Kong. “
Professor Nie Sen said that the forced cancellation of Shen Yun shows in Hong Kong, as well as the SAR government cooperation with Beijing on Article 23 will forever become a disgrace to the Hong Kong authorities.
“We overseas Chinese living in Washington D.C. express our strong protest and anger at the Hong Kong government’s blatant disregard of the freedom of Hong Kong, their betrayal of the welfare of Hong Kong’s citizens and despicable actions to ingratiate [the] CCP.”
To date, Shen Yun Performing Arts has held 21 successful shows in the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington D.C. As the host of the shows in Washington D.C., the Falun Dafa Association of Washington D.C. wrote a letter to Mr. Donald Tong, the Hong Kong Commissioner for Economic and Trade Affairs in the United States.
Doctor Lai Shan Tao represented the Falun Dafa Association of Washington D.C., in handing over the letter to the Hong Kong Trade and Economic Office.
The letter states, “Shen Yun shows have toured more than 100 cities worldwide. As one of the host cities, we are deeply concerned that the Hong Kong public--our Chinese compatriots--are denied the right to watch this world-class Chinese traditional cultural performance, a show that has already been watched by more than 33,000 people in Washington D.C.”
The letter also stated, “‘one country, two systems’ is now only in writing. What makes us even more uneasy is that a U.S.-based performing [company] is being unjustly treated in Hong Kong.”
Upon hearing of the cancellation of the shows in Hong Kong, citizens who have seen the Shen Yun shows in Washington D.C. also braved the bitter cold to partcipate in the rally.
Jeffrey Imm of the non-government organization, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L) said at the rally, “Shen Yun shows convey messages of compassion, truthfulness, tolerance and feature Chinese classical dance, Chinese traditional culture, myths and legends. I hope everyone in the world, everyone in Hong Kong will have the chance to see this performance, just like residents in Washington D.C. did.
“I urge the Hong Kong government to allow the Shen Yun Performing Arts [Company] to bring Chinese traditional culture, dance, music and stories to Hong Kong: to Hong Kong residents.”
Ms Li Ping from Maryland said that she is an immigrant from mainland China and was stunned by Shen Yun‘s culturally rich content and elegant performance, and that the cancellation in Hong Kong made it clear to her that “Freedom in Hong Kong has entirely been corroded by the CCP. Just like fellow compatriots in mainland China, the freedom of Hong Kong citizens is under the strict control of the CCP’s one-party dictatorship.”
Former Beijing Normal University Professor Sun Yanjun said that Beijing and the SAR government are now noting responses from the international community and are waiting for the incident to quiet down: if no one stands up, their plot will have succeeded.
Professor Sun called upon all of Hong Kong’s people to defend their rights, as they did when Article 23 was blocked. He said, “Human rights, democracy, freedom, Hong Kong’s future prosperty and the whole Chinese nation’s renaissance can not rely on anybody’s patronage... we cannot wait, we must act.”
Read the original Chinese article.
The event protested the actions of the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR), which recently aided the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the cancellation of seven upcoming, sold-out shows of Shen Yun Performing Arts in Hong Kong.
The CCP has also sought to turn public opinion against the New York-based company that promotes traditional Chinese values.
The rally was also held in support of the upcoming rally in Hong Kong on Sunday Jan. 31, to demand that the Hong Kong government immediately rectify the wrongful decision, allowing the Shen Yun shows to be staged in Hong Kong as soon as possible.
Professor Nie Sen, of Catholic University in the U.S. compares the cancellation of the show to Beijing’s attempt to pass Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 in 2003, which prompted half a million people in Hong Kong to take to the streets.
He said, “The public here in Washington D.C. are watching the development of the incident in Hong Kong. “
Professor Nie Sen said that the forced cancellation of Shen Yun shows in Hong Kong, as well as the SAR government cooperation with Beijing on Article 23 will forever become a disgrace to the Hong Kong authorities.
“We overseas Chinese living in Washington D.C. express our strong protest and anger at the Hong Kong government’s blatant disregard of the freedom of Hong Kong, their betrayal of the welfare of Hong Kong’s citizens and despicable actions to ingratiate [the] CCP.”
To date, Shen Yun Performing Arts has held 21 successful shows in the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington D.C. As the host of the shows in Washington D.C., the Falun Dafa Association of Washington D.C. wrote a letter to Mr. Donald Tong, the Hong Kong Commissioner for Economic and Trade Affairs in the United States.
Doctor Lai Shan Tao represented the Falun Dafa Association of Washington D.C., in handing over the letter to the Hong Kong Trade and Economic Office.
The letter states, “Shen Yun shows have toured more than 100 cities worldwide. As one of the host cities, we are deeply concerned that the Hong Kong public--our Chinese compatriots--are denied the right to watch this world-class Chinese traditional cultural performance, a show that has already been watched by more than 33,000 people in Washington D.C.”
The letter also stated, “‘one country, two systems’ is now only in writing. What makes us even more uneasy is that a U.S.-based performing [company] is being unjustly treated in Hong Kong.”
Upon hearing of the cancellation of the shows in Hong Kong, citizens who have seen the Shen Yun shows in Washington D.C. also braved the bitter cold to partcipate in the rally.
Jeffrey Imm of the non-government organization, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L) said at the rally, “Shen Yun shows convey messages of compassion, truthfulness, tolerance and feature Chinese classical dance, Chinese traditional culture, myths and legends. I hope everyone in the world, everyone in Hong Kong will have the chance to see this performance, just like residents in Washington D.C. did.
“I urge the Hong Kong government to allow the Shen Yun Performing Arts [Company] to bring Chinese traditional culture, dance, music and stories to Hong Kong: to Hong Kong residents.”
Ms Li Ping from Maryland said that she is an immigrant from mainland China and was stunned by Shen Yun‘s culturally rich content and elegant performance, and that the cancellation in Hong Kong made it clear to her that “Freedom in Hong Kong has entirely been corroded by the CCP. Just like fellow compatriots in mainland China, the freedom of Hong Kong citizens is under the strict control of the CCP’s one-party dictatorship.”
Former Beijing Normal University Professor Sun Yanjun said that Beijing and the SAR government are now noting responses from the international community and are waiting for the incident to quiet down: if no one stands up, their plot will have succeeded.
Professor Sun called upon all of Hong Kong’s people to defend their rights, as they did when Article 23 was blocked. He said, “Human rights, democracy, freedom, Hong Kong’s future prosperty and the whole Chinese nation’s renaissance can not rely on anybody’s patronage... we cannot wait, we must act.”
Read the original Chinese article.
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