„When Evil Is Hidden, It Flourishes“

They came from different cities. They have different jobs, different backgrounds, different ethnicities. But they all share one thing in common: They are practitioners of Falun Gong, a Chinese spiritual discipline.

In subway stops across Moscow, these adherents of Falun Gong have gathered for a singular purpose: to spread awareness of the genocidal persecution that their fellow practitioners face in communist China.

[Aza Zandanova, Falun Gong Practitioner from Irkutsk]:
“The purpose of my visit is to let the residents of Moscow know about what’s happening in China today. There is a persecution of completely innocent people, people who believe in the meditation practice of Falun Gong. The practice improves their health and character, but the CCP has persecuted them for the past ten years.”

Aza Zandanova has first-hand experience with Falun Gong. She’s been practicing it for the past five years. She credits its gentle, slow-moving meditation exercises for improvements in her health. But the benefits, she says, go far beyond that. Those who practice Falun Gong are encouraged to live their day-to-day lives according to the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. The belief is that by improving one’s state of mind, one can improve the physical body as well.

But today in China, people just like Aza are being murdered for doing just that. The Chinese regime launched a systematic persecution of Falun Gong in 1999 that continues to this day. Human rights groups like Amnesty International have documented numerous cases of Falun Gong adherents being tortured and killed.

[Aza Zandanova]:
„People, help stop the genocide of those who practice Falun Gong in China. Awful things are happening. My heart is aching, since I also practice Falun Gong.“

And in Russia, a place where Soviet tyranny had killed tens of millions, this cry for help resonates.

[Passerby, no title bar]:
“It’s a crime what [the Chinese regime] is doing. For this, they should be tried and punished very severely.”

[Sergey Kuzmin, Falun Gong Practitioner from Novosibirsk]:
“Here people simply find out the truth, because currently, you don’t hear about this in the press or on TV. It’s hidden, and when evil is hidden, it flourishes.”

As the weekend draws to a close and after all the flyers have been handed out, these Falun Gong practitioners return once more to their everyday lives, families and jobs. Perhaps someday soon, their fellow practitioners in China will be able to do the same.

NTD News, Moscow, Russia

(NTDTV)