Sybille reports

July, 2005 - Nr. 7

Chinese Art Tells Tall Tale

Press Conferences, Recognitions

When Parliament ends it session for the summer in Canada the population can be sure to be treated to a few splashy events that give government an opportunity to shine and demonstrate that we are the most important thing on its mind. Press conferences, the handing out of recognitions, and reassurance speeches all make us glad that we are in Canada, enjoying rights and freedoms not common to the rest of the world.

Thus was also the case when Tony Ruprecht, M.P.P. called on a vast contingent of ethnics to be present at the re-release of his newest edition of his book "Toronto’s Many Faces". It was a big splashy affair with colourful costumed people lined up behind the podium in the main hall of Queens Park. All throughout the lower level chair on chair was filled with representatives of every conceivable ethnic group. Resounding speeches were held, reminding us of our Canadian uniqueness and our rights and how proud we all should be, and we can honestly say that most of us are! In fact we are now finally seeing actual beginnings of multiculturalism that had been not much more than talk for a very long time, not so much because the government gave us those rights, but because we insisted on having them implemented ad are cooperating with each other more.

For our many contributions there are recognitions that are being handed out. Among the 15 recipients that were inducted into the Order of Canada or the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal was also a German- Canadian, Mr. Gerry Meinzer, with whom we are thoroughly familiar with as one of the fathers of the National German Canadian Congress, among other things. Unfortunately he was the only one who did not show up to receive this honour.

Following a tradition the receipts from the sale of Tony Ruprecht’s book always go to a charity and this time a Portuguese organisation for disabled people was awarded the money.

Tony Ruprecht’s rousing remarks at closing time re-affirmed believe that we are indeed in the right country.

That we also live in the right province was confirmed by Premier McGuinty in his address to the ethnic press in the following reception. The provincial governments achievements were recounted, while buffets were being swarmed by hungry visitors.

In and around all those occasions there was one apparent thought: Are we taking all of our rights and freedoms for granted?

Chinese Art Exhibition

Between the Queens Park event and Canada Day we visited an extraordinary art show in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. In two rooms two very different types of art were shown.

Introduced by President of the local Chinese Paper Epoch Times, Cindy Gu, Madame Dai and her sun Tony Dai, now of Australia, had made this unusual collection available for viewing. There purpose was manifold: besides preserving and sharing some of the old masters of China, which were not destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, but saved by the family, there was a political message, one of freedom or rather the lack of it and the abuse of it in their homeland China.

Madame Dai recounted her personal journey of life in broad strokes and came to a place of pain and illness, when the doctors had given up hope for a recovery. She turned to the practise of Falun Gong, a spiritual journey of Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance. Miraculously she recovered from her fatal affliction. This practise is forbidden, as are other religions that acknowledge the individual as a spiritual being.

Madame Dai felt compelled to practise what had saved her life and embraced like many people Falun Gong, a practise of meditation and self-improvement. This practise appears to be a threat to Chinese authorities and thus disciples are cruelly persecuted, detained, tortured and even killed.

While in one room old Chinese masters set an example of a unique balance of aesthetics, the other room is full of paintings in the European Renaissance tradition, using luminous bright colours to juxtapose the horrors of life in China when persecuted for practising Falun Gong.

The reality of these pictures jump at the viewer and really did not need much of an explanation, which was readily available by volunteers who would explicitly tell the story of the person in the painting, how they suffered, why and what became of them and how they are not even considering retaliation for their torturers, which are depicted in a heavy, solid kind of way, devoid of light and colour, more animal like, while the spiritual nature of the victims is clearly apparent.

These paintings tell real stories of real people in real time. They grab the viewer by the soul and sent us asking for justice and the eradication of evil in our world. The current political view appears to be "Business is more important than Moral" rather than "Human Rights are more important than Business". The rewarding of huge perks in the way of trade agreements to a country that pursues its expatriates even here in Canada, that totally regulates what its citizens are allowed to hear, to read, to speak and to think, is not designed to change the violation of human rights in that country. More likely the actions of resistance on the inside and on the outside, and the education of others will exert enough pressure eventually to make changes, which could have come so much earlier and without the needles suffering. We know that no brutal regime ever fell by its own hand. There always had to be outside pressure.

In this instance the pressure is put on by art telling a very tall tale, a very true tale; and by a paper called the Epoch Times, which has already managed to influence many through truthful reports of what goes on in China. The Communist party has already lost over 2 million members because of it and the numbers are growing. The Chinese people here and abroad are mustering extraordinary courage to free themselves of the oppression they find themselves under.

Visit the Internet page of the Epoch Times under www.theEpochTimes.com and look for the nine commentaries on the Communist Party. It makes for enlightening reading.

Canada Day at Queen's Park

All this I had to think about when I entered the Queen's Park grounds on July 1^st, Canada Day. I saw so many Chinese people there, smiling, happy to be here and fervently joining in the Citizenship oath alongside with Minister Smitherman, who was officiating.

I saw many children enjoying the treats available to them, totally oblivious of what might await them if we do not guard against oppression, if we are not willing to protect our rights and freedoms, if we are not willing to take a stand if we should have to.

Children celebrate Canada Day

If we are honest then we know this can happen anywhere anytime. Religious persecution is constantly in the news in some form or another and has reared its ugly head even here on occasion, and that not too long ago. Without freedom of religion there is not much freedom at all.

All this I had to think on Canada Day when I walked around and took pictures of the many different individuals making up our Canadian humanity.

Happy birthday Canada

The last picture I took before leaving for home was one of two of our native sons in beautiful costumes. You can find them on our front page. I told them: "Without you there would be no Canada Day!" And they smiled proudly.