Report on the demonstration to mark the first anniversary of the opening of ChinaTown

Arriving a little late, the members of Citizens Against Communist Chinese Propaganda set up their flags, banners, and signs at the main gate of Florida Splendid China, the communist Chinese government owned and operated theme park in Kissimmee, Florida, on Sunday morning, July 13th, 1997. This was the nineteenth protest held in front of Florida Splendid China since it opened in December 1993 and the fourth held this year. In attendance were three members of the International Taklamakan Uighur Human Rights Association, who traveled from Washington DC to attend.

The occasion was to mark the first anniversary of the opening of 'ChinaTown', an effort by the park to distance itself from it's true owners, remove the negative connotations of their original name recognition, and open a portion of the property to the public.

According to our sources, both restaurants (Hong Kong and Seven Flavors), have left the property. An unconfirmed report mentioned that the reason was a lack of business which had made their venture unprofitable. This non-activity / lack of business certainly was in evidence as the demonstrators only saw ten cars go into the theme park during the two hours they were there, half of which turned around and left within 15 minutes. This is on the same day that two miles away, Walt Disney World hosted literally thousands of guests. From our observations, it appears that 'ChinaTown' is as big a bust as the original 'Splendid China', a big black hole where communist Chinese government money is dumped without regard to profit. It appears that the only thing that matters is that the propaganda message is continued.

The demonstrators carried signs which read Free Tibet, Free Southern Mongolia, Free Eastern Turkestan and the flags of the occupied nations of Tibet, Southern Mongolia, and Eastern Turkestan were also flown as a show of support for our brothers and sisters under communist Chinese domination.

In the presence of two Osceola Sheriffs Office deputies (the famed EMT cart was no where to be seen), the members of Citizens Against Communist Chinese Propaganda recreated the ceremony which was held last month in New York City, namely, the removal of the stars which represent Tibet, Southern Mongolia, and Eastern Turkestan from the flag of the People's Republic of China. The removal of the fourth star was carried out to indicate that the people of Taiwan do not wish to become part of the Chinese Empire, that even though they have been selected as the next target by the PRC, they do not want/trust the 'one country, two systems' policy. Since the park doesn't fly the flag of their owners and we didn't see any representatives from the park, CACCP kept the flag. This new flag, which contains a single large yellow star on a red field and four small holes will continue to be flown at subsequent demonstrations as an indication that these people no longer wish to be part of the Han Chinese Empire.

One of the most memorable parts of the demonstration was when an older Chinese gentleman stopped his car, read our signs and saw the flags that have been banned in the PRC. With a large smile on his face and in his heart, he gave us the thumbs-up sign and thanked us for our efforts. It is easy to forget the crude gestures and angry words that have been directed at demonstrators in the past by the park's supporters when such a touching show of support is made. We will continue the protest on behalf of this gentleman and the many others who support us in this endeavor.

As a reminder, the next protest is scheduled for the 12th of October 1997, to commemorate the 48th anniversary of the Communist takeover of Eastern Turkestan.

This will be the twentieth protest at the park and we plan on making it very special for all who attend, as well as for the theme park. Please put this on your calendar so you won't miss this exciting event.

Bod Rangzen !