China Bans Falun Gong

Li Hongzhi said:

Here is a Wall Street Journal article with an interview of Li Hongzhi about the ban.

Here are the announcements and reports of Xinhua on 22 July 1999 banning Falun Dafa.

 Here are some earlier news reports:

• The New York Times, 22 July 1999
• The London Telegraph, 22 July 1999
• BBC, 21 July 1999
• The New York Times, 21 July 1999
• The Wall Street Journal, 21 July 199
• CNN, 21 July 1999
• AP, 21 July 1999
• Report of Practitioners from Dalian, 20 July 1999
• AP about Weifang, 18 July 1999
• Report of Practitioners from Changchun, 7 July 1999

On 22 July 1999, The New York Times carried an article by Mark Landler, the text of which is:

BEIJING -- China imposed a sweeping ban on the Buddhist Law spiritual movement on Thursday, outlawing a group its followers describe as a harmless spiritual movement but which the Government maintains is an evil force. In an announcement that had been rumored since the police began rounding up leaders of the group earlier this week, the Government said the movement, known in Chinese as Falun Gong, had been declared illegal. It threatened to expel Communist Party members who did not sunder their ties to the group. Shortly after the Government handed down its edict this afternoon, it unleashed a extraordinary fusillade of charges against the group and its founder, Li Hongzhi, through state-run television and newspapers. The Ministry of Civil Affairs accused Falun Gong of "inciting and creating disturbances, and jeopardizing social stability." In an editorial scheduled to run Friday, the official People's Daily said Li was pursuing a hidden political agenda that posed a "massive threat" to Chinese society. Li, 48, a former clerk who lives in the United States, fashioned his sect from an electic blend of traditional Chinese breathing exercises, as well as elements of Buddhism and Taoism. His followers disavow politics and say they embrace Li's teachings for their physical and spiritual health. But Falun Gong deeply unsettled China's rulers when 10,000 of its adherents materialized on April 25 -- a warm spring Sunday -- in front of the compound that houses President Jiang Zemin and other leaders. The rally, held to demand official recognition for the group, demonstrated that this obscure spiritual sect was in fact a well-organized national movement capable of mobilizing thousands of people and putting them under the noses of China's top leaders without a whisper of warning. As word of the detentions spread this week, thousands of Falun Gong followers massed in front of government offices in Dalian, Guangzhou and 28 other cities to protest the Government's crackdown, according to members of the group and a human rights organization in Hong Kong. The wall-to-wall coverage of the ban in the state-run media underscores that the Government is determined to stamp out Falun Gong. But with a large and rapid-growing membership -- estimates runs from 2 million to 100 million -- a fluid structure, and an appreciation of the power of the Internet to pass information, Falun Gong could prove an elusive quarry for Beijing. "I think this is going to make us stronger," said Sophie Xiao, a spokeswoman for Falun Gong in Hong Kong. "People are not simple-minded. Educated people will hear about this group, and check it out." There were no reports of protests following today's announcement. Late this afternoon, hundreds of police and troops still circled Zhongnanhai, the leaders' compound, which has been a fortress since the crackdown began on Monday night. The police continued to stop traffic on the western edge of the complex, where Falun Gong members held their rally in April. A former Chinese official said police in Beijing had released several hundred people -- most women -- who had been detained as they massed near Zhongnanhai on Tuesday and Wednesday. Chinese officials were clearly concerned about how the ban would be received abroad. Shortly before the announcement was made public, a high-ranking government official briefed foreign correspondents here on why the Government felt it necessary to take such draconian action. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the Government had evidence that Li had been in Beijing for the three days prior to the surprise rally in front of Zhongnanhai. The official said that Li had helped plan the demonstration, before leaving for Hong Kong. Ms. Xiao said Li arrived in Hong Kong on April 27, two days after the rally. But she said she did not know where he came from. The strident tone and sheer volume of the denunciations of Falun Gong baffled some experts in Chinese politics. Why, they asked, would the Government pour so much energy into fighting a group which, by its estimates, has 2 million members -- far fewer than the 100 million the group claims? "After all, a few months ago hardly anyone had heard of it, and no one was saying it was a threat to the state," said one political scholar in Beijing, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "I think the party leaders felt personally insulted by the Falun Gong protest. It made them look like fools." A former government official said on Thursday the unexpected demonstration last April particularly unnerved President Jiang. In briefings with government officials earlier this week, this person said, a senior leader quoted Jiang as harshly criticizing Li and the movement. Experts said there were plenty of reasons for Beijing to worry about this kind of group. With its mixture of martial arts and mysticism, Falun Gong appeals to people who have felt adrift since Deng Xioaping began reforming the Chinese economy and relaxing social controls in 1979. Popular groups like Falun Gong played a profoundly disruptive role in the final decades of the last imperial dynasty. As the Communist regime approaches its fiftieth year in power, China's economic engine is sputtering. With China embarking on an ambitious campaign to overhaul its state sector -- one which will result in huge layoffs -- Beijing could be vulnerable again. Signs that the Government may feel vulnerable abounded in the flood of official denunciations today. "We must fully recognize the massive threat that the rampant spread of the Falun Gong organization is to the party, government, and people," said the editorial prepared for Friday's edition of the People's Daily. In a 70-minute documentary that was run three times on Thursday on state television, Falun Gong was portrayed as a pernicious cult that leads members to mental instability, madness, even murder.

On 22 July 1999, The London Telegraph an article by David Rennie in Beijing, with an image (above, and 5 from top of this web page) of Chinese policemen confronting suspected practitioners of Falun Gong during a protest in Guangzhou, the text of which article is:

TENS of thousands of followers of a mystic healing sect protested in cities across China yesterday after the authorities staged a crackdown on the group's leaders. Police in Beijing prevented several thousand members of the Falun Gong sect from holding their second mass protest in three months outside the Communist Party headquarters. This year's Falun Gong protests are the largest seen in China since the 1989 Tiananmen Square demonstrations, and easily dwarf anything staged by the embattled pro-democracy movement in recent years. Chinese policemen confront suspected members of the Falun Gong sect during a protest in GuangzhouThe authorities launched a big drive against the quasi-religious sect on Monday, and have detained more than a 100 leading members, said a Hong Kong-based human-rights group. More than 1,000 middle-aged people, believed to be rank-and-file Falun Gong members, were forced on to buses and driven to suburban sports stadiums after gathering on Tuesday night outside Zhongnanhai, in central Beijing, where China's leaders live and work. The compound was then surrounded by police. In southern China, about 100 people were reportedly detained in the cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen yesterday as Falun Gong members were gathering for morning exercises. Between 10,000 and 20,000 people are said to have protested later outside Guangdong provincial government headquarters in Guangzhou. There were reports of smaller protests in other cities including Shanghai, Dalian and Hong Kong. The authorities have been poised for a clampdown on Falun Gong since late April, when more than 10,000 of its followers besieged Zhongnanhai to demand official recognition. The sect claims to have tens of millions of followers inside China. Last month, more than 13,000 signed an open letter calling on the government to stop suppressing them, and the central authorities issued an extraordinary denial of rumours that China was preparing to spend £300 million securing the extradition of Li Hongzhi, the Falun Gong's leader, who lives in self-imposed exile in America. Falun Gong practitioners, who believe that Mr Li's writings and "inner energy" exercises can cure illnesses and disabilities, have since been targeted by China's public security machine, and party organisations have been ordered to root out believers. The party is thought to be deeply concerned by the growth of the movement, and the number of serving and retired officials it has attracted. The sect has shown itself to be well organised, using the Internet and mobile phones to mobilise large numbers rapidly.

On 21 July 1999, the BBC carried an article by Duncan Hewitt, with an image (1 at top of this web page) of about 400 protestors sitting outside Shanghai's city hall, and an image (3 from top of this web page) of police beginning loading people into vans outside the Beijing government building, the text of which article is:

Police in China have broken up a protest by the quasi-religious sect, Falun Gong, outside the Communist Party headquarters in Beijing. According to one report, more than 1,000 protesters are being detained at a stadium in the west of the capital. The protests began late on Tuesday, after the organisation announced that at least 70 of its leaders had been arrested in a nation-wide operation. Thousands of followers of the sect have staged demonstrations in several other cities, from Dalian in the north east to Guangzhou in the south. On Wednesday, supporters of the sect - which is believed to have several million members across the country - began to march to Zhongnanhai, the government leadership compound. But hundreds of uniformed and plainclothes police stopped the protesters, who were mainly middle-aged women, and loaded many into police vans. The French news agency AFP quotes an official at the stadium as saying that between 1,000 and 2,000 people had been taken there. A Hong Kong-based human rights group, The Information Centre of Human Rights and Democratic Movement in China, said police in several Chinese provinces had been involved in the action against the sect. They seized Falun Gong literature and smashed images of the group's founder, the information centre said. Around 100 people were detained in Guangzhou and Shenzhen in the early hours of Wednesday as Falungong members were gathering for their morning exercises, a spokeswoman said.

In April, at least 10,000 members of Falun Gong took part in a silent protest outside the compound where President Jiang Zemin lives and works, to demonstrate at what they said was official harassment. Falun Gong, which practices meditation and preaches a mixture of Buddhist and Taoist philosophies, has been the fastest-growing religious movement in China in recent years. The sect was founded on 1992 by a former state grain bureau clerk, Li Hongzhi, who now lives in the United States. The group itself estimates that it has 100 million followers - a claim that has alarmed the Communist Party, which has 60 million members. Chinese authorities said in a televised address in mid-June that Falun Gong members could practise their faith, but warned them against spreading rumours or inciting differences.

"A religious group has an organised structure, temples or churches and special rituals. We have none of that," said one member.

Also on 21 July 1999, e BBC carried an article by Religious Affairs Correspondent Jane Little, the text of which article is:

The mass arrests in China of members of the Falun Gong sect follow several weeks of investigation by the Chinese authorities. The operation bears the hallmarks of a government running scared. The Falun Gong sect - which seemingly came out of nowhere to mobilise tens of thousands in peaceful protest - is the Communist government's nightmare realised. Its rapid rise in seven years seriously challenges the Marxist doctrine that religion is the opiate of the masses and will die out as human progress is made.

Instead, while the movement's claim of 100 million members looks optimistic, it appears to have numbers to rival membership of the Communist party and has been attracting party officials into its ranks. Followers practise meditation inspired by a cocktail of religious beliefs, and remain devoted to their leader in exile, Li Hongzhi, who preaches a particular brand of salvation from an immoral world. China has long had a policy of banning religious groups it deems superstitious and permits only a handful of established religions, answerable to the state. Its policy of suppression has provoked frequent protest from human rights groups. It has also driven groups underground, where they have multiplied and become more radical.

Buddhist and Christian sects and folk religions are flourishing across China in a religious revival scholars attribute to a spiritual vacuum left in the wake of Maoism. Last month the Communist Party launched a campaign to stamp out so-called superstition and promote Marxist materialism among its members. In the former Soviet Union, Communism failed to stamp out religion, which now thrives where Communism has faded. China, it seems, remains committed to the ideological battle, many would say against the odds.

On 21 July 1999, The New York Times carried an article by Mark Landler, with an image (2 from top of this web page) of police searching people in Beijing, the text of which article is:

BEIJING -- Protests erupted on Wednesday in Beijing and other Chinese cities as thousands of followers of a spiritual movement vented their anger against a government crackdown that began on Monday night. As they have before, members of the Buddhist Law sect took their grievances to the doorstep of the Communist Party. Early this morning, hundreds of members massed in front of the compound that houses party leaders here. Police quickly herded them on to buses and took them away, according to members. It was a silent vigil last April by 10,000 followers in Beijing that catapulted the group from obscurity into potentially the most serious threat to China's rulers since the democracy movement of a decade ago. On Tuesday, police in 14 cities rounded up more than 100 leaders of the group, which is known by the name Falun Gong and practices an eclectic blend of traditional Chinese meditation exercises, Buddhism, and Taoism. If Falun Gong's rapid and well-coordinated response to the crackdown is any indication, Beijing may have reason to worry. Crowds ranging from a few dozen to several thousand demonstrated today in 30 cities across China, including Shanghai, Tianjin, Dalian, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Wuhan, according to a Hong Kong-based rights group, the Information Center of Human Rights and Democratic Movment in China. This rallies came despite a blanket of silence about the detentions in the official Chinese news media. Chinese police declined to comment, although Agence France Presse reported that a police official said the government would soon issue a statement on the nationwide campaign. With its mixture of martial arts and mysticism, Falun Gong is only one of several quasi-religious movements that have taken root in China since Deng Xiaoping began reforming the economy in 1979. But Falun Gong makes claims of having 100 million members worldwide, and with China entering a period of fresh social and economic upheaval, Beijing has come to regard Falun Gong as an untenable threat. Last month, after the group rallied in Beijing to demand official recognition of its activities, a senior Chinese official warned its members not to "promote superstition" or "destroy social order." As they did in April, Falun Gong members materialized at dawn today in the tree-lined streets near Zhongnanhai, the walled compound that houses President Jiang Zemin and other leaders. This time, though, police hustled them on to buses and removed them before a crowd was able to coalesce. "They wanted to tell the government that there's no reason to arrest students of Falun Gong," said Wang Xiaoyan, the wife of a group leader, Ji Liewu, whom she said was arrested by police at 1:15 a.m. on Tuesday. "As people got near Zhongnanhai, the police were ready," she said. "They forced them to leave, to get on buses to take them away." Ms. Wang said that more than 1,000 Falun Gong members were being held in a football stadium outside Beijing. The Hong Kong rights group said people were being held at two stadiums as well as other locations. From there, the group said, people were being sent back to their homes in the provinces. In the southern city of Guangzhou, a spokeswoman for Falun Gong described a similar sequence of events. Roughly 2,000 demonstrators congregated in front of a government building early this morning. Police forced most on to buses and they were taken to an unknown destination. In Beijing on Wednesday, the fear of unrest hung heavy in the torpid air. Hundreds of riot police and soldiers maintained their positions around Zhongnanhai. Water-cannon trucks were parked in walled courtyards across the street from the compound, while riot shields were lined up in gleaming rows. The police closed a main thoroughfare on the western edge of the compound, causing traffic jams that paralyzed much of central Beijing. Police also turned away most pedestrians and bicyclists. On the streets nearby, scores of people squatted on the sidewalk, watching the scene curiously. Although one or two were mediating, it was hard to determine whether they were acolytes of Falun Gong. One reason Beijing fears this group so much is because its members blend seamlessly into society. Unlike the flag-waving, slogan-shouting students of 1989, followers of Falun Gong tend to be middle-aged people - a large percentage female - who would make the most unlikely of rebels. Members of Falun Gong insist their movement is purely spiritual and apolitical. In fact, they claim it is not even an organized entity, which could cause it to run afoul of state restrictions on mass organizations. "We simply follow the law and principles that Master Li Hongzhi taught us," said Sophie Xiao, a spokeswoman in Hong Kong. Falun Gong was founded in 1992 by Li Hongzhi, a grain bureau clerk who fused the ancient Chinese practice of qigong - the channeling of vital energies - with elements of Buddhism, Taoism, and his own beliefs. Mr. Li, 48, left China for New York last year, saying he was afraid of being harrassed. While the government has not yet commented on the crackdown, it continues its campaign of indirect criticism. The main news this evening carried lengthy coverage of a speech by a senior party ideologue, Gong Yuzhi, in which he denounced the spread of "feudal superstition" in Chinese society. Such denunciations will not deter people like Ms. Wang. "I can only wait for news of my husband," she said. "But I'll definitely continue practicing Falun Gong. We believe that Teacher Li is the truth."

Another 21 July 1999 article in The New York Times by Mark Landler had the following text:

BEIJING -- In what could be the start of a broad crackdown, dozens of leaders of the Buddhist Law movement were detained by the police on Tuesday in 14 Chinese cities, according to a Hong Kong-based human rights group. At least 70 leaders of the group, which stunned authorities last April when 10,000 adherents silently materialized in a protest outside the communist leadership's compound here, were picked up in the police sweep that began on Monday night, the Information Center of Human Rights and Democratic Movement in China said. Arrests were reported in Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian and 11 other cities. The Hong Kong organization said that the police searched the homes of the detainees, confiscating books about the rapidly growing movement and addresses of people who attended meetings. The group, widely known by the name Falun Gong, combines traditional Chinese breathing and meditation exercises with Buddhism, Taoism and the beliefs of its founder, Li Hongzhi, who lives in self-imposed exile in New York. Falun Gong has posed a ticklish problem for Chinese authorities ever since the demonstration on April 25. The group was protesting local officials' treatment of its members and demanding official recognition, which has not been granted. The government normally keeps a tight leash on mass organizations. And Falun Gong, whose members are devoted to its mixture of martial arts and mysticism, could be a potent force in a country that faces dislocating social and economic changes. Rumors of a crackdown against the group have circulated widely in recent weeks, despite assurances by Chinese officials that it would be left alone. In a meeting with Falun Gong members last month, a senior government official warned the group not to "promote superstition" or "destroy social order." Beijing appears to have been laying the groundwork for a crackdown for some time. Over the last two weeks, state-controlled newspapers and television have carried a steady stream of commentaries about the dangers of superstitious beliefs, particularly among Communist Party members. In a front-page commentary on Monday -- its fifth on the topic since the April demonstration -- the Communist Party newspaper, People's Daily, blamed lax officials for the rampant spread of superstitious beliefs. Newspapers and television reports have also begun celebrating people who they say overcame "feudal superstition" -- for example, a rural village where the residents gave up rituals like hanging mirrors over doors. Although the official news media did not report this week's detentions, officials in Beijing seemed well aware of the possible ramifications. At Zhongnanhai, the sprawling walled compound where President Jiang Zemin and other leaders live, a huge police contingent patrolled the streets on Tuesday night. The western edge of the compound, where the Falun Gong members massed in April, was closed to motor traffic. Fears of harassment prompted Li, the founder and leader of Falun Gong, to move to the United States last year. On June 2, he said in a letter posted on the Internet that his followers were being treated unjustly. He also suggested that China was negotiating to have him extradited, in return for a $500-million reduction in China's trade surplus with the United States. Although there were no signs of protest in Beijing, in Hong Kong on Tuesday afternoon about 150 people marched to the local branch of the official New China News Agency. There they delivered a letter appealing to the Chinese government to release the detained Falun Gong leaders. "We wanted to express our shock and concern on this matter," said Sophie Xiao, a spokeswoman for the group in Hong Kong. Ms. Xiao said she spoke on Tuesday with Falun Gong members in Beijing who were worried that the government might declare the group illegal. While not officially recognized, Falun Gong has existed in a kind of grey area, as the government has tried to avoid a confrontation. "We're not trying to threaten anybody," Ms. Xiao said. "People who don't understand us may feel threatened because of the number of people who are doing it and because of how quickly we have grown." Indeed, from a standing start seven years ago, Falun Gong now claims 100 million members worldwide. Li, 48, a former grain bureau clerk in northeastern China, began his metamorphosis into a spiritual leader in the late-1980s, when he discovered the ancient practice of qigong, in which people seek to channel their vital energies to improve their health and even heal others. By combining qigong with Buddhism, Taoism and his own mystical ideas, Li fashioned an all-embracing philosophy that preaches clean living. Eschewing politics and even the hint of a religious identity, followers of Falun Gong work hard to portray themselves simply as good people. The detentions, and the heavy police presence in Beijing on Tuesday night, suggest that the Chinese authorities think otherwise.

On 21 July 1999, The Wall Street Journal carried an article by Leslie Chang and Craig S. Smith, the text of which is:

SHANGHAI, China -- China arrested dozens of followers of the maverick spiritual discipline Falun Dafa, which has gained attention for striking out against the government in large-scale protests across the country. But the group doesn't appear to be backing down: The wife of one senior member arrested in Beijing says followers from at least three provinces are trying to enter Beijing to stage yet another protest outside the government compound, Zhongnanhai. "I've heard that many people are being stopped at the city limits," said Wang Xiaoye, who says her husband, Ji Liewu, was taken from his bed by about 20 public-security officials at 1 a.m. Tuesday. Ms. Wang said her sister-in-law, also a Falun Dafa follower, arrived from Jiangsu province and had since left the apartment to go to Zhongnanhai. She couldn't say whether her sister-in-law had made it to the leadership compound. By Wednesday morning, Beijing police had blocked access roads and surrounded the Zhongnanhai compound with hundreds of riot and plain-clothes police. One bystander said several people had been hustled away after arriving at the red-walled palace, but police wouldn't confirm if the detainees were Falun Dafa members. Police in many Chinese cities arrested more than 20 leaders of the group in a coordinated crackdown early Tuesday, members of the group said. The Information Center for Human Rights in China, a Hong Kong-based human-rights organization, said arrests netted at least 70 people across 16 cities. Some Falun Dafa followers reported that members protesting the arrests had been beaten by police in the northeastern city of Dalian. The crackdown comes on the heels of a large-scale protest by the group late last week in the eastern city of Weifang, in which as many as 10,000 followers surrounded municipal government offices to protest a critical article in a state magazine, according to the group. An official in the Weifang city government confirmed that the protest had taken place and that the city's mayor had met with demonstrators. According to Falun Dafa's Web site, the city promised to conduct an investigation into the critical article and report results to Falun Dafa members. None of the police in any of the cities contacted would confirm they had arrested Falun Dafa members.

The group, also known as Falun Gong, has alarmed China's ruling Communist Party with its scale and organization. It stunned Beijing in April by sending more than 10,000 of its followers to surround the party's leadership compound in the capital to protest the detention of some of its members. Since then, Falun Dafa has been banned from holding large public gatherings and China's state-run media have run articles critical of the group. Although the group draws the bulk of its support from older people who aren't well off, Falun Dafa also counts some retired high-level officials among its adherents, which unnerves Beijing. Among those arrested Tuesday was Li Chang, one of Falun Gong's top leaders and a retired public-security official, according to a woman who answered the phone at his Beijing residence in a Ministry of Public Security compound. Li Chang met with Premier Zhu Rongji in April during the earlier Zhongnanhai incident. Officials have detained some Falun Dafa members before, but Tuesday's move appears to be the first large-scale effort to target its leadership. Officers of the Public Security Bureau, China's civilian police, conducted house searches and confiscated all books and documents related to the group's teachings during the arrests, according to group members. They targeted local leaders in four provinces as well as the northern cities of Beijing and Tianjin. Mr. Ji, a follower of the group since 1994, acted as a tutor in Beijing and helped distribute materials for the group. When they arrested Mr. Ji, according to his wife, police also hauled away his computer, compact disks, videotapes and about 500 copies of books written by Falun Dafa's charismatic founder, Li Hongzhi. Mr. Li lives in exile in New York. His books are banned in China.

The group's Web sites were also apparently blocked on Chinese servers, depriving Falun Dafa of the main communication channel between its leaders and a network of followers estimated to number between 40 million and 60 million. (Falun Dafa puts the number much higher.) Li Hongzhi, who is expected to attend a Falun Dafa convention later this week in San Francisco, couldn't be reached to comment. But the group has already appealed to Chinese consulates around the world and at least one member of the U.S. Congress to help stop what it sees as an abuse of human rights. "People are being arrested for their beliefs, and that's a violation of their human rights," said Peter Zhang, a follower who speaks on behalf of the group. Four of Mr. Li's closest followers visited Washington a month ago to meet with staff members at the State Department and the office of Rep. Gary Ackerman, a Democrat from New York City's Queens borough, where the core of Mr. Li's following is based. "We were presenting this as a human-rights case," said Gail Rachlin, one of the followers who made the trip and speaks for the group.

On 21 July 1999, CNN carried an article with an image (4 from top of this web page) of undercover police officers arresting a man in Beijing, the text of which article is:

BEIJING (CNN) -- Beijing police broke up a protest by thousands of members of the popular meditation group Falun Gong on Wednesday, detaining hundreds of mostly elderly men and middle-aged women suspected of belonging to the sect. Members of Falun Gong staged rallies in Beijing and at least five other cities to protest China's arrest of at least 70 group leaders on Monday. Beijing police were ready for the protest, and herded at least 1,000 into buses and drove them to stadiums outside the city. Members of the group living outside China put the total number of detainees as high as 10,000. Similar demonstrations of varying scale took place in Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong and Shenzen on Wednesday, and another group besieged the local government offices in Dalian on Tuesday. Tuesday's crackdown stemmed from an April demonstration in Beijing that surprised government officials. Tens of thousands of Falun Gong followers converged outside the government leadership compound Zhongnanhai on April 25, demanding official recognition and an end to what they called official harassment. Last month, 13,000 members of the group sent an open letter to the Chinese government demanding that authorities stop suppressing them. And last week, 5,000 members spent two days outside the government offices in the eastern city of Weifang, protesting a magazine's criticism.

Falun Gong members insist they have no interest in politics and say all they want is the freedom to practice their beliefs. "We came here to complain because several of our teachers were detained," said one member who eluded Beijing police. "I just wanted a chance to explain to the government that we are good people. We aren't hostile to the government." Falun Gong is based on the teachings of its leader, Li- Hongzhi, who now lives in the United States. During Monday's crackdown, police seized group literature and smashed busts of Li. The sect claims 100 million members, while the government estimates its membership between 10 million and 70 million. Each member rises every morning to practice Falun Gong meditation exercises. The group maintains a tight-knit organization, including use of the Internet, which unnerves China's government and likely is the impetus behind the recent crackdown. "The Chinese government has always been afraid of tightly organized social organization," said Chinese author Dai Qing. But Dai warned that the current round of intimidation may not have the desired effect on the sect. "Using old methods to deal with a new problem is dangerous," Dai said. "If Falun Gong is suppressed, they may gradually turn more political."

On 21 July 1999, AP carried an article, the text of which is:

BEIJING (AP) -- Dragging some by their hair, police detained scores of people, many of them middle-aged women, at a protest Wednesday by a popular meditation group viewed as a threat by Chinese leaders. Demonstrations by the Falun Gong sect also were reported in more than 30 other cities. The sudden, apparently coordinated gatherings seem certain to further unnerve the Communist Party leadership, which has closely monitored the group since thousands of its devotees staged a sit-in outside the red-walled party leadership compound in April. That daylong protest prompted President Jiang Zemin to form a high-level task force to watch the group, which is thought to have tens of millions of followers in China, and to ban it from holding large gatherings. Founded in 1992 by Li Hongzhi, an ex-soldier who has since left China for the United States, Falun Gong, or the Wheel of Law, mixes slow-motion martial arts exercises with ideas borrowed from Buddhism and Taoism. Followers often meet in parks to meditate and go through yoga-like exercises. Some devotees profess total faith in ``Master Li'' and his teachings, which they say make people healthier and more moral citizens. But the sect's large number of followers -- estimated at 10 million to 70 million by the government -- and its apparent ability to quickly mobilize protests when it senses government pressure has made Falun Gong a target of official suspicion. Government nervousness has been accentuated by the approach of the politically charged 50th anniversary of Communist Party rule on Oct. 1. The latest protests began Tuesday after at least 70 Falun Gong members were reported arrested in a crackdown. Some of those arrested were key group coordinators, including Li Chang, who represented the group in previous negotiations with the government, the group's Internet Web site said. The Web site reported arrests in at least eight cities and said coordinators' homes were ransacked and books and other Falun Gong materials confiscated. Many of the followers detained Wednesday as they tried to converge in protest on the Zhongnanhai compound in central Beijing, where Chinese leaders live and work, were middle-aged women. Police dragged some away by their hair and bundled them into vans. The street west of Zhongnanhai was closed to traffic. Police stopped people from walking past the compound's other gates and checked identity cards. Reporters saw buses carrying scores and possibly hundreds of detainees away. Hundreds of police officers, both uniformed and in civilian clothes, surrounded the area. In Shanghai, about 300 to 400 people, again mostly middle-aged women, sat around a fountain in People's Square across from city hall. Police blocked access to the square but didn't appear to take any action against the protesters. According to a Hong Kong-based human rights group, more than 30,000 Falun Gong members protested in more than 30 cities Wednesday, from Harbin in the far north to Shenzhen in the south next to Hong Kong. The report by the Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights and Democratic Movement in China could not immediately be confirmed. The government has made no comment about the protests or detentions. But Hong Kong television showed devotees lining up outside buildings in Shenzhen and nearby Guangzhou city. ``What has been happening in the past two days has shocked a lot of people,'' said Sophie Xiao, a practitioner from Hong Kong, where about 40 Falun Gong members gathered outside the offices of China's state-run Xinhua News Agency. She claimed to have learned from a network of Falun Gong friends and relatives that 1,000 people were detained and later released in Shenzhen. Two Hong Hong television stations reported that 1,000 protesters in Shenzhen were driven to a school after their morning exercises and later released. Xiao also claimed that 20,000 devotees gathered in Guangzhou and another 10,000 in the southern city of Guiyang. Police in Shenzhen said they did not know about any protest. An officer with the Guangzhou police who refused to give his name or department denied that any gathering took place there.

7 Falun Gong practitioners in Dalian, China were arrested by Department of Public Security for no reason. Upon learning this news, many practitioners went to the Governmental Appealing Bureau this afternoon to inquire about the situation. Practitioners stood on the sidewalk outside the Bureau and waited there quietly for an explanation. They made sure to leave room for pedestrians. All the practitioners there were in good order, with no slogan or sign. Some practitioners even collected the fallen leaves and garbage on the ground with plastic bags. Around 1:30pm, the Department of Public Security sent a large number of policemen to expel practitioners brutally. The situation was very frightening. Policemen pushed and beat practitioners violently, and dragged them to police cars by their hair. Many female practitioners' hair was pulled off. Some policemen seized some male practitioners into police cars by their throats. Many elder people were dragged, pushed, and beaten by policemen. Many people fell on the ground, and many people were stumbled. But the policemen continued to push and beat them. Some young practitioners were beaten twice, with their clothes torn up. Some policemen even shouted: "Taking off his belt!" A practitioner was beaten by four or five policemen simultaneously, and thrown to the police car. When his body was in the car but his feet were still outside the car, policemen kicked his legs brutally. Many practitioners get bruise on their faces, necks and arms. Many policemen got so tired that they breathed heavily with sweat all over their faces. A 80-year-old practitioner said in tears: "This is the first time for me to see policemen beat people like this." This afternoon there were nearly 100 practitioners being dragged around and beaten up. All practitioners followed Master Li's teaching of endurance, and suffered silently. Some elder people said with kindness: "We tried to be good people. You shouldn't beat us." Policemen said: "We have no choice. Our supervisors asked us to do this." Now practitioners are still waiting outside the Governmental Appealing Bureau for a righteous decision from the municipal government, hoping that the arrested practitioners will be released.

On 18 July 1999, AP carried an article, the text of which is:

BEIJING (AP) - About 5,000 followers of a popular exercise and meditation group protested for two days running outside government offices in eastern China to complain about a magazine's criticisms of the group, a human rights group said Sunday. The protests Wednesday and Thursday in Weifang city in Shandong province ended after the city's mayor intervened, the Hong Kong-based Information Center of Human Rights and Democratic Movement in China said. The practitioners of Falun Gong were unhappy with articles in a local scientific magazine that attacked the group as superstitious, its leader, Li Hongzhi, as a ``swindler'' and the group's followers as ``fools,'' the Information Center said. Members of the group first protested outside the magazine's offices, but were dispersed by police who also detained three practitioners for a day, it said. On Wednesday, 5,000 practitioners gathered on a square outside Weifang's government offices and returned for another protest Thursday, it said. The protesters finally dispersed after Weifang's mayor met their representatives and after the city government posted a notice promising that the magazine and other media in the city would no longer publish articles about Falun Gong, the Information Center said. The government notice also promised an investigation into police detentions of Falun Gong practitioners and efforts to suppress the group, it said. Falun Gong members have staged a number of protests in recent months demanding that the government stop suppressing their movement. Chinese leaders have viewed the group as a potential threat ever since more than 10,000 members surrounded the communist leadership compound in Beijing in a silent protest on April 25. Since then, the government has monitored the group closely and banned it from holding large public gatherings. The Falun Gong, or Wheel of Law, blends slow-motion martial arts exercises with ideas borrowed from Buddhism and Taoism. It has gained popularity in the seven years since it was founded in 1992 by Li Hongzhi, an ex-soldier who has since left China for the United States. The Chinese government estimates its devotees at 10 million to 70 million.

With the patronage of the local Police Department in Changchun, Chief of Wuhan TV station and Mr. Song, a reporter of the station, produced an anti-Falun-Gong program that slanderously accuses Master Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Gong. The tape of this program has been sent to China Central Television (CCTV), and is scheduled to broadcast in its regular feature presentation of "Light of Science" on Channel 7. From June 22 to 25th, producers of "Light of Science" had tried to collect anti-Falun- Gong information in Changchun, Master Li's hometown. The program is based on stories provided by Mr. Song Binchen and Zhao Jieming. Their practice has been strongly protested by Falun Gong practitioners in Jilin province. The practitioners made it clear that Mr. Song and Zhao did not really practice Falun Gong. They had learned Falun Gong before. However, they later on established a Qi Gong clinic and tried to make a fortune by taking advantage of Falun Gong, which was a gross violation of the principles of Falun Gong. They were seriously criticized by Master Li and asked to close the clinic. Since then, they have taken sides with people opposing Falun Gong. They colluded with the very few who are always against Qi Gong, and took every chance to incriminate Falun Gong unjustly. In the material they provided to Wuhan TV, they manufactured false evidence and slandered about Falun Gong to vent their personal spleen. During the editing process, reporter Song quoted either out of context or in a wrong context. In conjunction with his stinging narrative, Falun Gong teachings were deliberately distorted beyond recognition. Should CCTV broadcast this program, its image will be seriously smeared. It may even set off a chain of social reactions that could cause and aggravate social conflicts. Countless evidence indicates that Falun Gong has played a positive role in improving social morality. It has also demonstrated a unique effect on curing diseases and improving health. Blind to all these facts and stubbornly resisting any suggestions, Wuhan TV chief and reporter Song produced this program based on false material to get political credit for themselves. They capitalized on little knowledge among the masses about Falun Gong and claimed that they were exposing a biggest sham. Their distortions of truth and cheating of audience are infringements of the basic professional code for journalism. Hundreds of millions of Falun Gong practitioners around the world will not tolerate such things to happen. Since this program will jeopardize the social stability in China and bring benefits only to the very few with ulterior motives at the expense of the good people at large, we Falun Gong practitioners sincerely hope that the governments at each level will prevent the airing of this slanderous program. We hereby express our concern about the situation and are looking forward to a resolution in the interest of the general public.

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