Background
What is Falun Gong?
FALUN GONG (also called Falun Dafa) is an ancient form of qigong, the practice of refining the body and mind through slow-moving exercises and meditation. Many have come to call qigong, “Chinese Yoga.” Like yoga and tai chi, qigong is a vital part of many people’s lives in Asia; almost every Chinese park is brimming by the break of dawn with people practicing these arts.
Yet Falun Dafa is different from most other qigong practices in that it goes beyond the pursuit of health and fitness to the goal of wisdom and returning to oneÂ’s original, altruistic nature. At the heart of the practice are three principles: Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. Through a combination of studying the books of Falun Dafa and performing the exercises, practitioners strive to become better people by embodying these principles in everything they do.
The Evolution of Falun Dafa
Falun Dafa was introduced to the public in May of 1992, when Mr. Li Hongzhi gave his first lecture in Changchun City, China. Soon afterwards he traveled with several students to the Oriental Health Expo in Beijing where Falun Dafa earned several awards, prompting organizers to invite Mr. Li to give several impromptu lectures on the principles of Falun Dafa.
During the following two and a half years, Mr. Li lectured on invitation in almost every major Chinese city, giving fifty-four lecture series in all. All instruction at that time was overseen by the Chinese governmentÂ’s top qigong organization, the China Qigong Scientific Research Society.
Although Mr. Li gave his last lecture series at the end of 1994, the practice continued to grow from 1995 to 1999 at an explosive rate. During those years, the practice was passed on by word of mouth and free of charge, and practice sites were organized by volunteers.
Since 1995, Mr. Li Hongzhi has traveled to countries around the world to lecture on Falun Dafa and discuss the practice with students. All lectures have been free and open to the general public. By the middle of 1999, Falun Dafa was practiced in over 40 countries around the world [1] .
The Persecution of Falun Dafa in China
Many Chinese leaders, including Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji and the Director of China's Sports Commission, Mr. Wu Shaozu, applauded the health benefits the practice brought to the nation. [2] Communist Party head, Jiang Zemin, however, grew fearful of such a large number of people and – believing that the peaceful nature of Falun Gong made for an easy target – banned the practice in 1999. Failing to “eradicate Falun Gong in three months [3] ,” as Jiang had proclaimed, Jiang has intensified the propaganda campaign to turn public opinion against the practice while quietly imprisoning, torturing and even murdering those who practice it.
China experts point to the systematic campaign Jiang has carried out against Falun Gong, saying it also demonstrates an ulterior motive: In a Feb. 9, 2001 article, CNN's Senior China Analyst, Willy Wo-Lap Lam, quotes a senior Chinese Party member as saying, "By unleashing a Mao-style movement [against Falun Gong], Jiang is forcing senior cadres to pledge allegiance to his line...This will boost Jiang's authority:" By painting Falun Gong as an enemy of the state, Jiang hopes to mobilize the nation into a struggle with himself at the helm, and thereby consolidate power.
As of October 14, 2002, the Falun Dafa Information Center has verified details of 493 deaths [4] since the persecution of Falun Gong in China began in 1999. In October 2001, government sources inside China, reported that the actual death toll was well over 1,600. On October 14, 2001, the confirmed death toll was 323. If the actual death toll shows the same increase as the confirmed death toll has, then we would expect the true death toll today to be well over 2,500. Due to extreme difficulty in discovering and verifying information in China related to wrongful deaths, this higher figure also likely understates the true death toll. For instance, in March of this year police from several provinces poured into the city of Changchun and placed a several weeks long siege on the city. Residents reported dozens, if not over one hundred, practitioners were killed. In this chaos, little detailed information about these deaths could be gathered by the Falun Dafa Information Center
“Intensifying the Campaign Overseas”
Soon after Jiang Zemin began persecuting Falun Gong in China, the
international community reacted, condemning JiangÂ’s actions. On November 18, 1999, the United States Congress passed joint resolutions (House and Senate), condemning the persecution. The Wall Street JournalÂ’s Ian Johnson began authoring a series of articles exposing the atrocities committed against people who practice Falun Gong in China that would later win him the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting. U.S. governors, mayors and state legislators began issuing proclamations of support and encouragement to people who practice and/or support Falun Gong throughout the U.S.
This response by the international community put pressure on Jiang to end his anti-Falun Gong campaign. Jiang, however, responded by issuing a directive: “intensifying the campaign overseas. [5] ” Thus, Chinese Embassies and Consulates around the world began escalating efforts outside China to stamp out support for Falun Gong, to disrupt Falun Gong activities, and to try to get them banned.
For the past three years, Chinese Embassy and Consulate officials have worked to slander and persecute Falun Gong here in the United States, and in other countries around the world.
Jiang wishes to nullify any criticism of his handling of Falun Gong. He also wishes to maintain absolute control over what Chinese citizens hear and see about Falun Gong. Most mainland Chinese only know what the state-run media report. Nevertheless, the more positive support Falun Gong receives overseas, the more difficult it becomes to hide this support from the people of China.
http://www.faluninfo.net/specialreports/freedomunderattack/
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