DATE=10/29/1999
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CHINA-FALUN GONG (L)
NUMBER=2-255603
BYLINE=STEPHANIE HO
DATELINE=BEIJING
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Chinese police have had their first violent run-in
with protesters from the officially-banned spiritual group
Falun Gong, who have been staging civil disobedience
demonstrations this week in Beijing. As V-O-A's Stephanie
Ho reports, China's Congress has been debating a law to curb
groups the government considers to be cults.
TEXT: Witnesses say Chinese police kicked six middle-aged
women Falun Gong protesters and dragged them out of
Tiananmen Square by their hair Friday. The women had been
trying to resist arrest.
Hundreds of emboldened Falun Gong followers have come from
around the country to Beijing this week to stage silent
demonstrations at Tiananmen Square. They are protesting a
government crackdown against the group that began in July.
In previous days, there had been no problems when
authorities rounded up dozens of Falun Gong protesters and
put them into police minivans.
One Falun Gong member, Mr. Xu, is a 34-year-old farmer from
the far northeastern province of Heilongjiang. He says
Falun Gong followers came to Beijing from different parts of
the country to lodge their complaints at a government office
set up for that purpose.
// XU CHINESE ACT - IN FULL, FADE OUT //
Mr. Xu says when he and some of his fellow Falun Gong
followers got there, there were no office workers - only
public security authorities. He says he was not detained in
that incident, but that four other petitioners were.
Across from Tiananmen Square, the National People's Congress
has been discussing a law aimed at curbing organizations the
government considers cults. On Thursday, the Chinese
government officially labeled Falun Gong a cult -- which
paves the way for a harsher crackdown against the group.
Government spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue, speaking through an
interpreter, stressed Beijing's position that most of the
people who study Falun Gong are duped.
// ZHANG INTERPRETER ACT //
As regard to those Falun Gong practitioners, they practice
Falun Gong out of the wish of building up their body and
keeping fit. After they know the nature of this Falun Gong
organization, most of them have actually left the
organization on a voluntary basis.
// END ACT //
Regardless, many followers are displaying a depth of feeling
for Falun Gong that contradicts official statements. Mr.
Xu, from Heilongjiang, says even if he were to die for Falun
Gong, it would not be a pity. (signed)
NEB/HO/FC
29-Oct-1999 06:18 AM EDT (29-Oct-1999 1018 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
