DATE=1/14/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CHINA / GENERAL (L)
NUMBER=2-258061
BYLINE=ROGER WILKISON
DATELINE=BEIJING
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: A Hong Kong-based human rights group says
China has sentenced a retired air force general to 17
years in prison for playing a major role in the banned
Falun Gong exercise and meditation movement. V-O-A
Correspondent Roger Wilkison reports the group says
74-year-old Yu Changxin was tried earlier this month,
in secret, by a military court.
TEXT: General Yu -- a former professor at the Air
Force Command College -- is the highest-ranking member
of the Chinese establishment to be jailed for links to
Falun Gong.
The Information Center for Human Rights and Democratic
Movement in China -- which closely monitors dissident
activities -- says General Yu was accused of
masterminding a Falun Gong protest last April in front
of the Beijing compound where China's leaders live and
work.
That demonstration spooked (worried) the government,
which became alarmed at Falun Gong's organizational
ability. Three months later, the government banned
Falun Gong -- describing it as an evil cult.
The information center says the conviction of General
Yu has outraged other retired air force generals. In
a message faxed to news organizations, the center
quotes one former general as saying the government has
gone too far.
Falun Gong claims 100 million members worldwide, among
them 60 to 70 million inside China. The government
says there are only two million Falun Gong followers
in China.
But the movement -- which combines Buddhist and Taoist
teachings with breathing exercises designed to harness
energy in the body and improve health -- has attracted
many current and former members of the military and
the security services. It has also found adherents
among the most vulnerable sectors of society,
including the elderly, the unemployed and the sick.
The government blames Falun Gong for the death of more
than 14 hundred followers it says were instructed to
turn down medical help when they became ill.
The information center says General Yu was charged
with responsibility in some of those deaths and was
also accused of helping Falun Gong expand its
membership. (signed)
NEB/ RW / WD
14-Jan-2000 04:41 AM EDT (14-Jan-2000 0941 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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