A Brief History of Events Leading Up to Jiang Zemin's Irrational Persecution of Falun Gong in China
By Wu Ming
(Clearwisdom.net) In May 1992, Mr. Li Hongzhi held the first Falun Gong
class in China. In September 1992, Falun Gong was officially accepted as a
direct branch of the China Qigong Research Association and received a nationwide
permit to teach Falun Dafa in China. Later, the China TV Broadcasting Agency
Publishing Company and some other official publishing companies published Mr.
Li's works, Falun Gong and Zhuan Falun. Because of its tremendous power to improve health, Falun Gong stood out from
the thousands of other qigongs of that time and spread quickly. Before July
1999, by early dawn, almost every Chinese park would be brimming with people
practicing Falun Gong. The number of Falun Gong practitioners reached 100
million within seven years. The practitioners live in different geographic
regions and are of all ages, social strata and walks of life. Even the seven
members of the Politburo Standing Committee had read Zhuan
Falun. Some of their family members practiced Falun Gong and so did many
highly ranking Party officials. Many government agencies and mainstream media
acknowledged and supported Falun Gong. In December 1992, Mr. Li Hongzhi and some of his students attended the 1993
Oriental Health Expo in Beijing. Mr. Li Rusong, Chief Executive Officer of the
Expo, and Professor Jiang Xuegui, Chief Consultant of the Expo, commented
objectively on Mr. Li's cultivation power and the miraculous healing effects of
Falun Gong. Mr. Li Rusong mentioned, "Falun Gong received the most praise
during the Exposition and its healing effects are good." Professor Jiang
Xuegui commented, "It can be said that Mr. Li Hongzhi was a shining star at
the Exposition. I witnessed many of Master Li's miracles at the Exposition. I
have seen patients who were dependant on walking-sticks and wheelchairs, those
who were bothered by various conditions that prevented them from walking
normally, miraculously stand up and walk after having been adjusted or treated
by Master Li. It's just as it has been stated: Falun Gong is a miraculous
cultivation system. As the Chief Consultant of the Expo and with corresponding
responsibility, I recommend Falun Gong to you all. I believe that this
cultivation system will genuinely bring people physical health and a fresh
spirit and mind." On August 25, 1993, the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry
Propaganda cosponsored the Third Conference of the National Foundation for
Heroes in Beijing. The Qigong Research Society and the Foundation invited Mr. Li
Hongzhi to give free treatments to those who were injured or disabled in the
line of duty. On August 31, the Valor Foundation wrote a letter to the China
Qigong Research Association and to Mr. Li Hongzhi to express their gratitude, in
which it stated, "On August 24, upon our invitation, Mr. Li Hongzhi made a
special trip to the Public Security Ministry and offered treatment to Chairman
Wang Fang. On August 30, Mr. Li, Hongzhi, leading a group of students, offered
treatment to up to 100 representatives at the Conference venue. Because of the
remarkable effectiveness, the treatment received wide acclaim. Prior to the
treatment, some people were suffering from ailments left over from knife and
gunshot injuries. After the treatment, they were relieved of symptoms such as
pain, numbness and chronic weakness. Those suffering from brain illnesses
recovered and became sober minded after the treatment. They were relieved of
symptoms such as headache and dizziness. Some people were relieved of tumors
right on the spot. Some excreted gallstones in 24 hours after receiving the
treatment. Some people suffered from stomach diseases, heart diseases or
arthritis. After the treatment, all of them were relieved of symptoms right on
the site. Among almost 100 people who received the treatment, only one person
claimed no obvious effects. All others felt obvious improvements to various
degrees. The representatives treated by Falun Gong were very grateful for this
event arranged by the Valor Foundation and credited it as a tangible help
offered during the Conference with the following statement: "Whereas the
leaders of CQSRS and Mr. Li, Hongzhi directly offered that help, and the
activity would help promote the general public's sense of voluntarily combating
criminal activities, we hereby express our sincere thanks to you, other CQSRS
leaders and Mr. Li, Hongzhi!" The People's Public Security News,
published by the Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China,
carried a report on September 21, 1993 about this event. The Chinese government has always been known for its efforts to strictly
control the minds of the population. After the Communist Party took power, waves
of political movements threw the country into constant turmoil. Today, elderly
Chinese people can still vividly recall the series of framing, fabrications and
persecution cases during the "Anti-rightist" movement and the Cultural
Revolution. After the economic reform and "opening-up" policies took
effect, China's economy developed quickly and the financial environment loosened
up, but the same cannot be said about the government's iron-fisted control on
diversity of thought. The Party did not lighten its suppression of nonconforming
opinions and civil groups. Those in power have deeply rooted in their minds the
notion of regarding those with differing ideas as their enemy; it's a form of
"political hypersensitivity" formed during various upheavals during
the Party's rule. The rulers' mindset provides an excellent opportunity for
those who hope to seize power through starting a movement, or people who are
always on the lookout for the path to promotion. Such was the unique social
environment confronting Falun Gong in Mainland China, which had great impact on
its development. Falun Gong brought tremendous benefits to its practitioners as it helped them
improve their moral level as well as their physical health. However, because
Falun Gong principles are different from the atheism advocated by the Party and
the number of Falun Gong practitioners quickly exceeded the number of Party
members, gradually some official media developed misunderstandings about Falun
Gong. In addition, some Party leaders and political opportunists'
hypersensitivity took charge, and they thought they had to defend their power by
going on the offensive and stirring up trouble. The conspiracy to persecute
Falun Gong gradually took form in secret while the public and the Falun Gong
practitioners were completely unaware of it. Luo Gan, who played an important
role in the June 4 Massacre of students on Tiananmen Square, and his
brother-in-law He Zuoxiu, a sham scientist and political hack, actively took
part in the conspiracy. On June 17, 1996, Guangming Daily, a government-run newspaper,
published an editorial article entitled, "A Loud and Long Alarm Must Be
Sounded Against Pseudo-Science," which claimed that Falun Gong promoted
superstition, and was "Pseudo-Science." It called Falun Gong
practitioners fools for their belief. One month later, the Chinese News
Publishing Bureau, under the Propaganda Ministry at the Central Committee of the
Chinese Communist Party, issued an order to all cities and provinces,
prohibiting the publishing of Zhuan Falun and China Falun Gong,
and other Falun Gong books with the excuse that the books were "promoting
superstition." Soon, a dozen major official newspapers such as Qilu
Evening News and China Youth Daily published articles attacking Falun
Gong. In 1997, Luo Gan, the secretary of the Political and Judiciary Committee of
the CCP Central Committee ordered the police to secretly investigate Falun Gong
throughout China and look for evidence to ban Falun Gong. Although they could
not find anything wrong with Falun Gong, the police in certain regions started
to monitor and fine Falun Gong practitioners and interfere with their daily
lives. When confronted with attack and slander, Falun Gong practitioners went to the
media and government officials time and time again to peacefully clarify the
facts about Falun Gong. Their sincerity and openness moved many people who had
misunderstandings; they won support from open-minded Party officials. Some media
published corrective reports after they learned the truth. In order to prevent
the Ministry of Public Security from continuing its secret attack against Falun
Gong, on May 15, 1998, Mr. Wu Shaozu, director of China's National Sports
Commission (NSC) went to Changchun City, where Falun Gong had originated, to do
research about Falun Gong. After a thorough study, the NSC determined the
overall efficiency of healing and keeping fit by practicing Falun Gong to be
97.9%. On October 20, the NSC sent a team of medical experts to Changchun to
conduct more research. After the study, the head of the research team said,
"We feel that both the Falun Gong exercises and their effectiveness are
quite good. The impact on the stability of society and the strengthening of the
spiritual culture are all quite evident. This deserves to be fully
recognized." In 1998, 135 well-known figures in society, also Falun Gong practitioners,
jointly submitted a letter to the then-president Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu
Rongji. The letter stated that the Ministry of Public Security violated the
Chinese Constitution and the law by interfering with Falun Gong practitioners'
normal activities and practice. It also said that the Ministry of Public
Security should spend more time controlling criminals instead of creating
trouble for Falun Gong practitioners. Premier Zhu Rongji wrote a note to the
Ministry of Public Security, in which he said that Falun Gong had saved the
government tremendous medical expenses, and that the police should focus on
maintaining the people's security instead of harassing Falun Gong. The political group of villains headed by Jiang Zemin, Luo Gan and He Zuoxiu
ignored the openness and honesty of Falun Gong practitioners. They regarded the
practitioners' peaceful appeal to the media and the government as a threat and
challenge to their power, and they were intent on destroying Falun Gong.
According to a Party member who wishes to remain anonymous, in the latter half
of 1998, a group of retired National People's Congress officials led by Qiao Shi
[the former Chair of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress]
conducted a detailed investigation and study over a certain period of time on
Falun Gong, because so many members of the public had sent letters mentioning
the Public Security Bureau's illegal treatment of Falun Gong practitioners. The
conclusion of the study was that "Falun Gong only benefits and does no harm
to the nation and the people." They ended their report by saying
"Winning the hearts of the people you gain the world. Losing the hearts of
the people, you lose everything." The report was submitted in October to
the Political Bureau (the directing body of the Communist Party
), which Jiang Zemin headed. Insiders at Zhongnanhai (the government
compound in Beijing) reported that Jiang was very displeased with this report,
and wrote a note to Luo Gan expressing his displeasure, a note that incited
Luo's desire to advance himself by opposing Falun Gong. Luo Gan fully
comprehended Jiang's intentions. Soon, even premier Zhu Rongji's notes and
comments on Falun Gong to be passed down to local government agencies were
withheld by Luo Gan. By early 1999, overwhelming pressure was mounted against
Falun Gong, and the interference that had lasted three years escalated. On April 11, 1999, He Zuoxiu published an article to attack and slander Falun
Gong in a nationwide journal issued by the Tianjin Educational Institute. In the
article he claimed practicing Falun Gong would make one go insane. The article had a very bad influence in society and it was not based on
facts. Worried that if they didn't clarify the truth, Falun Gong's reputation
would be damaged and their right to practice would be taken away, during the
period from April 18 to 24, some practitioners from Tianjin went to the Tianjin
Educational Institute and related organizations to explain the true situation of
Falun Gong. At first, the officials of the Institute met with the practitioners
and said they would correct the article. The next day, they changed their mind
and refused to correct it. More and more practitioners went to the institute hoping to clarify the facts
with their firsthand experience. On April 23 and 24, the Tianjin Municipal
Bureau of Public Security dispatched about 300 riot police to beat the
practitioners participating in the peaceful and lawful appeal. The authorities
arrested 45 practitioners and the police injured some practitioners. The Tianjin
City government officials told the practitioners that the arrests made were not
within their control and if the practitioners wanted to appeal, they must go to
the central government in Beijing. The news spread quickly. People sensed pressure from the central government
from the unusual violence of the Tianjin City government and police. The
practitioners firmly believed there was nothing wrong with being good people
according to Truth-Compassion-Tolerance, and also their own experience had
proved Falun Gong to be good. With their trust in government and the hope of
dispelling prejudice, about 10,000 practitioners went to State Council's Appeals
Bureau near Zhongnanhai on April 25. On the same day, Premier Zhu Rongji met with representative practitioners. According to what practitioner Shi Caidong, a Ph. D. student at the Chinese
Academy of Sciences recalled, "It was around 7 a.m. when I arrived at the
north end of Fuyou Street on April 25. Practitioners had already filled up the
two sides of Fuyou Street and nearby streets. Some stood there and some sat
down, but they did not talk to passers-by. Some were holding books and reading.
Even though there were a lot of people, they did not create a traffic jam, nor
did they make any noise. Bikers on their way to work were pedaling by as usual.
I crossed Xianmen Boulevard and entered the south side of the district. It was
my first time there and I didn't even know where the gate was. I thought I would
first circle around to see if I'd run into any practitioners I knew. So I walked
south along the west side of Fuyou Street. Practitioners lined up neatly on both
sides of the streets. Practitioners on the outside were standing and
practitioners on the inside sat down. They were all reading the book Zhuan
Falun. Judging from their clothing, I could tell that some were from the
countryside and they looked sincere and kind. I didn't meet any acquaintances
along my way, although I did see many young men reporting on the situation
through walkie-talkies. They were probably plainclothes policemen. "As I walked further down the street, I heard a low but enthusiastic
applause. I turned to take a look and saw Mr. Zhu Rongji a few dozen meters away
walking from the gate across the street. (I had just passed the west gate of
Zhongnanhai). Several of his staff members were following him. They walked
towards practitioners who were across the gate. Practitioners who were sitting
down stood up and applauded. Everyone was very happy and surprised to see Zhu
Rongji come out to meet practitioners as soon as he arrived at his office.
Everyone wanted to approach him to explain the situation. I walked back quickly
and also tried to approach him from inside the crowd. At that moment, a
practitioner reminded everyone to stay put and maintain good order. "Zhu Rongji probably had already learned about Falun Gong practitioners'
coming to appeal. He asked us loudly, 'What are you here for? Who told you to
come here?' 'You have freedom of religion and beliefs!' He added. 'We are Falun Gong practitioners and we are here to explain the situation,'
Some practitioners in the crowd replied. 'If you have any problem, you can send some representatives up here and I'll
take you inside for a discussion.' Zhu Rongji paused, then said, 'I can't
possibly talk to so many of you!' "Zhu Rongji encouraged us to designate representatives to talk to him.
However, we had all come spontaneously and most of us did not even know each
other and had never thought about designating representatives. Since our
practice is entirely voluntary, we just come to practice whenever we feel like
it and if we don't have the time we just go about our own business. Nobody signs
up for anything and nobody ever checks headcounts, let alone elect
representatives. 'Do you have any representatives? Who among you are the spokespersons?' He
again asked. "At that moment I walked up towards him and ended up about two meters
from him. 'Premier Zhu, I can go with you.' I was the first one from the crowd
who volunteered to walk to his side. 'Who else?' Zhu Rongji asked. 'Me!' 'Me!' 'Me too!' All of a sudden, everyone raised their hands. Every practitioner wanted to go in to convey his or her message. 'We cannot have too many people.' Zhu Rongji pointed at the first three
persons. In fact, we were not elected or designated representatives, but
spontaneous volunteers. "Zhu Rongji turned and led us toward the west gate of Zhongnanhai. As he
walked he raised his voice and asked us, 'Didn't I already comment on the
situation you guys reported?' 'We did not see it!' We replied in surprise. "He probably realized something and changed the subject, 'I'll get the
director of the Appeals Bureau to talk to you. I'll get the Deputy Secretary to
talk to you.' He turned to his staff members and asked them to find the people
he mentioned. At that time we arrived at the Security Guards Post on the west
gate of Zhongnanhai. The staff members signaled us to stop and took us to the
left into a reception room while Zhu Rongji went into Zhongnanhai to work." "Falun Gong practitioners made three requests: 1) Release the Falun Gong
practitioners who were arrested in Tianjin; 2) Give Falun Gong practitioners a
legitimate and relaxed practice environment; 3) Allow Falun Gong books to be
published. "Later in the day, Premier Zhu Rongji ordered the Tianjin Police
Department to release the practitioners and repeated the government's policy of
not interfering with people's freedom to practice. "At 10 p.m., the practitioners left quietly. They were so peaceful and
orderly that they didn't even leave a piece of paper behind." The April 25 incident was the first time the Chinese government solved a
crisis through peaceful dialogue with ordinary citizens. International media
highly praised the incident and thought it was a milestone marking the Chinese
government's progress toward democracy. Many people held new hopes for the
Chinese government. Unfortunately, what ensued was a drastic and unexpected
turn. The Party leader Jiang Zemin's reaction toward the appeal was completely
opposite from that of Premier Zhu Rongji. As revealed by an insider, "on
the day of the "Zhongnanhai incident" on April 25th, those in charge
of the top-level offices of appeal, along with Luo Gan and others, reported on
the legal course of appeal taken by Falun Gong practitioners. Upon hearing this,
Jiang Zemin waved both hands and shouted, "Crush Falun Gong! Crush it!
Crush it completely!" This forceful outburst shocked everyone who witnessed
it, including Luo Gan. "On April 25th, as a Prime Minister should do, Zhu Rongji had offered an
open-minded and peaceful resolution to the appeal of Falun Gong practitioners.
Upon realizing that the world would praise Zhu Rongji for solving the Falun Gong
issue, President Jiang became mad with envy. At the first meeting of the
Standing Committee on the 'Zhongnanhai Incident,' Zhu spoke out, suggesting,
'Just let them practice.' Jiang pointed his finger at Zhu, and said, 'You're
wrong! You're being a fool! Falun Gong will destroy the Party and the nation!'
Premier Zhu Rongji went silent and from then on he no longer commented on Falun
Gong. When the meeting ended, he shook hands and said goodbye to all the staff
members present. Other politburo standing committee members were also silent. "Failing to gain full support from the Standing Committee of the
Political Bureau, Jiang Zemin undertook a method likened to that of Mao Zedong's
(former Chairman of China during the Cultural Revolution) writing big posters,
by writing to all the politburo members, and repeatedly issuing 'instructions'
in his own name, defining the Falun Gong issue as 'very serious,' 'competing
with the [Communist] Party for the masses,' and 'threatening the nation and the
Party.'" Jiang exerted pressure on the politburo, the Secretariat and the Central
Military Commission to cooperate with him on the persecution. He also ordered
his speech on Falun Gong to be circulated within the Party. Under Jiang's direct
order, on June 10, 1999, the Central Party Committee officially set up an office
for the "leadership group" and named it "the Head Office for
Handling the Falun Gong Issue," also called the "610 Office."
Later they changed the name to "Anti-evil Cult Organization Office." By this time, the preparations for a persecution individually started by
Jiang with the goal of completely wiping out Falun Gong was in full force. To
thoroughly persecute Falun Gong was a political task assigned to all levels of
government. On July 20, 1999, Jiang launched the full-blown persecution with mass
arrests, beatings, and unlawful detentions of thousands of Falun Gong
practitioners. The police burned Falun Gong books and ransacked the
practitioners' homes, and the media saturated the country with propaganda to
defame Falun Gong. If we look at the complete process from Falun Gong's introduction to the
public to its being banned, we can see that there have always been different
voices within the Chinese government. Many open-minded Party officials including
Premier Zhu Rongji acknowledged and supported Falun Gong, while those who
antagonized and suppressed Falun Gong were only a small minority, namely the
dictator Jiang and the political opportunists represented by, Luo Gan and He
Zuoxiu. In early September 2000, Jiang had a special interview with Mike Wallace of
the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS). In order to shirk responsibility, Jiang
claimed that all the members of the Politburo Standing Committee raised their
hands to support the persecution of Falun Gong. The truth is that the
persecution was solely Jiang's idea. He bypassed the law and willfully overthrew
premier Zhu Rongji's decision on April 25 appeal. He was the behind-the-scenes
director of the whole persecution. Why did Jiang Zemin persecute Falun Gong? What was his motive? All dictators suffer from insecurity about loss of power. As a result, they
exhaust all means to solidify their grasp on power and to strengthen their rule.
Anyone who has the courage to persist in their opinions and uphold their rights
would be regarded as a threat to the dictator's rule, and he would do everything
to ruthlessly silence those brave voices. If the dictator is not merely
cold-blooded, but also incapable and unintelligent, and he obtained power
through underhanded means, then the public would only regard him with disdain.
Unfortunately Jiang Zemin has all of the above traits. The Chinese people all know that Jiang became president, not because of his
abilities or longevity in the Party, but because he was one of the first to side
with the central government's hard line approach during the June 4 Massacre.
Many people inside and outside the Party have criticized Jiang's lack of
credibility as the president of China and chairman of the Central Military
Commission. Therefore, it is clear that Jiang possesses the dark mentality of
most dictators as he suspected, resented and eventually fanatically persecuted
Falun Gong. To be more specific, Jiang absolutely could not accept the fact that Falun
Gong taught different things from what he wanted to instill in the people. Secondly, Falun Gong attracted 100 million people within a few years and the
number of practitioners exceeded the number of Party members, a fact that deeply
disturbed Jiang and made him very envious. He could not tolerate the fact that
the size of a civil group was larger than the Party under his control. Thirdly, although Mr. Li Hongzhi was only an ordinary citizen and did not
have any title or official rank, he had millions of disciples who respectfully
called him Teacher Li or Master. Many of his disciples were senior Party members
and government officials. As the head of the country, Jiang had always craved
such heart-felt respect for himself, but could not get it. His jealousy rose to
a boiling point because he could not allow an ordinary citizen to have greater
prestige than himself. He was also jealous of Premier Zhu Rongji for properly handling the April 25
appeal and winning acknowledgement from the international community. Last but not least, he was shocked that Falun Gong practitioners came time
and again to the government to appeal without hesitation or fear of retaliation,
as many ordinary citizens do. He judged the practitioners' courage to be a
challenge to his power. His mentality can be summarized with one word: jealousy. Jealousy towards
Falun Gong and Mr. Li Hongzhi is the root cause that drove Jiang to
single-mindedly persecute Falun Gong. There are also other analyses on the reason for the persecution. Someone said that the moral decline after June 4, 1989 led to rampant
corruption and great social unrest for which Jiang is largely responsible. Falun
Gong's principles, Truth, Compassion and Tolerance directly contradict Jiang's
own perversity and malice, and as a result he could not help but persecute Falun
Gong. Some have said that expanding one's power by starting a political movement is
an often-used ruse by Chinese dictators. Obviously Jiang is no stranger to such
tactic. In the article "China's suppression carries a high price" by
Willy Wo-Lap Lam, a CNN senior China analyst points out, "It is no secret
that several Politburo members thought the president had used the wrong
tactics." The reporter also quoted a Party veteran as saying, "By
unleashing a Mao-style movement, Jiang is forcing senior cadres to pledge
allegiance to his line... This will boost Jiang's authority." But why did Luo Gan and He Zuoxiu play the roles of point men in this
persecution? The dictator and his minions rely on one another. What the minions
usually do is make some noises to please their master. Falun Gong has many
practitioners and has a great influence in China. If they could destroy Falun
Gong, they could hope for a grand promotion. Nowadays in China, corruption is everywhere. Falun Gong teaches people to
conduct themselves according to Truth, Compassion and Tolerance; it benefits the
society and causes no harm. By turning on Falun Gong instead of punishing the
corrupt officials, Jiang shows himself to be irrational, if not clinically
insane.
Chinese version available at
http://www.minghui.ca/mh/articles/2004/10/25/87513.html
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