Investigative Report on the Role of the Chinese Anti-Cult Association (CACA) in the Persecution of Falun Gong
By the World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong (WOIPFG)
March 23, 2004 I. Introduction The Chinese Anti-Cult Association (CACA) was founded by the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP) and Chinese government officials who have religious or scientific
backgrounds. Following the direction of the CCP, and with the help of the
state-controlled media, the members of CACA have been using their religious and
scientific backgrounds and name recognition in society to justify and further
the persecution of Falun Gong. Their functions include providing explanations to
people in China and abroad to justify the persecution, providing suggestions to
the Chinese government regarding the methods of persecution, providing theories
to criticize Falun Gong's principles, and directly participating in the
brainwashing and persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. After its establishment on November 13, 2000 in Beijing, CACA quickly
developed many branches in different provinces, cities, work units, and even
schools. It has been motivating people from all social levels to join its
movement of criticizing Falun Gong and brainwashing Falun Gong practitioners. According to Wang Yusheng, the Vice Director and the Secretary General of
CACA, by October 2003, twenty-four anti-cult associations (ACA) have been
established in different provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities;
seven provinces and autonomous regions were in the process of establishing ACAs.
These ACAs are branches of CACA. Since CACA was founded in November 2000, it has
held nearly one thousand exhibits and propaganda activities around the country,
as well as more than a thousand conferences and forums. It has also established
the "China anti-cult website", and produced more than 20 films and
400,000 books. In 2004, local ACAs are still being established. II. Leaders of the Chinese Anti-Cult Association The founders of CACA are Chinese government officials who have religious or
scientific backgrounds. They claim that they are from the community and
established this organization voluntarily. The main leaders of the CACA are the
following: III. Governmental Nature of the Chinese Anti-Cult Association CACA is a governmental organization established using a non-governmental
title. Its governmental nature can be confirmed by looking at its organizational
structure, financial sources, and the nature and characteristics of its
activities. 1. Organizational Structure CACA is a unit of the China Society and Technology Association, a
governmental agency. CACA's office is located at the Chinese Science and
Technology Museum, a governmental agency. The Secretary General and Vice
Secretary General in charge of CACA's daily operations are full-time government
employees. The authorities in some local ACAs are actually local government
officials. All CACA branches have their offices inside governmental agencies. Wang Yusheng, the Vice Director and the Secretary General of the CACA and the
Director of the Chinese Science and Technology Museum, is the Legal
Representative for both the CACA and the Chinese Love and Care Association
(these are the same organizations with different names and are both registered
under the Chinese Science and Technology Museum). Li Anping, the former Director of the Chinese Society for the History of
Science and Technology, works full-time for CACA and was transferred in January
2001 to be the full-time Vice Secretary General of CACA. [In China, a
"transfer" only refers to job change within governmental agencies and
is not related to non-governmental organizations.] His transfer was so urgent
that the 2000 newsletter of the Chinese Society for the History of Science and
Technology was not published as scheduled. Cheng Ningning is also a full-time Vice Secretary General of the CACA. She
was the Secretary General of the Federation of Chinese Women Scientists and the
Vice Chairman of the International Department of the China Association for
Science and Technology (CAST). According to an investigation on February 29,
2004, Cheng Ningning was still enlisted under and working in the International
Department of the CAST, which means the government is paying her salary to work
for CACA. The President of the Yingkou City ACA in Liaoning Province is a CCP official
in charge of the oppression of Falun Gong. On January 12, 2004, a ceremony was
held for the establishment of Yingkou City ACA. Wang Anlai, the Vice CCP
Secretary of the Yingkou City Committee and the CCP Secretary of the Commission
for Discipline Inspection, and Diao Shaochang, the Vice CCP Secretary of the
Yingkou City Committee, were elected as Honorable Presidents of the Yingkou ACA.
Wang Yousan, a member of the Standing Committee of the Yingkou City CCP
Committee and the CCP Secretary of the Yingkou City Political and Judicial
Committee, was elected to be the President of the Yingkou ACA. The Political and
Judicial Committee is the main agency that directs the oppression of Falun Gong
and is the department to which the "610 Office" is attached. The Laiwu City Bureau of Science and Technology in Shandong Province is a
governmental agency. Its Department of Academic Society has the sign of the
office of the Laiwu ACA. The subordinate governmental agencies accept orders from the higher level ACA.
The Beijing Chongwen District Science and Technology Commission and the District
Association of Science and Technology (AST) once, following the request of the
Beijing ACA, organized "An Open Letter to the United Nations Human Rights
Organization", in order to show the international community the
"public opinion" of suppressing Falun Gong in China. This is further
proof that CACA functions as a governmental agency. In fact, the international community generally also regards the CACA as a
governmental agency. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) even refers to
CACA as the "official Chinese Anti-Cult Association". 2. Financial Sources It is known that the ACAs' administrative offices are all located in
governmental agencies and their overhead, transportation, and salaries are all
paid by the Chinese government. The Beijing Science Committee once sponsored 1.1 million yuan to fund the
Beijing ACA and its propaganda campaign. In their literature, the local ACAs
normally write "sponsored by related units" for their operational
financial sources. However, the Tianjin Hexi District ACA and the Zhangjiakou
City ACA in Hebei Province writes "sponsored by the government" for
their operational fund. The Laiwu City ACA in Shandong Province indicated its
source of funding as "government financial allocation". In 2004, the Chongqing AST and the Chongqing ACA decided to award outstanding
organizations in 2003 that served "Health and Life in the Family".
[This activity had anti- Falun Gong content.] It used funds from the Chongqing
AST and awarded organizations with 1,000 to 3,000 yuan. 3. The Nature of CACA's Activities All activities organized by CACA and/or its local branches are directed by
the Political and Judicial Committee of the CCP and "610 Office." On its website, CACA claims it is "a special social community
organization with important political functions and tasks. Only under the
leadership of the CCP and developing activities closely related to the
prevention and the handling of cults, could [the CACA] accomplish its
mission". The Zhejiang Province CCP Committee emphasized that the Zhejiang
AST leadership over the ACA needs to be strengthened. The officials of Chongqing
Political and Judicial Committee of the CCP gave speeches at the first and third
seminars held by the Chongqing ACA where they affirmed the association's
previous work and made specific requirements for its future tasks. The sixth
article of the second chapter of the regulation of the Laiwu ACA in Shandong
Province clearly states its functions as carrying out the CCP's and the
government's persecution policies and important orders, as well as performing
all "anti-cult" tasks assigned by the pertinent departments. In October 2003, CACA sent a delegation to the USA, clearly stating that the
event followed the arrangement and instruction from the Central CCP. The local CCP and governmental officials routinely attend and give speeches
at the ACA's meetings, which is impossible for any non-governmental
organizations. For example, on March 29, 2003 when the Hubei Province ACA was
established, the Vice Governor, Su Xiaoyun, attended the ceremony and gave a
speech. When the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region ACA was established, Zhang
Guomin, the member of regional Standing Committee and the Head of Propaganda
Department of CCP attended the ceremony and gave a speech. In Shandong Province, all levels of the CCP committee's "Leadership Team
to Deal with Falun Gong Problem" accommodate the AST, to which the ACAs are
subservient. As far as any significant activities are concerned, the provincial
CCP committee would have concrete arrangements and instructions for the ACAs.
The associations would earnestly complete these tasks and report to the CCP
committee. The ACAs are actually units of the CCP committee's "Leadership Team to
Deal with Falun Gong Problem" agencies. Throughout the provinces and
cities, their operation reflect the government controlled "special"
and "important political functions and tasks". The CACA provides
suggestions to the Chinese government regarding the theories and methods of the
persecution and assists in the propaganda inside China. It also actively
promotes the anti-Falun Gong propaganda and helps to justify the persecution of
Falun Gong policy overseas. IV. Goals and Characteristics of the Chinese Anti-Cult Association The single goal of CACA and its branches around the country is to oppress
Falun Gong. This directly violates the State Council's regulation for the registration
and administration of social groups. This regulation's Article 4 states that any
social group should not harm the nation's interests, social public interests,
other organizations, and citizen's legal rights and interests. It is clear from
the statements of CACA and its branches, that the main goal of its establishment
is to damage the reputation of Falun Gong and Falun Gong practitioners. One of
the CACA's routine tasks is to positively advocate, implement, and directly
participate in the brainwashing of Falun Gong practitioners. This violates the
citizen's freedom of belief bestowed by the Chinese constitution. Differing from
the centralized persecution of people in the past, CACA persecutes people's
beliefs in the name of a civic organization. In China, many organizations have
participated in the persecution of Falun Gong in various degrees. However, CACA
is the only one that takes the persecution as its single goal. V. The Major Activities of the Chinese Anti-Cult Association 1. The Major Composition of China's Anti-Falun Gong Propaganda The major task of CACA is helping the Jiang Zemin-controlled propaganda
machine to fan the hatred towards Falun Gong throughout China and the world.
When interviewed by the reporter of Guangming Daily, Wang Yusheng, the secretary
general of CACA, explained that the "million signature campaign" is to
actively attack, and let the world know the hatred towards Falun Gong.29 The "Tiananmen Square Self Immolation" on January 23, 2001 and
intense propaganda that followed it were the most important steps reflecting the
escalation of Jiang Zemin's persecution of Falun Gong and his attempt to make
the Chinese people accept and agree with it. The Chinese government has never
permitted any third party to direct an independent investigation. The "Self
Immolation" was a purposely staged incident, a fact which has been verified
from many sources: The Washington Post reporter Philip Pan's report from
Zhenzhou City, Henan Province, indicating that victim Ms Liu Chunling was never
known by her neighbors to practice Falun Gong; the results of voice analysis and
recognition performed on the main victim, Wang Jindong ("the main
organizer" as named in CCTV Focused Topic program in the "Self
Immolation") by The World Organization to Investigate the Persecution of
Falun Gong (WOIPFG). In addition, the award-winning program "False
Fire," produced by New Tang Dynasty TV (NTDTV) with a detailed analysis of
the CCTV broadcasted video clips, points out that the "Self
Immolation" was staged right at the moment when the persecution was under
national and international condemnation and had become increasingly difficult to
continue. It was the moment when the Jiang regime deeply needed a
"breakthrough" to keep the persecution going. In less than two months,
the UN human rights conference was going to discuss China's human rights
violations in persecuting Falun Gong. Jiang was desperate to find way to justify
his persecution of Falun Gong in front of the Chinese people and the world
community, so as to escape responsibility and condemnation. On January 11, 12
days before the date of the "Self Immolation," CACA launched the
"Million Signatures" campaign against Falun Gong. Its purpose was
mainly for paving the way for this event. Right at this critical time period,
"Tiananmen Self Immolation" took place at the right time and right
place in the most suitable way. Currently, there is no proof of the direct
connection between CACA's "Million Signature" and the "Self
Immolation," but it is very obvious that the "Self Immolation"
fueled the "Million Signature" Campaign. On January 11, 2001, the "Million Signature Drive Against Cults to
Protect Human Rights" started its signature collection campaign at Beijing
University and sent a proposal to the nation. In March 2001, the CACA delegation
brought a one-ton bolt of fabric to the United Nations' Human Rights Conference
in Geneva, on which more than 1.5 million names had been signed. This nationwide
signature collection campaign was fully driven by government agencies, since the
Chinese government has forbidden any social group's activities from extending
beyond its own province. For example, the Tianjin Youth League Committee of the
CCP organized the signature collection; the location for the signature signing
was inside the Jiangxi Province's government courtyard. The signatures at all
the universities and colleges were arranged by the Ministry of Education and the
local education committees. From November 26 to December 5, 2003, sponsored by the CAST and the Central
CCP 610 Office, the China Love and Care Association and the CACA held anti-Falun
Gong photo exhibitions in Beijing for 10 days. This exhibition fomented hatred
towards Falun Gong. This same exhibit has been held by the Chinese embassies in
other countries, including Singapore, South Korea, The Hague, Paris, etc.,
exporting the hate propaganda overseas. Zhao Zhizhen, one of the initiators of CACA and the director of the Wuhan
Broadcast and Television Bureau, produced a film slandering Falun Gong and its
founder in June 1999. This film was frequently shown on CCTV starting on July
20, 1999, and signaled the beginning of the suppression of Falun Gong. Whenever there is a significant event, CACA becomes central in the
coordination around it, furthering the regime's suppression of Falun Gong by
issuing statements and organizing forums. For example, it made the announcements
regarding the case of Fu Yibin killing his father and wife, the "Tiananmen
Square self-immolation", the "Sinosat hijacking", and the article
published by the CACA Director Zhuang Fenggan regarding the United States
Congress' Resolution H.Con. 188. In its persecution of Falun Gong, it is crucial that the CACA propaganda
"blots out the sky and covers up the earth". The Washington Post
quoted a Chinese official's words on August 5, 2001 that [whether or not the
suppression was effective] depended on three factors: violence, propaganda, and
brainwashing. He said that, "high-pressure propaganda has been critical. As
the Chinese society turned against Falun Gong, pressure on practitioners to
abandon their beliefs increased, and it became easier for the government to use
violence against those who did not". The government used the "Tiananmen
Square self-immolation" as the core of its anti- Falun Gong propaganda. The
repeated broadcasting of the scene of the 12-year-old girl's burn finally made
many Chinese people believe what the government said. "Pure violence
doesn't work. Just brainwashing doesn't work either. And none of it would be
working if the propaganda hadn't started to change the way the general public
thinks. You need all three." The propaganda of the CACA has had such an effect. 2. Providing Ideological Theories for the Persecution of Falun Gong Since its establishment in November 2000 through the end of 2003, the CACA
has held eight forums and two annual "Anti-Cults Theory and Practice"
conferences discussing theories of brainwashing tactics. In 2002, staff from the
Beijing ACA, the Beijing Psychological Health Association, the Beijing Cult
Prevention and Handling Office [610 Offices] including Bi Shu and Liu Fuyuan's
"A Research on the Psychological and Social Factors and the Intervention
Measures of the Cult Members" won the 2002 Outstanding Investigation and
Study award from the Beijing AST. The anti-Falun Gong research by the president
of the Shandong Province Anti-Cults Association was listed as "the Tenth
Five-Year Plan" scientific research project by the Shandong Academy of
Social Science. 3. Providing Measures for the Persecution of Falun Gong CACA has directly participated on the front lines of the persecution of Falun
Gong through the police and judicial system. Pan Jiazheng, a member of the
Chinese Academy of Engineering and one of the initiators of CACA, has proposed a
systematic plan of suppression of Falun Gong at the Chinese People's Political
Consultative Conference. The plan includes the internet blockade (even
suggesting to punish those who provide website resources for Falun Gong
practitioners); mobilizing the public to monitor Falun Gong practitioners;
punishing practitioners who persist in their belief by dismissing them from the
CCP, the Youth League, and other government positions and not allowing them to
be teachers, lawyers, reporters, or physicians. This policy directly resulted in the extension of the persecution of Falun
Gong practitioners into wider areas of society, including education and the
judiciary. In the education area alone, dozens of teachers and students have
been persecuted to death, including an over 60-year-old professor, Pu Shigao
from the Medical School of Yanbian University. He was arrested for exposing the
human rights violations and illegality of the persecution to the public. He was
subjected to torture in the Yanji Detention Center but never gave up his belief
in Falun Gong. Professor Pu was later tortured to death in Yanji Detention
Center. On June 27, 2002, lecturer Ms. Li Xiaojin of Guangzhou University was
abducted to the brainwashing center at the Guangzhou City, Huangpu area Drug
Rehab Center. She was tortured to death in less than 24 hours. Just at Tsinghua
University alone, more than thirty Falun Gong practitioners, including Yao Yue,
have been sentenced to forced labor camps and as much as 12 years of
imprisonment. In the legal area, Judge Hu Qingyun from Jiangxi Province was
tortured to death, and more than ten lawyers and judges have been persecuted. 4. Directly Planning and Participating in the Brainwashing of Falun Gong
Practitioners While the former Soviet Union and other communist countries only detain
political dissidents in mental institutions, Jiang Zemin's regime spread the
unprecedented brainwashing to the entire population. The methods of brainwashing
include forced viewing of state-run media propaganda, forced-labor, pressure and
continuous monitoring from work and residential units, sleep deprivation, and
torture. CACA has played a major role in this brainwashing. Wang Zhigang, the board member of the Jilin Province ACA (JACA) and a member
of the Air Force's 610 Office, and Song Jianfeng, a member of the JACA, have
been invited by departments including the Provincial Forced Labor Camp and the
610 Office to give a series of presentations. They worked with the Shenyang Air
Force and the 610 Office of Jilin Province and Changchun City in various
research projects and participated in the brainwashing of Falun Gong
practitioners. They wrote two books that have been used extensively as
brainwashing materials by hundreds of forced-labor camps, prisons, the Political
and Judicial Committee, 610 offices, and brainwashing centers all across the
country. According to Falun Gong practitioners who were detained at Yinmahe
Forced Labor Camp in Jilin Province, Wang Zhigang used to personally brainwash
Falun Gong practitioners in this camp, notorious for torture and the killing of
several practitioners. The Henan Province ACA organized some "experts" to participate in
"re-education and transformation work". In Shandong Province, the
Jinan ACA organized some "experts" to give lectures in the
forced-labor camps and brainwashing centers. The Shengli Oil Field ACA
summarized 12 brainwashing methods and explained brainwashing standards. The
Shandong Province ACA trained 800 cadres for the provincial CCP committee and
provided books and videos for the labor camps and brainwashing centers. The
Shanxi Province ACA went to the forced-labor camps to help with the
brainwashing. The Harbin ACA in Heilongjiang Province sent a lecturers' group to
Wanjia Forced Labor Camp to give speeches and present brainwashing books. The
Zhangjiakou City ACA in Hebei Province established "re-education
groups" that went to "law education schools" [brainwashing
centers] to help with the "transformation" of Falun Gong
practitioners. Lin Cheng Tao is a typical example of such "transformation". Lin
was an assistant researcher at the Basic Medicine Institute of the Chinese Union
Medical University. In October 2001, he was abducted to the second team of the
Tuanhe Forced Labor Camp in Beijing. In the end of 2001, his brainwashed wife
from Xinan Forced Labor Camp wrote to the head of Lin's team and suggested that
he try to force Lin to give up his belief by using the measures used in the
female labor camp, including electric shocks, physical punishments, mental
tortures, and sleep deprivation. The police forced Lin to read the letter again
and again until he had a mental breakdown. 5. Extending the Persecution of Falun Gong Overseas The CACA held activities overseas, and then sent the "overseas
news" back to China to show "international support", in order to
increase and justify the persecution inside China. At the end of 2000, CACA
launched the "Million Signatures Drive" against Falun Gong. On January
11, 2001, it started from Beijing University and spread through society from
there. CACA distributed100 bales of fabric, each 100 meters long, to different
places. Then the local CCP, government and local ACA organized people to sign.
As of February 26, 2001, the organizers claimed that they had collected more
than 1.5 million signatures. In March 2001, a CACA delegation brought a one-ton bolt of fabric that
contained more than 1.5 million signatures to the United Nations' Human Rights
Conference in Geneva, and sponsored an exhibition of the fabric. In March 2002, a CACA delegation brought more than 10,000 anti-Falun Gong
letters to the United Nations' Human Rights Conference in Geneva. However,
evidence indicated that these "public opinion" letters were not
written by the public voluntarily, but were actually organized by the CACA. For
example, the letter entitled "To the United Nations' Human Rights
Organization" was written by "transformed Falun Gong
practitioners" or brainwashing center staff in Beijing's Chongwen District
Science Association according to the instructions given by the CACA. In March 2003, the Director of the Chinese Science and Technology Museum,
Vice Director and Secretary General of CACA Wang Yusheng, led a CACA delegation
to Geneva again. This time they used the title "China Care and Love
Association." CACA has attended the United Nations' Human Rights Commission meeting in
Geneva for the past three years. During the meeting, CACA has held anti-Falun
Gong forums for local Chinese residents and students in France and Switzerland. The overseas Chinese embassies' websites publish CACA's anti-Falun Gong
propaganda. The Chinese officials in religious fields and the leaders of the CACA,
including Fu Tieshan and Sheng Hui, attacked Falun Gong and Falun Gong's founder
when they visited other countries. All of the above overseas' activities of the CACA were publicized by the
Central CCP-controlled media, including the People's Daily, Xinhua News Agency,
and CCTV. The media around the country then widely reprinted these reports,
which became an important part of anti-Falun Gong propaganda. VI. Conclusions CACA's guiding principles, operations, and achievements all indicate that it
is the main accomplice and executor of the Jiang regime's genocide of Falun Gong
practitioners. With sufficient evidence, we suggest that the International Court
indict CACA's leaders on the same basis as officials in the Propaganda Cultural
Department among the Nazi war criminals and the three people in Rwanda who were
convicted of inciting genocide through propaganda were indicted. http://www.upholdjustice.org/English.2/upholdjustice_English_index.html
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