The Herald, UK: Chinese [Falun Gong practitioner] gives glimpse inside the Cage

December 27 2005

An international art exhibition showing paintings, photo etchings and sculptures by [Falun Gong practitioners] is set to arrive in Scotland.

The event will feature a number of works by artists who claim they were victims of human rights violations by the Chinese Communist Party because they practised Falun Gong, an ancient spiritual movement.

Entitled "Truth, Compassion, Forbearance", the exhibition has been organised by Kunlun Zhang, a Falun Gong practitioner and a professor of art. He claimed to have suffered psychological and physical torture in a Chinese forced labour camp for three months in 2001.

After his release, he began collaborating with more than a dozen artists around the world to create works for the show.

Professor Zhang's pieces for the show, which is free of charge, include a painting called Red Wall and a sculpture called Cage. Both record his personal experiences in captivity.

Other pieces include an oil painting depicting the suffering of Liu Chengjun, who was arrested in March 2002 for his part in a television broadcast that exposed human rights abuses in China. Although Amnesty International campaigned for his release, he later died in police custody.

Yu Yu Williamson, of the Falun Art Preparation Committee in Glasgow, said:

"The works reveal true stories of the Falun Gong practitioners who endured the maliciousness of the Chinese Communist Party's brutal persecution waged for six years and costing over 2600 lives. Each piece is a moving and uplifting journey that rekindles the dignity of what it means to be human."

[...]

According to its practitioners, the Chinese government has embarked on a hardline persecution of the practice.

Hundreds (1) of Falun Gong are alleged to have been killed, an estimated 200,000 people have been sent to forced labour camps without trial, and more than 500 Chinese have been jailed for up to 18 years.

The exhibition runs from January 4-14 at the Hillhead Library, Byres Road, Glasgow.

(1) To date, the verified death toll stands at 2676.

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