Epoch Times: An Excuse for Genocide
By Sonya Bryskine
Epoch Times Australia Staff Apr 25, 2006 Martin Place, Sydney: A
re-enactment of torture methods used on Falun Gong practitioners in
China. The Zhongnanhai appeal on April 25, 1999 in Beijing, China was
the largest appeal to the central government since the 1984 Tiananmen
Square massacre. While peacefully resolved, it was portrayed by
members of the Politburo an an attack on the government to launch the
eradication of the Falun Gong spiritual practise. (Torsten Blackwood/AFP/Getty
Images)
In history some events are remembered as the sparks that ignite greater
events. The assassination of Franz Ferdinand, Archduke of Austria, instigating
World War One, and the rise to power of Mikhail Gorbachev, ultimately leading to
the collapse of the Soviet Union, are but two examples. Among such events is a little understood turning point in recent Chinese
history -- the April 25, 1999 "Zhongnanhai appeal". Some China
observers have labeled this event as the catalyst for one of the most vicious
spiritual oppressions in modern times. Just seven years before the Zhongnanhai appeal, Mr. Li Hongzhi, who has been
short-listed for the Nobel Peace Prize, brought the spiritual practice of Falun
Gong to the public. A combination of exercises, meditation and moral principles,
Falun Gong quickly became popular throughout China. It was this popularity that
would pose a perceived dilemma for China's Communist regime, which displays zero
tolerance towards any alternative voice. The silent protest Zhongnanhai, the Central Government compound in the capital Beijing, was the
site of the first major public appeal by Falun Gong practitioners. [Editor's note: Falun Gong practitioners went to State Appeal Office to appeal and the Office happens to be near the compound.] It was also
the largest spontaneous public gathering since the 1989 Tiananmen Square
massacre. Based on video evidence, at least 10,000 Falun Gong demonstrators gathered
outside Zhongnanhai to deliver a petition to Communist Party leaders -- an
unprecedented turnout considering the regime's efforts to silence public
expression. The images captured by ABC cameramen showed an orderly assembly of Chinese
people, standing in a row several people deep, stretching two kilometers along
the tree-lined sidewalks beside the Forbidden City. Some practiced Falun Gong
exercises, while others were sitting or reading. The unique silent protest
appealed for two things: to regain the Communist regime's official recognition
of Falun Gong and to petition for the release of Falun Gong practitioners
arrested in the coastal city of Tianjin. The triggering factors Two weeks before, the Youth Science and Technology Reader periodical carried
an article by He Zuoxiu, notable for his opposition to alternative practices.
The Hong Kong-based Ming Pao newspaper reported that He Zuoxiu -- brother-in-law
of Luo Gan, the Minister of Public Security, who would later spearhead the anti-Falun
Gong campaign - defamed the practice by presenting a "distorted"
view of its principles. In response, a number of Falun Gong practitioners appealed at the Youth
Science and Technology Reader office, asking the editors to retract the
erroneous article. The magazine refused and called the police -- consequently, 45 practitioners
were beaten and detained. In response, the local practitioners appealed to the
Tianjin Municipal Government, which redirected them to the Central Appeals
Office in Beijing. In 1999 the Chinese regime estimated the number of Falun Gong practitioners
in Beijing at around 400,000 to 500,000; the number in the whole country was
estimated at 70 to 100 million. Reports from The Washington Post said that the majority of the protesters at
Zhongnanhai were from Beijing. However, some had traveled from as far away as
Zhejiang Province, over 1000km to the south of Beijing. Major transport systems
leading to the capital were ordered shut down. When the protestors arrived at Zhongnanhai early in the morning, some 1000
public security personnel and plainclothes officers had already been deployed. Although fears of rioting proved unfounded, police refused to let
practitioners approach the main Appeals Office. In fact it was the authorities
that directed them into a position opposite Zhongnanhai that seemed to surround
the complex. This tactic was a calculated move that was used to falsely accuse
Falun Gong practitioners of "encircling" the building. After hours of negotiations between the demonstrators and Beijing officials,
five representatives of the group were invited to speak with Premier Zhu Rongji.
Mr. Zhu shortly issued an order to release the practitioners arrested in Tianjin
and the crowd quietly dispersed between 10:30 and 11:30 p.m. The persecution begins Despite this resolution, there was turmoil in the Politburo. In a move to
consolidate his personal power, Jiang Zemin, the then leader of the Chinese
Communist Party (CCP), illegally outlawed the practice three months later on
July 20, 1999. This marked the beginning of a nationwide campaign to slander and eliminate
Falun Gong. Falun Gong books, videos and tapes were confiscated and destroyed on
a large scale. Exercise sessions in public parks were regularly harassed, with
some eyewitnesses recalling practitioners being picked up by police and thrown
onto the ground while still sitting in cross-legged meditation. Thousands of people were herded into stadiums before being transferred to
labor camps. No formal trials were held; any deaths of Falun Gong practitioners
in custody were treated as "suicides". Nearly 3000 deaths of Falun Gong practitioners from beatings and torture have
been verified since 1999; however, human rights experts have placed the figure
as high as 10,000. As many as one million are believed to be unlawfully detained
in labor camps across China. Such draconian oppression has prompted observers to question the motives
behind the persecution of Falun Gong. It could be a case of historical. China's regime has yet to admit
that the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre ever took place. In fact, any reference to the globally denounced slaughter of the
pro-democracy students has been deleted from China's textbooks and is blocked
from access on the Internet. The famous footage of a solo figure at Tiananmen attempting to halt the tanks
serves as a reminder of the sacrifices that the people of China have had to make
over the years to have their voices heard. Although the courageous student's identity was never confirmed, his message
is timeless. Perhaps the legacy of Zhongnanhai may one day be written into the
history books as an event that exemplified the courage and dignity of the
Chinese people. http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-4-25/40825.html
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