FGM-TV English News for December 18^th, 2001

Falun Gong is freely practiced in more than 50 countries around the world, but relentlessly persecuted in China. The peaceful courage of practitioners there has shocked their oppressors and moved the people of the world. While China continues to block all information, FGMTV brings you the stories you may not hear anywhere else.

Hello, and welcome to FGMTV on Thursday, December 18^th, 2001.

I’m Susan Mitchell.

Our top story this week:

A reliable source inside China revealed late Saturday night, December 15^th that Chinese President, Jiang Zemin is planning a "suicide" plot to frame Falun Gong in yet another attempt to bend popular opinion against the practice

And some of our other stories:

Chinese media, which is state controlled, falsely reported that the Westerners who went to Tiananmen Square did not practice Falun Gong and were paid by their governments to pretend to be Falun Gong practitioners

Clarifying the truth about Falun Gong in the Czech Republic – an American practitioner returns to her homeland for a visit

Toronto practitioners issue the world's first comprehensive report on China's notorious 610 Office

World Falun Dafa Radio broadcasters receive letters of appreciation from around the world

Chinese authorities arrest a practitioner immediately upon release from illegal detention in a labour camp, and begin making arrangements to send her to yet another labour camp

Brief reports from several provinces in China

Practitioners who bravely helped extinguish a forest fire win the freedom to practice freely in their home town

On December 15th, the Falun Dafa Information Center in New York received information from a reliable source inside China that starting Monday, Dec. 17th, Chinese officials will begin a propaganda initiative that frames up Falun Gong by way of a suicide case. This is believed to be the latest initiative in a long string of attempts to implement President Jiang's orders to "strengthen propaganda" against Falun Gong to win support among the Chinese people and to counter international criticism.

Dr. Shiyu Zhou, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who has done extensive research on China's persecution of Falun Gong, said that the number of fabricated reports in China against Falun Gong has increased recently. Dr. Zhou said that another key aspect of the propaganda campaign by China's state-run media is to falsely report that Falun Gong is suppressed around the world, as it is in China. Dr, Zhou also stated that, "This propaganda aims to convince the Chinese people that the persecution of Falun Gong is widely endorsed. For many Chinese, however, the appearance of the westerners in Tiananmen Square has led them to start questioning this propaganda, and so Chinese officials are desperately attempting to counter this trend with increased propaganda."

In response to the November 20^th event in Tiananmen Square, the Chinese government has told its citizens that the 36 Westerners were not Falun Gong practitioners, and were paid to pretend to be practitioners. In the current climate of recession, no Western government would want to upset its trade negotiations with China by paying people to embarrass Jiang Zemin's regime, let alone find people from twelve different countries who can sit in the lotus position!

Recently, an American practitioner returned to her homeland of the Czech Republic for a visit. She told us that nearly every weekend, in various cities of the Czech and Slovak Republics, the practitioners in the photographs you see clarify the truth about the persecution of Falun Gong, demonstrate Falun Gong exercises, collect signatures for SOS petitions, and distribute literature. These photos were taken in the small towns of Policka and Moravska Trebova. Her friend, Vladka, a practitioner from a nearby village, organized the weekend. Vladka's young daughter is shown clarifying the Truth to Vietnamese children.

Moving now to Toronto, Canada, where on International Human Rights Day, practitioners released the world's first comprehensive report on China's notorious 610 Office.

The 6.10 office was established by Chinese President Jiang Zemin specifically to persecute Falun Gong practitioners, both in China and abroad. "6.10" refers to the date of its creation, June 10^th, 1999.

The office, now said to have bureau status in China, utilizes torture, brainwashing, and defaming propaganda with the ultimate goal of eradicating Falun Gong, both inside China and abroad.

The "6.10" acts above all legal, judicial and governmental bodies and infiltrates every facet of society including schools, communities and workplaces.

Family members of practitioners are also coerced through intimidation, threats and extortion to aid in the persecution of their loved ones.

Students who will not slander Falun Gong in university entrance exams are refused admittance.

And in Hong Kong on International Human Rights Day, around 100 practitioners held a peaceful demonstration. They displayed posters showing the various methods of torture used against fellow practitioners in China. These methods include long periods of time locked in cages only 4 feet high with hands cuffed and locked to the bars so the person can neither sit down nor stand up; standing for extended periods of time in extremely uncomfortable positions and even hanging practitioners up by handcuffs that were locked with the person's hands behind their back – high enough that their feet don't touch the floor. One person in Nanchang city of Jianxi province was hung this way for four days recently. Miraculously, he survived. But it is said that his hands are now deformed.

·Within two to three days after the 36 Westerners meditated in Tiananmen Square, approximately 20 practitioners from Changchun city and other regions rented a vehicle to drive to Bejing. They were stopped by police in Yutian county, Hebei province, and all were detained. In an attempt to force the practitioners to curse the practice and its Founder, and to give out their home addresses, police used electric batons to shock and beat the practitioners continually for 2 hours. One 19 year old male died on the spot from injuries sustained.

From its first broadcast in Chinese on July 1, 2000, World Falun Dafa Radio has overcome numerous obstacles to spread the voice of Falun Dafa throughout China and in other countries around the world.

Beginning on September 1, 2001, World Falun Dafa Radio began transmitting to audiences in Europe. Since transmission began, numerous letters have been received from people all over the world, including Italy, Japan, Spain, Australia, and the USA, expressing appreciation for the programs and enthusiastically asking for souvenir cards from the station. Their kindness and friendship has deeply moved and also encouraged the practitioners who are volunteering their time to provide this service.

The station is planning to broadcast in other languages in the near future.

The City of Columbus, Ohio in the USA recently issued a Resolution of Expression, appreciating the practice of Falun Dafa, and calling on the government of China to cease its persecution of Falun Gong practitioners immediately. They stated that "This Council believes that exercising the fundamental rights to self-expression, freedom of thought and choice of religion are basic human rights and the unjust treatment of innocent people exercising such rights under any circumstances is intolerable."

The return of 2 French practitioners from Tiananmen Square provided a great opportunity to practice and teach the exercises at the Eiffel Tower in Paris recently.

And in Germany, At the beginning of this winter semester, a new research course called, "Falun Gong," was offered by the Department of Theology at Goettingen University. The course is presently being offered two hours per week, and has attracted many students. Students in the class are required to read through Zhuan Falun the main text of Falun Gong teachings, and to familiarize themselves with the Falun Gong websites. The students are also asked to analyze the negative propaganda materials from Chinese government authorities. The goal of this course is to reach a conclusion based on their research, as to whether Falun Gong is a religion, a philosophy, a spiritual movement, or any other theory. The host professor of this course has also contacted Falun Dafa practitioners and asked them to prepare a symposium next month, to help students better understand the practice and the principles outlined in Zhuan Falun.

Attempts by Jiang Zemin's regime to prevent a Falun Dafa float from being in a Christmas parade backfire:

Practitioners of Falun Dafa in Hamilton, New Zealand, were almost cancelled out of the Christmas parade because officials from the Chinese Embassy were pressuring the Mayor and parade organizers. Luckily, the parade had to be postponed for one week because of rain. This gave the local newspaper the opportunity to interview practitioners and print not just one, but two front page articles. One article detailed the unfair treatment and attempts by Jiang Zemin's regime to interfere in New Zealand affairs, and the other presented interviews with the practitioners explaining the benefits that Falun Dafa had bestowed on their lives.

The parade permit was granted, and local people along the route called out in appreciation, "Falun Gong," "Falun Dafa," "I support you," "You are doing well," and "Wonderful!"

And in this week's update from China:

The number of practitioners known to have died while in police custody is 326 as of today. However, reliable government sources inside China say the number is actually 1,600.

One out of every six Falun Gong deaths in China occurs in Shandong Province. Shandong was thrust onto the world stage when it was chronicled in a Pulitzer Prize–winning series of articles by Mr. Ian Johnson of the Wall Street Journal. Mr. Johnson’s articles focused on the stories of people like Chen Zixiu, a 58-year-old woman tortured to death in this room at a police facility. The articles also profiled the persecution of Falun Gong in the city of Weifang, an "unremarkable Chinese city" in every respect but one: "local police regularly torture residents to death."

It was recently reported that Wanjia Labour Camp was releasing practitioners when their illegal terms were over. However, FGMtv has learned that the freedom is short-lived:

Ms. Xiuyun Zuo from Jiamusi City was arrested immediately after she was released. She is currently being held at the Jiamusi Custodial Center and police are planning to send her to a labor camp once again.

In Hunan province, Ms. Zhang Li, in her thirties, was recently illegally sentenced to one year in prison by Xihu District Court in Nanchang City. In the court, she solemnly said, "Falun Dafa is good," and as a result, her sentence was extended to three years.

In Hainan province, practitioners in both Shangongli Male and Female Forced Labor Camps have not been allowed to meet with their families for four months. The camps do not allow practitioners' families to send them clothes, even though the weather is already very cold. All information regarding the practitioners is tightly blocked, so their families do not know if their loved ones are still alive.

In Jianyang City of Sichuan province, two practitioners have been given prison terms, seven sent to labor camps, and 97 others have been repeatedly detained for total of 138 times. Four practitioners have been expelled from the Communist party, five have been dismissed from their civil jobs, and six have had their pensions suspended. 39 practitioners have been extorted out of more than 200,000 Yuan. Seven practitioners have been detained for long periods of time without legal procedures.

And finally, a very short story from a village in China: One day last May, a fire broke out on the side of a road in a mountainous area of northeastern China. As the area was heavily wooded, the fire quickly spread out of control. All of the village officials and people of the township rushed to the scene and tried to organize the villagers to put it out. (We aren't able to bring you a photo from China, but Ken Roberts, a firefighter from Arizona, took this photo that will give you an idea of just how difficult it is to extinguish a forest fire)

Several Falun Gong practitioners participated in the fire fighting and were always the ones who rushed to the very front. Wherever the fire was burning the hottest, there they were. By the time the fire was finally put out, all of their clothes were charred. At that point, the head of the township approached a Falun Gong practitioner and asked him, "Are you still practicing Falun Gong?" The practitioner firmly replied, "This practice is so good. How is it possible for me not to practice it? Do you know why we were so brave today? That is the mighty power of Dafa. We start from being good people and try to be kind in everything that we do. If everyone were like this, how wonderful this world would be!" The general secretary of the township's branch of the government Party declared in front of everyone, "Today, you proved with your own actions how kind you are. From this moment on, I will make it legal for you to go ahead and continue practicing Falun Gong within the township. I will not interfere with your practice. This is one thing that I can guarantee." Another official said, "Next time you go to Beijing to appeal for Falun Gong, I will drive a car to Beijing myself to bring you back."

Thanks for watching FGMTV, dedicated to breaking through China's information blockade, revealing propaganda, and bringing you the truth of Falun Gong.