Taipei Times: Falun Gong to march in Taipei

Two followers of Falun Gong meditate and practice breathing exercises at the Taiwan Falun Gong Research Society in Taipei yesterday. The group said it, along with other Falun Gong groups from around the Asia-Pacific region, would stage a demonstration on Sunday in Taipei to denounce abuse of the group's followers in China.

Taiwan's Falun Gong followers plan a protest march on Sunday in support of their brethren in China who are facing oppression by Chinese authorities. The march will mark the first time action will have been taken in Taiwan against human rights violations by Chinese authorities on Falun Gong practitioners.

Speaking at a news conference yesterday, Chang Ching-hsi, director-general of the Taiwan Falun Gong Research Society, said they wished to voice support for an estimated 70 million Chinese Falun Gong followers and call on China's leaders to stop persecution of the group. "We believe the issue is about the struggle for basic human rights, which should precede any political consideration." Chang Ching-hsi, director-general of the Taiwan Falun Gong Research Society.

Between Dec. 23 and Dec. 24 a conference of Falun Gong practitioners in the Asia-Pacific region will be held at National Taiwan Normal University in Taipei, to share opinions and experiences. On the evening of Dec. 23 members of the group will pray for their brethren at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.

The march is scheduled for Sunday afternoon and over 3,000 Falun Gong members are expected to participate. Chang said that over 500 Falun Gong followers from around the world will join the two-day conference and some members from China will give testimony of their experience of detention and torture by Chinese police.

Falun Gong, one of the many schools of Qigong, was founded in 1992 by Li Hongzhi, a former Chinese government clerk. Since the crackdown last July, Chinese state media have kept up a steady stream of attacks on the group and its founder, who now lives in the US.

Taiwan's Falun Gong members have invited Li to the two-day affair, but were still awaiting final approval from the Council of Mainland Affairs (MAC) as of press time. Li visited Taiwan in November, 1997, following an invitation by the Taiwan publisher of his Falun Gong books. He did plan to come again in July last year after the Chinese authorities banned the group as a threat to political order. Li canceled, however, because he thought his visit might cause problems for the Taiwan authorities, according to Falun Gong members. Taiwan at that time was dealing with the political fallout with China over then-president Lee Teng-hui's announcement of a "state-to-state" model of diplomatic relations with China.

The prospect of Li's arrival has provoked the question of whether his visit may affect cross-strait relations. In response, Taiwan followers said they believe human rights concerns should come first. "Cross-strait relations are always tense, whether Master Li comes or not. And we believe the issue is about the struggle for basic human rights, which should precede any political considerations," Chang said.

Chang also said Taiwan's Falun Gong members have petitioned the Human Rights Advisory Group, headed by Vice President Annette Lu, for its support. In addition to seeking approval for Li's visit from the MAC, Chiang said they have also asked Lu to invite Li as a special state guest.

According to the latest report by Amnesty International at least 77 Falun Gong followers have died in custody, or shortly after release, in suspicious circumstances since the crackdown began in July last year. Moreover, over 25,000 Falun Gong followers in China have been sent without charge or trial to "re-education through labor" camps and over 500 have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms. Still, arrests and arbitrary detention of the group's practitioners have continued to this day, the report said.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2000/12/21/story/0000066379