Statesman Journal (OR): Falun Gong faithful arrive in Salem - [Practitioners] say many lives are at risk in China

TIM LaBARGE / Statesman Journal

Falun Gong [practitioners] (from left) Ping, Zhao, Liner, Yang and Lemish arrive at the Capitol after a three-day walk from Portland to Salem to raise awareness of the issues the spiritual group faces throughout the world.

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Wednesday, December 19, 2001

A handful of Falun Gong [practitioners] arrived in Salem midday Monday after a 2 1/2-day march from Portland to publicize repression against the movement in China.

"Many lives are at risk," said Zhao, a Portland State University student who helped organize the march. "By doing this walk, we hope more people will know the truth about this persecution."

Falun Gong combines [slow-moving] exercises [and] three [principles]: Truth, Compassion and Tolerance.

After its 1992 founding by Li Hongzhi, Falun Gong attracted tens of millions of [practitioners] in China. By the late-1990s, thousands of practitioners thronged to Tiananmen Square for daily group exercises. As the movement swelled, the [Jiang Zemin's] government [persecuted] the practice, ultimately banning Falun Gong in 1999.

The government was "scared of people gathering," said Zhao, one of eight people who participated in the Portland-to-Salem march and one of three who finished the entire 49-mile route, mostly along Highway 99E.

The [Jiang Zemin's] government "can't stand that people are free and have free thought," said Xiao Yang. She learned about Falun Gong on a 1996 trip to China, and now lives in Portland.

Falun Gong cured her mother's heart disease, Yang said. "It's really a miracle."

[Practitioners] say tens of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested in China, many of them detained in labor camps or mental institutions. Many have been beaten or died in custody, they said.

Li now resides in the United States, and his ideas continue to draw [practitioners] here and around the world.

In recent months, Falun Gong [practitioners] have organized a series of marches in various nations and across the United States to publicize their plight.

Marchers estimated there are only 30 people who practice Falun Gong in Oregon, and none in the Salem area.

But they hope to attract more through the Internet, one-on-one instruction and training.

About the group

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is based on an ancient Chinese practice as re-interpreted by Li Hongzhi in 1992. [Practitioners] study Li's teachings and practice five exercises.

The philosophy and practices are spelled out in nine of Li's lectures in a book called "Zhuan Falun." For more information, call [phone] or visit Falun Dafa's Web site, which has exercise music and instruction video available for download. Also check out the Oregon group's Web site.

The Falun Dafa Information Center has news and information about the practice around the world, including reports of attacks against practitioners.

http://news.statesmanjournal.com/article.cfm?i=34798