Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2002, Page 64
group's name. Within seconds, police rushed over, tore down the banner, and pushed the
two men into a nearby van as scores of curious Chinese tourists watched. The men
identified themselves as Levi Browde, 29, a software expert from New York, and Jason
Loftus, 22, an engineering student from Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Falun Gong activists
abroad deny the people involved were followers and suggest Chinese officials staged the
event. (Reuters, 1/22/02. Internet AP, 2/11/02, Internet)
Hunger-Striking Falun Gong Member Dies /China
Wan Guifu, 57, a member of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement, died Dec. 18 at
the hospital of the Dashaping labor camp in the city of Lanzhou, according to authorities.
Falun Gong says that 335 detained members have died of abuse since the group was
banned in 1999. The government denies mistreating detainees, and says followers have
died of ill health or committed suicide. Wan was detained for distributing Falun Gong
materials in Lanzhou, according to Falun Gong, and the retired autoworker stopped eating
Oct. 15 to protest his confinement. (AP, 1/2/02)
Falun Gong Detainees Brainwashed? /China
Reports that Falun Gong followers were being tortured in Chinese jails prompted Teng
Chunyan to risk all and come home from New York City. Now she, too, is in prison, but
insists she cherishes every moment there. Teng said she has undergone a radical "mental
transformation.'' No longer a crusader, she says Falun Gong is a cult that brainwashed her.
"I really treasure each day of my time here,'' said Teng, dressed in a blue prison uniform. "I
think it's all the start of a new life. It's given me many opportunities to learn things that I
didn't know before.'' Her friends are shocked. They suspect that 38-year-old Teng, who
lived in the New York City borough of Queens and ran a successful acupuncture clinic on
Manhattan's Fifth Avenue, has been abused and forced to recant. (AP, 1/6/02, Internet)
Meanwhile Trinity College (Dublin) student and Falun Gong practitioner who has been
imprisoned in a Chinese labor camp for more than two years will be freed in March,
according to the Department for Foreign Affairs, which said that Chinese authorities agreed
to release Zhao Ming during Irish government minister Brian Cowen's trip to the country.
Zhao was studying computer sciences in Dublin when he was arrested during a visit to
China in 1999. The government agreed to release Zhao because he has been sufficiently
"re-educated." His supporters in Ireland say that the 30-year-old student was forced to
undergo "brainwashing" sessions and forced to stand still for up to 18 hours a day. Both the
Taoiseach [prime minister], Bertie Ahern, and President Mary McAleese raised the case with
Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji during his controversial visit to Ireland last year. (online.ie,
1/25/02, Internet)
Falun Gong Called "Terrorist Cult" /China
China's government considers Falun Gong, which involves exercises and meditation, a
dangerous cult that undermines Communist Party authority. Police have detained thousands
of Chinese followers in Tiananmen Square. "Faced with the cult's attacks, we must stay on
high alert," said the party-run People's Daily in an editorial. "Only when it is thoroughly
rooted out can social harmony and tranquility come in exchange." (Reuters, 1/22/02.
Internet AP, 2/11/02, Internet)
Beijing is trying to legitimize its two-year crackdown on Falun Gong by placing it in the
same category as terrorist organizations. In a three-day national conference on religion that
ended on Wednesday, leaders repeatedly said Falun Gong was not a religion but an evil cult,
with some members practicing violent and terrorist acts. The state propaganda machine
reinforced the conference's message by broadcasting that a fanatical Falun Gong
practitioner in Hainan was arrested on Tuesday for killing his uncle with a kitchen knife so
they could attain salvation.
group's name. Within seconds, police rushed over, tore down the banner, and pushed the
two men into a nearby van as scores of curious Chinese tourists watched. The men
identified themselves as Levi Browde, 29, a software expert from New York, and Jason
Loftus, 22, an engineering student from Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Falun Gong activists
abroad deny the people involved were followers and suggest Chinese officials staged the
event. (Reuters, 1/22/02. Internet AP, 2/11/02, Internet)
Hunger-Striking Falun Gong Member Dies /China
Wan Guifu, 57, a member of the banned Falun Gong spiritual movement, died Dec. 18 at
the hospital of the Dashaping labor camp in the city of Lanzhou, according to authorities.
Falun Gong says that 335 detained members have died of abuse since the group was
banned in 1999. The government denies mistreating detainees, and says followers have
died of ill health or committed suicide. Wan was detained for distributing Falun Gong
materials in Lanzhou, according to Falun Gong, and the retired autoworker stopped eating
Oct. 15 to protest his confinement. (AP, 1/2/02)
Falun Gong Detainees Brainwashed? /China
Reports that Falun Gong followers were being tortured in Chinese jails prompted Teng
Chunyan to risk all and come home from New York City. Now she, too, is in prison, but
insists she cherishes every moment there. Teng said she has undergone a radical "mental
transformation.'' No longer a crusader, she says Falun Gong is a cult that brainwashed her.
"I really treasure each day of my time here,'' said Teng, dressed in a blue prison uniform. "I
think it's all the start of a new life. It's given me many opportunities to learn things that I
didn't know before.'' Her friends are shocked. They suspect that 38-year-old Teng, who
lived in the New York City borough of Queens and ran a successful acupuncture clinic on
Manhattan's Fifth Avenue, has been abused and forced to recant. (AP, 1/6/02, Internet)
Meanwhile Trinity College (Dublin) student and Falun Gong practitioner who has been
imprisoned in a Chinese labor camp for more than two years will be freed in March,
according to the Department for Foreign Affairs, which said that Chinese authorities agreed
to release Zhao Ming during Irish government minister Brian Cowen's trip to the country.
Zhao was studying computer sciences in Dublin when he was arrested during a visit to
China in 1999. The government agreed to release Zhao because he has been sufficiently
"re-educated." His supporters in Ireland say that the 30-year-old student was forced to
undergo "brainwashing" sessions and forced to stand still for up to 18 hours a day. Both the
Taoiseach [prime minister], Bertie Ahern, and President Mary McAleese raised the case with
Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji during his controversial visit to Ireland last year. (online.ie,
1/25/02, Internet)
Falun Gong Called "Terrorist Cult" /China
China's government considers Falun Gong, which involves exercises and meditation, a
dangerous cult that undermines Communist Party authority. Police have detained thousands
of Chinese followers in Tiananmen Square. "Faced with the cult's attacks, we must stay on
high alert," said the party-run People's Daily in an editorial. "Only when it is thoroughly
rooted out can social harmony and tranquility come in exchange." (Reuters, 1/22/02.
Internet AP, 2/11/02, Internet)
Beijing is trying to legitimize its two-year crackdown on Falun Gong by placing it in the
same category as terrorist organizations. In a three-day national conference on religion that
ended on Wednesday, leaders repeatedly said Falun Gong was not a religion but an evil cult,
with some members practicing violent and terrorist acts. The state propaganda machine
reinforced the conference's message by broadcasting that a fanatical Falun Gong
practitioner in Hainan was arrested on Tuesday for killing his uncle with a kitchen knife so
they could attain salvation.
