The Falun Dafa Association of Victoria is somewhat perturbed by certain comments, attributed to yourself, made in an interview with the Chinese newspaper Sin Chew Daily and reported in The Star.

We wish to respectfully point out that Falun Dafa (often referred to as Falun Gong) has never been against the Government of China or attempted: “to get involved in the Chinese Government’s politics”. We simply wish for the persecution to end, which is correctly judged by most commentators to be a human rights, not a political, issue. The architect of the persecution has always been Jiang Zemin, and that is why he is the target of the various legal cases that have been filed around the world charging him with genocide and crimes against humanity. It is a matter of public record that when President Hu visited Australia late last year there was no Falun Gong ‘protest’ aimed at him. Similarly, American practitioners of Falun Gong held banners welcoming Premier Wen during his recent visit to the US.

We could not help but notice the persistent use of the word ‘sect’ to describe Falun Gong in the aforementioned article. Definitions of the word vary slightly depending on the language, but a ‘sect’ is generally understood as being a splinter group of an existing religion. Although certainly a spiritual practice, Falun Gong is not a religion in the formal sense and certainly not a spin-off from Buddhism or Taoism for instance. In fact it is the heir of a unique tradition, secretly passed from a Master to single disciple over thousands of years, before being adapted for the general public by Mr Li Hongzhi and launched in 1992. The term ‘sect’ also has a derogatory connotation in some languages (eg. French and German) so we generally ask people not to use it to describe us.

Falun Gong is a peaceful spiritual practice that improves health and moral character. It is practised by tens of millions of people in more than 60 countries and has received over 700 proclamations and letters of support from mayors and government officials in North America alone. Its founder, Mr. Li Hongzhi, is a three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee.

We assure the Malaysian Government that Falun Gong practitioners wish only the best for China, the country in which our practice has ancient roots. Yet we are obliged to point out that reports of atrocities and deaths of practitioners by torture arrive almost daily. We believe that any country that cherishes freedom and justice, such as Malaysia, has a moral role to play in its relationship with a country such as China that engages in such appalling treatment of human beings.

Falun Gong is legally recognized and welcomed everywhere, except in China, where it is ruthlessly persecuted. Despite worldwide support, appeals, and condemnation by many countries and human rights organizations, this persecution has persisted for four and a half years. This is not merely a Falun Gong issue or a China issue. It is, in essence, about upholding the fundamental principles espoused in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention against Torture. It is therefore an issue of global concern to all human beings of conscience.

We trust that any misunderstandings between the Malaysian Ministry of Home Affairs and the Malaysian Falun Gong Practitioners will be immediately resolved and that a cordial relationship will prevail.

For your reference, we have attached a copy of Concurrent Resolution 188, which was passed unanimously in the U.S. House of Representatives in July 2002 to call for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong, and for the investigation of illegal activities taken by Chinese government agents. Chinese agents have also attempted to make trouble for Falun Dafa practitioners in Australia and throughout the world. Also attached is a copy of the Resolution passed by the Australian Senate last December.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Pearson-Smith, Phd.,

Public Officer, Falun Dafa Association of Victoria.