overseas media on Falun Gong

Chinese Ambassador Qiao Zonghuai on Thursday briefed press officers of other permanent missions based in Geneva on China's policy toward and its handling of the Falun Gong evil cult.

At the briefing, Qiao compared Falun Gong with other cults like the People's Temple, the Branch Davidians, Aum Shinrikyo and the Gate to Heaven, which have led hundreds of people to suicides, violated fundamental human rights and brought about appalling human tragedies.

"Falun Gong is not only an evil cult of this kind, but also the largest and most deceptive and destructive cult in the world in terms of its membership and extension of disasters it has caused to society and people," said the Chinese ambassador.

Like all other cults, Li Hongzhi, the leader of the Falun Gong cult, fabricated a series of heresies to deify himself and exercise spiritual control of his followers. He preached about the "doomsday" and "catastrophe for mankind."

Deceived by such fallacies, many Falun Gong practitioners refused to see doctor or take medicine when they fell ill and finally died. Incomplete statistics show that the cult has killed 1,660 practitioners or innocent people.

On January 23, seven Falun Gong practitioners set themselves on fire on the Tiananmen Square in order to achieve the so-called " fulfillment," among whom is a girl of only 12 years of age.

"Those shocking incidents aroused great public indignation and have further revealed the anti-mankind, anti-society and anti- science nature of the Falun Gong cult," Qiao said.

At the request of the general public and in order to maintain social stability and safeguard fundamental human rights and freedoms, the Chinese government banned Falun Gong in July 1999, he said. The Chinese government has taken this action entirely on the basis of law and in full compliance with legal procedures.

"Our policy has been proved correct and successful," Qiao said. "Now, 98 percent of the estimated two million Falun Gong practitioners have waken up and broken away from the cult. Only a tiny number of Falun Gong practitioners have been punished simply because they have engaged in criminal activities in violation of law."

China's banning and cracking down on cults has won full support from the Chinese people and extensive understanding from the international community.

Nevertheless, Qiao noted, certain forces have applied double standards on the issue of cults and made accusations against the way the Chinese government has handled Falun Gong.

"They not only turn a blind eye to the monstrous crimes committed by Falun Gong and even defend the cult as a peaceful spiritual movement, and try to make China's handling of the cult as a human rights issue at the forthcoming human rights commission session," the Chinese ambassador said.

"The Chinese government resolutely opposes these anti-China attempts. And we believe that it will be futile for anyone to disrupt other countries by supporting, conniving at and capitalizing on cults," he stressed.

(Xinhua)