A CRISIS OF FAITH

July 30, 1999
		This week the Chinese government demanded that the U.S. extradite the leader of Chinese meditation group Falun Gong. After a background report, Liu Xiaoming of the Chinese Embassy discusses China's actions toward the spritual group. Then Erping Zhang, a volunteer spokesman for Falun Gong, discusses his organization's views and their impact in China.

July 30, 1999: A Chinese embassy official explains the Falun Gong crackdown. July 23, 1999: China begins crackdown on Falun Gong. July 23, 1999: Hong Kong Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa on Taiwan and the one-country, two-systems policy. June 12, 1998: Anson Chan discusses Hong Kong's relationship with China. May 25, 1998: Martin Lee on Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement. Sept. 11, 1997: Pro-democracy activist Emily Lau criticizes Hong Kong's government. Sept. 10, 1997: A conversation with Hong Kong's chief executive. July 25, 1997: Hong Kong's housing crisis tests its relationship with China. July 3, 1997: Our correspondents in Hong Kong answer your questions about the handover and the territory's future. June 30, 1997: A panel discussion on the meaning of the Hong Kong handover. May 17, 1996: A discussion on U.S. - China relations March 26, 1996: Taiwan holds its first democratic elections. Browse the NewsHour's coverage of Asia.	ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: And now for the Falun Gong view, we turn to Erping Zhang, a volunteer spokesman for the organization. He was born in China in 1961 and came to the United States in 1984 to study and then stayed. He is a U.S. citizen. Thank you for being with us. ERPING ZHANG, Falun Gong Practitioner: Thank you.
	Responding to government charges
	ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: You heard what Mr. Liu said. Let's start with the charge that you really are an organization, that it's not right to say that you're just a group that practices these exercises, that you're pretty well organized. ERPING ZHANG: I was astonished to hear that a representative from the Chinese embassy telling lies in front of the camera and to the public. And we have no organization whatsoever. In fact, we have applied to various agencies in the government in China for a registration but we have never received any response. That's why we have never got registered. And here in the United States, we don't have an office, we don't have a phone line. We have Web sites though. But Web sites are being attacked with a Chinese virus, a Channel 11 TV reporter told me yesterday that it's being attacked with a virus. Today a Japanese reporter told me the same story. It's being attacked by a virus. And they are using very low means to block the western media to China. Why are they afraid of the truth being told to the people? ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: Why do you think they're afraid of the truth being told to the people? ERPING ZHANG: Because if everyone knows the truth of the story, people will not believe the story fabricated by the Chinese government against the founder of Falun Gong, Mr. Li Hongzhi, all about Falun Gong. Falun Gong is a traditional qigong practice with the virtues of -
	"An exercise of mind and body"
	ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: A traditional qigong practice. Explain that, the energy, the body energy. ERPING ZHANG: Yes. It's an exercise of mind and body like tai chi except they have different forms of movement. These practices have been passed on for centuries. People treasure those traditional culture heritage -- together with its fundamental human virtues of truth, compassion and tolerance. What is so evil about it? ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: All right. And now the charge that the government makes is that because people are told to follow this practice, they aren't seeking medical help and that people have died because of this, even committed suicide because of this. Could you explain that. And I did notice, by the way, on your fact sheet that you do say that qigong has a healing effect and that it sometimes can heal illnesses. ERPING ZHANG: Yes. Actually in the books and in the lectures we have a recording and the books are published in German, French, English, you know, abroad. You can search all the books and the lectures. Nowhere can you find such words that Falun Gong is against people going to hospital. In fact, Mr. Li said clearly people, you know, should seek hospital treatment if they want to because hospitals can treat illnesses. And he never forbids people to do that. In terms of people who commit suicide or do anything wrong, you know, we always say that people with a mental illness or with a critical illness that they - should not practice Falun Gong or qigong or tai chi or -- because people with mental illness cannot control themselves. And I cannot believe that a national pastime qigong practice in the morning, in the parks will be -- this right will be taken away by our government simply because they are traditional values. Think about baseball. It's its a national pastime in the United States. If the government bans baseball, people will be very upset. The same is true in China. ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: Mr. Zhang, do you have political pretensions at all? I know that the group has denied this. But you do push for certain kinds of behavior and practice, which could have political consequences, could they not? ERPING ZHANG: Not really because we have no political interest whatsoever. And we are not an organization to begin with because everyone comes and goes freely. Right now we are calling on international communities and concerned governmental agencies to help us to release tens of thousands of people being held in the heat in summer without water, food, access to toilets for several days.
	Clashes with the government
	ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: How many people do you think have been arrested? ERPING ZHANG: We cannot estimate now. We read from different reports, you know, tens of thousands people, over 30 cities have been detained and arrested. And this inhumane treatment to its own civilians cannot be called any justice. And what about this right to freedom of expression, freedom of beliefs and freedom of simply state clearly in the Constitution of the P.R.C.? They are not abiding by their own constitution? ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: Mr. Zhang, what do you say to people who say if you don't have any organization, how did you get 10,000 people out there outside the compound. ERPING ZHANG: What happens is -- in Tianjing, about a one-hour drive from Beijing, on the highway a few days before the event, the local authorities in Tianjing arrested, beaten up people who protest about the article which attack Falun Gong or qigong in general which fabricates stories. And because the local government will not give a proper response and using false ones against these people, therefore these people have nowhere to go but in the central government in Beijing to ask the central government to give help. They were there to present the facts because in China there was a three "no" policy at that time: No propaganda, no labeling, no attack on qigong. ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: This was a government -- You mean the government had a policy of not doing those things against qigong, the energy, the groups that practice energy, not just yours. ERPING ZHANG: Yes. ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: Go ahead. ERPING ZHANG: The local government in Tianjing attacks these protesters with arrests, with beating them up and they are violating these three "no" policies. They have nowhere to go but to the central government. If that activity was really organized, we know there are millions of people who practice Falun Gong -- it would not be only a matter of 10,000. It would be a matter of millions of people in Beijing. Mr. Liu said about blocking traffic. In fact, we have pictures. These people were sitting on the walkways and they even picked up the cigarettes left by the policemen. The policemen were moved and the empty was left very clean when they left the compound. ELIZABETH FARNSWORTH: All right. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Zhang, for being with us. ERPING ZHANG: Thank you.