Overview

Falun Gong is one of a variety of Chinese health and spiritual practices known loosely as

“qigong.” Falun Gong literally means "the Practice of the Wheel of the Dharma." Falun Gong

refers to five sets of exercises, done to Chinese music and involving postures and hand

movements. Falun Dafa is the spiritual movement that practices Falun Gong. Increasingly, the

movement itself is being called Falun Gong. Falun Gong emphasizes on moral rectitude, referred

to by its supporters as “self-cultivation,” or “cultivation” for short. Three values—truth,

compassion, and tolerance—form the backbone of Falun Gong’s philosophy. People who practice

the art aspire to live by such values in their daily lives, achieving, over time, a state of

selflessness and inner balance.

Beliefs and Practices

Aside from its popularity (70-100 million by most accounts), what is usually said to

distinguish Falun Gong is its emphasis on moral rectitude, referred to by its practitioners as “self-

cultivation,” or “cultivation” for short. Three values—truth, compassion, and tolerance—form the

backbone of Falun Gong’s philosophy. Practitioners of the art aspire to live by such values in their

daily lives, achieving, over time, a state of selflessness and inner balance.

Outlawed

The group was outlawed on July 22 ,1999. The government accused it of spreading

fallacies, hoodwinking people, inciting and creating disturbances and jeopardizing social stability.

On July 29 1999, Chinese authorities issued an arrest warrant for Master Li. According to the

official Xinhua News Agency, the Ministry of Public Security in Beijing said sect founder Li

Hongzhi "spread superstition and malicious fallacies to deceive people, resulting in the deaths of

many practitioners." He is also accused of organizing demonstrations without first applying for

permits.

Millions of Falun Dafa books and tapes have been publicly burned and destroyed. Access to all

Internet websites regarding Falun Dafa have been blocked or jammed in China. Practitioners are

denied legal representation and have received sentences up to 18 years in prison. Thousands of

others are sent to forced labor camps with no trial at all.To date, there are more than 596

documented cases of otherwise healthy practitioners being beaten and tortured to death while in

detention.

The U.S. House and Senate unanimously passed resolutions on November 18, 1999 and

November 19 which criticized the Chinese government for its crackdown of the Falun Gong.

"Both resolutions urge the Chinese government to honor the Universal Declaration of Human

Rights that it has signed, to stop arresting, detaining and persecuting Falun Gong practitioners, to

release all detained dissidents, and to respect the basic human rights such as freedom of belief

and freedom of speech."1

Concerns

The concerns of the Falun Gong include the violations of Human Rights in many regions of

China. Religious belief, physical health, and the freedom to travel all are basic human rights that

people should be granted. These violations should be addressed and changed to show respect for all

human life.

Protests

The Falun Gong fight injustices against them by gathering and protesting different events. Their protests

include sitting in a circle and meditating outside of an establishment.

Resources

1. http://www.religioustolerance.org/falungong.htm

2. www.apologeticsindex.org/f02.html

3. http://www.falundafa.org/eng/index_en.htm

4. http://www.gluckman.com/FalunGong.html

5. http://www.freedomforum.org/templates/document.asp?documentID=5961