FALUN GONG CRACKDOWN, DAY THREE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 BEIJING 007008

NSC FOR LIEBERTHAL/KEITH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/22/2009
TAGS: PGOV PHUM SOCI CH
SUBJECT: FALUN GONG CRACKDOWN, DAY THREE

REFS: A) BEIJING 6941, B) FBIS OW2207035699,

(U) CLASSIFIED BY JAMES F. MORIARTY, ACTING DEPUTY CHIEF
OF MISSION. REASON: 1.5(D).

SUMMARY
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1. (C) IMPLEMENTING A DECISION OF THE POLITBURO STANDING
COMMITTEE, THE CHINESE GOVERNMENT ON JULY 22 OFFICIALLY
ANNOUNCED A BAN ON THE FALUN GONG SECT, DECLARING IT AN
"ILLEGAL" ORGANIZATION. THOUSANDS OF SECT MEMBERS TOOK
TO BEIJING'S STREETS IN DEMONSTRATIONS THAT WERE
NOTEWORTHY FOR THE GENERAL RESTRAINT AMONG PROTESTERS AND
POLICE ALIKE. FEW PRACTITIONERS OFFERED RESISTANCE AS
POLICE CORRALLED AND LOADED THEM ONTO BUSES. MANY
REPORTEDLY ARE BEING HELD IN STADIUMS IN WESTERN BEIJING,
ALTHOUGH FOR NOW WE BELIEVE THESE ARE TEMPORARY HOLDING
SITES, FROM WHICH PROTESTERS WILL SOON BE SENT HOME. THE
REGIME'S STRATEGY APPEARS TO BE TO SEEK TO NEUTRALIZE THE
FALUN GONG BY DECAPITATING ITS CORE LEADERSHIP, WHILE
REFRAINING FROM REPRESSION OF ORDINARY MEMBERS. ALTHOUGH
BEIJING CLEARLY HOPES THAT THE CULT WILL DISAPPEAR
WITHOUT RESISTANCE, IT MAY HAVE TO RECONSIDER THIS
STRATEGY IF PRACTITIONERS CONTINUE TO TAKE TO THE STREETS
AND GATHER IN PARKS FOR DAILY EXERCISES. END SUMMARY.

FALUN GONG OFFICIALLY ILLEGAL
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2. (C) DURING A NATIONAL BROADCAST AT 3:00 P.M. ON JULY
22, CHINA CENTRAL TELEVISION (CCTV) ANNOUNCED AN OFFICIAL
BAN ON THE FALUN GONG MOVEMENT. CCTV READ A CIRCULAR
ISSUED BY THE MINISTRIES OF CIVIL AFFAIRS AND PUBLIC
SECURITY WHICH DECLARED THAT FALUN GONG WAS AN "ILLEGAL"
ORGANIZATION AND BANNED FURTHER PUBLIC GATHERINGS.
CHINESE MEDIA REPORTEDLY PLAN TO REPEAT THE ANNOUNCEMENT
REGULARLY OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS. AN MFA SPOKESWOMAN
ALSO ANNOUNCED THE BAN DURING THE MINISTRY'S REGULAR
PRESS BRIEFING THIS AFTERNOON.

POLITBURO STANDING COMMITTEE DECISION
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3. (C) ACCORDING TO A WELL-CONNECTED SOURCE, THE
POLITBURO STANDING COMMITTEE APPROVED THE SUPPRESSION OF
FALUN GONG DURING A JULY 19 MEETING. AS REPORTED REF A,
SECURITY FORCES ARRESTED DOZENS OF SECT LEADERS
NATIONWIDE THE NEXT DAY. AS OF JULY 21, GOVERNMENT AND
PARTY OFFICIALS HAD BEGUN TO ATTEND MANDATORY SESSIONS TO
STUDY AN AUTHORITATIVE STATEMENT ON THE FALUN GONG
DELIVERED BY STANDING COMMITTEE MEMBER HU JINTAO ON JULY

19. HU REPORTEDLY ASSERTED THAT THERE WERE 2.1 MILLION
FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS, OF WHOM ONE-THIRD WERE PARTY
MEMBERS. THE OFFICIAL GUIDANCE INSTRUCTED PARTY MEMBERS
WHO PRACTICED FALUN GONG EITHER TO HALT THEIR INVOLVEMENT
IN THE SECT OR RESIGN FROM THE PARTY. THOSE WHO FAILED
TO COMPLY WOULD BE EXPELLED FROM THE PARTY.

JIANG "PREOCUPPIED" BY FALUN GONG
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4 (C) IN HIS STATEMENT, HU JINTAO REPORTEDLY CITED KEY
REMARKS ON THE FALUN GONG BY PARTY GENERAL SECRETARY
JIANG ZEMIN. ACCORDING TO OUR SOURCE, JIANG ASSERTED
THAT HE HAD RECENTLY BEEN "PREOCCUPIED" WITH THE PROBLEM
OF FALUN GONG BECAUSE ITS FOUNDER, LI HONGZHI, WAS A
"SWINDLER OF THE HIGHEST ORDER." THE PARTY GENERAL
SECRETARY REPORTEDLY ACCUSED LI HONGZHI OF EXPLOITING
"DECEITFUL TRICKS AND HERESY TO CONFUSE PEOPLE AND TALK
NONSENSE." "SOME" PRACTITIONERS, JIANG CLAIMED,
"OBSTINATELY STUCK TO THE WRONG COURSE," AND FALUN GONG
WAS AN "IMMENSELY HARMFUL" (WEIHAI JIDA) GROUP.

FOCUSING ON THE LEADERSHIP
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5. (C) MEDIA REPORTS SUGGESTED THAT THE CHINESE
GOVERNMENT HAD DETAINED THOUSANDS ACROSS CHINA ON JULY 21
AND 22, AS PRACTITIONERS TOOK TO THE STREETS TO PROTEST
THEIR LEADERS' ARRESTS. AFP ANNOUNCED THAT LARGE
DETENTION CENTERS HAD BEEN ESTABLISHED IN STADIUMS IN
WESTERN AND SOUTHWESTERN BEIJING (REF B). OUR WELL-
CONNECTED CONTACT PREDICTED THAT THE AUTHORITIES WOULD
RELEASE THE OVERWHELMING MAJORITY OF THESE PERSONS.
CITING A TRADITIONAL CHINESE SAYING THAT A MASS OF
DRAGONS WAS EASILY COWED WHEN IT HAD NO LEADERS (QUN LONG
WU SHOU),HE ASSERTED THAT BEIJING BELIEVED THE SECT
COULD EASILY BE CONTROLLED ONCE ITS CORE LEADERSHIP WAS
NEUTRALIZED. HU JINTAO, HE NOTED, HAD DECLARED THAT THE
PARTY INTENDED TO STRIKE HARD AGAINST "A VERY SMALL
NUMBER" OF PRACTITIONERS.

FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS: BUSINESS AS USUAL
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6. (C) DESPITE THE CRACKDOWN, HUNDREDS OF FALUN GONG
MEMBERS AGAIN GATHERED IN MAJOR CITY PARKS THIS MORNING
TO CONDUCT THEIR DAILY PROGRAM. POLOFFS OBSERVED GROUPS
NUMBERING AS MANY AS THREE HUNDRED IN THE TEMPLE OF
EARTH, TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, AND PURPLE BAMBOO GARDEN PARKS
(IN NORTHERN, WESTERN, AND SOUTHERN BEIJING,
RESPECTIVELY). AS USUAL, PRACTITIONERS OF OTHER SCHOOLS
OF QIGONG REMAINED DISTINCTLY SEPARATE FROM THE FALUN
GONG AND EACH OTHER. IN THE TEMPLE OF EARTH PARK, POLOFF
WATCHED AS PLAINCLOTHES SECURITY PERSONNEL OBSERVED AND
VIDEOTAPED FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS. APPARENTLY
UNCONCERNED ABOUT THIS OFFICIAL ATTENTION, THE SECT
MEMBERS WORKED THROUGH TO THE CONCLUSION OF THEIR PROGRAM
AND SOCIALIZED BRIEFLY BEFORE QUIETLY BREAKING UP.

PROTESTS NEAR ZHONGNANHAI CONTINUED
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7. (C) THE AUTHORITIES WERE, NONETHELESS, WELL-PREPARED
TO DEAL WITH CONTINUED PROTESTS. AT ABOUT 8:00 A.M.,
POLOFF OBSERVED A CROWD OF APPROXIMATELY 500
PRACTITIONERS GATHERED ON XI'ANMEN STREET NEAR THE
NORTHWESTERN CORNER OF THE ZHONGNANHAI LEADERSHIP
COMPOUND. ITS MEMBERS WERE PACKED SHOULDER-TO-SHOULDER
ABOUT FOUR TO FIVE DEEP ON THE SIDEWALK, WITH THEIR BACKS
TO THE SHOPS ALONG THE STREET. ABOUT 200 UNIFORMED
POLICE OFFICERS SURROUNDED THEM ON THE OTHER THREE SIDES.
OBSERVING THIS STAND-OFF FOR ABOUT AN HOUR, POLOFF
WITNESSED NO VIOLENCE FROM EITHER SIDE. THE
PRACTITIONERS REMAINED LARGELY SILENT, WHILE THE POLICE
OFFICERS MOSTLY CHATTED AMONG THEMSELVES. THE POLICE
PERMITTED REGULAR PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE TRAFFIC TO PASS
THE AREA UNHINDERED.

FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS ALLOWED TO COME AND GO
-------------- --


8. (C) THE ATMOSPHERE AT THIS SITE WAS COMPARATIVELY
RELAXED. IN FACT, POLICE OFFICERS PERMITTED ABOUT A
DOZEN PRACTITIONERS TO CROSS THE SECURITY PERIMETER AND
LEAVE THE SCENE AND ANOTHER DOZEN OR SO TO JOIN THE
CROWD. POLOFF OBSERVED PRACTITIONERS ENGAGING IN BANTER
AND EVEN EXTENDED CONVERSATIONS WITH POLICE OFFICERS.

FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS CHEERED AS BUSED AWAY
-------------- -


9. (C) TWO LARGE ARTICULATED BUSES ARRIVED AT THE SCENE
AT ABOUT 8:15 A.M., AND POLICE OFFICERS PROMPTLY BEGAN
LOADING THE CROWD ONTO THEM. FALUN GONG PRACTITIONERS
APPARENTLY BOARDED VOLUNTARILY. WHEN THE FULLY-LOADED
BUSES PULLED OUT, THEIR PASSENGERS AND SECT MEMBERS
REMAINING ON THE STREET CHEERED AND APPLAUDED. THIS
SCENE REPEATED ITSELF APPROXIMATELY EVERY 15 MINUTES,
UNTIL BUSES HAD CARRIED AWAY THE REMAINDER OF THE CROWD.

PROTESTERS FROM THE NORTHEAST, GOING BACK
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10. (C) DURING A BRIEF CONVERSATION WITH POLOFF, A POLICE
OFFICER ON BREAK SAID HE HAD BEEN AT THE SCENE SINCE
ABOUT 6:00 A.M. AT ITS PEAK, THE OFFICER STATED, THE
CROWD HAD TOTALED APPROXIMATELY ONE THOUSAND
PRACTITIONERS. MOST, HE STATED, WERE FROM OUTSIDE OF THE
BEIJING MUNICIPAL REGION. (AN ELDERLY RESTAURANT WORKER
SEPARATELY TOLD POLOFF THAT THE PROTESTERS WERE FROM
NORTHEASTERN CHINA). ASKED WHERE THE BUSES WERE CARRYING
THE PRACTITIONERS, THE PSB OFFICER SAID MERELY THAT THE
PROTESTERS WOULD BE SENT BACK TO WHERE THEY HAD COME
FROM.

ONE INCIDENT OF STRONG-ARM TACTICS
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11. (C) POLOFFS OBSERVED ONLY ONE ACT OF POLICE VIOLENCE
IN THE COURSE OF THE DAY. AT A POLICE STATION NEAR
ZHONGNANHAI, OFFICERS REPEATEDLY STRUCK A 60-YEAR OLD MAN
ON HIS BACK WITH A NIGHT STICK WHEN HE REFUSED TO BOARD A
BUS. THE MAN QUICKLY GAVE IN AND JOINED HIS FELLOW
PROTESTERS ON THE VEHICLE.

SCENE REPEATED THROUGHOUT THE DAY
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12. (C) WE BELIEVE THAT PROTESTS OCCURRED THROUGHOUT
BEIJING DURING THE COURSE OF JULY 22. A WESTERN NEWS
MAGAZINE'S BUREAU CHIEF TOLD US THAT SHE HAD OBSERVED
POLICE DETAIN AND BUS AWAY A CROWD THAT INITIALLY
NUMBERED ABOUT TWO THOUSAND PEOPLE. DRIVING THROUGH
DOWNTOWN BEIJING IN THE EARLY AFTERNOON, POLOFF COUNTED
DOZENS OF EMPTY BUSES PARKED ALONG CHANG'AN BOULEVARD --
THE MAIN EAST-WEST ARTERY -- IN DOWNTOWN BEIJING. THE
POLICE HAD SET UP TEMPORARY POSTS AT INTERSECTIONS, AND
POLOFF OBSERVED OFFICERS STOPPING PEDESTRIANS AND
INSPECTING THEIR IDENTIFICATION CARDS. ACROSS THE STREET
FROM THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO ZHONGNANHAI, POLOFF WATCHED AS
POLICE LOADED APPROXIMATELY EIGHT CITIZENS INTO A POLICE
VAN. TWO OF THE EIGHT BRIEFLY ARGUED WITH THE POLICE,
BUT NONE OFFERED ANY PHYSICAL RESISTANCE AND ALL QUICKLY
BOARDED THE VEHICLE.

COMMENT
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13. (C) THE CRACKDOWN ON FALUN GONG IN BEIJING TODAY
APPEARED TO BE REACTIVE, AS AUTHORITIES DETAINED
PRACTITIONERS WHO TOOK TO THE STREETS TO PROTEST THE JULY
20 ARRESTS. ALTHOUGH WE DOUBT THAT THE INCIDENT CITED IN
PARA 11 WAS THE SOLE OCCASION WHEN POLICE EMPLOYED
VIOLENCE, BOTH THE FALUN GONG AND THE POLICE DISPLAYED
NOTEWORTHY RESTRAINT IN WHAT WAS CLEARLY A POTENTIALLY
UNSTABLE SITUATION. FOR NOW, WE ARE INCLINED TO ACCEPT
OUR CONTACT'S ASSERTION THAT THE AUTHORITIES WILL SOON
RELEASE THE MANY RANK-AND-FILE FALUN GONG MEMBERS
DETAINED SO FAR DURING THE PROTESTS. THE SITUATION
NONETHELESS WILL REMAIN FLUID FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT FEW
DAYS. WHAT WILL HAPPEN, FOR INSTANCE, IF FALUN GONG
PRACTITIONERS -- HOWEVER ORDERLY -- REFUSE TO RETURN HOME
AND ABANDON THEIR PROTESTS? NOW THAT FALUN GONG
ACTIVITIES ARE BANNED, HOW WILL THE REGIME DEAL WITH CULT
MEMBERS WHO OPENLY GATHER IN PARKS TO CONDUCT DAILY
EXERCISES? BEIJING SURELY HOPES THAT THE SECT WILL GO
QUIETLY INTO THE NIGHT, BUT THIS ALMOST CERTAINLY IS
WISHFUL THINKING. ZHONGNANHAI MAY SOON DECIDE IT HAS NO
CHOICE BUT TO ABANDON ITS COMPARATIVE RESTRAINT IN FAVOR
OF A TOUGHER APPROACH.

MCCAHILL