In the West, some observers, including journalists and academics, view the movement as a bizarre mixture of calisthenics and Eastern philosophy that can hardly be taken seriously. But that's not how the Chinese Politburo sees it.
Politburo members think about nothing so much as maintaining their power. And what they have told us by their actions is that they believe Falun Gong to be a dangerous threat to their regime. Their savage repression of Falun Gong over the last year shows just how much they fear it.
Why does this religious group terrify China's rulers?
The Chinese regime is facing a crisis of legitimacy. Its right to rule is based on Marxism-Leninism and Maoism, yet few believe in the old Maoist ideology any longer. How, then, can the communist system and the absence of freedom now be justified?
China's rulers are trying to provide an answer that appeals above all to pragmatism: Allow us to rule because only we can provide stability and prosperity. Of course, the Chinese people know that stability and prosperity do not require repression. They see democracy and stability in Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan, as well as in the West. Indeed, with the introduction of the Internet and satellite television, more Chinese know more about freedom in the world than ever before.
All this has led to the demise of communism as a belief system that offered credible answers to the population's existential questions. But since individuals need to believe in something, the Politburo's great concern now is that the vast population they control will seek answers in other systems, such as Christianity--or Falun Gong. Viewed in this light, it is no surprise that repression of religious freedom in China has gotten much worse in recent years.
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom reported last year that "the government of China and the Communist Party of China discriminate, harass, incarcerate, and torture people on the basis of their religion and beliefs." The State Department's most recent report on human rights, issued in late February 2001, said this about religion in China in the year 2000: "During the year, the Government's respect for religious freedom continued to deteriorate. The Government intensified its harsh crackdown against the Falun Gong movement and extended its actions to 'cults' in general. Various sources report that approximately 100 or more Falun Gong adherents died during the year while in police custody; many of their bodies reportedly bore signs of severe beatings or torture, or were cremated before relatives could examine them. A number of...Protestant house-church groups were banned. House-church groups in northeastern China reported more detentions and arrests than in recent years, and in some areas officials destroyed hundreds of unregistered houses of worship."
