LONDON, UK / AGILITYPR.NEWS / July 14, 2020 / The spread of Covid-19, attacks on democracy in Hong Kong and ongoing human rights violations, are just some of the recent events that are causing increasing levels of concern over the intentions of the Chinese government. A distinguished panel of speakers, brought together by the Falun Dafa Association UK, will be discussing what these events can teach us about the internal workings of the Chinese Communist Party and why such an understanding is essential to the future of UK-Sino relations at a webinar on Monday, Jul 20, 2020.

For three decades, Western governments have pursued a policy of strategic cooperation with the CCP, in the hope that by trading and engaging closely with China, it would open up and move towards democracy. If anything, however, the CCP has become more openly authoritarian.

Whether the CCP presents itself as a ‘peaceful riser’ or a ‘wolf warrior’, a ‘gradualist’ or an ‘expansionist’, the fundamental nature of the CCP, and its intention to achieve dominance in the world, has been consistent. Failure to understand this and misreading the actions of the Party, will inevitably lead to potentially devastating consequences. 

July 20, 2020, marks the 21st year of persecution of Falun Dafa followers by the CCP. In order to mark this anniversary, the Falun Dafa Association UK has organised this webinar to discuss the actions of the CCP from different angles. The UK is at a crossroads with China and this is the perfect time to gain a better understanding of the nature of the Chinese regime. We need this understanding in order to develop relationships with China that protect and preserve our own interests and values – before it is too late.

Dr Wei Liu, Chair of the Falun Dafa Association UK, said: "For twenty-one years the Chinese Communist Party has waged a horrific crackdown on the Buddhist practice called Falun Gong. Since the start of this persecution, unknown thousands of Falun Gong followers have been killed and hundreds of thousands imprisoned by the CCP. Among the CCP's long list of crimes, the vilest must be its killing of prisoners of conscience for their organs. The CCP does not care for its citizens except in how they may serve the CCP. Since Falun Gong practitioners refuse to give up their faith, the CCP destroys them – and makes a tidy profit on top."

The webinar will be addressed by the following speakers:

Mr David Matas, CM 

International human rights lawyer, author and researcher based in Winnipeg. He served the Canadian government in many positions including as member of the Canadian delegation to the United Nations Conference on an International Criminal Court. He has received many awards, including the Manitoba Bar Association Distinguished Service Award, the Order of Canada, the Canadian Bar Association National Citizenship and Immigration Section Achievement Award, and the International Society for Human Rights Swiss Section Human Rights Prize.

In 2006 Mr Matas co-authored the investigative report “Bloody Harvest: Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China” and was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for this work. In 2016, he co-authored “An Update to Bloody Harvest and The Slaughter”. The report meticulously examines the transplant programs of hundreds of hospitals in China.

Dr. Robert Spalding, BGen, USAF (Ret'd)

A national security policy strategist globally recognised for his knowledge of Chinese economic competition and influence. He has served in senior positions of strategy and diplomacy within the U.S. Defence and State Departments for more than 26 years, retiring as brigadier general. He is a former Senior Director for Strategy to the U.S. President at the National Security Council and China strategist for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Joint Staff at the Pentagon, as well as having served as the senior defence official and defence attaché in Beijing. 

He is a Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute & Henry Jackson Society in London. Dr Spalding holds a doctorate in economics and mathematics and is fluent in Mandarin. His book, “Stealth War: How China Took Over While America’s Elite Slept”, is an executive summary of his almost decade-long work countering Chinese Communist Party influence. 

Mr Benedict Rogers 

East Asia Team Leader at the international human rights organisation Christian Solidarity Worldwide, co-founder and Deputy Chair of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission and a member of the advisory group of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC). He is also the co-founder and Chair of Hong Kong Watch, which he launched in December 2017 after he was denied entry to the region, where he had lived for five years, because of his criticism of China’s threat to democracy in Hong Kong and his support of imprisoned pro-democracy activists. He is a former Parliamentary candidate and author of six books.

Mr Elmer Gongyi Yuen

A Hong Kong businessman and political commentator. He is the CEO of Golden Bridge Technology Inc, a successful entrepreneur and one of the first businessmen to open up a factory in China in the 1970s. He is now forsaking his interests and relationships in mainland China and is one of the very few businessmen to openly condemn the National Security Law and campaign for Hong Kong’s freedom and democracy. 

The webinar will be moderated by Ms Rosemary Byfield from the Falun Dafa Association.

The Falun Dafa Association will be releasing its new report on the situation faced by Falun Gong adherents in the UK. Additionally, a new global report published by Minghui.org entitled “20 years’ Persecution of Falun Gong in China” will be made available.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

For media information contact:

heather@thereputationpeople.com, +447340158049

For full description of the event and registration please click here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/understanding-the-chinese-communist-party-lessons-for-the-free-world-tickets-111947195074?aff=prh

About the Falun Dafa Association UK

The date of 20 July holds a special significance for Falun Dafa adherents. It was on 20 July 1999 when the Chinese Communist Party began its brutal persecution of Falun Dafa. Jiang Zemin gave the directive to “Destroy their reputations, cut them off financially, and eradicate them physically.” Overnight tens of millions of peaceful citizens became enemies of the state with no civil rights. 

Twenty-one years later the persecution not only continues unabated, but the CCP has spread it globally. Although the CCP has treated Falun Dafa horrifically, the response from Falun Dafa has always been peaceful.

In more recent years, it has become widely known that practitioners of Falun Gong have been targeted for forced organ harvesting by the CCP. The China Tribunal, an independent tribunal chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice QC, concluded that:

“Forced organ harvesting has been committed for years throughout China on a significant scale and … Falun Gong practitioners have been one – and probably the main – source of organ supply.”

The CCP’s behaviour and ideology has remained constant over the decades despite any attempts to encourage change. Falun Dafa adherents’ extensive experience with the CCP can help Western governments understand it better.

About Falun Dafa/ Falun Gong

Falun Dafa, also known as Falun Gong, is an ancient Buddhist practice that involves meditation, gentle exercises, and teaches the principles of truthfulness, compassion and tolerance. Its adherents come from all cultures, genders, socio-economic classes and reside all over the world. They are united in this peaceful practice, wishing only to be kinder people and strive for a world where people are free and can practise the faith of their choice.