Beijing promises to battle against Falun Gong `until the end'

The very "prosperity and stability" of modern China is at stake in the battle against the banned Falun Gong, the Chinese government is warning as it promises to renew the fight.

In a lengthy commentary carried on the official Xinhua News Agency, authorities called for a "fight until the end" against Falun Gong, which has repeatedly angered the government in recent months by hacking into Chinese television satellite signals and broadcasting its own messages.

"We should be fully aware that the fight will be long, arduous and complicated, and therefore, we must be vigilant against the Falun Gong cult and should in no way relax our efforts," it said.

It also accused Falun Gong practitioners overseas of impeding China's fight against SARS by "instigating followers at home to block the epidemic prevention" -- a charge the movement denies. Xinhua did not elaborate.

There was no indication why the Chinese government chose yesterday to distribute the commentary. But Levi Browde, a New York-based Falun Gong spokesman, suggested it was linked to recent lawsuits filed in several countries against former president Jiang Zemin (江澤民) and other top Chinese leaders.

"The purpose of this latest propaganda is to try to thwart some of the reality of what's happening in the world's courtrooms," Browde said in a telephone interview.

"In every single one of these court cases around the world, not once have they come through to defend themselves against the accusations," he said. "All they do is come forward and spew this kind of stuff."

The government banned Falun Gong in 1999, calling it an "evil cult." It has since arrested hundreds if not thousands of followers, and practitioners allege many have been tortured and in some cases murdered. The government denies killing anyone, but says some detainees have died from hunger strikes or refusing medical attention.

Xinhua said the fight against the movement is imperative "in order to ensure the prosperity and stability of the nation as well as the safe and comfortable lives of the public."

"More and more people have come to see through the anti-scientific, anti-human and anti-social nature of the cult and have devoted themselves to the struggle," Xinhua said. "Meanwhile, most of the former Falun Gong followers have shaken off the cult's spiritual control through re-education and have resumed normal life."

On several occasions, most recently last month, the government says Falun Gong interfered with TV signals transmitted via China's Sinosat communications satellite.

It says followers interrupted programming on China Central Television, China Educational Television and 10 provincial-level TV stations.

The Falun Gong movement has attracted millions of followers with a mix of traditional Chinese calisthenics and doctrines drawn from Buddhism, Taoism and the ideas of its founder, Li Hongzhi (李洪志), a former government clerk.