An envelope with an unknown white powder was sent to The Epoch Times newspaper office in Sydney on Monday, June 20. The police are investigating the incident as a possible terrorist threat, and the substance is under forensic analysis. This could be the first documented Australian media outlet which has been targeted with this form of terror.

The mail was picked up from the local post office nearby The Epoch Times office at 11:30 am. The police were contacted immediately after the letter was opened and the white substance was found.

According to Ms. Chen, one of the office staff present, “the police were very alarmed. The area surrounding the building was sealed off and the office remained shut for one hour. The police investigation lasted two hours in total, causing heavy traffic and road blocks.”

Ms. Chen stated that the envelope also contained abusive messages directed at The Epoch Times, handwritten on a pamphlet in red ink. The messages harshly criticized the “Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party,” an exclusive report first published by The Epoch Times last November. With the publication of the report some 2.4 million people have been inspired to voluntarily withdraw their membership from China’s communist regime, with an average of 30,000 per day. Among the many formally renouncing the Communist Party in China are the two defectors Chen Yonglin and Hao Fengjun who are currently in Australia. They have both provided sufficient examples and proof of foreign harassment and interference of the Chinese Government against dissidents, the Falun Gong meditation group and pro-democratic initiatives. Mr Hao specified that reading the exclusive reports provided inspiration and encouraged him to speak out about his role as one of China’s secret police (see www.theepochtimes.com.au for more details).

“This is an act of terrorism in a country that has freedom of the press like Australia.” said Mr. Kai Song, The Epoch Timess representative in Sydney. “The ‘Nine Commentaries’ have received international acclaim, but have been censored by the Chinese Communist regime. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out the motivation behind this terrorist act.”

The police are expecting to receive the results of the substance analysis within the next 24 hours. The incident is currently being investigated by local police detectives, but may be passed to the Australian anti-terrorism unit. Mr. Song said: “The Epoch Times deplores such cowardly behavior, and the authorities have our full support to investigate who is behind this.”

Headquartered in New York, The Epoch Times has become the world’s largest independent free Chinese newspaper since being established four years ago. It is available in around 30 countries, with over 60 news bureaus and 9 languages including French, German and English. A key success of the newspaper and its online version, is due to it being separate from China’s state run media. Beijing has voiced its opposition to the autonomous media and has banned and censored access to the “Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party” and Internet access of related news.

The Canadian office of NTDTV, an independent Chinese Television Broadcaster, has received suspicious letters containing unidentified white powder substances on four occasions to date.