Falun Gong Adherents in Canada See Spike in Harassment as Key CCP Meeting Nears

Chinese military officers march down the steps of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sept. 27, 2022. The upcoming 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is set to take place at this location on Oct. 16, 2022. AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

Beijing is reportedly ramping up harassment and persecution campaigns against dissidents at home and abroad ahead of the communist regime’s national meeting, with members of a Chinese spiritual practice and other dissidents in Canada saying they are experiencing increased assault, harassment, and intimidation.

Toronto-area resident Jeff Lee, a spokesperson for Falun Gong, a persecuted group in China, said there has been a surge in the number of incidents targeting adherents across Ontario, and that in some cases aggressors have travelled over 100 kilometres to harass adherents.

Lee said that from the evidence he has collected, he has “very good reason” to believe that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is behind the harassment and believes that the surge in the number of cases is due to the upcoming National Congress, a major national meeting of top-ranking Party members.

Held in Beijing, the week-long 20th National Congress is scheduled to begin on Oct. 16. A Party congress is held every five years and is considered one of the most important events for the CCP, with over 2,000 delegates—representing all of the Party’s 90 million members—selecting a roughly 200-member central committee, including the 25-member Politburo, the highest leadership of the party.

“Every time there is a major event in the Party, the CCP would launch mass arrests, and jailing and even killing anyone whom it deems an adversary,” Lee told The Epoch Times. “The 20th National Congress is the most important of the events that [the CCP] must ensure the security of.”

Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping speaks at the opening session of the 19th Communist Party Congress in Beijing on Oct. 18, 2017. Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

In a Sept. 27 press conference, the Chinese Ministry of Public Security, which oversees the country’s police force, touted the success of its so-called “100-Day Operation,” which has led to the arrest of more than 1.43 million people since June 25. The ministry said it resolved 640,000 criminal cases through the operation.

The Chinese-language edition of The Epoch Times learned that police also targeted many non-criminals in the sweep, including Chinese civilians, dissidents, activists, petitioners, and Falun Gong adherents.

Between July and August this year, at least 1,043 adherents of the traditional spiritual practice were arbitrarily arrested in China, according to Minghui.org, a website that documents the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong. A total of 614 homes were illegally searched and 62 people were forcefully sent to brainwashing centres, Minghui reported.

Falun Gong, also called Falun Dafa, is a spiritual practice that includes meditative exercises and moral teachings based on the tenets of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. The practice has been the primary target of a repression campaign by the CCP over the past 23 years. Reports show that adherents of the practice have been subjected to torture, sexual abuse, and even live organ harvesting.

As for the harassment incidents in Toronto, Lee said he has referred them to the RCMP and is also considering filing an application with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.

Harassment, Threats

Lee said one recent case of harassment against Falun Gong adherents in Toronto particularly stands out.

On April 4, a man wearing a mask and a baseball cap ripped a banner belonging to an adherent who was doing the Falun Gong exercises at Nathan Phillips Square in downtown Toronto.

Falun Gong practitioners hold a candlelight vigil in front of the Chinese Consulate in Toronto on July 13, 2019, holding photos of fellow adherents who had died as a result of persecution in China. Handout

“The guy walked up to the Falun Dafa banner and ripped it for no reason. He then threw the banner at me and left,” said the practitioner, known by her surname Qiao.

On Sept. 30, the same man assaulted another Falun Gong adherent in the same area, Lee said. He said the man clawed at the adherent, who tried to record the assault, but the man grabbed his smartphone. The victim managed to wrestle his phone back from the man, who then fled.

Lee said there has also been a rise in intimidation incidents against Falun Gong practitioners, including instances where a Chinese male or  female would suddenly approach them and take photos of them at close range, while sometimes also making threats.

According to “Silent Invasion,“ a 2018 book by Clive Hamilton on the CCP’s influence operations overseas, Falun Gong is ”high on the list of the regime’s targets in Canada,” a situation Hamilton says has worsened with the communist regime’s growing reach into Western societies in recent years.

Dissidents Targeted

Sheng Xue, a key figure in the overseas Chinese pro-democracy movement in Canada, said she has been experiencing a surge in cyberattacks and vilification on social media in recent weeks.

Starting around Sept. 27, Sheng said she had difficulty accessing the internet through her phone and iPad, while her family members had no trouble with their devices. She contacted her telecommunications company, which she said tried various things to fix the problem including changing the modem in her home, but the issue persisted.

On Oct. 1, when Sheng was about to attend a virtual panel discussion on the CCP with an Indian think tank, her internet was cut off abruptly.

What’s more troubling, Sheng said, is the rise in attacks against her on social media by what she identified as the CCP’s “50-cent Army.” The 50-cent Army is made up of people hired by the CCP who use social media accounts and publish internet content with the aim of shaping public opinion. The individuals often write posts that praise the Party’s policies or admonish those who disagree, and are reportedly paid 50 cents per post.

After Sheng posted a video on her Twitter account on Sept. 29 in which she spoke about the CCP’s state terrorism and repression, a large number of what appeared to be 50-cent Army members left comments using profanity and slurs, including calling her a “traitor of China.” Some posted a series of photos of her that were altered in order to make it appear she was engaging in sexual activities.

Similar comments were left on her other videos and posts made in the following days.

Sheng told The Epoch Times she believe that “it’s likely because the 20th National Congress is approaching,” and that the CCP is providing funds for such attacks aimed at repressing overseas dissents.

She said she has been targeted with such attacks before, but rarely by so many internet trolls at once, and that it’s “unlikely” so many attacks could be uncoordinated.

“The scale seen this time is unprecedented,” she said.

The last online attack she experienced on a similar scale was in 2016, Sheng said, when a Twitter account named “Global Snow-Sweeping Alliance” was created and made numerous posts attacking her. Sheng’s first name, “Xue,” is the Chinese word for “Snow.” That Twitter account has since been removed.

Sheng said she had blocked the 50-cent Army’s accounts after previous attacks, but this time “there are just too many of them” to keep up with.

She said the barrage of attacks is evidence that the CCP is “growing particularly unconfident and fearful” and is trying to silence criticism of the regime by overseas activists.

“This is likely in relation to the 20th National Congress ... and also China’s National Day on Oct. 1. That’s why they are acting particularly rampant,” Sheng said.