China’s Persecution of Falun Gong at 25 Years

In July 1999, the Chinese Communist Party launched one of the most severe acts of religious persecution since the Cultural Revolution—a violent campaign to wipe out Falun Gong, an indigenous spiritual group with tens of millions of Chinese practitioners. Twenty-five years later, this CCP campaign continues with large-scale imprisonments inside China as well as systematic propaganda and harassment in the United States.

Beyond the horrific toll on the Falun Gong community, the CCP’s relentless repression campaign has had wide-ranging repercussions for China and the world. Executing the campaign has sharpened the CCP’s security apparatus, served as a blueprint for repressing other designated enemies, and honed the party’s ability to influence Western media.

Join Hudson Institute as expert panels take stock of the Falun Gong crackdown over the past quarter of a century.

Agenda

Opening Remarks

Nina Shea, Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Religious Freedom, Hudson Institute

Keynote Address

Miles Yu, Senior Fellow and Director, China Center, Hudson Institute

Panel 1: The Modes of CCP Persecution and Effective US Policy Responses

This panel will discuss the current state of repression, surveillance, and persecution of Falun Gong in China, transnational repression against the group abroad, and recommended US policies to counter the CCP’s campaign.

• Dr. Larry Liu, Deputy Director, Falun Dafa Information Center
• Sarah Cook, Independent researcher and author of Freedom House’s report The Battle for China’s Spirit
• Simon Zhang, New York City architect and son of a woman tortured to death in China

Moderator

• Cynthia Sun, Researcher, Falun Dafa Information Center

Panel 2: Propaganda, Disinformation, and Foreign Influence

This panel will discuss the CCP’s evolving mechanisms for spreading propaganda narratives to influence foreign media and how this has affected the Falun Gong diaspora and the American public.

• Levi Browde, Executive Director, Falun Dafa Information Center
• Ying Chen, Conductor, Shen Yun Performing Arts

Moderator

• Nina Shea, Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Religious Freedom, Hudson Institute