Melbourne Age: A Peaceful Protest Punished by Police

CHINA CORRESPONDENT

BEIJING

Saturday 7 October 2000

How many Chinese policemen does it take to crush a Falun Gong supporter?

Somewhere between 10 and 20 judging by an episode I witnessed in Tiananmen Square a couple of days ago.

It's a holiday week in China and the square has been packed every day with thousands of visitors from morning until well after dark. Like many Beijingers and provincial tourists, we had gone there to look at the elaborate floral arrangements laid out to celebrate China's National Day.

Five metres away, the shouting suddenly started. In front of giant posters celebrating Chinese nationhood, a small group of Falun Gong followers were attempting to demonstrate - with inevitable results.

Police, soldiers and plain clothes security men ran from all quarters. One man was rugby tackled to the ground. As security men sat on him, a struggle broke out between soldiers and two protesters who attempted to unfurl a banner. The Chinese characters spelling out their message never saw the light of day.

Startled tourists watched as half-a-dozen protesters were quickly bundled into a mini-bus - one of dozens parked at strategic intervals across the square - and driven away. The whole incident lasted no more than 90 seconds. By the time I had managed to take two photographs, police and soldiers had turned their attention to the curious crowd to see who was using cameras.

Most people in the vast, 44-hectare square are content to stare at the monuments, take photos as a memento of their visit and gaze at Mao's portrait hanging above the entrance to the vast Forbidden City across the way. Most people, but not all.

Every day this week, hundreds of police, military and plain clothes security officers have patrolled the square. Their targets have been Falun Gong followers, who have used the holiday crowds as a cover giving them just enough time to stage a small act of defiance before they are pounced on, often beaten and dragged away.

Last Sunday, despite the best efforts of the authorities, hundreds of Falun Gong demonstrators were arrested after staging a protest in Tiananmen. It was a major humiliation for the security agencies, despite a report by the official Xinhua news agency that "the masses present were extremely disgusted and angry with the behavior of these Falun Gong die-hard elements".