History of Falun Gong

Falun Gong, also called Falun Dafa, is a spiritual practice and system of beliefs that combines the practice of meditation with the moral philosophy articulated by its leader and founder, Li Hongzhi. It emerged on the public radar in the Spring of 1992 in the northeastern Chinese city of Changchun, and was classified as a system of qigong identifying with the Buddhist tradition. Li claimed to have both supernatural powers like the ability to prevent illness, as well having eternal youth and promised that others can attain supernatural powers and eternal youth by following his teachings.^[1][2] Falun Gong initially enjoyed official sanction and support from Chinese government agencies, and the practice grew quickly on account of the simplicity of its exercise movements, impact on health, the absence of fees or formal membership, and moral and philosophical teachings.^[3]

In the mid-1990s, however, Falun Gong became estranged from the state-run qigong associations, leading to a gradual escalation of tensions with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities that culminated in the Spring of 1999. Following a protest of 10,000 Falun Gong practitioners near the Zhongnanhai government compound on 25 April 1999 to request official recognition, then-CCP general secretary Jiang Zemin ordered Falun Gong be crushed. A campaign of propaganda, large-scale extrajudicial imprisonment, torture and coercive reeducation ensued. ^{[citation needed]}

Falun Gong practitioners have responded to the campaign with protests on Tiananmen Square, the creation of their own media companies overseas, international lawsuits targeting Chinese officials, and the establishment of a network of underground publishing sites to produce literature on the practice within China. Falun Gong has emerged as a prominent voice for an end to one-party rule in China.