The New York Times Continues Unprovoked Attacks on the Falun Gong Faith and Its Community,
In response to an article published by The New York Times on December 29, 2024, the Falun Dafa Information Center (FDIC), as an institution representing the Falun Gong community and collaborating with the Falun Dafa Association in the United States and around the world, issued the following statement:
Dear Readers,
On Sunday (December 29), we woke up to an alarming reality—The New York Times again published an article that distorted the beliefs of Falun Gong practitioners.
This article also seems to intentionally portray the founder of Falun Gong, the non-profit arts group Shen Yun, and the Falun Gong practitioner community in general in a false light, as if they were a group of blind believers who were deceived and gave away their entire life savings. This picture is very far from the lived reality and experiences of the majority of Falun Gong practitioners.
We would like to clearly state that:
We practice Falun Gong because of the incredible benefits we have experienced for our physical health and spiritual improvement, not because we were deceived.
We volunteer our time (and in some cases, make donations) to non-profit organizations and other causes aimed at exposing the persecution, because over the past 25 years we have watched family and friends in China experience torture and death. This is done with full awareness, not because you are deceived.
We support Shen Yun because it inspires millions, brings hope, and revives traditional culture destroyed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), not because it was deceived.
The accusation that Falun Gong practitioners are mindless and deluded fanatics is an insult to the intelligence of tens of millions of people around the world.
Falun Gong's founder, Master Li Hongzhi, has dedicated his life to benefiting others, sharing Buddhist-like spiritual teachings with the public. Li Hongzhi does not receive any income from Falun Gong-related institutions, including Shen Yun, which is a non-profit organization.
All Falun Gong teaching books and videos are available online for free in more than 40 languages. All Falun Gong meetings are also free to attend. Clearly, Li Hongzhi's motivation was never based on economic gain.
Before the CCP began its political persecution of Falun Gong in 1999, Li Hongzhi was honored by the Chinese government for his donations to various foundations and his service in healing people free of charge during the 1990s.
After the CCP initiated the persecution, he was recognized internationally for his contributions to peaceful, nonviolent resistance, including a four-time nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize, the International Religious Freedom Award from Freedom House, and a nomination for the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament.
It is noteworthy that although The New York Times in its article tried to portray Falun Gong-related institutions as a means of generating profits for master Li Hongzhi, there is no evidence to support this claim.
The article relied solely on incomplete rumors and one isolated financial transaction, then used to imply economic motives without concrete evidence.
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