Breaking News: Court rules in City's favour against Falun Gong

CityCaucus.com: 2009 January 29


An injuction has been issued by BC's Supreme Court requiring Falun Gong protestors to tear down the sign in front of the Chinese embassy on Granville Street. The decision by Madame Justice Stromberg-Stein has just been released.

The structure along Granville street has a long history and has been the bane of many City Councils since it was erected. The original protest vigil by the Falun Gong was conducted in August 2001, and signs and small hut became permanent fixtures in front of the embassy. Mayors Philip Owen, Larry Campbell, Sam Sullivan and now Gregor Robertson have been required to confront the question of what to do. Mayor Sullivan was the first mayor to openly suggest that the group had made their point by occupying the sidewalk on Granville Street just south of 16th Avenue for almost 5 years, and asked that it be taken down.

In November, Vancouver City Hall sent the decision to the courts. The Supreme Court decision, Vancouver (City) vs Zhang, handed down late yesterday. Madame Justice Stromberg-Stein provides some background to her 37-page decision:

"Over the years, the City attempted to reach a satisfactory solution with the respondents. Initially the respondents co-operated by reducing, and at one time removing, the structures. However, the respondents now take the position that they have a right to maintain the structures in place notwithstanding."

She effectively rules in favour of the bylaw, and the City's ability to enforce it. She looked as to whether there were any extraordinary circumstances that would require an exception and concluded there are none. She also points out that:

"This injunction order does not prohibit or limit the right of the respondents, or any other persons, to lawfully assemble on any street or any part thereof."

This was one of the most closely watched court cases for Canadian cities because it would have had huge implications for a city's ability to enforce the removal of structures on public property.

We remind our CityCaucus.com readers that the City recently passed an extraordinary sign bylaw preventing any protest signage in the presence of the 2010 Olympics. We expect that Mayor Robertson will do the right thing and be the first government in seven years to actually enforce the City's bylaw against the Falun Gong protest.

Newspaper accuses printer of censorship

Press refused to publish story seen as critical of Falun Gong, editor says

Vancouver Sun: 2009 January 12
Tracy Sherlock

A freedom-of-the-press battle is brewing as the managing editor of a Vancouver weekly newspaper accused his printer of censorship.

Burnaby-based Epoch Press initially balked at printing the Asian Pacific Post's Jan. 8 issue, because of a front-page article the printer's owner saw as critical of the Falun Gong.

Although the paper was eventually printed, the two sides disagree on whether it has been distributed.

"This is an unprecedented issue of press freedom," said Mike Roberts, managing editor of the Asian Pacific Post. "We feel completely betrayed. This is a matter of trust and integrity."

The owner of Epoch Press, Frank Cui, a Falun Gong practitioner, said in an e-mail he saw the article as an indirect attack on his faith because it repeated comments made by the Chinese government.

"The Chinese Communist Party's voice should not be allowed to poison innocent people to hate others," Cui said. "Articles like this one that gives voice to the Communist regime make people think that maybe the CCP is justified in their attack and that maybe Falun Gong [members] somehow deserve to be killed or tortured."

Cui said he was pressured not to print the newspaper, but after a delay of one day he printed and distributed all of the papers the next day. The paper was sent to the printers on Tuesday, Jan. 6, and usually is delivered to the paper's offices on Wednesday morning.

Roberts said some papers were delivered to the offices late on Friday, but that Cui had held the papers back from the newspaper's distribution team, ThinkBox National Marketing Inc. Cui said he distributed the newspapers on Friday, Jan. 9.

Roberts said the Asian Pacific Post's publisher, Harbinder Singh Sewak, had been through Vancouver and Richmond on Sunday checking the paper's drop boxes, but had seen no copies of the Jan. 8 edition. "[Cui] doesn't even have our distribution list," Roberts said.

The article is about a presentation by the Divine Performing Arts tour coming to Vancouver's Queen Elizabeth Theatre in April. The show tells the story of Chinese cultural history through music and dance. Despite the article's support of the Falun Gong, Cui said including the perspective of the Chinese government made the Falun Gong look "controversial."

Said Roberts: "The Falun Gong, which owns this printing press, vetted our article and finding it not to its taste, simply refused to let it see the light of day. This is a first in Canadian journalistic history and an outrage of the highest order."

Meanwhile, the Falun Dafa Association said in an e-mailed statement Sunday: "This act to hold the Asian Pacific Post does not represent the position of the Falun Dafa Association of Canada, nor the Falun Gong community at large."

Many of the performers in the show are Falun Gong practitioners, and the show includes some scenes of torture, according to the Asian Pacific Post story. The story also says the Chinese government has persuaded some venues to cancel the show.

Cui defended his actions, saying he believes the Chinese Communist Party tries to make the public believe that the victim is wrong, which creates doubts in people's minds about Falun Gong.

Falun Gong has manned a protest in front of the Chinese consulate on Granville Street for seven years.

The Asia Pacific Post, an English language Asian newspaper established in 1993, has an agreement with Vancouver Sun subscribers, whereby they can request inclusion of the Post with their Thursday delivery.

tsherlock@vancouversun.com

Falun Gong quashes press

Province Editorial: 2009 January 11

The next time you pass the Falun Gong practitioners in front of the Chinese consulate on Granville Street, look beyond the meditative protesters to get a feel for their pain. They stand there day and night in rain, snow and sleet fighting for the freedoms we take for granted and which China has disallowed the Falun Gong.

For the Falun Gong, freedom of expression is central to their cause after China banned the movement, arrested its followers and labeled it a cult.

But don't tell that to Frank Cui, the owner of the Burnaby-based Epoch Press, which is affiliated with the Falun Gong movement that estimates it has over 100 million followers worldwide.

Cui, is a devout Falun Gong practitioner and has printed the Asian Pacific Post, an independent award-winning Vancouver weekly, for the past three years.

Last Thursday, Cui held the Asian Pacific Post hostage.

He and other senior members of the Falun Gong group in Vancouver felt that the newspaper's front page story was detrimental to their cause.

The story was about an elaborate dance production showcasing Chinese culture that is expected to perform in Vancouver this April. The story claims the group has been targeted by the Chinese government because the show's local presenters are the Falun Dafa Association of Vancouver and New Tang Dynasty TV, a North American broadcaster founded by and affiliated with Falun Gong practitioners.

Cui and his cabal did not like the story's "balanced" approach. They did not want readers to see the Chinese government's views of the Falun Gong. They wanted to control the content and said they had a "legal right" to do it.

When Harbinder Singh Sewak, the publisher of the Asian Pacific Post, said no, Cui refused to release last week's paper from the print shop.

"Outrageous . . . we have always been an independent paper with independent views . . . we don't allow anyone to control our content, let alone our printers," fumed Sewak, who stands to lose thousands of dollars.

Cui in an e-mailed press statement said: "Unfortunately, news reporters feel that they must 'balance' stories about Falun Gong or events they are involved in by adding the bad words or opinions from the CCP [Chinese Communist Party], but in my feeling, between victim and perpetrator there can never be any neutrality or balance."

Cui has apologized but not before saying "Articles like this one that gives voice to the communist regime make people think that maybe the CCP is justified in their attack and that maybe Falun Gong somehow deserve to be killed or tortured."

The Asian Pacific Post article, entitled "Dancing to their own tune," is a far cry from what Cui says it is. You may think that this is an isolated incident involving one member of the Falun Gong movement who went a little too far. But the e-mails and conversations between the Asian Pacific Post, Cui and other Falun Gong followers involved in this case show a disturbing side to the Falun Gong.

The control they say China exerts on them is the same control they want to exert on others. The freedom they say China denies them is the same freedom they have denied the Asian Pacific Post.

Local Falun Gong printer refuses to produce the Asian Pacific Post this week...

The Real Scoop: 2009 January 11
Kim Bolan

I got a copy of this new release from Gurpreet Singh, a journalist and friend, who writes for this excellent weekly newspaper. Bizarre that a religious group that is also protesting against the repression its says it faces would decide to silence a newspaper with which it has a contract.

NEWS RELEASE - FALUN GONG MEMBERS HOLD CANADIAN FREE SPEECH HOSTAGE

- Falun Gong gag order shuts down independent Metro Vancouver newspaper-

In an unprecedented attack on freedom of speech in Canada, some members of the Falun Gong movement this week forced a local printer to block production and distribution of an award-winning independent newspaper.

Readers of the Asian Pacific Post, published by Post Group Multimedia Inc. in Vancouver, British Columbia, were surprised to find their local news boxes empty Thursday after Burnaby-based Epoch Press blocked delivery of the weekly newspaper.

"This is an act of political vandalism," said Asian Pacific Post Managing Editor, Michael Roberts. "The economic impact to our business aside, which is considerable, this an assault on press freedom and an insult to all Canadians who enjoy rights and privileges enshrined in Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms."

"This is bullying pure and simple by a group which the Post has, ironically, long supported in its fight against similar oppression by the Chinese government."

Printer Frank Ciu – in consultation with some senior Falun Gong members in Canada – hijacked the Asian Pacific Post print run claiming a January 8, 2009 front page article on a Falun Gong travelling arts show was offensive to his beliefs, and to the beliefs of his fellow Falun Gong practitioners.

"The Falun Gong, which owns this printing press, vetted our article and finding it not to its taste, simply refused to let it see the light of day," said Roberts. "This is a first in Canadian journalistic history and an outrage of the highest order."

"Incidentally," added Roberts. "The article in question supported the Falun Gong and its right to stage the Divine Performing Arts show without interference from China."

Dr. Dianna Wang, director of the DPA's organizing committee in Vancouver, said she was shown the front page article in advance of its print run and in consultation with Falun Gong "HQ" and the vice-president of the Divine Performing Group, decided they could not allow the story to be distributed.

The Asian Pacific Post is currently looking for a new printer.

"We feel completely betrayed," said Roberts. "This is a matter of trust and integrity."