Former 610 Office Agent Produces Secret Documents to Corroborate Diplomat's Allegations of Spying --Then Quits the CCP

On June 7th 2005 in Melbourne, Mr. Hao Fengjun, a former agent of the Tianjin 610 Office and National Security Bureau in Tianjin echoed Chen Yonglin's report describing Chinese spies in Australia. Chinese consul first secretary Chen Yonglin at the Chinese Consulate in Sydney abandoned his post and claimed that he would no longer support the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) suppression against Falun Gong. This prompted Mr. Hao to come forward and expose inside stories of the CCP's brutal persecution of Falun Gong with first-hand materials. The cruel and despicable means used by the CCP in persecuting Falun Gong will become widely known.

According to the Christian Science Monitor and the Age of Melbourne, Australia reports that Hao Fengjun "claimed he was the man in charge of collating and analysing information gathered by Chinese spies in Australia."

Voice of America reports that Mr. Hao claims his "primary responsibility was monitoring the activities of the Falun Gong meditation movement and [Hao] claims to have seen members of the group tortured."

The Age also reports that he said he has direct evidence of China's persecution of minority groups, which was provided to Australia's immigration department months ago.

Chen Yonglin, who quit his work as first secretary at the Chinese consulate-general in Sydney on May 26, says he faces persecution if he goes back to China. He has said he quit because he could no longer support China's crackdowns on dissidents. Chen reportedly has gone into hiding.

According to a report from the Australian by Cameron Stewart and Natasha Robinson on June 9th 2005, 32-year-old Hao Fengjun spoke of how he arrived in Australia with his fiancée in February carrying a bundle of secret documents, which he has since given to Immigration Department officials.

Mr. Hao says he stole the documents from his former employer -- the so-called 610 Office, a Chinese security agency set up to monitor Chinese dissidents abroad, especially the spiritual movement Falun Gong.

He became disillusioned with China's actions after seeing first-hand the violent state-sponsored repression of Falun Gong supporters.

Mr. Hao claims that the documents offer primary proof of the activities of Chinese spies in Australia, in particular their monitoring of Falun Gong supporters, as well as Chinese pro-democracy activists.

Mr. Hao says that after going public, he fears for his safety and believes he will be punished if sent back to China. But he decided to speak out after hearing of Mr. Chen's defection.

"He gave me inspiration because he had the courage to speak out, so I thought, why not me?" Mr. Hao said.

According to a report on June 9th by Gary Hughes and Tom Allard from the Sydney Morning Herald, Hao Fengjun, 32-year-old Chinese police intelligence analyst, and the second Chinese security official to defect, says the Secret Force runs spies in Australia and other Western countries. He told the media on June 8th that there are three levels of agents working for the Secret Force. The professional spies, who graduated from police college are paid to travel overseas to collect intelligence "in all areas." "Working relationship" agents, act as businessmen and target foreign business groups. Agents designated as "friends" infiltrate foreign countries and become friendly with both Chinese and Westerners.

According to the report, while the Secret Force's main job is to gather political and military information, it also closely monitors Falun Gong and other religious or Chinese democracy groups. Mr. Hao knows all this because he worked for the "610 Office" in the National Security Bureau in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin. His job, he said, was to collate and analyse intelligence reports sent back from Australia, the US, Canada and New Zealand about Falun Gong and other groups.

He claims to have downloaded some of these documents from his police computer into his MP3 player.

Mr. Hao said he faced execution if he was forced to return to China. "I am nothing to them. The only thing waiting for me is death."

Mr. Hao said he decided to flee China after being detained for 20 days for making a critical comment about his government's treatment of Falun Gong, including the torture of its coordinators. He said he feared for the safety of his seven-year-old son from a former marriage.

Mr. Hao decided to go public after Chen Yonglin went to the media this past weekend.

Mr. Chen's case is gathering support, with Labour yesterday joining the Greens' call to give him asylum. "There is a strong prima facie case that Chen Yonglin should now be granted an appropriate protection visa." Labour's foreign affairs spokesman, Kevin Rudd, said.

According to the report, one of the victims of the spying, Mr. Hao said, was Sydney Falun Gong follower Li Ying. Ms Li, whom Mr. Hao used as an example, said yesterday that she was aware that China was spying on her due to her beliefs.

At the end of the press conference, Mr. Hao said he wanted to make an announcement. He had joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1991, but as of yesterday he was no longer a member. He was finished with communism.

"I will never go back to China because I know what waits for me." he said.

Australia's Special Broadcasting Service reported on June 8th that Mr. Hao Fengjun, who worked as a security officer at the 610 Office in Tianjin, of northern China, has detailed allegations of human rights abuses, including the torture and brainwashing of members of the dissident group Falun Gong. The report said that the 610 Office was set up by the Chinese government to examine practitioners of Falun Gong and other spiritual groups.

Mr. Hao told the media that brainwashing and torture were methods of "re-educating" people in forced labour camps.

"First they will be sent to a brainwashing centre, and if they are not "reformed" they are sent to forced labour camps." he told the independent Chinese newspaper, The Epoch Times.

"It's pretty common for forced labour camps to use torture methods. Almost every forced labour camp uses torture methods." he said.

A report by Patrick Walters and John Kerin on June 9th from the Australian stated that Falun Gong supporters living in Australia have often complained of harassment by Chinese officials going well beyond the conduct normally expected of diplomats.

"They (the Embassy) have had to be spoken to about that. Diplomats have no right to harass or interfere with local communities." said one senior government source.

That report stated that the US State Department suggests that several hundred Falun Gong practitioners have been put to death through torture, abuse and neglect.