Germany: The Chinese Students and Scholars Association in Magdeburg University is under Direction from the Chinese Embassy

Recently former members of CSSA Chinese Students and Scholars Associations in North America, Australia, Europe and Asia revealed that the CSSAs in overseas universities are under the direction of Chinese Embassies or Consulates who rope in Chinese students and collect information about overseas Chinese students and incite students’ hatred against the Falun Gong spiritual group. The CSSA in Magdeburg University, Germany is in the same position.

Election to the CSSA is under the control of the Chinese Embassy

On the web page of CSSA Magdeburg about the election in 2002, it said ‘under the support of the Embassy a new Chinese Students’ association was elected with Song Zheyang as the president’. When Song was the former president of CSSA Magdeburg (2002—2004), he invited many Chinese students to have dinner at his flat almost every weekend. His purpose was to rope in Chinese students and collect information through them. Song was a student but he did not turn up at class quite often and he kept very close relationship with the Chinese Embassy.

Spreading lies and persecuting Falun Gong

19th June 2003 was the students’ festival in Magdeburg University. Falun Gong practitioners from Magdeburg and nearby region did exercise demonstrations during the event and won applause from the audience. After the event finished, Song asked a practitioner for his details. Before students’ festival 2004, Falun Gong practitioners’ application for the event was refused by the host of the festival because the head of CSSA Magdeburg told them a large amount of CCP’s vilification against Falun Gong and said if Falun Gong was allowed to do exercise demonstrations conflicts would break out among Chinese students. Later on after Falun Gong practitioners’ explanation the host of the festival knew the truth, but under pressure from CSSA, they still refused the practitioners’ application.

Chinese Embassy placed and trained secret agents among students

Besides directly controlling the CSSA in universities, the Chinese Embassy also placed and trained secret agents among the students. Chen Hua who used to study mechanical engineering in Magdeburg University said, in the spring of 2005, he asked a friend from Xinjiang to bring back a letter and some small gift to his family when he went back China, but his request brought his friend into huge trouble. During the one month’s time when his friend was in China, no matter in Shanghai or Xinjiang, or Dalian, he was taken to meet staff from local security department. He was asked what he had done for Chen and Chen’s details in Germany. In order to make this friend believe they know everything about Chen so that he would cooperate with them, security staff took him to a hotel in Dalian and the room number was the same as Chen’s home. Security staff said clearly that they hoped this friend could work for the communist party after returning Germany and report Chen’s whereabouts in Germany to the Communist party. Chen’s friend refused and then Chen knew from other friends that at least two students close to him were providing information to the Chinese Embassy.

Ms CHENG Jun, a Falun Gong practitioner with a Master’s degree in Economics from Magdeburg University said there were some secret agents working around her. On 29th June 2004, she left her door key at a mail box so that her husband could get the key from the mail box, but something unusual happened, the key disappeared. At the beginning Cheng thought someone took the key by mistake, so she went to the dormitory administrative to buy a key lock and key. But the same unusual thing happened again one month later on 20th July. The lost key appeared at the mail box while the new key was lost. Only then, Cheng realised that someone was sending a signal to her in this way that was she was under surveillance and they wanted to threaten her.

Disturbing The Epoch Times, an independent newspaper who dares to tell the truth

Similar thing happened again soon after that. Cheng distributed the Chinese newspaper The Epoch Times as a volunteer when she was studying. This paper usually arrived at her home on Tuesday or Wednesday morning. On 25th August 2004, she could not stay at home to wait for the paper so she left a message at the door for the postman and asked him to leave the paper on the door step. But when she came back, she could not find the papers. She asked the post office and knew that the paper had been sent out. The same thing happened again on 29th September. That day at lunch time, Cheng was at home and she did not see any postman but the newspaper suddenly appeared on her door step and the receiver’s address on the package disappeared. Cheng said, ‘Maybe that is because The Epoch Times dares to report CCP’s persecution of human rights so it is hated by CCP and became its target’.

‘During that time, they were so rampant and they even targeted the poster on my door exposing CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong’. Cheng recalled ‘it is a poster depicting several strong men beating a Falun Gong practitioner to ground at Tiananmen Square under the eyes of the public. It had been on my door for several years but on September 25th, 2004, a Saturday, I went out to do exercises as usual, and when I came back, I found the poster was torn up’.

A former Chinese diplomat at Chinese Embassy in Sydney Chen Yonglin accused that Chinese Embassies in northern America of controlling the local CSSA and manipulating the CSSA to do secret activities. A series of related cases were exposed recently in North America and had has drawn the FBI’s concern.