Beijing Sends Plainclothes Agents as Soccer Fans to Korea

The Beijing authorities have been sending agents overseas to "gather information" and "infiltrate" Falun Gong. In addition, they have ordered all domestic travel agents to strictly forbid Falun Gong practitioners from going to Korea during the World Cup. The authorities also demanded that travel agents submit their list of travellers so that they could investigate people leaving China. They might also be sending plainclothes agents among the tourists. Practitioners in South Korea have been giving out flyers during the World Cup games, encouraging youngsters to practice Falun Gong and to stop binge drinking.

According to the June 2 issue of the Sun Newspaper, the spokesman for the China International Sports Travel Service (CISTS), the agency with exclusive rights to sell World Cup games tickets in China, said that they were told to be on the alert for Falun Gong practitioners, as well as those Chinese nationals that intend to stay in Korea, so that they could be prevented from leaving the country with the tour groups. The spokesman also said that the travel agencies had been told to hand over lists of fans to the Chinese National Tourism Administration and to the police for further screening.

An executive from the Beijing Shenzhou International Travel Services said that the police plan to mix plainclothes agents in with the tour groups to spy on the tourists. About 25,000 World Cup games tickets will be available in China, but the South Korean tourism regulators estimate that 40,000 Chinese would go to South Korea.

A reporter from the Sun Newspaper observed three Korean practitioners passing out Falun Gong flyers on the streets of Guangzhou in Korea. A Falun Gong practitioner, Mr. Pu, said that although Falun Gong is being persecuted in China, he believes that Falun Gong is good for one's health. Mr. Pu, a white-collar worker, said that he had been practicing Falun Gong for three years, and had successfully quit drinking. Many Korean youngsters indulge in binge drinking, and he believes that Falun Gong can help them step away from this destructive behaviour. He said that there are over 20,000 people practicing Falun Gong in South Korea. (Source: Chinese Matters)

Source:
http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2002/6/9/22931.html
Chinese version available at:
http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2002/6/3/31232.html