At a recent demonstration in New York, Shi Kun, a Falun Gong practitioner originally from Changchun, China, spoke out about the reported arrests of practitioners in her hometown. She called on the U.S. government and the international community to pay attention to their situation and to help end what she described as a long-running campaign of persecution against Falun Gong.
“I am a Falun Gong practitioner from Changchun,” Shi said. “I am standing here today because 26 Falun Gong practitioners in Changchun were illegally arrested and detained in July 2026.”
“I want to appeal to people in China and around the world on behalf of my fellow practitioners in my hometown: Stop the persecution and immediately release the Falun Gong practitioners detained in Changchun.”
According to Minghui, a Falun Gong-affiliated website that reports on the persecution of practitioners in China, at least 26 practitioners in Changchun were reportedly arrested in July, with additional cases reported afterward. The reported arrests are part of a broader campaign against Falun Gong that began in China in 1999. According to Minghui, recent operations in Changchun reportedly involved home searches, arrests, harassment and the collection of personal and biological information from practitioners. These specific reports have not been independently verified.
The broader persecution of Falun Gong in China, however, has been documented by the U.S. government for decades. The State Department has reported that Chinese authorities have targeted Falun Gong practitioners since the nationwide crackdown began in 1999, including through arrests, detention and other forms of repression.
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A long-standing campaign
Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is a spiritual practice that combines meditation and exercises with teachings centered on the principles of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. It was publicly introduced in China in 1992 and became particularly popular in Changchun.
In July 1999, Chinese authorities officially banned Falun Gong and launched a nationwide campaign against the practice. U.S. government reports from the period documented mass detentions and a nationwide propaganda campaign, while more recent State Department reports continue to document arrests and harassment of Falun Gong practitioners.
Shi began practicing Falun Gong in 1995. More than three decades later, she said she remains deeply concerned about practitioners who are still in China.
“There are still large numbers of Falun Gong practitioners being held in prisons and detention centers in Changchun,” she said. “Some have been arrested and detained multiple times. Some were released only to be arrested again less than six months later, and they received heavy sentences.”
“I am extremely worried about their safety,” she added. “I truly hope the international community will extend a helping hand and join us in stopping the persecution.”
‘We practice truthfulness, compassion and forbearance’
For Shi, her appeal is deeply personal. She said she cherishes the practitioners in Changchun with whom she practiced and shared many years of her life.
“I really cherish the fellow practitioners from my hometown who have walked this journey together, side by side,” she said.
Shi emphasized that Falun Gong practitioners follow the principles of truthfulness, compassion and forbearance.
“We practice truthfulness, compassion and forbearance. We follow these principles to be good people,” she said.
She also believes practitioners have responded to the persecution peacefully and rationally.
“Under such an evil persecution by the CCP, we have been able to persist for so many years, and we have done so peacefully and rationally,” Shi said.
Her appeal, she said, is not only for the people currently detained but for the broader international community to recognize their situation.
“I hope the U.S. government and righteous people around the world can help Falun Gong practitioners emerge from this persecution and immediately call on the CCP to stop the suppression,” she said.
Concern about pressure beyond China
Having lived overseas for more than two years, Shi said she has also become concerned about what she describes as pressure against Falun Gong practitioners outside China.
“After I came overseas, I discovered that the CCP’s transnational persecution has already reached overseas,” she said, alleging that practitioners have faced smears, misinformation and other forms of pressure.
She appealed particularly to Americans to protect freedom of speech and freedom of belief.
“America is a country of freedom of speech and freedom of belief,” Shi said. “As a group that believes in truthfulness, compassion and forbearance, we should not be subjected to such inhumane persecution.”
She called on the U.S. government and international community to help practitioners in China while also opposing what she described as the spread of transnational repression into free societies.
“I appeal to all righteous people in the international community and all kind-hearted Americans to stand up and help us Falun Gong practitioners stop the CCP’s persecution,” she said.
“At the same time, we must reject the CCP’s infiltration and its export of transnational repression and unrestricted warfare into free societies.”
For Shi, the message she brought to New York is ultimately simple: She wants the practitioners reportedly detained in Changchun to be released and the decades-long campaign against Falun Gong to end.
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