Concern is growing for the welfare of three Chinese students who have been refused permission to return to Ireland, where they had been taking courses, because of their membership of the outlawed Buddhist movement Falun Gong.
They were arrested on a visit home to Beijing last Christmas and ordered to sign statements denouncing the organisation, banned as an "evil cult" by the Chinese government.
The three had their passports confiscated and if found guilty of renewing their links with Falun Gong, whose practices include breathing exercises and meditation, they face prosecution and long prison sentences.
One of the three, Mr Zhao Ming (29), who had been studying computer science at Trinity College Dublin, narrowly escaped arrest last month after attending a demonstration against official harassment in Tiananmen Square at which up to 100 people were detained by police. He has since gone into hiding.
Ms Dai Dongxue, a Dublin-based Falun Gong member, said: "If the police find him he is in danger of being put into prison, and that could mean many years in jail, or worse."
Sentences against Falun Gong members have become longer in recent months, increasing to almost 20 years in some cases. There are fears the death penalty will be introduced shortly to act as a further deterrent. At least 18 Falun Gong members have died in police custody since the ban came into force 10 months ago. These include two from Ms Dongxue's province of Shandong, "a 60-year-old lady who died after a three-day beating and a man in his 40s who died after one day of torture."
Ms Dongxue, a Microsoft employee in Dublin, was arrested when she went to Beijing for a holiday last December. She considered herself fortunate not to suffer any ill-treatment and to be able to return to Ireland after spending only a few hours in detention. However, she said "there is a policy that people coming from outside China are treated better than the local people".
The two other students arrested with Mr Ming were Ms Yang Fang (29), an accountancy student at Dun Laoghaire Senior College, who was held in police custody for 40 days, and Mr Liu Feng (23), a marketing student at Dun Laoghaire Community College. Neither was able to move around freely or to meet other Falun Gong members, said Ms Dongxue.
In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Ireland had expressed its concern to China about the number of arrests and the heavy sentences imposed on Falun Gong members. The Government also urged the Chinese authorities not to act against the principles of the UN covenants signed by China, in particular those relating to the freedoms of expression, assembly and association.
However, regarding the three students, the Department said that because none were Irish citizens "Ireland has no consular function in this matter. As they are Chinese citizens they are subject to the laws of China while in that country, including in respect of Falun Gong".
To mark the first World Falun Gong Day, Dublin-based practitioners will hold open exercises at Grafton Street between 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. this Saturday, May 13th. Further information on Falun Gong can be found at www.minghui.ca/eng.html or www.falundafa.org
