Ottawa, Canada: High-Level CCP Official Li Changchun’s Visit Kept Secret to Avoid Lawsuits
By Yingzi
Li Changchun
(Minghui.org) Li Changchun, one of the core leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), secretly visited Ottawa on April 19, 2012. Li is currently the propaganda chief and one of the nine members of the CCP Politburo Standing Committee. The Chinese embassy in Ottawa tried to keep his visit a secret to prevent Falun Gong practitioners from bringing a lawsuit against him during his visit. In order to drum up superficial support, a group of Chinese seniors was deceived into being taken to the airport and later asked to greet Li after he got off the plane.
Zhou Limin, a spokesperson of the Falun Dafa Association, said that Chinese consulates keep secret the schedules of officials who have participated in the persecution of Falun Gong, fearing that practitioners will launch lawsuits against them and protest along their scheduled stops.
Canadian Government Silent on Li’s Visit While Chinese Official Mouthpieces Report Widely
The largest circulating Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail, reported on April 20, “One of China’s most powerful figures slipped into Ottawa unannounced. Unless you were watching Chinese TV.” The Canadian government kept Li’s visit unusually low key, forming a strong contrast with the wide and detailed reports on Chinese media such as CCTV and Xinhua, according to The Globe and Mail. The government of Canada never announced that Li was coming. On Friday, Prime Minister Harper’s office turned the formal meeting into a simple chat between the two.
Chinese Seniors Deceived into Being Brought to the Airport
Blogger Goodsunny posted information on a local Ottawa forum entitled “Canadian Chinese Cultural Center’s Deception.” In the post, Goodsunny stated, “The head of the Canadian Chinese Cultural Center deceived some seniors in their 70s into welcoming Li. He told the seniors that they were going to a museum. After they took off, he then told them that they were going to welcome Li. The seniors were out from about 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.”
Goodsunny’s post on a local Ottawa Chinese forum
According to an insider, about 30 seniors went and received Li. They were out all day and given two free meals in a cafeteria– lunch and dinner– before being taken home.
Goodsunny also stated in the post, “Of course, some of the seniors wanted to go, but definitely not all of them wanted to welcome such a XXXX. If the cultural center wanted to [pander to Li], it needed to tell the seniors instead of deceiving them into doing so… I don’t understand why the Canadian government funds such a garbage institute.”
Li’s Active Participation in the Persecution of Falun Gong
Li was the CCP secretary of the Guangdong Province Committee from 1998 to 2002. During this period, Guangdong Province was one of the provinces with the highest number of persecution cases. From July 1999 to January 2004, 23 Falun Gong practitioners in Guangdong were confirmed killed in the persecution. This number was the eighth-highest among China’s provinces. 604 practitioners with confirmed names were detained in 52 forced labor camps, prisons, and brainwashing centers in Guangdong.
When Jiang Zemin launched the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999, Li quickly expressed his approval supporting the illegal suppression. He asked the 2.9 million CCP members in Guangdong to “improve their understanding” of the suppression and ordered to “strictly suppress” Falun Gong multiple times.
While Li has been the propaganda chief and a Politburo Standing Committee member, he has spared no effort in deceiving the public, demonizing Falun Gong, and flaring up hatred towards Falun Gong. He has ordered all news outlets on TV and radio, and exhibits, to spread slanderous opinions against Falun Gong around the country.
Li Sued Overseas in 2004 and 2010
On July 2, 2004, Li was served with legal papers by Falun Gong practitioners in Paris while he was visiting France. He was accused of being an accomplice to torture in the persecution of Falun Gong. On September 27, 2010, when Li visited Ireland, practitioners in Ireland filed a criminal lawsuit against Li at Dublin Criminal Court, suing him for his major role in the commanding the torture, killing, and genocide of Falun Gong practitioners.
“The schedules of the CCP officials who actively participate in the persecution of Falun Gong are kept secret when they visit overseas,” said the Falun Dafa Association spokesperson, “However, they feel the need to create an atmosphere of local Chinese people welcoming them. Every time they travel overseas, they are scared– scared of being sued by someone from the crowd.”
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