MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
21 November 2025
Falun Gong practitioners to rally in Canberra during visit by senior Chinese official
CANBERRA – Falun Gong practitioners from around Australia will hold a peaceful rally outside Parliament House on Monday 24 November as senior Chinese Communist Party official Zhao Leji visits Canberra for an official visit to meet with Australian Parliament representatives.
Zhao’s name has appeared in international civil-society submissions to democratic governments – including Australia, the US, the UK, Canada and New Zealand – calling for visa restrictions and targeted sanctions over his alleged role in the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China (copy of submission available on request).
Zhao currently serves as Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress and previously headed the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the CCP’s powerful internal control and anti-corruption body. In these senior roles, he has been part of the top leadership during periods in which religious and spiritual groups, human-rights defenders, and ethnic minorities have faced intensified repression across China.
Organisers say Monday’s gathering is not anti-China, but a call for accountability regarding human-rights abuses.
Event Details
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Rally: 9:00am–3:00pm
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Media Conference: 11:30am
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Location: Federation Mall, Parliament House, Canberra
Call for Australian Government to raise human rights concerns
Advocacy groups are urging Australian leaders to raise human-rights issues directly with Zhao, citing ongoing concerns documented by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other international bodies.
“Zhao Leji’s visit is an important moment for Australia to reaffirm its commitment to human rights,” said Dr Lucy Zhao, president of the Australian Falun Dafa Association. “We hope the Australian Government will urge an end to the persecution of Falun Gong and call for the immediate release of detained Falun Gong practitioners in China, especially family members of Australian citizens and residents.”
Australian residents with relatives detained in China, as well as survivors of imprisonment and torture, will participate in the rally and are available for interview.
Media contact:
Lucy Zhao (contact number available upon request via editor@falunau.org)
Background
Falun Gong (Falun Dafa) is a peaceful spiritual practice based on the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance. Since 1999, international human-rights organisations have documented ongoing abuses against practitioners in China, including arbitrary detention, torture, and forced organ harvesting. For more information: www.faluninfo.net | www.falundafa.org
