DISGRACEFUL. Nothing else can be said about the decision to exclude the Chinese meditation movement Falun Gongs prized dance performance from the festival, Asian Comments that started yesterday in Copenhagen.
Followers of Falun Gong, who practise a kind of meditation and eastern philosophy, are known to be brutally suppressed in China. When the organiser of the festival, Olaf Gerlach, explained in yesterday’s newspaper the reason for the exclusion – that he does not want political messages mixed into the festival – it had a very, very hollow sound.
How do Olaf Gerlach, and the rest of the leadership of the festival, actually distinguish between culture and politics?
In some of Gerlach’s previous and very successful festivals, such as Images of the World and Images of Africa, a very important point has been to strike a blow for the cultural diversity, draw attention to the sufferings in Africa or the problems concerning globalisation.
Why is it different when it comes to Falun Gong, a movement with millions of followers without any other political goals than to practise their meditation?
Why are they not allowed to dance and draw awareness to their art and existence?
NO MATTER HOW much the organizers deny it, there is only one explanation, namely that they did not want to offend China.
Whether there has been actual pressure from China, or if it stems out of self-censorship is not really interesting; the crux of the matter is that they have allowed considerations for a suppressing dictatorship to decide who can perform in Copenhagen.
And this it nothing less than a scandal. China is certainly a big and powerful country, but if all our principles regarding political freedom and freedom of expression should make any sense, it is crucial to hold on to them, even when facing big countries.
Otherwise it would not matter.
Source: ClearHarmony.net
Posting date: 12/Nov/2002
Original article date: 11/Nov/2002
Category: World News
