(Clearwisdom.net) Epoch Times, March 13 -- On March 12, the Falun Dafa Association of New South Wales in Australia held a press conference outside the Villawood Immigration Detention Center regarding the case of an elderly couple who were very close to being deported to China because they missed their opportunity to appeal due to the language barrier. They called on the Australian government to pay attention to the certain danger the couple faced because of their belief in Falun Gong should they be sent back to China.

The press conference was held in the rain. Epoch Times, SBS broadcasting station, ABC TV station and New Tang Dynasty TV station came to cover the event.

Over the past three months, Falun Gong practitioners, 66-year-old Mr. Wang Juntao and his wife, 62-year-old Mr. Wang Liluan were twice very close to being deported by the Australian Immigration Department. The second attempt to deport them occurred on the morning of March 11. Without any advance notice, the staff from the refugee center directly sent the elderly couple to the airport. In the end, both deportations failed due to Mr. Wang's health problem (including a heart attack). Mr. and Mrs. Wang are detained in different places in the immigration detention center and their situation is uncertain. Mrs. Wang had a tearful face all day long.

Australian Falun Dafa Association's Concerns

A spokesperson for the Falun Dafa Association, John Deller said that Mr. and Mrs. Wang submitted their refugee application to the Australian Immigration Department in June 2001 and March 2002, respectively. Before they came to Australia, they had been sentenced to forced labor because they persisted in practicing Falun Gong. After their first refugee application was rejected, they missed the deadline to appeal to RRT within 28 days, which caused the follow-up work to be very difficult to carry out. Another reason that the Wang couple's application was turned down was that the Australian refugee court contended that, based on Chinese official's statements and statistical figures, as long as they do not publicly practice Falun Gong, their belief would not be impinged.

John Deller said that according to the definition of United Nations refugee, "the term 'refugee' shall apply to any person who has a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable, or owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it." Australia also signed the UN Refugee Convention, and therefore has the international obligation to provide protection to people who meet the UN refugee definition. The Wang couple had been arrested and tortured in China and their apartment was unlawfully ransacked. Mr. Wang Juntao's brother, also a Falun Gong practitioner, was sentenced to one year of forced labor. His brother-in-law, another Falun Gong practitioner was tortured to death in China. All of these facts sufficiently prove that the Wang couple meets the UN refugee status. If they are deported, they face the danger of being persecuted to death. John Deller hoped that the immigration department will take these circumstances into consideration.

John Deller also expressed that citizens should have the freedom of belief. If one's belief can only be privately practiced in his home, that would not be a real belief. From Falun Gong practitioners' point of view, that would be no different than giving up their belief.

Staff from the immigration detention center express their sympathy

At the Villawood Immigration Detention Center, two staff members who were not willing to disclose their names said that they believed the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China was a tragedy. They expressed their deep sympathy about the possible deportation faced by the detained Falun Gong practitioners in their center. They hoped that the elderly couple would be able to stay through legal procedures. "I've met Falun Gong practitioners detained in the Villawood Immigration Detention Center," one staff member said, "They are all truly good people."

Amnesty International writes to the Minister of the Australian Immigration Department

Regarding the refusal of Mr. and Mrs. Wang's refugee application, Amnesty International Australia Chapter wrote to the Minister of the Australian Immigration Department on January 13: "Mr. and Mrs. Wang's refugee application is reasonable. According to the current cruel persecution of Falun Gong in China, ordinary Falun Gong practitioners are facing danger at any moment. According to Amnesty International's report, thousands of cases in which Falun Gong practitioners were arrested by police officers have been verified." AI Australia chapter appealed to the Minister not to deport the Wang couple back to China.

Global Mission to Rescue Persecuted Falun Gong Practitioners calls for urgent rescue

Spokesperson of the Global Mission to Rescue Persecuted Falun Gong Practitioner (GMRPFGP), Mr. He Haiying said, "Falun Gong practitioners are currently suffering brutal persecution in China. This is an undeniable fact. Under such circumstances, deporting practitioners back to China is equivalent to risking their lives. The international human rights convention will be held in Geneva in the middle of March; the GMRPFGP will collect all recent deportation cases occurring in different places around the world, including the Australian case, and submit them to the Geneva international human rights convention, and seek help from the UN refugee office."

Starting on the afternoon of March 11, Falun Gong practitioners from around the world phoned the Australian Immigration Department to express their concern over this issue.

Posting date: 3/15/2003
Original article date: 3/15/2003
Category: Falun Dafa Worldwide
Translated on 3/14/2003
Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2003/3/14/46463.html

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