April 20, 2001

HONG KONG (AP)--A dozen followers of the spiritual [group] Falun Gong in Macau alleged Friday they have been stalked and photographed by plainclothes police over the past month.

A Hong Kong human rights group accused the authorities in the tiny gambling enclave of violating the rights of the Falun Gong members.

"The surveillance is tighter for some people and laxer for others," said Lam Iat-ming, one of the [groups] members. "The Macau police will take pictures of you practicing."

"In one case, they stalked a female member when she practiced, went home to change clothes and went to work," Lam said. "They followed her home after she finished work."

Some [group] members say they have been tailed as often as three times a week.

"We asked the police officers why they followed us and they said they were instructed by their superiors to do so," Lam said.

Leong Wai-keong, senior superintendent of Macau police, said the authorities would have no comment for now.

The Macau police officers allegedly monitoring the Falun Gong members are believed to be part of the the intelligence division, according to the Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, a Hong Kong-based group that follows human rights issues in China.

The center's director, Frank Lu, said the stalking continued after Lam, along with two other members, filed a complaint with the Justice Department in Macau March 29.

Lu said the Macau police photographed 10 Falun Gong members while they practiced their meditation exercises on April 19.

In a statement, the center urged the U.N. Human Rights Committee to take notice of the "serious infringement" of human rights.

The center called on the Macau police to immediately halt such surveillance, which, they said, violated the new government arrangement dubbed "one country, two systems" put in place when Portugal returned Macau to China.

Macau, a casino center 64 kilometers west of Hong Kong, cracked down on Falun Gong followers who tried to demonstrate during handover anniversary ceremonies attended by Chinese President Jiang Zemin in December.

Some Falun Gong adherents from outside Macau were barred entry, while others were rounded up and deported.