Mercury Australia, January 11, 2002: Mother, Sister Now Detainees in China

A Dapto woman trying desperately to free her mother from a Chinese labour camp has suffered another serious blow.

Esther Wang's only sibling, a 31-year-old sister Stephanie, who had been helping in the release bid, also has been arrested for being a member of the Falun Gong, which is being persecuted by the Chinese government.

Their father died in China in 2000 and their 56-year-old mother was arrested in the same year outside her home for distributing Falun Gong leaflets and sentenced to three years jail.

A distressed Ms Wang said yesterday her sister, whose initial contact with their mother was later cut off, learned only on Tuesday that Stephanie and her husband were arrested at Chongqing on January 3 while attending a meeting of Falun Gong practitioners.

"I feel so bad today that I didn't go to work," Ms Wang said yesterday.

"I couldn't believe this would happen."

Ms Wang said she was having difficulty finding out details of the arrests but believed they were being kept at a police station.

Late last year, Ms Wang wrote to the Federal Government in a desperate effort to have her mother released from the camp she shares with 10,000 prisoners, including "thugs and hardened criminals".

Ms Wang arrived in Australia in 1995 to marry her Australian fiance Bill and is now an Australian citizen.

She also is a member of the Falun Gong spiritual movement which teaches meditation, truthfulness, benevolence and forbearance.

It was banned in China in July 1999. Thousands of people in China have been arrested for practising Falun Dafa and millions of books, audio tapes and videotapes have been confiscated and burned.

In a letter to Ms Wang late last year, Australian Foreign Affairs and Trade director for the China political and external section Kyle Wilson said the Government made representations to Chinese officials on human rights grounds.

Mr Kyle said he regretted that the officials spoken to did not give any indication that they would take a more lenient approach to her mother's case.

"Nor did they suggest that any consideration would be given to her release in the near future," he said.

"Please rest assured that the Government does not regard this as the end of the matter. We have made it clear and will continue to make clear that the Chinese government's treatment of Falun Gong practitioners does not accord with accepted standards of human rights.

"We will continue to urge the Chinese authorities at appropriate opportunities to show leniency towards your mother."

Ms Wang said she appreciated the Government's concern. "Falun Gong is not a --," she said.