Saw a group of falun gongers when I hada walk yesterday. The group has always fascinated me, because I think it's weird that the Chinese government has banned it, and I've always thougnt there must be more other than what they tell us in the west, or in Sweden at least, that they just want to be spiritual and do funny choreographs together, but I haven't made much research into it until yesterday.
I believe I am right in that it's not as simply as "NOOOOOO you can't go on a spiritual journey and flap your arms around!", because what I found described the movement as more like a cult. The leader is apparantely fucking insane and believes he's some kind of magical Buddha with healing powers, and that the movement preys on the poor and old uneducated population by telling them "no no no, you don't need to go to the hospital for that cancer. Give us money instead and pray to our leader, the magical Buddha, and you will be fine!". I also read something about the movement being suspects of several murders, but that part I just glimpsed through so I may have gotten it wrong.
It honestly sounded a bit like the Chinese version of the scientologies. I know we have a few people from China. ANy truth to these claims, or is the truth closer to what they tell us in the west, that they just want to meditate and do funny dances in peace, but the big bully government won't let them?