The evacuation of the Prime Minister over a threat linked to a Shen Yun tour has drawn attention to the Falun Gong movement and its political evolution.

This week PM Anthony Albanese had to evacuate the Lodge, his official residence in Canberra, because of a threat linked to a proposed dance tour sponsored by Shen Yun. Shen Yun has been identified by the government of China as a terrorist organisation. Did the threat to the PM’s safety come from China or from pro-Beijing community groups? Little has been revealed by the authorities and it is surely too early to jump to conclusions.

Shen Yun (literally “spiritual rhythm”) is linked to the Falun Gong, a movement that originated in China in the late 1980s that is now based in the United States. It has morphed from a quasi-religious cult into a political movement closely aligned with US far right conservatism and was a major financial backer of Donald Trump’s election campaign. Its media voice, the Epoch Times, spruiks anti-China rhetoric, and its soft power outreach is led by Shen Yun, which claims to represent traditional Chinese culture that has been erased by the Chinese Communist Party.

In recent weeks, posters and advertisements for performances in Sydney, Melbourne and other cities in Australia have sprouted in shop windows and restaurants across the nation, particularly in places patronised by Australians with links to Hong Kong and Taiwan. Those who are enticed to attend the performances can expect to receive a loaded message: that the Chinese Communist Party is an evil force that must be resisted.

The header of the Falun Gong, Li Hongzhi, began to attract adherents in northeast China in the 1980s. At the time I was based in the Australian Embassy in Beijing as Senior Trade Commissioner. Li quickly attracted thousands of followers. At that time, whenever I attended a dinner with local officials I heard stories of friends or relatives who had experienced miraculous cures when they attended rallies organised by Li or one of his associates. There was no laying on of hands – people were cured at long distance of their aches and pains simply by being in the same assembly hall as the spiritual leader.

It seemed ridiculous to me, but I came to understand that after the overthrow of Maoism, there was a spiritual void in China that demanded to be filled. By the mid-1990s there were more than 2000 Falong Gong groups in Beijing. In 1999 a silent Falun Gong protest in front of Zhongnan Hai, where most senior Party leaders resided, shook the establishment and a warrant was issued for the arrest of Li Hongzhi and this led to the movement spreading its wings beyond China.

Having moved to the US, Falun Gong evolved into a political/religious organisation of international significance. Its media outlet, the Epoch Times, has recently published a series titled ‘The framing of Charlie Kirk’, and pieces with titles such as ‘Japan should get tougher on the CCP’. In 2019 the Epoch Times spent over US$1.5 milllion on pro-Trump Facebook advertising. It has consistently promoted right-wing politics and conspiracy theories including QAnon and claims of rigged elections. Steve Bannon is a frequent speaker on Falun Gong-associated media promoting anti-China agendas. In June 2024 Bill Guan, the Chief Financial Officer of the Epoch Times, was indicted for a scheme to launder at least US$67 million “dirty” money.

The dilemma for the Australian government is whether the Falun Gong movement should be considered to be a religious or political group according to the Refugee Convention and its adherents treated as political or religious refugees. The UK Government in a detailed judgment in 2025 distinguished between those who practised meditation and spiritual exercises in private and those who engaged in it chiefly to highlight the treatment of practitioners in China or in order to oppose official Chinese government views. This is a useful distinction that Australia also would do well to follow.

Not surprisingly, the Chinese government has cracked down on Falun Gong, calling it an “evil cult: determined to bring down the government". A current national tour by the Falun Gong Shen Yun dance group opened on the Gold Coast in January even though the Queensland Police were informed of a bomb threat at the Home of the Arts (HOTA) theatre. That threat was investigated and found to be unsubstantiated. The threat against the Prime Minister on 25 February that forced his evacuation from the Lodge, similarly proved to be unsubstantial.

There is no evidence that the Chinese Government or the Chinese Embassy or its several consulates are behind this week’s threats. There is widespread antagonism in the community to the blatant anti-China propaganda being spread by the Falun Gong movement worldwide and these online threats could have come from a variety of sources both inside and outside Australia.

What is generally agreed by all sides, here in Australia, in China and around the world, is that we do not want to see promotion of divisive propaganda, dividing us one against the other and leading to terrorism.