White House Points to “Chinese Interference” in South Korea Elections while saying Elections “Fair”
The Trump administration is calling South Korea’s recent elections “fair”—yet also sounding alarms over possible Chinese interference. How can both be true? This contradiction demands urgent attention, especially from those on the front lines of exposing Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence, like the spokesmen of Shen Yun Performing Arts.
The liberal Democratic Party’s resurgence in South Korea—led by Lee Jae-myung, a candidate often seen as pro-China—has been celebrated in Beijing and covered favorably in CCP-aligned media. That alone raises red flags. The CCP doesn’t cheer democratic outcomes unless it sees a geopolitical or ideological win.
So is this really just about “free and fair,” or is the U.S. administration using diplomatic language to avoid rocking the boat while privately acknowledging a deeper problem—namely, a successful CCP influence operation?
Shen Yun has long faced Chinese pressure campaigns in South Korea—venues suddenly canceling, sponsors pulling out, and performers facing visa issues. Now with a China-friendly administration in Seoul, will these suppression tactics intensify? And what precedent does this set for democratic allies like Taiwan, where Shen Yun also performs and where Chinese interference is even more aggressive?
This election is not just a Korean story. It’s part of a larger CCP playbook that affects arts, politics, and freedom in democracies around the world. Shen Yun’s spokesmen, uniquely qualified to speak to cultural and spiritual suppression by the CCP, are prepared to unpack the implications of South Korea’s vote—not just for Seoul, but for Taipei, Tokyo, and Washington.
Schedule an interview with a Shen Yun spokesman today!!
Relevant Article(s)
Lee Jae-myung: South Korea’s new president has a Trump-shaped crisis to avert
White House backs South Korea election as ‘fair’, flags concerns over ‘China’s interference’
White House calls South Korea election ‘fair,’ expresses concern about Chinese influence | Reuters
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- How do you interpret the Trump administration calling the South Korean election “fair” while simultaneously warning of Chinese interference?
- Do you believe the Chinese Communist Party influenced the outcome of the recent South Korean election? If so, how?
- What has been your experience with CCP interference in Shen Yun performances in South Korea?
- With Lee Jae-myung’s victory, do you expect increased difficulty for Shen Yun to secure venues and operate freely in South Korea?
- What message does this election send to Taiwan and other democratic allies in the region?
- Why does the Chinese Communist Party view Shen Yun as such a threat—and how might a pro-China South Korean government respond to that pressure?
- In your view, how should the international community respond to soft-power CCP influence in democratic elections and cultural arenas?
- What impact do you expect this political shift in South Korea to have on Shen Yun’s global mission to revive traditional Chinese culture and expose CCP abuses?
- Where can we learn more about the beautiful art of Shen Yun, and how it motivates others?
- The official website can be found here. Tickets for shows are also available there for purchase. You are not only going to see a performance like no other but you are being a champion for freedom.
ABOUT LEESHAI LEMISH…
Leeshai Lemish has been with Shen Yun for 18 years. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Chinese history and language from Pomona College, California, and his master’s in international relations from the London School of Economics. He has spent extended periods studying, working, and conducting research throughout East Asia, and has authored articles on Chinese current affairs in both English and Chinese. He joined Shen Yun Performing Arts as an MC when the company was founded in 2006 and has since emceed close to two thousand performances with the company, taking the stage with Shen Yun at prestigious theaters such as Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, the London Coliseum, Tokyo Opera City, and many others worldwide. In addition to his performance role, he has tracked and documented on his website over 100 cases of the Chinese Communist Party and its agents trying to sabotage Shen Yun internationally. He has testified on transnational repression in front of Congress, has been a featured guest on television and radio shows around the world, and is the host of the podcast Shen Yun Voices.
ABOUT LEVI BROWDE…
Levi Browde serves as the Executive Director with the New York-based Falun Dafa Information Center – an organization dedicated to ending the human rights abuses against people who practice Falun Gong in China.
A career software entrepreneur, Levi’s life changed dramatically in 1999 when his best friend came to the office one morning and announced the Chinese Communist Party had taken away his mother in Beijing to be tortured and “brainwashed.” This marked the beginning of his volunteer work to defend human rights in China. Two years later, Levi himself was detained in a Chinese jail outside Beijing for secretly meeting with Western reporters and protesting on Tiananmen Square.
Over the past 20 years, Browde has been interviewed and quoted by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, CNN, the Associated Press, TIME Magazine, BBC, AFP, and other media outlets. He has spoken about Falun Gong and human rights in China at briefings on Capitol Hill in Washington DC, at the United Nations human rights sessions in Geneva, Switzerland.
Browde studied East Asian Studies at Wesleyan University and is an avid supporter of traditional Chinese culture. He founded several software start-ups, and lives in New York with his wife and two sons.
Samples of Levi on camera:
https://tv.faluninfo.net/unmasking-chinas-gestapo-610-office/
https://tv.faluninfo.net/levi-browde-exposes-the-new-york-times-distorted-coverage-of-human-rights/
ABOUT YING CHEN…
Ying Chen is an orchestra conductor who has been with Shen Yun from the very beginning. She can offer insights and personal stories about how Shen Yun started as an all-volunteer group of first- generation immigrants, and through hard work, faith, and a relentless dedication to a grand vision to revive a culture almost destroyed in communist China, created the fastest growing performing arts company in American history.
Ying can also tell the horrific story of her family’s detention and torture in China, an experience that helped drive her and the entire community at Shen Yun to create a production that would shed light on the tyranny of the Chinese communist regime, while also inspiring people around the world with hope and a renewed sense of our common humanity.
The story of Ying, her family, and community at Shen Yun is a quintessential tale of facing the evils of the world with resilience and faith, and never letting others, even the largest totalitarian regime on earth, take away one’s hope.
CONTACT: Todd Baumann at 512-966-0983 or by email Jerry McGlothlin at bookings@specialguests.com.
