China’s CCP Silences Opposition While Hijacking its Movement for Control
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is quietly eliminating versions of Confucianism it can’t control. At the same time, it’s promoting a state-approved version of Confucian values to make itself look moral and traditional. It’s a bait-and-switch: either destroy ideas that threaten the Party or twist those ideas into propaganda.
Falun Gong Knows this Tactic all too well.
Falun Dafa (also called Falun Gong) has been fighting against it since 1999. Once embraced by millions across China for its mix of meditation and moral teachings—centered on truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance—Falun Dafa was labeled an enemy of the state the moment it grew too independent. The CCP couldn’t co-opt it, so it tried to erase it: mass arrests, labor camps, torture, and credible reports of forced organ harvesting.
The comparison is stark:
- With Confucianism, the CCP adopts the brand but strips out the substance, keeping only the parts that make the Party look good.
- With Falun Dafa, the CCP couldn’t bend it to its will, so it launched one of the largest persecutions of a spiritual group in modern history.
Falun Dafa experts can help Western audiences connect these dots. They can explain how:
- The CCP fears independent moral authority because it undermines the Party’s claim to be the sole source of truth.
- Co-opting and crushing are two sides of the same coin—tools the CCP uses to control how people think and believe.
- Falun Dafa’s story isn’t just about persecution; it’s about how millions of ordinary people tried to live by universal values—and were targeted for it.
The CCP’s approach to Confucianism: reshape what it can, erase what it can’t. Falun Dafa is the sharper example of what happens when reshaping fails.
Schedule Falun Dafa speakers to:
- React to the article and draw the Falun Dafa-Confucianism comparison?
- Explain how CCP tactics threaten all independent belief systems, not just in China but globally?
- Share firsthand accounts of how persecution works on the ground?
This story isn’t just about China. It’s about what happens when a government believes it can own morality itself.
Schedule an interview with Falun Dafa spokesman today!!
Relevant Article(s)
Systemic Suppression: The CCP’s Silent Elimination of Alternative Confucianism – The Diplomat
OPTIONAL Q&A:
- How does the CCP’s treatment of Falun Dafa illustrate its broader approach to independent moral or spiritual movements?
- Why do you think the CCP chose to crush Falun Dafa outright rather than try to co-opt it, as it has with Confucianism?
- What are the core principles of Falun Dafa, and why do those principles pose such a threat to the Party’s control?
- How has the persecution of Falun Dafa affected practitioners both inside and outside of China?
- What does the CCP’s manipulation of Confucianism reveal about its need to appear morally legitimate while silencing real dissent?
- How do the tactics of “co-opt or crush” work together to create an environment where no belief system can exist independently of the Party?
- In what ways does this strategy extend beyond China’s borders, particularly in shaping global narratives about Falun Dafa or other targeted groups?
- What lessons should Western audiences draw from how the CCP handles moral and spiritual alternatives to its authority?
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 BEN MALONEY…
Ben brings a human-centric approach to the issue of Chinese transnational repression in America. Ben is the Digital Outreach Director for the Falun Dafa Information Center and has worked for Fortune 500 companies in various technology roles. With his deep background in technology, he can speak authoritatively on how the Chinese Communist Party weaponizes surveillance, AI, and digital tools to target both Chinese and Americans. A practitioner of Falun Gong meditation who has 20 years of expertise in human rights work, he can help Americans understand how the CCP exports persecution to the U.S., influences our thinking and social media feeds, and endangers our freedoms.
Sample interviews:
NTD Evening News:
China in Focus to highlight World Falun Dafa Day,
ABOUT MARK YANG
Based in Washington D.C., Mark Yang is part of the Falun Dafa Information Center’s program for advocacy and research and regularly speaks at forums and press conferences on Capitol Hill. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in Global Commerce and Policy from George Mason University. Passionate about human rights, he brings 14 years of experience working on issues of human rights in China and additionally serves as a China analyst for a New York-based consultancy.
CONTACT: Todd Baumann at 512-966-0983 or by email Jerry McGlothlin at bookings@specialguests.com.
