The rise of Falun Gong was well correlated to a period of economic uncertainty in the late 90s, especially in the Manchurian rust belt cities where neoliberal r

The rise of Falun Gong was well correlated to a period of economic uncertainty in the late 90s, especially in the Manchurian rust belt cities where neoliberal reforms lead to massive unemployment and poverty. While the allegation of torture and organ harvesting are substantive, these acts were in no way targeted at FG followers or political prisoners in general. And FG's attempt at monopolizing such victimhood only comes off as disingenious. Nowadays FG is very much a shadow of its former glory these days in China thanks to both supression efforts as well as improved economic prospects. Its influence has aged much better outside China because the Chinese diaspora's world view is more or less stuck in the 1990s, like it was the end of history according to Francis Fukuyama.