The Tulip Festival’s big black mark
6 05 2008
The tulips are late to bloom but controversy is in full bloom at the Canadian Tulip Festival. Organizers invited the Tian Guo Marching Band to play O Canada and The Maple Leaf Forever on the opening weekend of the annual event but abruptly asked the band to leave before a note was even played.
So what happened?
Festival organizers say the band mislead them about who they really were and did not tell them they had connections to Falun Dafa or Falun Gong.
Doug Little, festival marketing and finance director, told the Ottawa Sun, “They came from a protest on Parliament Hill and they came decked out in Falun Gong or Falun Dafa regalia. That’s not who we thought was registered.” Really? No one has access to Google these days?…
OK so let me get this straight. The International Tulip Festival, which draws hundreds of thousands of visitors from all over the world, selects a group to play O Canada and doesn’t even research the group they choose to learn a little bit more about them? Someone is clearly asleep at the switch over there. It’s not that the group used a fake name or anything — the Tulip Festival clearly knew what the group was called and posted it all over the event’s schedule of events!
The Tulip Festival asked the group to leave the event before anything happened. So in essence, the Tulip Festival kicked out a group they invited because they didn’t do their own research and were affraid the group might — MIGHT — protest.
Oh what’s this? The Chinese Embassy is a partner for the International Tulip Festival?
“We have a partnership with the Embassy of China and we felt this was not appropriate,” said Little…
“We don’t have anything to apologize to them for,” Little said. “We are not about groups coming to hijack the Tulip Festival for their own agenda.”
Really? Because it sure looks like the festival has been hijacked. Next time do a little research before you invite a group to perform at your world class event! Regardless of what you think of Falun Gong or China, I think the lack of research and sloppiness at which the festival screens and invites performers seems pretty bizarre.
One has to wonder if they’d invite Amy Winehouse next year and then find out last minute that she might be a bad choice because, well, someone didn’t think to Google her.
It’s surely not about doing or not doing the research. It’s the Embassy putting presure on them to kick out Falun Gong. It’s clearly visible. Shame on them.
““We have a partnership with the Embassy of China and we felt this was not appropriate,” said Little…”
I think it’s inappropriate to have a partnership with the Embassy of China, but that’s my opinion …
And there’s no need to worry about them protesting. I’m sure that if you ask them not to protest, they surely won’t. It’s as simple as that. (but I think they have all the reason to protest anyway)
Thanks for bringing this up.
Amy Winehouse - YES, and why should we care what China thinks, they don’t care what Canada thinks.
Sorry to be a stick in the Mud, I am by no means defending the NCC, which has in my opinion, turned the tulip festival into noting more than a bid for toursim - and not a celebration of the friendship between Canada and Holland
The Tulip Festival and the NCC are different Entities.
The NCC just supplies the tulips, that’s about it.
Yes, the Tulip festival screwed up. It’s shameful that they are blaming the Band.
They marched in the St. Patrick’s Day parade, with their Banner after the Tulip festival had booked them.
They should admit they made a mistake and apologize.
While I deplore the Festival for being spineless, I deplore the Falun Gong more. These guys are a cult. That doesn’t make what China does to them OK, but they are no better than Scientologists. It does not surprise me that they misrepresented themselves.
There are no good guys in this story.
Similarly I am a free speech absolutist, but I despise the dishonestly of Ezra Levant and the others involved in the HRC and the Warman lawsuit, as much as I despise HRC and the antics of Warman himself. So I’ll sit it out.
I don’t want a mad cult like Falun Gong representing the City. Better to look like a bootlicker of the Chinese than to look like idiots that support a crazed superstitious cult.
Mike,
“cult …. no better than Scientologists”
YIKES Where have I been?? If you have time and the inclination, could you provide links or perhaps you have first hand knowledge about Falun Gong.
I did Google them but most of the links are pro so it’s hard to sort this one out.
Thanks
I’m no FG apologist, but Little’s comments on CBC radio this morning were insulting to listeners. Statements like “we don’t want the Festival to be political” make me scratch my head. What’s not political about celebrating a WWII alliance, or striking up “Maple Leaf Forever”?
Not wanting *protests* of any stripe at the Festival is understandable, and probably defendable–but claiming that the Festival, and music in general, are not political (as Little did this morning) is…are there even words for that kind of whitewash? Unless the band was chanting protests as they came in (were they? anyone know?), I fail to see why the organizers didn’t just ask them to doff their insignia and play on.
I wonder if a Klezmer band brandishing a Star of David or Israeli flag on their banner would have been looked at twice. It’s the double standard that galls. God knows any national/cultural group has its own set of “enemies”, and someone to “offend” just by breathing. What happened to just having a day of quiet inclusiveness, where differences are set aside? Isn’t that the great Canadian castle in the air, anyway? The organizers’ actions seem to be contrary to the whole point of cheese-fest festivals like these.
The antics of Falon Gong are getting pretty tiresome and I support the Tulip festival’s decision to bar its marching band from participating in this year’s Tulip Festival. While I do not support the repression Falon Gong has experienced at the hands of the Chinese government, one should not lose sight of the fact that it’s a cult with a political agenda. This organization is among the most media savvy I’ve ever witnessed and it’s done an effective job of swaying world opinion in its favour.
I have also Googled Falon Gong and found out much about its founder - Li Hongzhi who owns house in Manhattan and New Jersey. He claims to be divine and posses supernatural powers. Sounds like a cult to me! Any group that’s driven purely by religious belief should be viewed with suspicion.
Mark
“I have also Googled Falon Gong and found out much about its founder - Li Hongzhi who owns house in Manhattan and New Jersey. He claims to be divine and posses supernatural powers. Sounds like a cult to me!”
Then most of the world’s religions are cults to you…
And he owns olny one house, the second one was given to him against his will and then returned to the previous owner. (I could give more info on that)
Cults exploit their members for money and isolate them from the society, Falun Gong is nothing like that. In fact it has been identyfied as lacking the key characteristics of cults.
This is ridiculous. They are a marching band. They were going to perform some nice songs, including the national anthem. Expelling them from the festival for things they “might” do (e.g., protest) is paranoid hysteria.
Also, last time I checked Chinese law doesn’t apply here… perhaps someone should remind the Tulip Fesitval organizers that it’s still a Canadian event and they should be upholding the principles of the Canadian constitution (i.e., freedom of speech and protection of minorities).
I sort of knew this was going to turn into a debate about Falun Gong…. Which is fine but I’m looking at this from a much broader perspective.
The group had a website and a name and the organizers clearly didn’t do their research on this group.
If you own a bar even a dive of a bar — you screen the musical talent you ask to come in and play. If you run one of Ottawa’s premiere festivals — you screen the talent too!
That’s the principal problem I have with this whole situation. It’s clear either the Tulip Festival screened this group, approved them and then there was interference from the Chinese Embassy afterward. Or the Tulip Festival just didn’t do their homework. Which was it?
OK Darren,
Tulip Festival just didn’t do their homework.
It wouldn’t be the first time the CCP is meddling into another country affairs.
No one should be suprised if it turned out that they put pressure on Tulip Festival.
Wasn’t a movie made about musicians airing their political views? I read one article about an artist who was heckled for making political statements during a concert, basically told they were there to perform, not make speaches. Yes, the tulip festival didn’t do its homework by asking for pictures of the uniforms for approval, but then again, when was the last time you wondered if a marching band (or concert band) was going to wear something inappropriate? Just checking the manual for the Calgary Stampede and there is nothing in there about attire, only bands can’t hand out stuff during the parade. As for hiring a band at a small club, you audition them and hire them on that audition. If 2 weeks later you see them the night before and they do something you don’t think would be suitable in your club, you cancel. Most contracts have a termination clause somewhere in them. The Tulip festival screwed up by doing it the day of, instead of days or weeks before (and there would be no issue).
Falun Dafa is good. Tianguo marching band have performed all over the world and are peaceful. Every countries have their human rights and freedom of belief. I don’t see why they protest during this performance for Canada people.
I sincerely hope that everyone know the truth as shown below.
http://www.falundafa.org/eng/faqs.html
Frequent ask questions
Kindly read the reports and view the video:
http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/special_column/self_immolation/si_liuchnl.html
Ms. Liu Chunling Is Struck Down
The slow-motion sequence of the CCTV video shows that one of the women, Liu Chunling–who in the Xinhua (Chinese Communist Party’s official mouthpiece) version of events supposedly died from burn injuries–actually received a sharp blow to the forehead, with what looks like a metal bar, delivered by a man wearing an army overcoat. She is seen crumpling instantly to the ground and most likely died from that blow.
http://www.clearwisdom.net/emh/articles/2001/12/22/17015.html
Analysing Another Deceptive Story from CCTV’s “News Report”
The so-called “Tiananmen Self Immolation Truth” was even more directly planned and staged by the Jiang-Luo gang. Traces of a staged drama could be clearly seen by analysing the recording of the CCTV’s interview program, “Focal Point”. In fact, the truth is already internationally known. The International Education Development (IED) of the United Nations issued a statement for the record after analysing this recording, pointing out that the “self-immolation” incident was purely the Chinese X Party’s attempt to defame Falun Gong. Unbelievably, the CCTV then had the audacity to remove the bits in question, and continued to play this tape to deceive the masses. An evil political gang trying to damage Zhen, Shan, Ren (Truth, Compassion, Forbearance), it survives by relying on lies to deceive people.
What is wrong with their uniforms??
“They came from a protest on Parliament Hill and they came decked out in Falun Gong or Falun Dafa regalia”…the Tulip Festival had an issue with their uniforms.
Rob,
According to the band’s website and the photos and videos seen there — this group always wears blue, gold and clearly indicates the band supports Falun Gong.
What I was getting at is that the tulip festival didn’t do its’ homework, but it is up to the band to make sure they remain in the standards of the festival. Most likely the band had to apply to be invited (much like many other major events) , and abide by the rules set out. In the Calgary Stampede parade, you can get ‘pulled’ during the parade for violating one of many different rules. Once again, there is no ‘picture’ requirement for a band in the invitation, only sampling of music. Looking at the picture attached, could the band have marched without the banner as it appears they have simple white pant/blue golf shirt uniforms. The quote of “They came from a protest on Parliament Hill and they came decked out in Falun Gong or Falun Dafa regalia” came from the article, and they are the ones making the decision.
[...] Tulip Festival Apologizes 13 05 2008 The Canadian Tulip Festival is apologizing to a marching band it had originally escourted off the grounds and banned from the event. [...]
CULTS AND THE CULTIC LOBBY IN THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION, 2007
An Overview
Prof. Alexander L. Dvorkin, Moscow, Russia
Today we increasingly encounter various shapes and forms of totalitarian and destructive cults. In my country, the cults have been actively working, developing and spreading for over fifteen years, and naturally, many features of the phenomenon are very similar to the rest of the world. Nonetheless, we have our own specific characteristics.
When the cults had arrived en masse into the USSR (later in CIS) at the late 1980’s they’ve encountered a wide spread ignorance about them, wide spread admiration to everything western, and a situation where for a very insignificant for Western standards sum of money one could rent a huge stadium, for example. The ideological vacuum and a large number of disoriented people had eased the recruitment work for the cults. Another factor in favor of the cults was the benevolence of the authorities. Since in soviet times everything religious was either forbidden or barely tolerated (the only exception to that was ironically Hare Krishnas, who started their organization in Russia in 1981, most likely with the knowledge and consent of KGB), after the collapse of the Soviet power the pendulum has moved as far into the other direction. Even Gorbachev when in 1989 he had received Moon as a state guest, most likely had done it out of ignorance. However, his later support of Moon cannot be explained by this factor: we can suppose that the monetary factors probably had played the key role. Probably the same factors were the most important in the support of scientology, Hare Krishna, Aum Shinrikyo and other notorious cults by the Russian authorities. Scientology, for example, had the first presentation of “Dianetics” in the Kremlin, then it opened L. Ron Hubbard reading room in Moscow State University, found a lot of support in the Ministry of Health and even in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In the case of Aum Shinrikyo it went as far that Mr. Oleg Lobov, their main high positioned supporter – the secretary of the Defense Council of the state – allegedly even sold to them the recipe of sarin and a combat helicopter.
Since then some things have changed. Initially all cults were so to say, on the streets, recruiting new members. They used all means (mostly deceit and bribery) to obtain this goal and they did succeed to large extent. Now the presence of such multitude of the cults is not visible to such degree. So many superficial observers conclude that the situation has changed and the cultic totalitarian organizations have failed in Russia. There is nothing so far from the truth!
The cults had not changed themselves; they just gradually changed their tactic. After having collected a body of members each group realized that the street recruitment cannot bring them to the desired goal – the control of the entire society. Nor can it even make them a really large body to influence the society by sheer numbers.
Of course, people – and the authorities did get more information about the cults. Ironically, the more the cults did succeed in the short term, the worse it turned out for them on a long term: with each more person recruited, the number of cult-related tragedies did increase as well. Our Center of Religious Studies, founded in 1993 had become nationally known. I and my colleagues very often comment cult issues on the national TV, giving more information about each cult.
So by now we should say, each of the large cults became notorious and people, armed by knowledge about cultic tragedies became much more cautious. So the new cultic tactic is such: the main thing for them is to entrench, to build the lobby, to mass property, including the real estate and industries, to silence their critics, and eventually to show themselves as a permanent part of Russian reality. We should add that 15-20 years ago the cults were seen as almost entirely foreign phenomenon. Now according to our estimate up to half of them are native Russian cults (Probably, the most notorious of these cult leaders is Mr. Gregory Grabovoy, who offered to Beslan mothers to raise their children from the dead for about three thousand euros per person). More over, some of these new Russian cults have moved part of their activity to the West, so the situation can be described by the familiar title: The Empire strikes back. But the patterns of behavior of both groups are very much similar. So we deal with groups that are either international or are internationalizing very quickly. On the other hand, the foreign groups are trying to acquire Russian appearance and to look as native as possible. Both foreign and Russian cults after their names become notorious either change the name (some do it on regular basis) or create a multitude of front organizations with ‘innocent’ sounding names.
But the most important drive of the cults is to the circles of power. The Moonies reach many important power figures via their peace ambassadors program. The scientologists try to recruit business elite through so called Hubbard College of business administration (as they claim in Russia Hubbard College had trained the personnel of such thriving companies as Boeing, Chanel, Volvo, Coca-Cola, etc.). Hare Krishnas try to impress the authorities by their connection with Indian government. Others have other means to find a structure up on high that would protect them. But the most successful were the Neo-Pentecostals – so far the most numerous cultic movement in Russia and CIS. Their leader Sergey Ryakhovsky couple of years ago had become a member of the Presidential Council for the contacts with religious organizations, and little over a year ago was included in the newly founded Presidential Chamber of Public Representatives. He had very actively used the membership in both of those bodies to advance the cause of his organizations throughout Russia. I must add that the Neo-Pentecostals have been very active in advancing their political goals and infiltrating the power structures not only in Russia but also in the Ukraine, Byelorussia, and, perhaps, the most successfully, in Latvia. The most known Neo-Pentecostal leader of CIS Alexey Ledyaev have published a book named “The New World Order” in which he described a kind of totalitarian theocracy with Neo-Pentecostal leaders at the top. This is really a political program for the entire cultic movement. All of this, naturally, causes a very serious concern. In fact, I did voice this concern in a popular program on Russian TV. It happened in September a year ago. After that Mr. Ryakhovsky had sued me in Moscow court. In May the process had concluded by my victory. In September the Moscow city court has rejected Ryakhovsky’s appeal.
So, all cults that have reached a certain size begin to build very actively their lobby. The lobby consists of several groups: pro-cult scholars, pro-cult human rights defenders, journalists, psychiatrists, lawyers, and finally pro-cult politicians.
The role of scholars is taken in Russia by former communist professional anti-religion propagandists. With the fall of communism, they lost their well-paid sinecures. After looking for new jobs a lot of them realized that the newly arriving cults would pay well and offered their services to them. Now they call themselves “experts-religious scholars”. During the last few years though, there have begun to appear some young and newly made sociologists of religion actively propagating their “progressive” methodology.
As for the second group it should be said that many former professional dissidents and human rights activists having also lost their raison d’être in the post-Soviet period, have now decided that they must defend the rights of small and defenseless “religious minorities” suffering terrible persecution and discrimination at the hands of an aggressive majority. Perhaps, the most well known of them, the Moscow Helsinki group, as it was proven several times, has been receiving money from Scientology. More over Moscow Helsinki group actively participates in virtually every public event organized by Scientology. Just recently the head of Moscow Helsinki group Ms. Alexeyeva had publicly proclaimed: “Many people tell me to stay away from Scientology for the sake of my good reputation. But I will always remain deaf to these advises”. I should say that two groups: Scientology and Falun Gong (Falun Dafa) have been leaders in using “human rights” community in their own goals. By the way, both of them cooperate very actively with each other. Falun Gong (which, incidentally in Russia consists mostly of ethnically Russian adepts) have been pursuing its own personal vendetta against Chinese government, and has successfully recruited most of “human rights” community to fight their battle.
There are not many journalists who professionally explore the field. Among them there is a small but very noisy group of “professional revealers of truth” and “fighters against retrogrades” which is close to dissident-human rights defenders circles and who are ready to publish under their names any text that the cults will offer them.
As for the lawyers specializing in the area of cults, there are very few of them and in fact, the most well known of them are those who represent the cults in various proceedings. Some of them are tightly connected to Scientology (out of then the most notorious is member of the board of Scientological Citizen’s Human Rights Commission – Ms. Galina Krylova who recently had represented Scientology in Strasbourg Court of Human Rights), while others are at least partially funded by the State Department of the USA (the best known of these is the Slavic Center of Law and Justice headed by Mr. Anatoly Pchelintsev and Mr. Vladimir Ryakhovsky – the brother of the chief Neo-Pentecostal of Russia who was mentioned above). Of course, both groups do receive income from many sources, both cultic, and pro-cultic.
Russian pro-cult psychiatrists have incorporated themselves into the Independent Psychiatric Association closely connected with the very same former dissidents-human rights activists and being at least partially subsidized by the cults.
As for the last group – the pro-cult politicians – a lot of them could be named (and some were named above). There is an entire political party: “The Union of Right Forces” which takes consistent pro-cult position. A former deputy education minister Mr. Alexander Asmolov had been an active supporter of the Moonies and some other cults. Another notorious case is Mr. Sergey Kirienko who had gone through several Hubbard college courses before Mr. Eltsyn had appointed him for a prime minister post. Now Mr. Kirienko is the Minister of Nuclear Energy.
These are just a few examples. I could have easily mentioned much more names.
The last thing I should mention that I do not see the cults as mere religious organizations concerned primarily with spiritual goals. These are power and money hungry bodies that care nothing about human lives, human dignity and human well being. There are multiple cases of people who suffer because of them in Russia. More over, we have many cases of outright crimes committed by cult members and cult bosses in my country. These crimes range from swindling and racket to drug traffic, pedophilia and murders. And the number of these crimes does multiply.
We often hear from cult lobby that these organizations constantly change for the better. According to this viewpoint, the new religious movements (NRMs) have already outlived their initial, fanatical phase and have now become respectable and “main-line.” We are often accused of treating such organizations according to what they were long ago, and not what they really are today. However, the Russian experience shows otherwise. Most of these groups came into Russia at the end of 1980-s. They started from scratch in my country and had a chance to show that they were really different. However, it did not happen, and what we see in Russia is exactly the same modus operandi and modus vivendi that these groups exhibit in virtually every country they operated in before; there are no changes whatsoever, except, perhaps, a better and more aggressive PR. And it proves that until these groups continue to violate the basic rights of their members we could not expect from them to play anywhere near a positive role in our societies.
Russian expert tags Falun Gong as international cult
May 13, 2008 by factsoffalun
Russian expert in sect studies Professor Alexander Dvorkin has tagged Falun Gong as an international cult at a forum in Beijing and said all healthy and righteous forces in the world should unite to combat cults.
Cults harm individuals, families, societies and countries like “cancerous cells” in a healthy body, said Dvorkin, president of the Russian Association of Religious and Cultic Studies Centers in an interview with Xinhua after attending a Sino-Russian Forum on sect studies in Beijing on Thursday.
“They would turn individuals into tools of cults, and destroy their families,” he said. “Cults make no contribution to the society. But they kept absorbing human resources and wealth from it.
“Like cancerous cells, they obtain nutrition from the healthy body of society until it collapses.”
He said that in the case of Falun Gong, the cult’s head Li Hongzhi bases its headquarters in New York and the activities of Falun Gong have infiltrated to many countries and entered various social circles.
“The Falun Gong practitioners feel they do not belong to any country and act entirely in accordance with Li’s will. The cult even gained support from other international cults and from the governments and parliaments of some western countries.”
Dvorkin said cults can be identified by four characteristics. First, the founder of a cult either calls himself God, or the only way to God. Second, cults usually have methods, which are easily acceptable to people, to achieve their goals. Third, cults are well organized with strict rules, and has a vertical totalitarian structure of leadership. Fourth, cults are deceptive, they can even change a person’s character and turn them into tools for cults.
The 52-year-old scholar is a prominent sectologist, historian and theologist. He has published more than 500 articles and more than a dozen books, which were translated into 16 languages.
Prof. Dvorkin said every cult is an independent kingdom. Followers of the cults would do anything that is beneficial to their organizations, and did not abide by laws and ethics. They would regard all the people as their enemies, and the anti-humanity nature of cults may lead to large-scale manslaughter, suicide and injuries.
Falun Gong is a cult established in China in early 1990s. Its head Li Hongzhi first appealed to people through physical exercises to improve their health. Then he talked people into believing his theories of “doomsday” and “nirvana”, and controlled their minds. More than 1,700 practitioners are alleged to have died from practicing Falun Gong.
Dvorkin said Falun Gong was not able to practice “truthfulness”, “benevolence” and “forbearance”. They often lied, and never said anything truthful.
Li Hongzhi claimed that Falun Gong stemmed from Buddhism, but in fact it had nothing to do with Buddhism, said Dvorkin. Li claimed that he was a scientist, but he did not even have basic scientific knowledge. He promised he would make every practitioner healthy and happy, but many practitioners died and their families were devastated.
He said cults always define themselves as “guardians of human rights”, and Falun Gong is no exception. “We have to reveal how cults harm human rights and help people to see their true colors, and tell them who are the real ‘guardians of human rights’.”