12 Years Apart: A Mother in Australia, a Family Still Trapped in Beijings Grip

Eve Chan (Alias) a Falun Gong practitioner in Australia Daniel Y. Teng/The Epoch TimesEve Chan’s (real name withheld) family still faces harassment from authorities in Beijing, four years after her situation first came to light.Chan’s case was first reported by The Epoch Times in 2021, at the time she revealed the extent of the surveillance she suffered, and also the pressure put on her family for her practicing the meditation discipline Falun Gong.“Although Australia is a country full of kindness and freedom, and I have become an Australian citizen, I still feel like I live under the shadow of CCP (Chinese Communist Party) surveillance,” she said while presenting witness testimony to an expert panel in Canberra in late October.“My son and daughter-in-law, along with their two young children, were forcibly evicted from their home,” she said during the session focused on “foreign interference and transnational repression.”The CCP regime also froze her son’s bank account and pressured his workplace to cancel his job promotion and salary increases.The reason given was, “Your mother failed the political review.”Other than being coerced economically, he was even detained for five days on the charge of “soliciting prostitution.”With the help of a lawyer, her son was eventually released after paying an 8,000 yuan fine and insurance premium.Other than family members, two lawyers were also threatened.“Most lawyers are hesitant to take on Falun Gong cases because they face immense resistance and even put their lives at risk,” Chan said.According to Chan, the first lawyer was warned by the local Bar Association in China, which threatened to revoke his license if he continued to represent her. He had no choice but to step down.The second lawyer didn’t dare return home during the trial, and was detained for 37 days.Chan was nearly 70 years old when escaped China to Australia in 2013 for practicing Falun Gong, a traditional meditation that follows the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance.Falun Gong was disseminated in the 1990s and was soon practiced by 100 million Chinese people.In 1999, then-CCP leader Jiang Zemin launched a persecution against the group, calling on the CCP apparatus to “defame them in reputation, destroy them economically, and eliminate them physically.”The persecution continues today.Eve Chan (alias) folding origami lotus flowers. Daniel Y. Teng/The Epoch TimesChan’s latest testimony comes amid an international push against “transnational repression,” a more “aggressive form” of foreign interference.“[Transnational repression or TNR] undermines national security, state sovereignty, the safety and human rights of victims, and principles of international law. It has a chilling effect in our countries,” said a joint statement by leaders of G7 countries on June 17.Australia’s neighbour, New Zealand has directly named Beijing for being the “most active” foreign regime trying to manipulate the government and society in its 2025 security threat assessment report.“A New Zealand government official was looking to arrange an opportunity to share important security advice with a community but was discouraged by a community leader who has undertaken activity in support of a foreign state’s objectives,” read one case study in the report.12 Years Without Direct ContactChan also revealed the financial toll of the persecution in China, despite now living in Australia.“In addition to paying exorbitant legal fees, subsidising my son’s rent, and some living expenses, I also had to cover various malicious investigation costs,” she told the roundtable.“I used up all my money from my full-time job and was forced to borrow money from all my friends, family, and former colleagues, leaving me deeply in debt and destitute.”Since meeting her son would become grounds for investigation, both family members have avoided direct contact—12 years now both sides have not met or spoken via video.“My son believes his mother has done nothing wrong, and my lawyers understand that practicing Falun Gong is not wrong. Their conscience and righteousness deeply move me and have given me immense support,” she said.Their courage has spurred on Zhan to go public once again.“I also call on all those who uphold justice to lend a hand and join us in ending this brutal persecution that has lasted for 26 years,” she said.