HONG KONG, Jan 14, 2001 -- (Reuters) Members of the Falun Gong spiritual movement slammed China's top leader at a conference in Hong Kong on Sunday for what they said was a campaign of evil persecution against their group. About 1,000 Falun Gong supporters from around the world attended the all-day gathering in City Hall, which is owned by the Hong Kong government. They met on Chinese soil in defiance of mainland leaders who have outlawed the movement. Falun Gong is legal in Hong Kong which has retained a high degree of autonomy since the former British colony reverted to Chinese rule in mid-1997. Falun Gong believers accused Chinese President Jiang Zemin of having "undeniable responsibility" for what they said was the evil and brutal persecution of the movement in mainland China. Practitioners say China has tortured 120 followers to death while in custody. Chinese authorities have acknowledged several deaths in custody but say most were suicides or the result of illness. Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, preaches a mixture of Taoism, Buddhism and traditional Chinese physical exercises. Beijing labels it as [a slanderous phrase], and a tool of China's foreign enemies aiming to topple the Communist government. But Falun Gong members insist they have no political agenda. "This is not a political fight. Keeping silent about the evil persecution is a way of encouraging it," Hui Han Yee, a spokeswoman for the Hong Kong Falun Dafa Association which organized the meeting, told Reuters. CHINA LASHES OUT Sunday's meeting was part of a two-day gathering which started on Saturday, when some 900 [practitioners] performed a mass exercise routine and staged a march to condemn Beijing's ban. China launched a crackdown against the movement in July 1999, when it also began a media campaign to vilify the group. It intensified its verbal attacks earlier this month, after the weekend of events in Hong Kong was announced. China's official Xinhua new agency lashed out at followers in Hong Kong and Macau and said [...] (slanders omitted -- editor). ...... SOME REFUSED ENTRY This was the first time a Falun Gong meeting was held in a building owned by the Hong Kong government which has so far adopted a hands-off approach towards the group. The Hong Kong-based human rights group, the Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy, said Hong Kong immigration officials had barred the entry of 12 overseas Chinese [practitioners] who wanted to attend the weekend events. Seven were from Japan, three from Australia and two from the United States. Most were detained on Friday. An Australian resident and a U.S. resident were put on flights home on Saturday morning, the center said. Hui said four of the 12 were later allowed to enter the territory. The status of the rest was not clear. An Immigration Department spokesman denied the suggestion that visitors to Hong Kong had been refused entry because they were Falun Gong [practitioners]. "People are refused entry only because they fail to meet the immigration requirements, such as having no visa for Hong Kong, forged travel document and adverse immigration records," he said on Saturday. http://www.insidechina.com/