Nov 22, 2001
CHINA has expelled four Australians after their arrest in Beijing's Tiananmen Square for protesting against the country's crackdown on the banned Falun Gong [group].
Their expulsion came as some foreign protesters arrested yesterday claimed to have been assaulted by Beijing police.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said it had been advised the four Australians were being deported on the next available flight. Kate Douglas, 21, and Chris Cominos, both from Melbourne, and [M]yrna Mack and Kay Belonogoff, from Sydney, were arrested during the protest on Tuesday.
They were among 35 foreigners from countries including Germany, France, the US and Canada who staged a peaceful protest against China's human rights record.
The other protesters have also been deported.
The protest marked the first major demonstration by Falun Gong in months, all the more notable because all the participants were foreigners and none were ethnic Chinese.
One Swiss protester said police had punched and sexually assaulted at least five people. None reported serious injuries.
Category: Falun Dafa in the Media
