August 9, 2003 Saturday

A CHINESE woman who lives on the Gold Coast is at the centre of a Falun Gong human rights row which is scheduled to be heard by the United Nations.

International lawyer Geoffrey Robertson met with lawyers Chris Nyst and Jason Murakami on the Gold Coast this week to outline their UN strategy.

The woman, Ms Cui Ying Zhang, 40, a renowned traditional Chinese artist, will allege to the UN that the Chinese government tortured her.

Ms Zhang began practicing Falun Gong, a form of [...] traditional self-cultivation practice to improve the mind, body and spirit. It is banned in China.

Ms Zhang said she began practicing Falun Gong to ease the 'horrible' effects of arthritis.

In a statement to be tendered to the UN human rights court, Ms Zhang said she went to visit friends in China in late 1999 and had gone to Tiananmen Square watching a flag-raising ceremony.

"Three plain clothes policemen grabbed my arms and dragged me into a van," the statement said.

"They dragged me to a van and found my Falun Gong book Zhuan Falun. When they found my book they beat me with a wooden object, in excess of 50 times."