HONG KONG, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Hong Kong leader Tung Chee-hwa is under intense pressure to control the Falun Gong spiritual movement before Chinese President Jiang Zemin visits the territory in May.
The Falun Gong, outlawed in mainland China as an "evil cult" but legal in Hong Kong, is becoming the most severe test to date of the freedoms that China granted this territory when Britain pulled out of its former colony in 1997.
Jiang is due to open an economic forum in Hong Kong on May 8, and Tung is under pressure from pro-Beijing politicians to ensure Falun Gong protests do not overshadow the visit.
Pressure on Tung has mounted since 1,000 Falun Gong members held a two-day conference at Hong Kong's City Hall in January. They denounced Jiang and China's draconian policies towards the meditation group.
Hong Kong's pro-democracy forces have said that should Tung yield and ban the Falun Gong, it would be a severe blow to the city's largely autonomous status and to its local freedoms.
Apart from petitioning Jiang to stop the mainland crackdown, overseas Falun Gong members are expected to converge on Hong Kong to celebrate the May 13 anniversary of the group's founding by Li Hongzhi nine years ago.
Beijing sees such actions as extremely provocative and, in essence, abusing the city's special status to denounce China from its own doorstep.
Pro-Beijing politicians have raised the tone of their attacks on the Falun Gong as the May events loom.
Tung, put in his post by China, will be hard pressed to find a middle ground between Beijing and the Falun Gong, analysts said. He must prevent the Falun Gong from embarrassing Jiang on Chinese soil but also give the group freedom of expression under the "one country, two systems" concept set out at the handover.
LINES BEING DRAWN
"The government is under tremendous pressure to control the group, especially now that Jiang is visiting in May," Ma Lik, a local delegate to China's National People's Congress (NPC), or parliament, told Reuters.
"Mr Tung has been procrastinating making a decision," Ma said, adding that Beijing was closely watching how Tung handles the problem.
Lines are being drawn, and Ma and another NPC delegate warned Falun Gong members at a recent public meeting not to associate with mainland Falun Gong members.
Beijing's recent renewed attack on the Falun Gong has had Chinese officials and pro-China circles in Hong Kong baying for blood.
Ye Xiaowen, director of China's State Bureau of Religious Affairs, told a recent Hong Kong forum that Beijing would never allow evil cults and repeated an earlier warning that the Falun Gong would not be allowed to use Hong Kong as an anti-China base.
Some pro-Beijing politicians in the territory have called for the Falun Gong to be banned in Hong Kong while others have urged the enactment of a sedition law to deal with the group.
Tung this month echoed Beijing's description of Falun Gong as evil and vowed he would monitor its activities closely.
That sparked an outcry from Hong Kong's vocal pro-democracy camp and religious leaders, who warned Tung against banning the group which they said would set a dangerous precedent.
With the rising heat, Falun Gong members in Hong Kong appear to have toned down their activities and petitions in recent days.
"We have not made any concrete plans (for Jiang's visit) and if we do anything at all, it will probably be just to petition Jiang to ask him to stop the crackdown," Falun Gong spokeswoman Hui Yee-han told Reuters.
On May 13, the group will exercise in a public park, though detailed celebration plans have yet to be confirmed. In the past such exercise sessions have included banners denouncing Beijing.
"But whatever we do, it will be legal," Hui said.
Political analyst Sonny Lo said the outcome may come down to bargaining between Tung's government and the Falun Gong group.
"The Hong Kong government will probably have to give a warning to the group to keep its activities low-key," Lo said.
03:10 02-26-01
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