By Kati Turcu

Epoch Times Australia Staff

Mar 29, 2007

CREATION: Drawing inspiration from the Tang Dynasty era - the Golden Age in Chinese culture. A Tang Dynasty emperor greets his people in the opening performance of the Chinese New Year Spectacular. The Chinese characters in the background mean "Grand Tang Dynasty". (The Epoch Times)

Even before the performers of the globally acclaimed NTDTV 2007 Chinese New Year Spectacular set foot onto Australian soil, the Chinese Embassy and consulates have busied themselves trying to discredit the show and gone to considerable lengths to dissuade people from viewing it.

As the NSW premiere of the Spectacular approaches this evening, the Chinese Consulate in Sydney has sent a letter with a stern warning to New South Wales' politicians, urging them not to attend the show.

But such Chinese Communist Party tactics have had no effect in the success of the show and have even had the opposite effect on some politicians.

In a media release today Greens MLC Ian Cohen said: "I was surprised by the reactions of both the Embassy official and Henry Tsang MLC against this celebration, as seen on last night's Lateline programme on the ABC. This has made me even more determined to attend the function."

Mr Cohen added, "This is a peaceful cultural spectacular. What type of government officials would condemn such an event? A controversial scene is said to depict the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners by Chinese police. Such persecution is well documented by human rights groups. Art in the West should be free to depict all aspects of society without fear. Human rights and cultural diversity are basic tenets of Greens philosophy."

The Spectacular portrays dances and narratives that span thousands of years of Chinese culture and also incorporate scenes from China's most recent history namely the repression of people who practice the pacific Falun Gong spiritual system.

However it becomes harder to justify NSW Labour Party Henry Tsang's comments on the issue. While speaking on ABC's Lateline, Mr Tsang attempted to justify the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China. Mr Tsang chose not to attend the Spectacular.

However other members of parliament who were not deterred enjoyed the show.

Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock seemed quite unfazed by all of this. When asked to comment on the Spectacular after it was shown in Canberra, Mr Ruddock said: "Often people don't understand the diversity of China and I think a lot of that has been brought out in the different dances and presentations that we have seen."

Others, found the portrayal of the persecution of Falun Gong particularly touching and recommended the show to more Australians.

Senator Lyn Allison and Leader of the Australian Democrats enjoyed not only the costumes and dances but also said: "The scene with the Falun Gong and the Chinese police was very moving." She added: "I thought perhaps the scene to do with Tibet was one of the most beautiful, with very, very lovely costumes and beautiful dance. So that was gorgeous. Beautiful costumes, lovely dancing, very attractive people and nice singing − It's very Chinese, certainly. Not the sort of thing we see in Australia very often. So that's what makes it special."

Senator Allison concluded: "I doubt that many people have seen a show like this. I hope they come to this one, the more people that see it, the better. There are a lot of Chinese people here obviously, but it would be good for more non-Chinese Australians to come along."

Perhaps Mr Cohen's final remarks pose the key question: "The overreaction of the Chinese Government officials begs the question -- what have they got to hide?"

http://en.epochtimes.com/news/7-3-29/53485.html

Posting date: 3/30/2007
Original article date: 3/29/2007
Category: News & Media Reports

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