By Bruce Finley
Denver Post International Affairs Writer

Dec. 11 - A suburban Denver woman caught in China's crackdown on the Falun Gong spiritual movement has been freed.

"I'm OK,'' Jian Tang, 39, said Friday from Chengdu. "I just wanted to know the situation of Falun Gong practitioners in China, to share experiences with them.''

While Tang has been freed, Chinese officials continue to press their case against the movement, right down to meetings with U.S. mayors.

Falun Gong is an increasingly popular movement combining slow-motion meditative exercises and Buddhism. Yet Chinese authorities regard it as dangerous, illegal and a threat to central authority.

Chinese authorities freed Tang after 14 days of captivity in Guangzhou. She said police escorted her to Chengdu, where her in-laws live. She has booked a flight to Denver to rejoin her husband, Xiu Song Chen, and 10-year-old daughter Jin Dan.

In November, Tang left them in Highlands Ranch, and her computer job - as many Chinese-Americans are doing - to defy China's ban on Falun Gong.

Guangzhou police nabbed Tang on Nov. 25 in an apartment with other practitioners. Their crackdown - Chinese officials report more than 35,000 run-ins with protesters - has become a regular point of contention in U.S.-China relations. President Clinton denounced Falun Gong detentions this week.

"The U.S. government expects China to honor its promises'' to uphold political and civil rights, a State Department official said Friday on condition of anonymity.

Chinese officials confirmed Friday that they are taking their case against Falun Gong directly to U.S. cities such as Seattle, San Francisco and Baltimore, where leaders have expressed support for the movement. Chinese Ambassador Li Zhaoxing brought up the subject in trade-related meetings with mayors and other officials, urging them to respect China's views, said Lu Wenxing, press secretary at the Chinese Embassy in Washington.

Zhaoxing was successful "in almost all cases,'' Wenxing said. "How can U.S. local governments, city governments or state governments support Falun Gong? This is an illegal organization.''

The crackdown is motivating many U.S.-based Chinese supporters to fight back. Dozens from Denver and other cities are traveling to China as Tang did to challenge the ban. Many were to participate at a gathering expected to involve more than 1,000 people today in Hong Kong, now a "special administrative region'' of China with a tradition of tolerance. Jie Sun, a Denver resident with U.S. citizenship who recently was jailed and released in Guangzhou, left Denver again Thursday for Hong Kong.

Unlike Sun, Tang had only a U.S. residency permit - not citizenship. It was unclear Friday what prompted Chinese authorities to release her and other detainees.

U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard had intervened, asking U.S. officials in China to help Tang, who was featured in a Denver Post article this week. A fax from U.S. consular officer Thomas Snead in Guangzhou said U.S. officials made "repeated inquiries.''

"I'm happy for the family, happy for her,'' Allard said in an interview. The best way to boost human rights in China isn't denouncing the government but rather drawing China into the world economy, Allard added. "With trade, we export the idea of free speech. It forces that country to be more tolerant.''

Tang didn't have to sign any agreement with Chinese authorities renouncing Falun Gong. "We were treated as regular prisoners,'' she said. She stands by her views and considered protesting more. "But I have to come back to work.''

Her husband said he was concerned she might want to protest more. He and young Jin Dan just want her back. The girl didn't cry but deeply missed her mother, Xiu Song said.

He agreed with his wife that China's government may be overreacting to Falun Gong.

Organizers of Falun Gong activities are trying to rally support against a government they accuse of "trying to regulate people's minds,'' said New York-based national spokesman Erping Zhang.

Falun Gong protesters in China "are risking their lives for the government to open the door for freedom of religion and beliefs,'' Zhang said. "This is a good thing. Finally we see Chinese people rising up on their own. Unfortunately, some people are afraid.''

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