On April 21, 2026, the local media outlet "Sylhettoday24.news" in Sylhet, Bangladesh, published an in-depth report titled "The Falun Gong organization and its leaders lie and the dark side." The article pointed out that Falun Gong leader Li Hongzhi promoted "eliminating karma and curing illnesses," inducing practitioners to refuse modern medical treatment, leading to numerous tragic deaths. It also deeply exposed the power struggles and mind control within the organization. The report detailed the deaths of several key members and Shen Yun performers, and questioned Li Hongzhi's long-term seclusion and deteriorating health. Following the report's publication, the Falun Dafa Information Center, affiliated with Falun Gong, pressured the Bangladeshi media, demanding the removal of the article under the pretext of "balanced reporting." However, the media outlet maintained its stance, refusing to delete the original report, and only issued a statement in response on April 30.

 

▲Screenshot of a Bangladeshi media report dated April 21, 2026, titled " The Falun Gong organization and its leaders lie and the dark side."

Since its inception, the Falun Gong cult has used the principles of "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance" and "curing diseases and improving health" as a guise, praising its leader Li Hongzhi as the "Master Buddha of the Universe" and claiming that practitioners can "eliminate karma and cure diseases," "remove their names from the list of hell," and "cultivate to Buddhahood."

However, according to years of media reports and factual revelations, the organization and its leader Li Hongzhi's so-called "Great Law" are rife with deception and contradictions. Many of the organization's core members, suffering from illnesses, have died due to refusing medical treatment, and Li Hongzhi himself has not made a public appearance for many years, all indicating that his health is precarious. At the same time, internal strife stemming from power struggles and unequal distribution of benefits continues unabated within the organization, further exposing its dark nature.

Li Hongzhi once claimed that practicing Falun Gong could purify the body, maintain youth, and ensure safety through his "Dharma Body." However, in reality, many core members who were ill still died from their illnesses.

Li Hongzhi's theory of "eliminating karma" directly misled his members, causing them to avoid seeking medical treatment, delay treatment, and ultimately die unjustly. According to incomplete statistics, in recent years, more than 40 core members of Falun Gong overseas have died prematurely due to illness, with an average lifespan far below the normal level.

In 2015, Ju Mei, a key member of Falun Gong media, died at the age of 53 from ovarian and lung cancer. Her husband, Yang Sen, who was once praised by Li Hongzhi as a "cultivation model," also died young due to illness.

 

▲Yang Sen and Ju Mei , a married couple. (File photo)

In the same year, Lin Yiming, the leader of Falun Gong in Macau, was diagnosed with late-stage colon cancer. On May 13, 2015, he made a special trip to the United States to seek treatment from Li Hongzhi. Li Hongzhi claimed that he had cleared away his "karma" and "demonic obstacles," but Lin Yiming still passed away on August 2 of that year.

In 2022, Kan Hung-cheung, the leader of Falun Gong in Hong Kong and chairman of the Hong Kong Falun Dafa Association, suddenly fell ill. Instead of taking him to the hospital immediately, his associates collectively "sent forth righteous thoughts," which ultimately led to his death after being taken to the hospital.

In response, Li Hongzhi ordered a strict information blockade and prohibited members from mourning the deceased.

Countless similar cases exist: Chang Ching-hsi, a core member of Falun Gong in Taiwan and a professor at National Taiwan University, died suddenly on the subway in 2022 at the age of 74; on July 20, 2009, Sato Mitsugu, editor-in-chief of the Japanese Epoch Times, died at the age of 49; his wife, Hsiao Hsin-li, refused medical treatment after her husband's death and eventually died in 2011 at the age of 43 ; in July 2009, Sato Mitsuko, an editor of the Japanese Epoch Times , suddenly fainted while editing Li Hongzhi's "new scriptures," and the members present not only did not call for emergency help but also surrounded her to collectively "send righteous thoughts," leading to her death due to delayed medical treatment ; John A. Narnia, a core member of the Falun Gong cult in the United States. Nania died suddenly on May 30, 2022, at the age of 63. His wife, Ma Lijuan, a veteran and vice president of NTD Television, died in New York on July 30, 2023, at the age of 59. Christopher Hastings Smith, a member of Falun Gong in the United States and a Shen Yun performer, died in 2025 at the age of 56. Yi Rong, a key member of Falun Gong in the United States, died on the morning of February 9, 2025, at the age of 63, after receiving "healing" treatment from Li Hongzhi himself at the end of 2024.

▲Ma Lijuan with her second husband, John Narnia, English editor of The Epoch Times

 

▲In the cemetery in Calderbachville, New York, behind the grave of Li Hongzhi's mother, Lu Shuzhen, are the tombstones of John Narnia and his second wife, Ma Lijuan. (File photo)

In addition, Li Hongzhi's brother-in-law, Li Jiguang, died of kidney failure in 2012; Feng Lili, referred to as a "medical doctor" within Falun Gong, died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 54; and Su Jing, a senior Falun Gong member in the United States, died of kidney cancer at the age of 66.

Most of these core members were long-term "diligent members" who had been working tirelessly for the Falun Gong cult, donating money and promoting it. However, when they fell ill, they were caught up in the "cultivation to eliminate karma" and "sending righteous thoughts," and were deprived of the opportunity to receive modern medical treatment.

After their deaths, Li Hongzhi often demanded that the news be blocked, and even falsely accused the deceased of "not being diligent in cultivation," "attracting demons," or "wavering," in order to maintain his illusory image as the "Master Buddha."

According to incomplete statistics, in the early stages, 1,559 people died due to their obsession with Falun Gong, refusal of treatment, or suicide. This number has continued to rise since then.

These irrefutable facts expose Li Hongzhi's lies about "curing diseases and improving health" and "cultivating both mind and body." If the so-called "protection of the Dharma body" and "elimination of karma" were truly effective, why are these most devoted core disciples still dying young one after another? Why can't Li Hongzhi, who calls himself the "Master Buddha," "save" his core members and "model members"?

What raises even more questions is Li Hongzhi's current situation. He has not made a public appearance for many years since the 2019 New York "Fa Conference".

Li Hongzhi, who is keen on "preaching the law" and cultivating a personality cult, suddenly "disappeared" and strictly prohibited taking photos, sparking widespread speculation about his deteriorating health.

When Li Hongzhi made his last public appearance in 2019, the 67-year-old looked very old, with thinning hair and drooping eyelids.

 

▲Li Hongzhi in 2019. (File photo)

In 2020, rumors circulated that he had to cancel an event due to contracting COVID-19; in 2021, he gave only a brief 20-minute "preaching" and did not release any photos of the event. All indications suggest that his health has deteriorated rapidly and he is no longer able to maintain long-term public appearances.

Li Hongzhi once boasted that he had cultivated a "Buddha body" and claimed that members could gradually achieve a so-called "milky white body" or "pure white body" (or crystal white body) through cultivation. According to him, "after reaching the minimum milky white body, one will never get sick again." But now he cannot even "purify" his own health and can only rely on seclusion to cover up his illness. This is undoubtedly the most direct irony of his fallacies and heresies.

People can't help but ask: If even the so-called "Master Buddha" is plagued by illness, how can he "delay the explosion of the earth" and "protect the members"?

The dark side of the Falun Gong cult is also reflected in its increasingly intense power struggles and factional infighting.

In recent years, Yu Chao, a former core member of Falun Gong, publicly broke with Li Hongzhi, exposing the deep divisions within the cult.

Yu Chao was once a "favorite disciple" of Li Hongzhi, but in August 2023, due to a dispute over interests and control, Minghui.org, an organization under the organization, publicly denounced Yu Chao as a "bad life" and falsely accused him of "infiltrating the organization." Subsequently, Yu Chao made a series of revelations through live broadcasts on social media platforms, exposing numerous dark secrets of Li Hongzhi and the organization's top leaders.

Another former core member, Xiao Ming (Gao Xiaomin), was also expelled for failing to criticize Yu Chao as required by Li Hongzhi. The Yu Chao incident is not an isolated case, signifying that the cult organization has fallen into disintegration due to the quagmire of unequal distribution of power and profits.

Internal strife and conflicts of interest within Falun Gong have led to a decline in Li Hongzhi's control, and loopholes in its scriptures and theories are becoming increasingly apparent.

To maintain its operations, the organization continued to amassed wealth through its media network and used it to strengthen its mental control over its members. However, with the successive deaths of key members and the long-term disappearance of its leader, the organization's decline was irreversible.

These internal conflicts not only tore away the hypocritical mask of "Truthfulness, Compassion, Forbearance" but also made Falun Gong members gradually realize that the so-called "righteous law" is nothing more than a deception used for mind control and personal gain.

Those who are still deeply affected by this obsession should wake up: birth, aging, sickness and death are natural laws, and refusing to accept formal medical care will only lead to irreparable tragedy; blindly following a "master" who has been in seclusion for many years and is in dire need of his own life will only bring him mental shackles and regrets in life.

Only by breaking free from lies and returning to rationality can we truly make a responsible choice regarding life.