A Chinese diplomat in Peru asked Peruvian officials and media staff not to see the dance show “Shen Yun” during his visit to a local public library on Thursday, Dec. 12, in the most recent attempt by the communist regime to interfere with the show through diplomatic means.
In a video obtained by NTD, Yong He, the cultural secretary of the Chinese Embassy in Peru, asked the audience not to go see the classical dance show. The New York-based performance company was founded by practitioners of Falun Gong, a spiritual movement banned and persecuted in China.
The Shen Yun performers depict 5,000 years of ancient Chinese culture but also presents on stage how the communist party destroys that tradition and persecutes people of belief in the modern age, drawing the regime’s ire for challenging its human rights records.
The U.S. Department of State has cited reports that officials from the Chinese embassy have pressured venues and governments in Asia and Europe to cancel Shen Yun performances.
The Chinese diplomat told the audience that the show artistic level is not good, but the Shen Yun has a record of consecutive years of sold-out shows at New York’s Lincoln Center.
Mei Jiang, a spokesperson for Shen Yun’s presenter in Peru, said that the show is well received by the locals. Many congressmen and mayors have sent welcome letters to Shen Yun.
The Chinese diplomat was attending an event marking the opening of a “Chinese Book Room”, sponsored by the local Chinese embassy, in the Peruvian library.
The embassy donated more than 900 books, including classical Chinese history and philosophy titles but also ones like “The Governance of China,” written by the current communist party leader Xi Jinping.
The Chinese regime has been expanding its influence in Latin America since the 1990s, investing in infrastructure, selling weapons, and opening Confucius Institutes—language schools that were accused of being a front for espionage. China replaced the U.S. as Peru’s top trade partner several years ago.
But the locals have started to push back. Earlier this month, media reported that Peru and the Trump Administration is close to signing deal to counter Chinese influence in region.