CHIEF Executive Tung Chee-hwa yesterday branded the Hong Kong arm of the Falun Gong as ``more or less an evil cult in nature'' and pledged the government would closely monitor the sect's activities.
Mr Tung's remarks were seen by some as an effort to appease Beijing.
The Chief Executive's remarks came at the start of a 75-minute question-and-answer session in the Legislative Council. They followed previous comments by Secretary for Security Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee that the sect's activities had become more high profile, well-organised and with ``their spears'' pointing at the Central Government.
However, Mr Tung said the government had no plans to speed up the introduction of an anti-subversion law but vowed he would not allow anyone to ``abuse Hong Kong's freedoms to affect public order in the SAR, or public peace and order on the mainland''.
Unionist legislator Leung Yiu-chung asked Mr Tung if the government had been influenced by tough statements from the Foreign Ministry as well as by criticisms by Xu Simin, a senior adviser to Beijing. Mr Tung explained that the sect, both in Hong Kong and on the mainland, had raised its profile and targeted the Central Government.
The Chief Executive said the SAR and the mainland had common interests and he did not believe legislators were willing to see Hong Kong be used as a base for subversion.
Mr Leung, a leading member of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, challenged Mr Tung's definition of ``high profile'', asking whether the many local organisations and figures who criticised Beijing would also be closely monitored.
``Are you comparing yourself to the Falun Gong?'' Mr Tung asked, adding that he was shocked to see sect members set themselves alight in Tiananmen Square.
``They are more or less an evil cult in nature.''
Mr Tung reminded legislators that they should not treat the Falun Gong sect as a mainstream religion and emphasised that Hong Kong was a peaceful and free society which subscribed to the rule of law.
The government, he warned, would stand firmly by its constitutional principles and the rule of law adding that every effort would be made to protect the ``one-country, two-systems'' policy.
Chinese University Professor of Sociology Lau Siu-kai said Mr Tung was ``walking a tightrope'' and his remarks were meant to pacify the Central Government but he would not move to suppress the local sect.
Mr Tung's remarks, he said, showed that the Chief Executive wanted to prove to Beijing that he would not deviate from the Central Government's line that the Falun Gong was harmful to the mainland's order and harmony.
The political analyst said Mr Tung pledged to scrutinise the local sect because the SAR at present lacked the laws to ban the sect.
``Mr Tung has also tried to mobilise the public to isolate the local Falun Gong sect by labelling them as an evil cult,'' he added.
Another political commentator, Johnny Lau Yui-siu, said Mr Tung was simply repeating Beijing's position.
But he criticised Mr Tung for using the words ``evil cult'', saying it showed the Chief Executive lacked political skill.
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for the Chief Executive's Office would not confirm how the government defined the sect as an ``evil cult''
What Mr Tung had meant, she said, was that mainstream religious groups would not encourage people to set themselves alight.
A pro-Beijing source told Hong Kong iMail yesterday that ``the whole farce'' would soon come to an end.
He explained that the international community and the Central Government were keen to create a harmonious atmosphere before Vice-Premier Qian Qichen's visit to Washington to meet the new Bush administration.
He predicted Beijing would give the SAR a free hand in handling the issue, while foreign forces behind the local branch of the sect would call a halt to the anti-Beijing campaign. ``What Tung needs to do is simply state his position: the SAR will stick to the rule of law. Then the local Falun Gong will lie low.''
A senior government official told Hong Kong iMail the public should not misread Mr Tung's statement to Legco yesterday.
``Mr Tung has no plans to increase pressure on the local Falun Gong movement. Plans to introduce a subversion law would be shelved as long as possible because it is difficult and complicated to draft, pass and enforce it,'' he said.
Kan Hung-cheung, convenor of Hong Kong Association of Falun Dafa, expressed shock and regret over Mr Tung's remarks.
``His accusations are groundless. They create a negative image among the public,'' he said.