(Minghui.org) Falun Dafa practitioners rallied in Canberra September 14, 15, and 16, 2026. They did the exercises, collected signatures, and displayed banners to raise awareness of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) state-sanctioned forced organ harvesting and transnational repression. They also called on the Australian Government to pass legislation targeting forced organ harvesting.
A well-known human rights lawyer, a representative of Amnesty International, and Falun Gong practitioners who were victims of the CCP’s torture in China spoke in front of Parliament House in Canberra. They urged the Australian Government to take action to prevent Australian citizens and medical institutions from becoming the CCP’s accomplices.
The speakers also condemned the CCP’s transnational repression of diaspora communities. An Amnesty International representative said that the CCP’s use of transnational repression to sow discord, intimidate, and silence critics is absolutely intolerable.
The Australian Senate formally launched an inquiry—Transnational Repression and Foreign Interference—on September 8, 2026, inviting the public and affected groups to submit evidence and reports.
Dean Smith, a Senator for Western Australia, once again introduced the Migration Amendment (Overseas Organ Transplant Disclosure) Bill 2026. During the second reading of the bill in the Senate on August 20, Smith said that Australia must go beyond merely signing international human rights conventions, that it should implement legal mechanisms and take specific measures to combat overseas organ trafficking and illegal organ transplants.
Practitioners in Canberra September 14, 15, and 16 raising awareness of the CCP’s forced organ harvesting and transnational repression (Minghui.org)
Senator Introduces a Bill Against Forced Organ Harvesting
During the Australian Parliament’s previous term, Senator Dean Smith introduced the Migration Amendment (Overseas Organ Transplant Disclosure and Other Measures) Bill 2023 in June 2023. The bill was debated and passed in the Senate in August 2024. Although it was transmitted to the House of Representatives and had its first reading on August 21, 2024, the bill failed to complete the full legislative process before the Parliament was dissolved and, consequently, did not become law.
Senator Smith reintroduced Migration Amendment (Overseas Organ Transplant Disclosure) Bill 2026 in August 2026. He said that when organs are obtained through coercion or force, the result is not merely an illicit trade but a violation of the fundamental principles of human dignity.
Senator Dean Smith speaking in the Senate (Screenshot courtesy Australian Senate website)
The bill requires all individuals entering Australia to declare whether they have had an organ transplant outside of the country within the past five years. If so, they must provide the name of the medical facility where the transplant was done, as well as the country, city, or town. This data will be collected and compiled into an annual report for submission to Parliament.
Senate Inquiry Into Transnational Repression
On September 8, 2026, following advocacy by Australian Greens Senator David Shoebridge and others, as well as calls from the Human Rights Commissioner, the Senate authorized a public inquiry specifically targeting transnational repression and foreign interference. This inquiry aims to comprehensively investigate the scale of actions by foreign governments, such as intimidation, surveillance, and attempts to silence dissidents, journalists, and human rights defenders, on Australian soil, and to assess whether the existing “National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Foreign Interference) Act 2018” is adequate to address the threat of transnational repression.
Members of Australian diaspora communities and dissidents facing threats and oppression from foreign governments may submit evidence and reports regarding their grievances until October 19, 2026.
Dr. Lucy Zhao, Director of Australian Falun Dafa Association (Minghui.org)
Dr. Lucy Zhao welcomed this action and said that transnational repression goes beyond freedom of belief, because it involves Australian sovereignty, national security, and basic rights. She expressed hope that the Senate Inquiry will lead to specific measures of prevention and protection. She said that the Falun Dafa Association would submit relevant cases and evidence from the past 20-plus years to Parliament.
International Human Rights Lawyer: Forced Organ Harvesting Rampant in China
Internationally renowned human rights lawyer David Matas, 83, visited Australia once again. During the three-day appeal held by Falun Gong practitioners in the capital, Mr. Matas and practitioner representatives met with various Members of Parliament and government officials to urge the quick passage of legislation focused on forced organ harvesting to close legal loopholes and prevent Australians from becoming involved in illegal organ transplant activities.
Human rights lawyer David Matas speaking at the rally in Canberra on September 14 (Minghui.org)
Matas said that the independent China Tribunal concluded in 2020 that there was large-scale forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience in China and that Falun Gong practitioners were possibly the main source.
He said the forced organ harvesting is now worse: “The huge money to be made from the killing of innocents for their organs has led to substantial expansion of the practice. New hospitals and wings of hospitals have been built specifically dedicated to transplants, dramatically expanding the practice of killing innocents for their organs.
“The money made from this abuse is used to finance not just the transplant system, but rather the health system as a whole. Many of the Chinese transplant hospitals in China are military hospitals. Money made at those hospitals from transplants goes to finance the military.”
He also said, “More recent transplant technology, including better organ preservation liquids and extra-corporeal membrane organ (ECMO) machines, has led to longer ischemic times and longer survival times for organs. This longer survival time means that organs can be transferred throughout China without deterioration.
“There’s also now in China a computerized system listing all available organs in China, the China Organ Transplant Response System or COTRS. That system allows organs from anywhere in China to be ordered to anywhere else in China where the organs are needed.”
He hopes the Australian Government and medical institutions learn and realize the urgency and importance of forced organ harvesting legislation.
He concluded that, over the past 20 years, “Twenty-five jurisdictions have already enacted legislation addressing the abuse of overseas organ transplantation.” He proposed that Australia take action in at least two areas: prohibiting complicity in illegal organ transplantation and establishing a reporting mechanism to enable relevant government agencies to track data on transplant tourism. Additionally, other measures could be considered, such as halting relevant medical insurance coverage and imposing sanctions on those involved.
Amnesty International Representative: Australia Should Pay Attention to the CCP’s Transnational Repression
Andrew Witheford, who campaigns for Amnesty International Australia, addressing the rally (Minghui.org)
Mr. Witheford acts as a key public spokesperson, leading major campaigns on international crises, export policies, and global human rights.
He said, “We are very concerned about the human rights situation in China. We know about the repression. We know about the repression of religious groups like Falun Gong, the Tibetans, the Uyghurs, human rights defenders, and Hong Kong.
“We know about the widespread systemic repression of ethnic groups, we know about the new ethnic unity law which came into force on the 1st of July, which is pretty scary.
“In other countries, in this country, it’s dividing communities, it’s dividing ethnic communities, it’s dividing religious groups. It is using its power to turn people against each other for its own objectives, to scare them, to chill them, to cow them, to stop them from criticizing the government.”
He said that Amnesty International welcomed the Australian Senate Inquiry into transnational repression: “Now, that’s completely unacceptable in China, but it’s even more unacceptable in a democratic country like Australia. You cannot behave like that.”
He also stated that Amnesty International would commit to addressing the issue of transnational repression in the future, as safeguarding the system of government, society, and democratic institutions makes this a vital human rights issue for all Australians.
Regarding the CCP’s forced organ harvesting, he said, “If these allegations are true about organ harvesting from prisoners, that is shocking. If Australia is involved, something needs to be done about it, and Australia needs to speak up and raise our concerns.
“And so we welcome the bill that Senator Smith has brought into Parliament to try to address this issue. Because Australia doesn’t want to be complicit in any way with such a gross human rights abuse.”
He also said, “The government should be raising these issues with the Chinese government at every possible opportunity. It needs to tell the Chinese authorities that this is completely unacceptable.”
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Category: Rallies & Protests
