Anastasia Lin is crowned Miss World Canada 2015. Photo / Getty
Anastasia Lin is crowned Miss World Canada 2015. Photo / Getty
Miss Canada says China is barring her because she spoke out about the country's human rights issues
Canada's China-born Miss World contestant has accused Chinese officials of blocking her visa to travel to the beauty pageant, being held in the country, and harassing her father after she spoke out about human rights abuses.
Anastasia Lin, an actor who was crowned Miss World Canada in May, said unlike other contestants, she had not been sent her invitation letter to the final in the resort of Sanya on December 19, which means she cannot apply for her travel visa. She believes the host country is trying to block her from the event.
Lin, 25, testified at a US congressional hearing on religious persecution in China in July. According to the text of her statement on the Congressional-Executive Commission of China's website, Lin said she wanted to "speak for those in China that are beaten, burned and electrocuted for holding to their beliefs".
Lin, who is a practitioner of Falun Gong, a spiritual group banned in mainland China, said her father was contacted by Chinese officials after her victory in Canada brought attention to her campaign against Chinese repression of the Tibetan Buddhists and Falun Gong practitioners.
"A few days after [I won], he sent me a text message saying 'You have to stop your human rights work right now, otherwise our family is going to be turned on', like in the cultural revolution. The security agent had approached him [my father]," said Lin, who moved to Canada with her mother when she was 13, recounted.
Falun Gong was banned in 1999 after thousands of members gathered in central Beijing to protest near the Communist party headquarters. Members of the group say more than 3,300 Chinese Falun Gong practitioners have died in prison or from abuse in a decade-long crackdown.
When asked about Lin's case, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei would only say that he "did not understand the situation".
Officials from the Miss World organisation were not immediately available to comment, and a Canadian contest official did not return calls.
A spokesman at Canada's foreign ministry said Ottawa was aware of Lin's case but could not comment on Chinese visa decisions. "Canada is committed to constructive engagement with China on human rights, which is a core component of our governance cooperation with China," François Lasalle said.
