a025  0132  23 Dec 88
PM-China-Dissident,0454
China Arrests Man Linked To U.S.-Based Dissident Group
    BEIJING (AP) - A man linked to a U.S.-based Chinese dissident group
has been arrested, and an organization he led has been suppressed,
according to two official newspapers.
    The reports said Lei Yuanhai and five members of his group received
funds from the New York-based Chinese Alliance for Democracy.
    The group, established in 1983 by a former Chinese citizen,
advocates democracy in China.
    China News and the People's Daily reported Thursday that Lei and his
colleagues had been accused of passing out copies of ''China
Spring,'' the alliance's magazine that is banned in China. In
addition, they allegedly ''attacked the dictatorship of the people
and the socialist system, and actively plotted riotous, illegal
activities.''
    The reports, which cited no specific instances of illegal
activities, said Lei founded the Chongqing branch of the Chinese
Alliance for Democracy two years ago.
    Following its founding, the branch received regular payments from
New York and agents came to Chongqing to help with organizing, the
reports said.
    China News and the People's Daily said Lei and the five others have
admitted their involvement in the group and expressed repentance. A
letter of apology, written by Lei, has been published in the
Chongqing Daily.
    The reports said the Public Security Bureau had taken note of Lei's
apology and would deal leniently with Lei and the five others.
    China tolerates little political dissent. Political reform here is
viewed by the state as a necessary evil that will help spwr economic
growth. Any moves that would challenge the supremacy of the Chinese
Communist Party are checked.
    The press remains tightly controlled. And tough censorship laws
limit access to new political ideas.
    The Chinese Alliance for Democracy, based in Queens, New York, is
run by Wang Bingzhang, now a U.S. citizen. Wang came to Canada in the
late 1970s from China to study at McGill University in Montreal. In
1983, he became an American citizen and the alliance was founded.
    Wang has said the alliance receives money from Taiwan and from other
Chinese groups interested in democracy in China. His organization, he
says, is committed to bringing about a democratic revolution in
China.
    Wang's group and magazine, ''China Spring,'' are relatively popular
among the 27,000 Chinese students now studying in the United States.
The magazine regularly runs articles written by people it says are
''sources in China.''
    The magazine takes its name from ''Beijing Spring,'' a period of
time from 1979-80 when China experienced relative cultural and
political freedoms.
    The magazine lists as honorary co-editors, Wei Jingsheng, Liu Qing
and Xu Wenli, three imprisoned dissidents who were active during the
''Beijing Spring'' period.
    However, there is no known connection between the dissidents and
Wang's group.
    
 
AP-NY-12-23-88 0421EST
***************