610 Office

The 610 Office is a security agency in the People’s Republic of China. Named for the date of its creation on June 10, 1999, it was established for the purpose of coordinating and executing the persecution of Falun Gong. Because it is a Communist Party-led office with no formal legal mandate, it is sometimes described as an extralegal organisation. The 610 Office is the implementation arm of the Central Leading Group on Dealing with the Falun Gong (CLGDF), also known as the Central Leading Group on Dealing with Heretical Religions.

The central 610 Office is headed by a high-ranking member of the Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee, and it frequently directs other state and party organs in the anti-Falun Gong campaign. It is closely associated with the powerful Political and Legislative Affairs Committee of the Communist Party of China. Local 610 Offices are also established at provincial, district, municipal and neighborhood levels, and are estimated to number approximately 1,000 across the country.

The main functions of the 610 Offices include coordinating anti-Falun Gong propaganda, surveillance and intelligence collection, and the punishment and “reeducation” of Falun Gong adherents. The office is reportedly involved in the extrajudicial sentencing, coercive reeducation, torture, and sometimes death of Falun Gong practitioners.

Since 2003, the 610 Office’s mission has been expanded to include targeting other religious and qigong groups deemed heretical or harmful by the Communist Party (CCP), though Falun Gong remains its main priority.