Appellant Exposes Forced Labor Camp Secrets

By Liang Xin and Yuan Li
Sound of Hope Jan 24, 2009 via Epoch Times

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Recently Sound of Hope (SOH) interviewed Wang Ling, an appellant in Beijing. She disclosed the many inhumane tortures the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) uses to coerce Falun Gong practitioners into giving up their belief. Wang also talked about her stay in a forced labor camp. She said that Falun Gong practitioners came and went frequently. Often in the middle of the night, men in white hats and clothes would come into the cells and take the practitioners away while they were still asleep.

Wang was sentenced to a year and three months in forced labor in October 2007 because she went to Beijing to appeal a grievance during the 17th National Congress. When she was in the forced labor camp, two-thirds of the inmates were Falun Gong practitioners. The camp did not allow them to have contact with one another. To force them to give up the practice, they would not allow them to use the toilets, according to Wang.

Wang said, “[The guards] would have the Falun Gong practitioners write a statement guaranteeing they would stop doing and spreading the practice and stop saying ‘Falun Dafa is good.’ If a practitioner refused to do so, he/she was punished. The guards would send four people to monitor that practitioner around the clock; two during the day and two during the night. The practitioner was not allowed to use a toilet if he/she did not fill out an application form. (I have seen practitioners) excrete in their pants.”

Falun Gong Taken at Night

Wang also mentioned something she did not comprehend, “Practitioners in the camp came and left frequently. In July 2008, I had seen three practitioners taken away secretly in the middle of the night.”

“At night, men dressed in white hats and clothes would open the door to our cell. They walked quietly to practitioners and whispered, ‘Get up. Don’t talk. Quickly pack up your belongings.’ They then left quietly. Several days later, a few more would come, and again take [practitioners] away at night. This happened frequently.”

Two independent Canadian investigators, David Matas and David Kilgour, interviewed organ recipients in 30 countries and published a report on January 31, 2007. In the report, they pointed out the CCP’s Liberation Army is involved in organ removal from prisoners. A large number of these organs were sold to foreigners. Most of the ‘prisoners’ were in fact Falun Gong practitioners in China.

According to the investigation, it is very easy for patients who need organ transplants to be matched with an organ in China. In a report from the Xiaoxiang Chenbao (www.xxcb.com.cn) on April 28, 2006, Mr. Huang’s family in Changsha City, Hunan Province, needed four kidney transplants. It only took the Hunan People’s Hospital a month to match all four of them with healthy kidneys. Also, Changchun’s City Evening News reported that Xie Bao, a 28-year-old suffered from last-stage dilated cardiomyopathy. A doctor at the Jilin University Affiliated Second Hospital in Changchun declared that Xie needed a heart transplant on February 27, 2006. The very next day after Xie was admitted to the Hospital, a matched heart was available.

Dr. Pang Yubin, a medical doctor in the United States believes organ harvesting is really happening. He said, “As far as organ transplant is concerned, in other countries, most patients need to wait for several years before they can find a matched donor, if they are lucky. In China, organs await patients.”

Read original article in Chinese

Falun Gong Protesters Will Appeal Injunction: Lawyer

By Joan Delaney
Epoch Times Staff Jan 30, 2009

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The lawyer representing a group of Falun Gong practitioners has said his clients will appeal Thursday’s B.C. Supreme Court ruling granting an injunction requiring them to remove a hut and billboards erected outside the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver.

Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein issued a 37-page ruling upholding the City of Vancouver’s application seeking the removal of the structures, which have been part of the Falun Gong round-the-clock protest at the consulate for seven years.

“I don’t think [the judge] properly interpreted and applied the charter or made the appropriate findings in the case with respect to what was really going on,” says lawyer Joseph Arvay.

To raise awareness about what they say is a genocide, Falun Gong practitioners erected a wall of posters and photographs of their persecuted counterparts in China along the consulate fence in 2001.

While Stromberg-Stein made it clear that she was referring only to the signs and hut and not any other forms of protest used in the vigil, Arvay says the structures are necessary to ensure that the long-running vigil can continue.

“The whole idea of the hut is to allow it to be a vigil—a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year vigil. As long as the persecution is going on in China these people want to be protesting, and protesting in a way that really sends the most powerful message possible.”

He said the protest wouldn’t be nearly as effective without the signs and hut, which “are on a strip of dirt that nobody uses” and are not blocking the sidewalk.

“Its kind of ridiculous that the city says they can be there with their signs every day marching up and down the sidewalk—in which case they will obstruct the sidewalk—but they can’t be there with their hut and the billboards which doesn't obstruct anyone.

"The reason that we say that the city doesn't want the hut and the billboards there is because it knows that without them the vigil will likely end before its time or simply lose its effectiveness. It is the hut that allows these people to man this vigil 7/24 through all kinds of weather.”

He added that carrying the signs on a daily basis would be “onerous” on the mostly elderly practitioners and would “transform the nature of the protest which is one of a silent and peaceful meditation—the very peaceful meditation that has, for whatever bizarre reason, caused the Chinese government to persecute the Falun Gong.”

After news of the ruling reached the Vancouver Falun Gong community, more than 40 practitioners gathered outside the consulate on Thursday night, marking day 2717 of the vigil.

Falun Dafa Association of Canada (FDAC) spokesperson Sue Zhang says the group is “very disappointed” with the court ruling.

“We have been here now over seven years, we are not interfering with anyone and we have cooperated with the city all along,” she says.

“Our fellow practitioners in China don’t have any voice, and we are here trying to be their voice, trying to stop the persecution, nothing else. We are here not for ourselves, not for any other gain or whatever—just to stop the brutal persecution.”

Related Articles

• B.C. Court Orders Removal of Protest Structures From Chinese Consulate

Stromberg-Stein stated in the judgment that she accepted that former Mayor Sam Sullivan wanted the structures removed in 2006 “as part of his public order agenda” and not “because of the sensitivities of the Chinese government.”

Arvay had argued that Sullivan wanted the structures removed at the behest of the Chinese regime and that Chinese consulate officials had pressured Sullivan to get rid of the protest.

“We say the real reason is to appease the Chinese consulate and we believe we have the evidence to prove that. The judge didn’t accept that and we’re off to the Court of Appeal to prove otherwise,” says Arvay.

Lawyer urges Vancouver Falun Gong protesters to appeal injunction

By Matthew Burrows

Georgia Straight: The lawyer representing a group of Falun Gong practitioners has said he will recommend that they appeal today’s B.C. Supreme Court ruling granting an injunction that requires them to remove a hut and billboards stationed outside the Chinese Consulate in Vancouver.

Justice Sunni Stromberg-Stein issued a 37-page ruling today (January 29) upholding the City of Vancouver’s application seeking the take down of the structures erected by the protesters.

“First of all, they are not coming down without a further fight that’s for sure,” lawyer Joseph Arvay said today, after the judgment came down. “I haven’t got instructions and I’ve only just been given the reasons [for judgment] and I haven’t even been able to reach my client, but I can tell you unequivocally, that I am recommending an appeal because, with all due respect to the court, I don’t think the decision is correct.”

The Falun Gong practitioners’ 24-7 vigil outside the consulate dates back to August 2001, during former Vancouver mayor Philip Owen’s reign, and was initially a 300-hour relay sit-in hunger strike, according to the court decision. It evolved into the around-the-clock protest vigil that survived the mayoral eras of Larry Campbell and Sam Sullivan.

The ruling notes that Sullivan wanted the structures removed in 2006 “as part of his public order agenda”.

“The evidence of the now former Mayor, which I accept, is that his wish to do so had nothing to do with the fact that the structures were in front of the Chinese Consulate or because of the sensitivities of the Chinese government,” Stromberg-Stein states in the judgment. “Rather, it was a public order issue concerning the integrity of the City’s by-laws.”

The judge gave the protesters one week to remove the structures.

Arvay reiterated that he is still waiting to speak to his clients, and receive further instructions.

“I will be recommending an appeal,” he said. “I’ll be recommending that the decision of the judge be stayed pending the appeal, and I’ll be asking the city solicitor to ask the new mayor [Gregor Robertson] whether he really is going to pursue the policies of the previous administration, and whether in fact he will allow the vigil to remain, whether or not there is an appeal. We are certainly not accepting this decision as the last word.”

‘Pagoda of Light’ Published in Canada

English Edition of ‘Pagoda of Light’ Published in Canada

Epoch Times Staff Jan 23, 2009

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(Blue Butterfly Books Publishing Inc)

In late 2008, the English edition of Pagoda of Light—A Falun Gong Story from Today's China was officially published by the Canadian publisher Blue Butterfly Books Publishing Inc, to the rave reviews of many in the Chinese community.

A real-life story in itself, Pagoda of Light takes place in today's China and follows the life of Bai Shaohua's family through their experiences as Falun Gong cultivators. The original story, written in Chinese, has become a welcomed favourite on the Epoch Times and Kan Zhong Guo websites. In the English edition, authors Tu Long and Meng Yuan have included many historical backgrounds, commentaries, introductions, and lively details in the text according to the needs and understanding of western audiences.

Mr. Patrick Boyer, President of Blue Butterfly Books Publishing Inc. was a former Canadian Member of Parliament, and has published many human rights-related texts. Pagoda of Light is the first of them that is related to mainland China. As such, Mr. Boyer offered his thoughts, "This is an extraordinary book. Like other human rights-related texts, it is not a happy story, but what's special about it is that it illuminates your heart after reading it! Many westerners have only heard about the persecution of Falun Gong, and wish to learn more about it. This book will definitely be of great help."

Specialist on modern Chinese issues Mr. Wang Juntao offered to pen the prologue, in which he writes, "This book is a must-read for anyone who wishes to see the real workings of modern Chinese society. While, on the one hand, it is a simple story of the tragedies met by an ordinary Falun Gong practitioner, it is also a reflection of the complicated society that China is today, and a guide to the intricate spiritual struggle that has arisen out of decades of economic development."
The English edition of Pagoda of Light is beautifully bound under a blue cover with golden texts. The front cover shows the Linglong Pagoda, a famous structure built in the Ming Dynasty. To preserve as much essence of Chinese culture as possible, headings are provided in both Chinese and English. Moreover, the original Chinese poems written by Shaohua are included alongside their translations to display the beauty of Chinese poems to the western reader.

For more information or for ordering details please visit the Blue Butterfly Publishing Inc. website.

Ordering Information at Blue Butterfly Publishing Inc.

Pagoda of Light is also carried by Indigo-Chapter

For online ordering visit Indigo-Chapter, or White Knight Books.

Russia Catering to Chinese Regime in Restricting Book, Group Says

Canadian report 'Bloody Harvest' also on list of extremist publications

By Amir Talai
Epoch Times Staff Jan 4, 2009

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The Russian Government placed “Zhuan Falun,” the main text of the Falun Gong meditation practice, on a list of extremist publications, making the widescale distribution of the book in Russia illegal and punishable by a fine.

The Russian Ministry of Justice published its revised list of extremist books on its Web site on Dec. 23.

In August of 2008, in Pervomaisky Court in Krasnodar, Russia ruled that Zhuan Falun and a list of other publications, which shed light on the persecution and genocide of Falun Gong, were extremist books. This set the stage for the most recent Russian Ministry of Justice ruling.

While an official reason for the addition to the extremists books list has not been given, similar instances of pressure on Falun Gong practitioners in Russia have occurred during the last several years, according to Russian Falun Dafa Association member Sun Lezhi, as Russia inches ever closer in it relationship with the communist regime in China.

Falun Gong in Russia

“Over the past four years, the Chinese communist regime has been spreading slander about Falun Gong in Russia and exporting its persecution oversees, trying to win Russian government over with economic benefits and trade deals,” said Sun.

“The decision of the Pervomaisky court in Krasnodar and the actions of the Ministry of Justice are illegal and baseless. The main reason for this is direct pressure from the Chinese Communist Party.”

“I think that the court decision and the actions of Ministry of justice turn the principles of good and evil upside down.”

Sun praises the practice as very beneficial for people, helping them to free themselves from addictions and assimilate to universal moral principles.

“Zhuan Falun teaches people how to live according to the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance. It tells you that the good will be met with good results and the evil will receive retribution.”

Irina Oshirova has been practicing the meditation practice for over a decade. A St. Petersburg resident, she also praises the book as an excellent moral guide.

“I have been cultivating for about 12 years. From Zhuan Falun I realized a lot of things: Why I have to be compassionate and clean-living in this life, why I can’t lie or steal, why I can’t retaliate when I am hit or sworn at, why I should look within when a conflict happens, and why I shouldn’t criticize others.”

Falun Gong a Traditional Chinese Practice

Known as a Chinese traditional cultivation or meditation practice, Falun Gong was openly practiced in the 1990s in China and grew to an estimated 100 million practitioners.

Out of fear and jealousy of its popularity, CCP leader Jiang Zemin ordered a systematic crackdown and launched a global propaganda campaign against the practice in July 1999.

Since then, practitioners inside China have been subjected to widespread and severe human rights violations. According to human rights organizations, a systematic genocide of Falun Gong is taking place in China by the Chinese Communist Party. Hundreds of thousands of practitioners have been locked up in concentration camps and labor camps. They are subjected to severe acts of torture, and some are killed for refusing to give up their beliefs.

As detailed in “Bloody Harvest,” an independent investigative report put out by former Canadian Secretary of State for Asia Pacific David Kilgour and human rights attorney David Matas, CCP authorities have conducted systematic organ harvesting. In this gruesome process, detained Falun Gong practitioners' organs are extracted from their bodies while they are alive, and sold for profit.

“Bloody Harvest” was also added to the list of extremist publications.

While the practice is outlawed in China, Falun Gong is free to practice in over 70 countries around the world, and has been awarded proclamations worldwide.

Violation of the Rights of Practitioners

Attorney Mikhail Sinitsyn is helping Falun Dafa adherents to resolve legal matters concerning the violation of their human rights. Sinitsyn says the court deliberately did not invite practitioners of Falun Gong to participate in the proceedings, because they would have demonstrated the positive influence of Falun Dafa on the spiritual and physical state of practitioners.

“This court hearing violates the rights of Russian practitioners of Falun Dafa for free access to information, and the right to act according to their belief,” Sinitsyn said.

Additional reporting by NTDTV

Channel your energy with this Chinese therapy

Times of India: MUMBAI:

It's a spiritual practice that's become globally famous thanks to the history of oppression surrounding it. Falun Gong, a Chinese spiritual therapy, hit headlines around the world after it was banned in 1999 by the Jiang Zemin government and thousands among its 70 million followers were imprisoned and tortured. But in the city, the practice, which has been around for a few years, is entirely apolitical.

It's hard to understand the brutality of the Chinese crackdown on Falun gong - also known as Falun dafa - which comprises an innocuous set of five meditative exercises and the tenets of truthfulness, compassion and tolerance. Practised in 80 countries, falun gong was first brought to Mumbai in 2000 by a group of foreign practitioners who held a nine-day seminar in Bandra, says Suren Rao, follower and ad film-maker. Falun Dafa India was registered as an association only in 2004.

Rao, who exudes the beatitude one usually finds in godmen, found his calling in falun gong after trying his hand at various spiritual techniques. "I did Art of Living, yoga, t'ai chi, vipasana,'' he said. "But in the last seven years I haven't done anything else.'' Rao is part of a small band of followers in the city who teach falun gong to groups of people free of cost. What the practice chiefly does is unblocks energy channels within the body, he explains. As a result, followers feel buoyant and rejuvenated. Many have claimed that long-drawn illnesses vanished after they became falun gong practitioners.

A mathematics professor at Mumbai University says she was suffering from spondylitis for 20 years before falun gong cured it. "In the past five years, I haven't been to a doctor,'' she says. "Things I found strenuous five years ago don't bother me any more. Recently a piece of heavy furniture fell on my foot - I expected to suffer a fracture but after a brief spell of pain, it was alright as the relaxation that falun gong provides goes through muscles and bone.''

Rajeev Kumar, an official with Central Railways, used to suffer from high blood pressure. Within a month of learning falun gong from a group of foreigners in Delhi in 2002, he noticed his health improving. Soon he stopped taking the medication his doctors had said he would have to take his entire life.

Even though no one has anything but praise for falun gong, the number of serious practitioners in Mumbai is limited to a handful. In Bangalore, on the other hand, over 50 schools have taught their students the practice. Rao attributes falun gong's minor presence in the city to brief attention spans. "People are into window-shopping of exercises,'' he points out. "They want quick fix solutions. If it doesn't work, they move on to another practice.''

The practice is the primary focus of falun gong followers in India, unlike other countries where campaigns are on to get the Chinese government to lift the ban. Friends of Tibet, a group that lobbies for Tibetan independence, has tried to court Indian falun gong members on the grounds that they face a common opposition. But the Indian falun gong followers would rather be non-political, Rao says.

That doesn't stop them from being sensitive to the troubles of their counterparts on the mainland. Three weeks ago, Falun Dafa India hosted a travelling exhibition of art done by falun gong followers who had faced persecution in China. In one painting, a girl holds a box of ashes that bears a picture of her parents. She's standing outside Masanjia labour camp, where many falun gong members are said to have been tortured. Another work of art shows a woman being led away by the police. Surrounded by a halo, her child holds a copy of Zhuan Falun, the main text read by practitioners, as a symbol of future hope.

The Mumbai University professor says that knowing about the Chinese government's persecution of falun gong members deepened her appreciation of the practice. "These are people who practice truthfulness, compassion and tolerance,'' she says. "How do they react (to torture)? Can you endure it when you're put through torture? That is the real test.''

Why It's Time to Rally Behind China’s Unsung Heroes

Falun Dafa Information Center Statement on International Human Rights Day

Levi Browde, 10 Dec 2008

(FDI) A former university librarian in Shanghai sits at her home computer. Using proxy servers, Ms. Liu Jin breaks through China’s vast “Great Firewall” and accesses a Falun Gong-related website. She downloads accounts of rights abuses against fellow adherents and begins printing. Soon, the stack of homemade, underground newsletters finds its way into the hands and mailboxes of neighbors, local shopkeepers, and former colleagues. A “materials production site,” one of tens of thousands across China, is born, bringing into people’s hands basic facts of injustice that the Communist Party has worked tirelessly to censor.

For this nonviolent act of courage, Ms. Liu is punished harshly. As reported by the Associated Press, she was sentenced last month to 3.5 years in prison in an unfair trial that lasted less than a day. (news) Having been tortured and force-fed during a previous imprisonment for practicing Falun Gong, she once again faces a similar fate—or worse.

Sixty years after the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), millions of ordinary citizens across China remain in danger of arbitrary detention, torture, and death. For what? For doing nothing more than exercising the very basic rights to freedom of belief and expression that are cornerstones of the UDHR.

A Brutal Suppression Unfolds

When former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin ordered Falun Gong to be “eradicated” in 1999, tens of millions of ordinary Chinese overnight found themselves rendered “criminals” by virtue of their peaceful faith. A brutal state apparatus committed to proactively preventing them from pursuing a traditional Chinese path of physical self-improvement and spiritual fulfillment that had become a fundamental part of their identity. It was trying to change who they were.

“During the 16 days of the Olympics alone, eleven Falun Gong adherents are confirmed to have died from abuse in custody.”

Any avenue they might use to stop this assault was closed off—the state-run media would only spew horrific anti-Falun Gong propaganda claims, petitioning offices were turned into detention centers, and Party-appointed judges were hardly going to depart from the official line.

Nearly a decade later, hundreds of thousands remain in labor camps—at least half of China’s gulag population, according to experts (report). Thousands more are in prisons following trials not unlike Ms. Liu’s. They are beaten, shocked with electric batons, and injected with various drugs, sometimes causing paralysis or death. Recent investigations have revealed evidence that adherents have been killed so their organs could be sold for profit. (news) Untold numbers are left destitute, refugees in their own country, unable to return to their homes or jobs for fear that local police will take them away.

Branches of the 610 Office—an extra-legal task force created in 1999 to lead the campaign against Falun Gong—remain active across China, not only in security agencies and government offices, but also in private companies, universities, and neighborhood watch committees (report). The latest report by the Congressional Executive Committee on China found references to the agency across the country—from Nanjing to Yunnan to Jiangxi. Official accounts of a pre-Olympic crackdown on Falun Gong appeared on government websites in all of China’s 31 provincial-level jurisdictions. (report) The result? During the 16 days of the Olympics alone, eleven Falun Gong adherents are confirmed to have died from abuse in custody.

Unsung Heroes Respond

Communist Party leaders and state-run media claim that Falun Gong has been crushed. But this begs the question – why then would a nationwide apparatus like the 610 Office remain active and growing? Why would labor camps continue to fill with adherents? The fact is, today Falun Gong practitioners in China continue to resist Party efforts to “eradicate” them. They persist in their faith, produce underground newsletters, hang banners, and simply talk to people in day-to-day conversations. They explain the innocence of Falun Gong, the horrific abuses being meted out against adherents, and the Party’s broader history of persecuting the Chinese people—all this in an effort to awaken the consciences of fellow citizens. This is crucial in a context where the state controls media and uses it to dehumanize Falun Gong, mobilizing the rank and file to implement the policy of “eradicating” the practice.

The efforts of Falun Gong adherents are starting to bear fruit with the result that practitioners are no longer fighting the battle to end the persecution alone. A generation of daring, world renown lawyers has risen to defend them, defying Party orders and risking their own safety (news). They plead their clients’ innocence with defenses based on the Chinese Constitution and the UDHR, as attorney Mo Shaoping did for Ms. Liu (news).

Nevertheless, the Chinese regime remains uncompromising in its policies against Falun Gong. Arrests and torture are still widespread and systematic. That is why now, more than ever, the support of the outside world is needed to end this injustice and brutality once and for all. Two vital, yet simple steps that any of us can take towards this end are to, first, educate ourselves and peel back Party propaganda that has unwittingly seeped into mainstream Western reporting; second, follow the lead of adherents in China and talk directly to the Chinese people.

From colleagues to neighbors, private sector entrepreneurs to state company managers, in trainings with local judges and research with university professors, we must make a proactive effort to encourage Chinese to question what they’ve been told and to read the very information on Falun Gong that the Party blocks. We must articulate that taking a stance against rights abuses is not being “anti-China,” but rather moving the country a step closer to truly realizing its historic greatness.

Practitioners and their supporters inside China risk their careers, freedom, and even their lives to resist injustice. Joining their efforts is the least we can do for the likes of Ms. Liu on this international human rights day.

After all, ending atrocities like these is precisely the reason why the UDHR was created.

Levi Browde is Executive Director of the Falun Dafa Information Center in New York.

Background

Founded in 1999, the Falun Dafa Information Center is a New York-based organization that documents the rights violations of adherents of Falun Gong (or “Falun Dafa”) taking place in the People’s Republic of China. In July of 1999 China’s autocratic Communist Party launched an unlawful campaign of arrests, violence, and propaganda with the intent of “eradicating” the apolitical practice; it is believed certain leaders feared the influence of the practice’ 100 million adherents. The campaign has since grown in violence and scope, with millions having been detained or sent to forced labor camps. The Center has verified details of over 3,000 deaths and over 63,000 cases of torture in custody (reports / sources). Falun Gong is a traditional-style Buddhist “qigong” practice, with roots in the Chinese heritage of cultivating the mind/body for health and spiritual growth.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT THE FALUN DAFA INFORMATION CENTER

Website: http://www.faluninfo.net/

International Human Rights Day Rally

News Release

For Immediate Release

Falun Gong Practitioners Call for an end to the Persecution in China

(Vancouver) Dec. 10, 2008 - In commemoration of International Human Rights Day, which falls on December 10th 2008, Falun Gong practitioners and supporters will gather at the Vancouver Art Gallery (Robson Plaza) from 12pm-4pm to mark this special occasion with a rally.

This year various human rights advocacy groups will join Falun Gong practitioners at the VAG with an objective to contribute to the protection and promotion of human rights in the world. Practitioners will display banners, distribute flyers to raise awareness to the persecution of Falun Gong in China and do petition work in an effort to call for an end to the atrocities. These events will provide an avenue for victims of human rights abuses in the community to tell their own personal stories and encourage awareness of this human rights journey.

Following the afternoon events, practitioners will proceed down to the Chinese Consulate on South Granville to hold a candlelight vigil from 7:30pm-9pm in memory of their counterparts in China who have lost their lives in the persecution (of Falun Gong) at the hands of the Chinese regime. www.faluninfo.net

All are welcome to participate in these events as the world celebrates the 60th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“Rights, and especially their violation, must hold the whole world in solidarity. On this Human Rights Day, it is my hope that we will all act on our collective responsibility to uphold the rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration.”…“The luckiest among us, those who are spared the most negative effects of disaster, poverty or instability, cannot turn a blind eye. The cascading effects of abuse and indifference can eventually engulf the entire planet”. --Ban Ki-moon

UN Recommendation Must Be Matched by Prompt Action to End Murder of Falun Gong for Their Organs

FDIC Calls for International Commission to Investigate, Monitor and Coordinate Efforts to End Forced Organ Harvesting

02 Dec 2008

New York—In a legally binding decision issued on Nov. 21, the United Nations Committee against Torture called for an investigation into illicit organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners. The statement was the latest in a long line of actions taken by writers, lawyers, doctors, and government representatives to research and condemn such abuses. The Falun Dafa Information Center urges the international community to take immediate action to further investigate, prevent, and end such crimes against humanity.

“The decision of the U.N. Committee against Torture to raise this issue is incredibly important and commendable, lending additional weight to the proposition that Falun Gong prisoners of conscience have been killed so their organs could be sold for profit,” says Falun Gong spokesman Erping Zhang.

“It is clear that there is a very real danger that this practice continues and may even escalate with the Olympics having ended. It is vital for the international community to take concrete and immediate steps to make sure this does not happen.”

The FDIC urges the international community—particularly state parties to the U.N. Convention against Torture—to establish an independent, international commission to investigate, monitor and recommend punishment for those involved in organ harvesting in China, including both Communist Party/state institutions as well as individual perpetrators. Such a commission might also track the various measures that have already been put in place by some national governments to ensure their citizens are not complicit.

United Nations Conclusions

In concluding observations on China’s degree of adherence to the United Nations Convention against Torture, on Nov. 21 a U.N. committee of independent experts expressed concern over “information received that Falun Gong practitioners have been extensively subjected to torture and ill-treatment in prisons and that some of them have been used for organ transplants.”

The committee then made the following recommendation, the most legally binding demand to date for the Chinese authorities to investigate and punish those responsible for forced organ harvesting from Falun Gong:

“The State party should immediately conduct or commission an independent investigation of the claims that some Falun Gong practitioners have been subjected to torture and used for organ transplants and take measures, as appropriate, to ensure that those responsible for such abuses are prosecuted and punished.”

The committee’s conclusions follow on consistent inquiries transmitted to the Chinese government since August 2006 by Manfred Nowak, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on torture, and Ms. Asma Jahangir, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on religious freedom, which have received unsatisfactory replies.

While commending the U.N. Committee’s strong stance on the issue, it is important to recognize the near impossibility of a Chinese government-appointed body making a fair assessment. This is due to the lack of an independent judiciary and the entwined complicity of state entities in these abuses—particularly prisons, labor camps, and military hospitals. Indeed, the current body of evidence indicates it is precisely Communist Party/state entities coordinating organ harvesting atrocities in China.

The FDIC therefore urges the international community to establish its own commission to conduct both an investigation into past abuses and ongoing monitoring of organ transplants in China.

International Steps Taken Thus Far

The allegations of systematic organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners in Chinese custody first emerged in 2006, soon followed by an independent investigation by Canadians David Kilour and David Matas, which concluded the allegations were true (report) . Since then, a number of governments, international bodies, and members of the medical community have also found the allegations credible and in some instances, taken action to ensure their own citizens are not complicit in such abuses.

The following are a sample of the steps taken, initiatives which should further be expanded:

Conducting additional independent investigations and analysis

• Edward McMillan-Scott, Vice-President of the European Parliament and rapporteur for the EU's European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights, traveled to China in May 2006 on a fact finding mission to personally investigate the allegations of organ harvesting, and he has several times condemned the organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners in China. (news)
• In March 2007, Dr. Tom Treasure, writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, found the allegations credible, particularly in the context of the role doctors played in the Holocaust. (See: “The Falun Gong, organ transplantation, the holocaust, and ourselves”)
• In July 2008, a special Israeli rabbinical council ruled that the Chinese regime has been responsible for the killing of Falun Gong practitioners, perhaps because of material benefits derived from organ harvesting. (news)
• In November 2008, The Weekly Standard magazine featured a cover story on organ harvesting, authored by Ethan Gutmann, adjunct fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (full story). The article described systematic and suspicious medical testing of Falun Gong practitioners.

Taking measures to stem the flow of foreign recipients traveling to China for organs:

• In August 2006, the New York-based National Kidney Foundation issued a statement expressing deep concerns over allegations that large numbers of Falun Gong practitioners were being executed for the purposes of organ donation, as well as opposition to such aa scheme and to organ transplant tourism generally. (statement)
• In early 2007, Israeli health insurance carriers stopped sending patients to China for transplants. (news) This was in part related to an investigation in which Israeli authorities arrested several men for tax evasion in connection with a company that mediated transplants of Chinese prisoners’ organs for Israelis. One of the men had stated in an undercover interview that the organs came from “people who oppose the regime, those sentenced to death and from prisoners of the Falun Gong.” (news)
• In August 2007, Hou Sheng-mao, the Director of Taiwan’s Department of Health, reported requesting Taiwanese doctors not recommend to their patients to travel to mainland China for transplants. (news)
• In December 2007, a petition signed by 140 Canadian physicians was presented to the House of Commons urging the government to issue travel advisories warning people that organ transplants in China include the use of organs harvested from non-consenting donors such as Falun Gong practitioners. (news)
• In February 2008, Canadian Member of Parliament Borys Wrzesnewskyj introduced a bill to stop Canadians from participating in obtaining human organs and body parts from unwilling donors, including traveling to other countries to get such organs. He stated that the urgency of the matter was highlighted by the findings of the Kilgour-Matas report. (news)

Ceasing academic training and cooperation with Chinese doctors on organ transplantation:

• In July 2006, Associate Director of the Program in Human Rights and Medicine in the University of Minnesota, Kirk C. Allison, PhD, MS released a statement reinforcing the findings of the Kilgour-Matas report and calling for academia and medical circles stop cooperation with China on organ transplantation. (statement)
• In December 2006, the Australian Health Ministry announced the abolition of training programs for Chinese doctors in organ transplant techniques at the Prince Charles and the Princess Alexandra Hospitals, as well as banning joint research programs with China on organ transplantation. (news)

Conducting government hearings and raising the issue with the Chinese government

• In September 2006, the United States Congress held a hearing on organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners. (transcript)
• In September 2006, The European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning the detention and torture of Falun Gong practitioners, and expressing concern over reports of organ harvesting (news); the issue was also raised by direction of the EU troika leadership through the Finnish Foreign Minister Tuomioja meeting bilaterally with China's Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing at the EU-China summit in Helsinki. (news)
• In November 2006, following a hearing on the topic, the Irish Parliament’s Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs wrote to the Minister of Foreign Affairs to request that he raise the issue with his Chinese counterparts and that it be included in the EU-China dialogue on human rights.

Background

Founded in 1999, the Falun Dafa Information Center is a New York-based organization that documents the rights violations of adherents of Falun Gong (or “Falun Dafa”) taking place in the People’s Republic of China. In July of 1999 China’s autocratic Communist Party launched an unlawful campaign of arrests, violence, and propaganda with the intent of “eradicating” the apolitical practice; it is believed certain leaders feared the influence of the practice’ 100 million adherents. The campaign has since grown in violence and scope, with millions having been detained or sent to forced labor camps. The Center has verified details of over 3,000 deaths and over 63,000 cases of torture in custody (reports / sources). Falun Gong is a traditional-style Buddhist “qigong” practice, with roots in the Chinese heritage of cultivating the mind/body for health and spiritual growth.

Oh! Don't be such a Scrooge!

MWC: I've read a series of biased articles on the Santa parade in Auckland about the fact that Falun Gong has been labeled as 'political' and thus their marching band is not accepted-again this year in that parade. Hmm! Overall I'm quite annoyed with this whole state of affair and especially the spin that media has given to this story as I read through several articles not to mention the works of the court.

The fact of the matter is that there are many ethnic groups participating in the parade and arguably there should be no room for discrimination. However, amidst all of this debacle, what has become crystal clear to me is the fact that the Falun Gong, who have a fabulous brass band that everyone enjoys--big kids and small kids alike--have been rejected because the organizing committee says they're using the parade as a platform to raise awareness to the regime's persecution of their group in China, even though everyone knows by now that the Falun Gong had made clear their intent to play music 'only' at these events like they do in other cities around the world.

So here's a hard question for you--could the people really objecting to Falun Gong's presence in the Santa parade be China's rulers? The answer is YES! One would think that the Kiwis should know better than going after a benign spiritual group that's been put to death in China for their organs to line the pockets of the cadres in Beijing. This leaves a bitter taste in the mouth and honestly this is not a good time either to give a foreign entity, such as the the Chinese government, any form of power via its organizations and consulates by toeing the party line.

After all, with Christmas right around the corner, isn't this a time to be jolly, to love thy neighbour and show some religious tolerance? Will somebody puulease tell the bosses in Beijing to take a break?

You can call me idealistic and maybe it's just me, but I believe that there shouldn't be any religious intolerance in this world and that human rights should be respected by all nations. And that's the real spirit of the matter.

Related Article:

Auckland's Panmure Santa Parade Receives Threat
http://en.epochtimes.com/n2/new-zealand/panmure-santa-parade-threat-china-falun-dafa-7832.html

Marie Beaulieu

China's 'Progress on Paper, Deterioration in Reality'

By Charlotte Cuthbertson

Epoch Times Staff Dec 2, 2008

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“You cannot have the rule of law when you have a single party which is above the law and in control of the courts. It's not rocket science but few people seem to address it,” Clive Ansley said. (China Photos/Getty Images)

The Chinese regime has again failed to give concrete answers to human rights abuses, sparking further concern that the regime shows progress on paper yet deterioration in reality. The questions were raised by the United Nations Committee Against Torture review panel recently.

Canadian Lawyer, Clive Ansley, a Mandarin-speaker and specialist in Chinese law, said the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) pays no attention to rule of law, and there will be no real reform in China until the communist party and the one party system is removed.

“You cannot have the rule of law when you have a single party which is above the law and in control of the courts. It's not rocket science but few people seem to address it,” he said.

Mr. Ansley said he was sceptical about seeing any concrete action from the United Nations, despite the Committee Against Torture's hard-hitting report released 21 November. The report, Concluding observations of the Committee against Torture, on China's compliance to the Convention Against Torture, was heavy in its criticism of widespread torture and abuse, lack of transparency and the use of the 'State secrets law'.

Law on the Preservation of State Secrets

The Chinese Communist Party introduced the State secrets law in 1988 and uses it broadly and arbitrarily in imprisoning dissidents and covering up information. The Committee Against Torture expressed “grave concern over the use of this law which severely undermines the availability of information about torture, criminal justice and related issues.”

The law prevents the disclosure of crucial information, the Committee stated in its report, such as disaggregated statistical information on detainees in all forms of detention and custody and ill-treatment in the state party, information on groups and entities deemed to be “hostile organizations”, “minority splittist organizations”, “hostile religious organizations”, “reactionary sects”, as well as basic information on places of detention, information about the “circumstances of prisoners of great influence”, violations of the law or codes of conduct by public security organs, and information on matters inside prisons.

One of the 12 submitters to the review, Human Rights in China, also highlighted China's state secrets system as a major concern.

“In many instances, information requested by the Committee is classified as “state secrets.” Such information control obstructs the Committee’s review process and undermines legislative, administrative, judicial, or other measures aimed at preventing acts of torture,” stated the submission.

Progress on Paper, Deterioration in Reality

As a signatory to the UN Convention Against Torture (CAT), which it signed in 1988, China is subject to a compliance review every four years.

China missed the last review in 2004 by ignoring it completely. This year it submitted a report spanning eight years but failed to respond to the 11 pages of questions raised by the UN follow-up committee. The Chinese regime’s 38-page report is largely a list of constitutional amendments and penal code reforms, which rights groups say are empty words.

The Conscience Foundation, an affiliate of the Falun Gong Human Rights Working Group, described China's report as “progress on paper, deterioration in reality.”

The document states, “The PRC government’s deceptive tactic of paper progress, repeatedly used over a long period of time, should no longer be met with any encouraging comment but thoroughly exposed and criticized, for it unequivocally shows that the PRC government knows what international human rights standards are, how to answer questions on human rights correctly, how to establish the legal framework to protect human rights, and how to punish criminals who committed human rights violations, yet the PRC chooses to continue to violate human rights.”

Mr. Ansley said the above statement captures the CCP's game precisely. “That is exactly what China does year in and year out.”

Examples of Non-Reform

He cited the organ harvesting of living Falun Gong practitioners, as investigated by Canadian lawyers David Kilgour and David Matas, as a recent example.

“When it [organ harvesting] was first exposed, they said 'there isn’t any such thing', and then they pass a law against it... The essence was that no organs could be taken from anyone without written agreement— it had to be voluntary—and a lot of other restrictions as well,” said Mr. Ansley. “But the point is, that legislation has been in force since 1989 and it hasn’t had any effect because the party runs the courts and the courts do what they are told and it really doesn’t matter what you have in the way of legislation.”

Mr. Ansley said the same thing happened when there was a huge outcry about the execution of people who were proven later that they were innocent. The Chinese regime said they would pass a regulation that required all death sentences to be reviewed by the supreme court. “But that code of criminal procedure has had that requirement in it since 1979,” he said.

“They [the CCP] tell the world all the time that they are reforming, that they will pass a new law. And people do tend to take it seriously, even some of the people involved with the protest against organ harvesting have sort of said well we are making progress they passed this new law against organ harvesting but there is no record of them conforming to their laws.”

UN Frustration

Felice Gaer, the Committee Expert serving as Rapporteur for the reports of China, expressed frustration at a lack of information or details on individual cases. While hearing China's response to the 11 pages of questions the Committee had asked, Ms. Gaer noted the unwillingness of China to make the required statistics available.

David Matas, co-author of Bloody Harvest: Revised Report into Allegations of Organ Harvesting From Live Falun Gong Practitioners attanded the meetings in Geneva.

“We all shared the same frustration,” said Mr. Matas. “We were pleased to see China held to account but frustrated to see China was basically oblivious to the concerns, not taking them seriously and not giving responsive answers.”

“Of course that’s the standard Chinese response. When they’re dealing with human rights violations it’s progress on paper and whereas the violations continue all the same.”