On 17th January 2001, the Swedish Foreign Minister, Anna Lindh, gave a written answer to a question dated 4th Jan 2001 from Berit Adolfsson, a parliament member, regarding what initiatives the foreign minister intended to take in order to get the E.U. to work towards the cessation of Chinese government's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.
The Foreign Minister answered in her letter: "The campaign which the Chinese Government is pursuing against Falun Gong has led to extensive violations of human rights. We are firmly against the fact that peaceful demonstrations have been met with brutal violence, and that many supporters have been arrested, assaulted, and placed in prisons and labour camps.
The E.U. is carrying on an active dialogue on human rights with representatives of China's government, parliament and research institutions. In this dialogue, which Sweden will be leading during the first six months of this year, we shall also put forward our views on the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners in China and call attention to the fact that it involves violations of the international treaties that China has undertaken to respect. In addition the E.U. has pointed out the violations of Falun Gong practitioners' human rights in the U.N. In Sweden's capacity as chairman of the E.U. she will actively work for the issue of the treatment of Falun Gong members in China to be taken up again in the U.N."