Dear Friends, Colleagues, and our Representatives:
This is not a private matter, but an issue of public concern. As a friend and a former patient of
Dr. Teng Chunyan, I have been active in trying to obtain her freedom. I am appealing to the Congress
and President Bush to use all private and public means to bring Dr. Teng home, to demand of the
People's Republic of China her immediate and unconditional release.
Dr. Teng Chunyan is a permanent resident of the United States. Since May of 2000, she has been imprisoned in China for her courageous exposure of the atrocities being committed against Falun Gong practitioners in the mental institutions in China. Before her detention, she was an excellent acupuncturist. She had a successful clinic on the Fifth Avenue in New York City.
She was a practitioner of Falun Gong. Through her I learned that Falun Gong is a traditional Chinese practice that includes gentle exercises and a meditation. The practitioners follow Truth-Compassion-Tolerance. Falun Gong practitioners are good people of honesty, integrity, and compassion. There is nothing political about Falun Gong, which is now shared by millions of people in over countries. China is the only country banning the practice. Since the ban on Falun Gong in China, the peaceful appeals of the practitioners have been met with violence. Imprisonment, torture and killing are the official treatment towards the Falun Gong practitioners. More than 300 deaths in police custody have been confirmed, including an eight months old baby. However, a Chinese government source says the number is actually well over 1,600.
I am deeply concerned for Dr. Teng's safety. The latest news indicates that she has gone through severe psychiatric torture and mental abuse in the brainwashing classes. She has been made to appear on TV to say that she enjoys her prison life and she is grateful that the Chinese government is taking good care of her. She was made to appear in a dance pose wearing a pink dress to express how wonderful the jail life is. I ask you, when was the last time someone who had been imprisoned for her beliefs claim life in prison to be " wonderful"? Of course, such statements all happen under the watchful eye of her captors, for she is not even allowed to see visitors without guards watching over her.
Furthermore, Dr. Teng was forced to sign a paper to promise not to practice Falun Gong five months ago. However, the Chinese government is still not letting her return to the United States. This is an indication that the Chinese government will not give Falun Gong practitioners any choice, nor any freedom. The only choice for a practitioner given by the Chinese government is between death or living-death.
I am inviting all of my friends, my colleagues in Hollywood, and the American people to join me in my effort to rescue my friend Dr. Teng. The persecution of Falun Gong is a crime against humanity. I believe that it is time for the Chinese government to listen to the international community, to immediately stop the persecution of Falun Gong, and to release all the Falun Gong practitioners from prison.
Please join me in signing this letter. Thank you for your compassionate help.
Sincerely,
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Celeste Holm
appointed to the National Arts Council by President Reagan.
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Category: People in China Awaken to the Truth
