January 15, 2002

Dear (name omitted):

Thank you for writing me about your experience in China. It is good to hear from you again.

As you know, the human rights situation in China has continued to deteriorate. In October 2000, China's president Jiang Zemin declared that Falun Gong, a spiritual movement with an estimated 100 million practitioners, was intent on overthrowing the Chinese government and undermining socialism. Many have stated that the ongoing Chinese government crackdown on Falun Gong has led to reported deaths of over 200 practitioners while in police custody, and over 50,000 arrests, since July 1999. I certainly find it hard to believe that a country of 1.2 billion people is threatened by such a small group of non-aggressive practitioners.

In the last congress, we took many actions to express our concern over the treatment of the Falun Gong. Members of the House and Senate sent letters to President Jiang Zemin expressing concern for jailed practitioners; we passed H.Con.Res.218, which called on the Chinese government to stop persecuting Falun Gong practitioners. With this being said I am certain Congress will continue to act until China ceases its persecution of Falun Gong.

Your story only confirms my concerns about the violations of human rights, religious repression and arrests of peaceful Falun Gong practitioners in China. I assure you I will continue to do all that I can to support religious freedom in China. I hope that one day China will be ruled by democratically elected officials who will respect human rights, and will allow China to join the community of the civilized nations of the world.

Again, thank you for contacting me to express your thoughts. Please keep in touch.

Sincerely,

George Radanovich
Member of Congress