Falun Gong in China: Review and Update
Transcript (PDF) (Text)
In 1999, the Chinese government and Communist Party launched a campaign of persecution against the Falun Gong spiritual movement that has now lasted for more than 13 years.
In addition to arrests of practitioners, imprisonment, and sentences to reeducation-through-labor (RTL)—and many reported deaths—the Chinese government and Communist Party have pressured Falun Gong practitioners to renounce their belief and practice. The campaign has been documented by the CECC in its Annual Reports and by other human rights organizations. The Chinese government and Communist Party have also continued to harass and detain persons who attempted to assist Falun Gong practitioners, including human rights lawyers such as Wei Liangyue, Wang Yonghang, and Gao Zhisheng.
At the hearing, panels of experts on China and the Falun Gong spiritual movement reviewed the persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese government and the Communist Party and updated members of the Commission and the general public on recent developments.
This hearing was webcast.
Opening Statements
Representative Christopher Smith, Chairman
Senator Sherrod Brown, Cochairman
Witnesses
Panel 1
Mr. Bruce Chung, Falun Gong practitioner detained in China earlier this year
Mr. Hu Zhiming, twice-imprisoned Falun Gong practitioner
Ms. Sarah Cook, Senior Research Analyst, Freedom House
Dr. Jianchao Xu, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Panel 2
Dr. Charles Lee, M.D., Spokesman, Global Service Center for Quitting the Chinese Communist Party
Dr. James Tong, Professor of Political Science, University of California-Los Angeles
Ms. Caylan Ford, independent researcher
Mr. Yiyang Xia, Senior Director of Research and Policy (China), Human Rights Law Foundation