.png)
REENACTING TORTURE: In this file photo, people reenact a scene of persecution and torture suffered by practitioners of the spiritual discipline Falun Gong at the hands of the Chinese Communist regime. This particular demonstration is seen in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin in May, 2007. (Jan Jekielek/The Epoch Times)
Following the resolution's passage, Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) said, “In 2002, I was the author of a resolution expressing the sense of the Congress regarding the Chinese government’s oppression of Falun Gong in the United States and in the People’s Republic of China. Sadly, eight years later, the persecution continues.”
In October 2003, the House passed Concurrent Resolution 304, which, in addition to calling for an end to the persecution in China, raised concerns over numerous incidents of physical and other harassment of Falun Gong practitioners and their supporters in the United States. Two other resolutions were passed in the early years of the persecution expressing Congressional condemnation of the Chinese regime's persecution of Falun Gong.
“The [605] resolution’s content also highlights that attaining genuine freedom and human rights protection for all Chinese people is predicated on ending the persecution of Falun Gong. For how can a civil, healthy society develop when tens of millions are targeted in such a fashion?” said Browde.
Over the past 11 years, Falun Gong practitioners in China have been tortured, killed, sent to labor camps, sent to forced brainwashing centers, and endured other forms of suppression, according to numerous government and NGO reports, including those cited in the resolution.
According to the State Department’s latest human rights report on China, the Falun Gong’s core leadership was "‘singled out for particularly harsh treatment,’ and simply believing in the discipline—without publicly practicing any of its tenets—was enough for practitioners to be punished or imprisoned,” said Congresswoman Diane Watson (D-Calif.).
“It is important not to underestimate the real world impact that this resolution will have. First, by articulating the official position of the U.S. Congress, a leader in the free world, it sets an example for policymakers around the globe to follow. Second, as the resolution’s text is translated into Chinese and circulated among grassroots networks throughout China, it will bring meaningful hope to millions suffering persecution and encourage further nonviolent efforts to end abuses. Moreover, its exposure of Communist Party fabrications and assertion of solidarity with the victims will give pause to would-be persecutors,” said Browde.
