United States

10 Things President Obama Should Know For His Visit to China

1. Within a 50-mile radius of central Beijing, hundreds of innocent Falun Gong practitioners are being held and tortured in detention centers, forced labor camps, and prison camps. 2. During Obama’s 3-day trip, an estimated 72 Falun Gong practitioners will be abducted by security forces, 15 will be sent to a forced labor or prison camp for the next 1 to 18 years, and at least one will likely be tortured to death. 3. Several Communist Party officials Obama may meet are being investigated for egregious human rights violations, including torture and genocide. 4. Tiananmen Square, a likely destination during Obama’s sightseeing tour, has been the scene of countless Chinese citizens being pummeled, beaten, and shoved into police vans by security forces for peacefully protesting against the persecution of Falun Gong. Many died after being detained there. 5. At least 97 Falun Gong practitioners from Beijing and 414 from the surrounding Hebei province have been killed due to persecution over the past decade. 6. In 1999, roughly 1 out of every 15 Chinese practiced Falun Gong. Thus, many of the people President Obama meets or sees walking down the street have a friend, relative, or colleague who has been victimized by the last decade of persecution. 7. Whatever Obama hears—or doesn’t hear—from Party officials about Falun Gong will be profoundly shaped by propaganda and censorship. 8. Despite Party leaders rhetorical commitment to the “rule of law,” judges, prosecutors, and security agents are routinely manipulated by Party officials into carrying out illegal abductions, detentions, “re-education,” torture, and murder. 9. Public interest lawyers who have represented Falun Gong practitioners have been harassed, disbarred, and tortured. 10. In Beijing and across China, Falun Gong practitioners and their supporters are engaging in a tireless grassroots effort to stop the violence.

Members of Congress Urge President Obama to Support Falun Gong Practitioners in China

In a bi-partisan letter sent to President Obama yesterday, sixty one members of Congress urged the President to "speak very clearly and specifically" in support of Falun Gong practitioners in China.

Secretary Clinton Urged to Call for Release of Falun Gong Prisoners of Conscience During China Visit

The Falun Dafa Information Center is calling upon U.S. Secretary of State Clinton to press Chinese officials to end the 10-year campaign against Falun Gong and release all Falun Gong prisoners of conscience during her visit to China this weekend.

U.S. Opens Doors to Falun Gong Refugees

With assistance and support from the U.S. State Department, Members of Congress and several NGOs, Ms. Weixun Li arrived in the U.S. last week as a UN refugee. Li had fled China where she had been tortured to the brink of death.

Members of Congress, Falun Gong Rally to Condemn Jiang’s Five Years of Systematic Torture, Killing

The man who helped organize the historic 1985 summit in Geneva between U.S. President Ronald Reagan and his Russian counterpart Mikhail Gorbachev had a message for the large rally that assembled on Capitol Hill yesterday: seemingly insurmountable odds are surmountable.

U. S. Legislators Urge for the Release of American Falun Gong Practitioner

U.S. Congressmen Call on Bush Administration to Pressure China for Release of U.S. Family Members

Since July 2002, an international committee consisting of over 100 families, from 16 different countries has been calling for the release of their loved ones who are illegally jailed in China because of their practice of Falun Gong.

U.S. Congress Unanimously Passes Resolution Calling on Jiang Zemin Regime to Cease Persecution of Falun Gong

With a sweeping vote of 420-0, last night the House passed Concurrent Resolution 188, a comprehensive resolution that addresses the scope and breadth of the persecution in China as well as the illicit activities carried out by agents of the Chinese regime in the United States as they attempt to persecute Falun Gong in America. The resolution also reiterates the peaceful nature of Falun Gong.

n Gong: Hundreds Gather Outside the U.S. State Department During Human Rights Talks with China

Hundreds of practitioners and supporters of Falun Gong gathered outside the U.S. State Department to hold a press conference as the human rights dialogue between senior Chinese delegates and U.S. State Department officials resumed today after two years of stalled talks.

Press Statement: Falun Gong Asks Bush to Help Free U.S.-Based Doctor Held in China

Falun Gong is here today to call for the release of Dr. Chunyan Teng, a 38-year-old permanent resident of the United States, who is now held captive in a Beijing jail, where she reportedly suffers from torture and severe maltreatment. Before her detention, she was a successful doctor of Chinese Medicine, acupuncturist, and teacher in New York. Most importantly, Dr. Teng is a practitioner of Falun Gong.