On the 25th Anniversary, Government Officials Stand in Solidarity with Falun Gong
Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) speaks during a rally calling for the end of the Chinese Communist Party’s 25 years of persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China at the National Mall in Washington on July 11, 2024. (Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times)
July 20, 2024 marks the 25th year of the persecution of Falun Gong, a peaceful spiritual practice centered on the teachings of Truthfulness, Compassion and Forbearance. Falun Gong practitioners were joined by many others, including government officials, in raising awareness about the lives lost and atrocities committed by the CCP against Falun Gong practitioners.
Members of Congress, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Embassy to China, and parliamentarians worldwide voiced support for the Falun Gong community. They published letters and made public statements, commending practitioners’ resilience in the face of persecution.
Public condemnation of the CCP’s persecution has only grown over the years, spotlighting Beijing’s transnational repression and the heinous practice of forced organ harvesting from living Falun Gong practitioners. Several social media posts marking the 25th anniversary of Falun Gong persecution went viral on X (formerly Twitter), including one from U.S. Embassy in China, which reached nearly 2 million views.
Simultaneously, tens of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners in six continents held rallies, parades and public events in July to highlight the CCP’s atrocities against Falun Gong.
Bipartisan Support from Congress
Ahead of the anniversary, members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives released statements and letters of support to Falun Gong practitioners hailing from different regions in the United States.
Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) and Rep. Haley Stevens (D-MI) of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party issued a statement condemning the Chinese regime’s persecution of Falun Gong and expressing support for the community.
This weekend marks a quarter of a century since the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) began its persecution of those who practice Falun Gong. While facing imprisonment, torture, and murder simply for practicing their faith, Falun Gong practitioners have met this oppression by the CCP through peaceful resistance. As Americans, our commitment to religious freedom and human rights in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and across the world is unwavering. We must continue to unequivocally denounce the CCP’s treatment of Falun Gong practitioners while standing with their community and all others facing religious persecution in the PRC.
In a video statement issued on the day of events commemorating the 25th anniversary of the persecution of Falun Gong, Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) expressed support for Falun Gong practitioners and condemned the CCP’s persecution in China. Newhouse, a member of the Select Committee on the CCP, also drew attention to the Chinese regime’s extensive transnational repression campaign.
In a letter to his constituents, Representative Jason Smith from Missouri condemned the CCP’s evil practice of harvesting organs from imprisoned practitioners. He also supported efforts to expose the persecution to the international community and resist the CCP’s actions.
Speaking at a rally on Capitol Hill to thousands, House Representative Pat Ryan (D-NY) stressed that the persecution of Falun Gong can only end when people stand together and oppose the Chinese Communist Party.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton voiced strong support for Falun Gong practitioners around the world and stated that “the only crime of those who practice Falun Gong is to be born into a society of intolerance.”
Senator James Risch expressed his support for the Falun Gong practitioners participating in the Washington, D.C. rally commemorating the 25th year of the persecution. He also highlighted the importance of drawing attention to the CCP’s criminal actions against practitioners, which violate international laws on human rights.
Rep. French Hill (R-AR), a co-sponsor of the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act, condemned the Chinese regime’s “barbaric acts” against Falun Gong practitioners, including the practice of forced organ harvesting.
Many other members of Congress, including Representative Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO), Representative Jason Smith (MO), Representative Bill Pascrell Jr. (NJ), Representative Gerry Connolly (VA), Representative Nancy Mace (SC), Representative Rob Wittman (VA), Representative Sam Graves (MO), and Representative Sanford Bishop Jr. (GA) also published letters of support in commemoration of the 25th year of the persecution of Falun Gong.
For more statements from congressional representatives, see below.
U.S. State Department Issues Statement
On July 20, 2024, Matthew Miller, a spokesperson from the U.S. Department of State, issued a press release for the 25th anniversary of the persecution. Titled “25 Years of PRC Government Repression and Abuse of Falun Gong,” the press release details the sustained and severe human rights abuses perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party against Falun Gong practitioners. It calls for immediate international action to end the repression and hold the perpetrators accountable.
“We solemnly mark 25 years today since the People’s Republic of China (PRC) began a campaign of repression against practitioners of Falun Gong, a self-described spiritual practice. For two and a half decades, PRC authorities have targeted Falun Gong practitioners and their families in a campaign of abuses and rights violations.
The United States will continue to speak out for human rights, including freedom of religion or belief. We will also continue to promote accountability for those responsible for human rights abuses and violations. We call upon the PRC to cease its repressive campaign and release all who have been imprisoned for their beliefs.”
Rashad Hussain, the Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, supported this statement on social media. He commented that the Chinese regime has “repressed and abused practitioners of Falun Gong—a peaceful meditation practice—because of their beliefs.”
The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor within the State Department also publicly shared their solidarity.
U.S. Embassy in China
On July 22, Nicholas Burns, the United States ambassador to China, joined in the conversation and publicly called for the release of Falun Gong practitioners imprisoned for their beliefs.
On July 23, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in China followed Ambassador Burns’s example and posted in Chinese on X to solemnly mark the 25th anniversary. The official account, @USA_China_Talk, directly translated a tweet from the U.S. Department of State’s Asia Pacific Media Hub.
This tweet has nearly reached 2 million views, as of July 27, 2024.
International Solidarity
(Credit: Loyalty63/Wikimedia)
Support has also been generated from the international community, with a former member of France’s National Assembly, Ms. Frédérique Dumas at the forefront. “The EU has also passed several resolutions to demand that the CCP stop this bloody persecution,” said Dumas. “As a former Member of Parliament, I totally support such appeals. I sincerely hope these [CCP’s] crimes will stop forever, justice will prevail and the criminals be sent to trial in international courts.” During her time in the French National Assembly, she had spearheaded legislation to prevent French involvement with the forced organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners.
Cédric Jeanneret, Member of the General Council of Geneva, also expressed his support and sympathy for Falun Gong practitioners. “Practitioners don’t have any other wish, they only want to live in harmony, tolerance and mutual respect.”
Christian Dandrès and Mauro Poggia, Members of the National Council of Switzerland, emphasized the importance of protecting human rights and the need for strong international opposition to the CCP’s persecution of Falun Gong in their statement.
Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China
On July 20, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) released a statement on the persecution of Falun Gong. Established in 2020, IPAC is an international, cross-party alliance of parliamentarians from democratic countries focused on relations with the People’s Republic of China, and specifically, the Chinese Communist Party.
Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Chinese government’s persecution of Falun Gong practitioners – a quarter of a century of protracted and profound suffering. Hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been imprisoned, with an unknown number subjected to the most severe forms of torture, including widespread credible reports of state-sponsored forced organ harvesting.
We join with the many groups and individuals in deploring the denial of basic Article 18 rights to Falun Gong practitioners, who, along with Islamic minority groups, Christians, and Tibetan Buddhists, among others, do not enjoy freedom of thought, conscience or religion in contemporary China. No minority, irrespective of their beliefs, deserves to be stripped of fundamental rights. We call upon our governments to insist that Beijing immediately cease their persecution of religious minorities, and uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which China is a signatory.
Additional Congressional Statements
Representative Scott Perry (R-PA), the sponsor of the Falun Gong Protection Act, condemned the Chinese regime’s persecution of Falun Gong and showed his support for victims of the persecution. “I want to let you know that I stand with you and the United States stands with you,” said Perry.
Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS) condemned the Chinese Communist Party for how it “routinely terrorizes Falun Gong.”
Senator Todd Young (R-IN) commended the peaceful protest on Capitol Hill and pledged to stand with Falun Gong practitioners and urged the United States government to hold the “CCP accountable for their abuses and atrocities, ensuring these actions don’t continue unchecked.”
“For 25 years, innocent Falun Gong practitioners have been repeatedly silenced, imprisoned, detained, and brainwashed.” said Rep. Young Kim (R-Ca). “No one should ever go through this.”
Read last year’s statements:
Last updated on July 25, 2024.
