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Support Letter from US Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana to Falun Gong Practitioner Dear Mr. ___________(name omitted to avoid harassment by the Chinese embassy):
Thank you for visiting my office and providing me with additional information
regarding human rights abuses in China; specifically, the persecution of
practitioners of Falun Dafa. I hope the Falun Dafa rally hosted on the capitol
lawn went as well as expected. I believe Falun Dafa's premise of Truthfulness,
Compassion, and Forbearance embody the basic freedoms afforded by our
constitution; these individual freedoms represent the basis from which our
nation considers Human Rights.
I am deeply concerned about China's human rights record. I have communicated
my concerns over human rights practices directly to the Chinese government on a
number of occasions. The United States must continue a comprehensive Asian
policy that takes into account human rights and security concerns. I have urged
President Bush to continue communicating our displeasure to the Chinese
government over their human rights violations.
The United States should not remain silent about these issues. As a U.S.
Senator, I have made clear on many occasions my concerns about repressive
Chinese practices. I wrote an article on this subject that appeared in The
Washington Times. I concluded the article by stating that: "Above all,
we cannot remain silent." We must tell the leadership in Beijing that
cooperation between our countries will proceed faster and farther if there is
progress on human rights.
We should leave no doubt where the United States stands on that principle
that has been so central to the American political culture and so important to
the conduct of American foreign policy; our reverence for human rights and the
rule of law, and our eagerness to cooperate with those countries that share our
ideals.
I believe we must keep the pressure on the Chinese government to respect and
adopt internationally recognized standards of human rights. Again, thank you for
contacting me on this most important subject.
Sincerely, Richard D. Lugar
[Editor's note: In fairness, and for the sake of accuracy, we must point out
that the persecution of Falun Gong does not reflect the will of the Chinese
people as a whole, or even the will of the entire Chinese government, as many
high ranking officials are opposed to this persecution. Jiang Zemin and a few of
his political henchmen are totally responsible for this attempt to eliminate a
group of people based on their spiritual beliefs.]
Posting date: 8/3/2002
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