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U.S. Congressman John Linder Responds to Georgia Practitioner Regarding Charles Li and other Victims of Persecution in China
On February 25, 2003, Congressman John Linder wrote to a Georgia practitioner. Following is an
excerpt from his letter: "Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns with China's restrictive religious
laws and human rights abuses. I shared your concern in this matter." "Under Chinese law all venues for religious activities must be registered with the Chinese
government. When registering with the Religious Affairs Bureau of the State Council, all churches,
mosques, temples, monasteries, and other religious venues must submit the names and addresses of all
of their members and details about their activities and finances. Moreover, the National People's
Congress passed a resolution outlawing religious sects and cults. As this resolution failed to
thoroughly define sects and cults, local authorities have applied it arbitrarily with some using it
to arrest members of unregistered religious organizations such as Falun Gong. " "Last year, Chinese President Jiang came to the United States and met with President Bush.
During this visit, I am pleased to report that the Bush Administration articulated the concerns of
the House of Representatives and the American public about the persecution of religious
practitioners and other human rights violations. As a matter of fact, I sent a letter to U.S.
Secretary of Stated Colin Powell requesting that the Secretary and President pursue a dialogue about
human rights with Presidents Jiang." "I hope that consistent diplomatic pressures will continue to shape China's future
policies." "In the meantime, I will keep Dr. Charles Li, and the many other victims of Chinese
religious persecution, in my thought and prayers."
Posting date: 3/29/2003 |