(Clearwisdom.net) On October 10, 2004, Senator Natasha Stott Despoja, Foreign Affairs Spokesperson of Australian Democrats Party, wrote to the Public Association of Australian Public Supporting the Right of Falun Gong Belief, in support of the lawsuit filed in Supreme Court by the Australian citizen artist, Ms. Cuiying Zhang, on Sep. 15, 2004, against the ex-Chinese president Jiang and its 610 Office for torture. This message represented Australian Democrats Party's policy in regarding to Falun Gong issue, and their willingness of supporting on the human rights. The following is Senator Stott's message.

To the Association of Australian Public Supporting the Right of Falun Gong Belief,

Thank you for taking the time to inform me of your new initiative regarding the illegality of the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. I think it is an excellent idea to draw together the expertise of legal practitioners, academics and others to explore these issues further.

As you may be aware, the Australian Democrats have consistently campaigned against the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners and argued that Falun Gong practitioners are entitled to freedom from persecution on the basis of their beliefs.

Freedom of religion and belief are universal human rights and are firmly enshrined in international law. The Democrats have an unswerving commitment to these rights and we will continue to condemn any form of detention, torture or other persecution on the basis of religion or belief.

Yours sincerely,

Natasha Stott Despoja
Foreign Affairs Spokesperson
Australian Democrats