German Falun Gong Practitioners Appeal to the EU to Stop China from Extending Persecution to Russia

By a German Dafa practitioner

(Clearwisdom.net) On May 14, 2007, on the eve of the European Union (EU)-China Human Rights Dialog in Berlin, the international media carried the shocking news that the Russian government, bowing to pressure from the Chinese Communist regime, forcibly kidnapped and deported Falun Gong practitioner Gao Chunman back to China. Mr. Gao, 73, is a former professor at Tsinghua University in China, who was granted refugee status by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Office in Russia in 2003. His wife is a Russian citizen. Many German Falun Gong practitioners wrote to the EU officials who were to participate in the EU-China Dialog, urging them to stop the Russian authorities from cooperating with the Chinese regime in abusing human rights.

This is another vicious incident after St. Petersburg Falun Gong practitioner Ma Hui and her eight-year-old daughter were kidnapped and illegally deported to China on March 28^th, 2007. These incidents have caused grave concern throughout the international society. On learning of the illegal and forcible deportation of Professor Gao to China, Falun Gong practitioners in Germany immediately contacted the German Ministry of Foreign Affair, asking that they bring this incident to the German government's attention. They called on the German government to condemn the Chinese regime at the Human Rights Dialog to be held the following day, for China's attempt to extend its persecution against Falun Gong overseas by means of tempting other Western democratic countries with its economic clout.

It was reported that the EU-Russia Summit would be held in Russia on May 17 to 18, 2007, and the topics would include freedom, the legal system and human rights. With German EU presidency in 2007, Chancellor Angela Merkel would be at the summit and preside over the meeting. The German Falun Dafa Association and the German Falun Gong Human Rights Working Group thus appealed to the Chancellor regarding the illegal deportation of Gao Chunman and urged the Russian Federation to stop such severe violation of human rights.

In the petition, the Falun Dafa Association stated: "As the persecution against Falun Gong practitioners is still ongoing in China, it is very dangerous to deport Falun Gong practitioners back to China. The cooperation in dealing with Falun Gong issues between the Russian government and the Chinese Communist regime is against the U.N. Refugees Convention." It also added: "On May 10, 2007, the German Parliament passed a historic resolution to condemn China's forced labor system and call on the Chinese Communist regime to put an end to this inhuman system. We support this resolution and appreciate the German government's courage and the efforts it has made to uphold justice. We request that Chancellor Merkel urge the Russian government to stop deporting Falun Gong practitioners and help Ma Hui, her daughter and Professor Gao return to Russia, while meeting with Russian President Putin."

In the meantime, many Falun Gong practitioners took the initiative to write to EU officials attending the EU-China Dialog. Episodes of persecuting Falun Gong practitioners have happened time and again whilst human right issues were discussed during the EU-China Dialog and the EU-Russia Summit. This is cause for the international community's grave concern.

The Chinese Communist regime has done its utmost to take advantage of the Western community. On the surface, it has discussed human rights issues with Western democratic countries, but in reality, it deceives them and tries to make them become accomplices in the persecution of Falun Gong so as to continue the atrocities. Therefore, Falun Gong practitioners called on Western governments to openly condemn the Chinese Communist regime, so as to uphold justice and put an end to the persecution.

Chinese version available at http://minghui.ca/mh/articles/2007/5/17/155052.html

 Yearly Archive   Printer Version