FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom

CONTACT: Lawrence J. Goodrich, Director of Communications October 11, 2001

WASHINGTON -- A delegation from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom met October 10 with officials from the Chinese Foreign Ministry and Ministry of Religious Affairs to discuss the Commission's concerns about religious freedom violations in China.

The Commission members noted the Chinese government's resumption of the Chinese-American Human Rights Dialogue as the Commission recommended in its May 2000 and May 2001 reports. They expressed the hope that this would lead to specific and measurable improvements. More remains to be done: The dialogue must continue at high levels and open up avenues to address human rights and religious-freedom questions at all levels. The Chinese government should accede to the Commission's long-standing request to visit China. Most important, the Commissioners stressed, the Chinese government must also respond with improvements in religious freedom and human rights for its citizens.

The Commissioners raised a number of concerns and recommendations from the Commission's May 2001 report. They highlighted the cases of a number of adherents of various faiths who are currently in detention for their religious activities and noted that they are illustrative of widespread religious freedom problems in China. As the Secretary of State concluded in September 1999 and again in 2000, the Chinese government severely and systematically violates the religious freedom of its citizens and respect for religious freedom has "deteriorated markedly" in recent years. In the last year, the government of China has expanded its crackdown on unregistered religious communities and tightened its control on official religious organizations. The government has intensified its campaign against the Falun Gong movement and its followers. [...]

Commissioners Felice Gaer, Nina Shea, and Shirin Tahir-Kheli participated in the meeting, which was arranged with the help of the State Department.

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was created by the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 to give independent recommendations to the executive branch and the Congress on policies to promote international religious freedom.