United States Senate

Washington, DC 20510

April 12, 2004

Dear Jiao:

Thank you for contacting me regarding your cousin's disappearance. It is good to hear from you, even though it is with regard to such a troubling issue.

After receiving your letter, I shared your concerns with the State Department and urged them to examine all disappearances of Falun Gong members in China. As you know the State Department has been closely monitoring the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners, and they have assured me that they are in constant contact with officials at Chinese Embassy in Washington and officials in Beijing. The State Department persists in raising this issue with Chinese government officials at the highest levels, and they continue to ask the Chinese to respect the rights of all their citizens.

Subsequently, I called the Chinese Embassy in Washington to underscore my concerns about the disappearance of your cousin, the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China, and my general concern regarding the status of human rights in China. I also requested that the embassy update me on any development in your cousin's case.

Human rights remain a high priority for me, and I will continue to both encourage the Chinese government to ensure the protection of Falun Gong practitioners from acts of terror or political violence and to urge our own government to closely monitor the situations there. In the mean time, I hope you will continue to share new information about human rights in China with me so that I pass it along to State Department authorities to ensure that we are following this important situation as closely as we can.

Thank you for sharing your concerns with me during this difficult time. If you have any further concerns, please don't hesitate to let me know.

With best wishes, I am

Sincerely,

Tom Daschle

United States Senate