(Clearwisdom.net) At noon on May 12, 2005, the Canadian Parliament's Committee on Immigration held a hearing to listen to testimonies, suggestions and comments from nongovernmental organizations and individuals, so as to adjust Canadian policy on immigration. Ms. Dai Gongyu represented the Canadian Falun Dafa Association in a detailed testimony. She hoped that the Canadian government would help Canadian citizens' or residents' family members who are persecuted in China, as well as orphans of Falun Gong practitioners who have died from the persecution and Falun Gong practitioners who are living outside of China but whose human rights are not ensured, to come to Canada.
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The persecution prevents Falun Gong practitioners from reuniting with their family members in Canada
Ms. Dai Gongyu introduced Falun Gong and the persecution in China. She said that 120 victims of persecution are now in Canada, among whom, 44 practitioners' family members are still illegally imprisoned in China. Some of them have been sentenced to as much as 10 years in prison. Ms. Dai said that a Toronto resident's daughter and son-in-law, both Falun Gong practitioners, were trying to come to Canada. During the process of applying for a visa to Canada, the son-in-law, Mr. Zhang Yiming, was unlawfully sentenced to 10 years in prison for upholding his belief in Falun Dafa. He is currently imprisoned in Beijiang Prison, Guangdong Province.
Ms. Dai Gongyu called upon the humanity and kindness of the Canadian Immigration Bureau, to consider allowing these victims of persecution to come to Canada and be reunited with their family members.
The persecution has severely harmed innocent children who have no ability to protect themselves
In discussing children in China who are affected by the persecution of Falun Gong, Ms. Dai continued, "Lin Huixuan, five years old, is the niece of a Canadian resident. Her parents and grandparents are subjected to persecution for not giving up their belief in Falun Gong. They have been repeatedly imprisoned. Her parents lost their jobs and the opportunity to continue their University studies. Her father, Mr. Lin Yanqing (postdoctoral fellow at Harbin Architectural University) has been imprisoned for years. At present, the whole family was forced to leave home because of the persecution, and they currently have no fixed place to stay. Her mother, Ms. Xu Lei has been released from detention, but because of the persecution, no one dares to hire her, because she could be re-arrested at any time. Lin Huixuan and her mother wish to be able to come to Canada.
Ms. Dai said that this persecution of Falun Gong has caused severe harm to innocent children who have no ability to protect themselves. Thousands of children whose parents have died from the persecution have no one to take care of them, or else they live with their single parent. Countless children have been driven out of their schools or imprisoned in jails or labor camps. The youngest child tortured to death was only 8 months old. Some of the child victims are practitioners themselves, while more children become victims of persecution simply because their parents practice Falun Gong.
Another case presented by Ms. Dai was a five-year-old girl, Zou Rongfa, who is a niece of a Canadian citizen. Her father, Mr. Zou Songtao, was tortured to death when she was only 11 months old. Her mother, Ms. Zhang Yunhe, was abducted by police officers and no one knows her whereabouts. Little Rongfa's grandmother died from grief at the plight of her family. Right now, Rongfa is living with her parents' friends. Rongfa is one of the thousands of persecuted children whose stories were collected in a report compiled by a nongovernmental organization. Dai Gongyu hopes that the Canadian government will help rescue these children and allow them to come to Canada.
Finally, Ms. Dai said that Canada is a world leader in the protection of human rights, a country that upholds the dignity of humanity. Over the past several years, the government and Prime Minister have allowed many persecuted Falun Gong practitioners to enter Canada. Ms. Dai hopes that the Canadian government can hold a formal hearing for those persecuted children who are family members of Canadian people. She hoped that the Committee will pass a motion based on kindness and humanity, to issue visas to the persecuted children in China.
MPs admire Falun Gong practitioners for presenting the evidence
Chairman of the Immigration Committee, MP Andrew Telegdi, mentioned the Falun Gong practitioners' petition when accepting an interview with this reporter. He said that he once lived in a country ruled by a communist dictatorship and he therefore understands the Falun Gong practitioners' requests. "These requests are reasonable and Canada should secure these requests."
Ms. Hedy Fry, MP and Secretary of the Parliament, admired the Falun Gong practitioners' points when she gave an interview with this reporter. She said that the persecution of Falun Gong is an important issue, one which Canada needs to address.
Ms. Fry said that Canada works with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). For urgent incidents, Canada is able to issue special (refugee) articles, for instance, the special (refugee) articles pertaining to the War in Kosovo, Vietnam, as well as the recent special articles pertaining to the Philippines. Based on humanity and kindness, with sufficient supporting evidence, Canada can take specific action. Therefore, Ms. Fry believes it is really important to provide solid evidence at these kinds of hearings.
Minister of Immigration: "If Canadian family members are willing to be sponsors, the Ministry of Immigration will help the child victims to immigrate to Canada"
When giving an interview with this reporter, MP Bill Siksay stated that the persecution of Falun Gong is real, and is a serious issue. They fully understand this. The persecution, documented by large amounts of evidence, is shocking. The Canadian government must persistently raise this issue to China, and this human rights issue must be resolved between governments. MP Siksay said that Canada cannot sacrifice human rights for economic trade. We should try our best to urge the Chinese government to improve its human rights record.
On February 18, Mr. Siksay wrote a letter to the Minister of Immigration regarding the issue of rescuing Falun Gong practitioners and orphans of practitioners. The Minister of Immigration, Joe Volpe, clearly pointed out in his response that if the child victim's close family members can be verified to be in Canada, and the family member is willing to take care of the child, the Canadian Immigration Bureau will help the child to immigrate to Canada.
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