UK: MPs Raise Falun Gong in Parliament Debate

On Tuesday 17 July 2002, the UK Parliament conducted a 90 minute debate on Christian Communities in Asia, during which the issue of the Jiang regime’s persecution of Falun Gong practitioners was raised several times.

Mr. Andy Reed, an MP from Loughborough said: “…Directives issued by the Chinese Government and other documents show a targeted campaign against a number of evangelical Christian movements and—as we all know—against the Falun Gong…”

Mr. Alistair Carmichael, an MP from Orkney and Shetland, stated: “…We want more than fine words from the Government. We know that the Government regularly raise these matters—I know that because I have corresponded with the Minister about it. I ask the Government to use the time between now and the 2008 Olympic games to draw attention to the whole panoply of human rights abuses in China, especially the persecution of religious minorities such as the Falun Gong and the Christian community.

“If we allow ourselves to be seen as tolerating such abuses, the danger is that the view from inside China will be that we are more than tolerating them—that we accept and agree with them. That would be entirely regrettable.”

Dr. Jenny Tonge and Alistair Burt, MPs for Richmond Park and North-East Bedfordshire, respectively also raised the issue of the persecution by the regime in China against Falun Gong practitioners.

Source:
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/cgi-bin/ukparl_hl?
DB=ukparl&STEMMER=en&WORDS=falun+gong+&COLOUR=Red&STYLE=s&UR
L=/pa/cm200102/cmhansrd/cm020717/halltext/20717h02.htm#20717
h02_spnew12