China's Human Organ Trafficking Shames the Olympic Spirit, CIPFG Says

OTTAWA—China's human rights record draws global concerns as the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games approaches. At a press conference held at the Canadian Parliament on May 30, Rabbi Dr. Reuven P. Bulka joined CIPFG (Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong in China) to demand China to step up to its promise to improve human rights.

CIPFG urges China to respond favorably to its three requests by August 8 or it will start a global campaign to boycott the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

The three requests include:

1. Release all the imprisoned Falun Gong practitioners;

2. End all repressive measures against people supporting and protecting Falun Gong adherents, such as attorneys Gao Zhisheng and Li Hong;

3. Allow an independent investigation on the allegation of China's trade of organs harvested from live Falun Gong adherents.

In its press statement, CIPFG says, "The Olympics and crimes against humanity simply cannot coexist."

In 2001, China promised the IOC it would improve its human rights record in order to host the 2008 Olympic Games. A new report from CIPFG finds that, despite some progress on media freedom for "foreigners" before the Olympic Games, Falun Gong adherents and their supporters in China have faced increased repression.

In March, Mr. Zhou Yongkang of Chinese Communist Party's Political Bureau ordered security forces to reinforce the suppression of Falun Gong nationwide, resulting in raids and arrests of massive scale.

Despite the Chinese regime's new law banning human organ trade, CIPFG finds that hospitals in China continue to supply organs on demand.

CIPFG says that if the Chinese authorities refuse to respond to its requests to improve the human rights of Falun Gong adherents and its supporters, it "will join forces with supporters from around the world to call for a boycott of the 2008 Olympic Games."

Following is CIPFG's complete statement: *******************************************************

The Olympic Charter states in part: "the goal of the Olympics is to place sports everywhere at the service of a harmonious development of man, with a view to encouraging the establishment of a peaceful society concerned with preservation of human dignity. To this effect, the Olympic Movement engages, alone or in cooperation with other organizations and within the limits of its means, in actions to promote peace." (Olympic Charter, Article3).

Safeguarding human dignity is a fundamental requirement of the Olympics. In order to win the right to host the 2008 Olympics the Chinese regime promised IOC members back in 2001 to improve its human rights record.

However, recent reports from the UN and Amnesty International have clearly indicated that human rights have been actually deteriorating in China of late, with the Olympics being used by the regime as a tool to further repress Chinese citizens.

Particularly hard hit is the community of Falun Gong practitioners. Since the Communist regime began its full-scale crackdown on Falun Gong on July 20th 1999, 3036 deaths have been confirmed by overseas reports despite strict information blockades. UN Special Rapporteur Manfred Nowak reported in March 2007 that Falun Gong practitioners accounted for 66 per cent of victims of alleged torture while in government custody.

Since March 2006, witnesses have come forward alleging that the communist regime has built Nazi-style concentration camps to incarcerate Falun Gong practitioners. These camps house large numbers of practitioners who have had their organs removed while they were still alive; their bodies were cremated afterwards.

Reports published in July 2006 and January 2007 by Canadian human rights lawyer David Matas, and former Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific David Kilgour, support these allegations. Some China observers have in fact estimated that Falun Gong adherents constitute more than half of the 250,000 officially recorded prisoners in China's reeducation-through-labour camps today. The persecution of Falun Gong is undoubtedly the worst human rights disaster presently occurring in China. Wild claims by the Chinese government that they are improving human rights merely serve as window dressing and are aimed at manipulating the international community. Failure to stop this persecution before the Olympics would mean that China is not fit to host the Games. The Olympics and crimes against humanity simply cannot coexist.

The Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong in China (CIPFG) has over 300 members in Australia, Asia, Europe and North America, the majority of whom are from political, legal and medical professions, human rights and other non-government organizations. Both David Kilgour and David Matas, as well as the four Chapters of CIPFG, have written separately in 2006 to relevant bodies of the PRC government or its overseas agencies to request permission to conduct investigations into organ snatching in China. To this day, not a single response has been received.

We hereby urge the PRC authorities once again, to:

1. Stop the persecution of Falun Gong immediately and release all practitioners incarcerated for their faith
2. Stop the persecution of friends and supporters and defense lawyers of Falun Gong practitioners (e.g. Gao Zhisheng, Li Hong)
3. Hold discussions with CIPFG to arrange details on the opening up of labour camps, prisons, hospitals and related secretive facilities for inspection by CIPFG independent investigators

If a response to our requests is not received before August 8th, 2007, we will join forces with supporters from around the world to call for a boycott of the 2008 Olympic Games.

Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong in China (CIPFG)

US-Canada Chapter Signatories:
Rabbi Dr. Reuven Bulka, Religious leader and scholar, Chairman of the Organ Donation Committee of the Kidney Foundation for Eastern Ontario, Canada President of CIPFG US-Canada Chapter
Borys Wrzesnewskyj, Canadian MP
Simma Holt, Former Canadian MP
Clive Ansley, Lawyer, China Expert, China Country Monitor of Lawyers Rights Watch Canada
Dr. Abraham Halpern, M.D. Former President of American Association of Forensic Psychiatry and Law, Honorable President of China Mental Health Watch
Dr. Bill Cox, M.D. Radiologist in Anchorage, Alaska, USA
Michael Benjamin, Assemblyman of New York State, USA

Australia Chapter Signatories:
Andrew Bartlett, Australia Senator, President of CIPFG Australia Chapter
Phil Glendenning, Director Edmund Rice Centre
Peter Westmore, President of the National Civic Council
Dr. Sev Ozdowski, Former Human Rights Commissioner
Dr. Noel Preston AM, Director Uniting Care Centre for Social Justice

Asia Chapter Signatories:
Lai Ching-Te-Taiwan, Legislator, President of CIPFG Asia Chapter
Kenneth H.C. Chiu-Taiwan, Lawyer
Chung Koo Chin-Korea, Legal NGO Director
Szeto Wah-Hong Kong, Chairman of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China
Edmund Bon Tai Soon-Malaysia, Lawyer

Europe Chapter Signatories:
Baroness Caroline Cox, Member of the House of Lords (UK), President of CIPFG Europe Chapter
Lord Thurlow, Former diplomat (UK)
Lord Moyne, Former member of the House of Lords (UK)

Supporter & Co-signer:
David Matas, Canadian human rights lawyer,
Co-author of the "Report into Allegations of Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China" David Kilgour, Former Canadian MP, Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific,
Co-author of the "Report into Allegations of Organ Harvesting of Falun Gong Practitioners in China"

Canadian Students for Darfur (Canada)
Network for Human Right in China (Denmark)
International Society for Human Rights (Germany）
Federation for a democratic China (Germany）
National Civic Council (Australia)
Edmund Rice Centre (Australia)
Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (Hong Kong, China)
Doctors Against Organ Harvesting (USA)
China Mental Health Watch (USA)
Global Alliance for Peace and Freedom (USA)