News and Views on Tibet

Taiwanese forum denounces CCP’s religious persecution

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Tibetans and supporters in Taiwan mark the 59th anniversary of the commemoration of Tibetan National Uprising Day in 2018 (Photo- CTA)
Tibetans and supporters in Taiwan mark the 59th anniversary of the commemoration of Tibetan National Uprising Day in 2018 (Photo- CTA)

By Choekyi Lhamo

DHARAMSHALA, Oct. 27: The representatives of three major religions, Christians, Tibetans Buddhists and Muslims along with the followers of Falun Gong denounced the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) opposition to their faiths and decried that the opportunity to “take down the evil CCP has arrived”.

The event on Monday was organised by Taiwan Friends of Tibet and the Taiwan East Turkistan Association in Taipei where many followers from different faiths raised serious concern over continued religious persecution by China. 

Chairman of the Tibet Religious Foundation of the Dalai Lama, Dawa Tsering said that Tibetan Buddhists have long been targeted since their beliefs are tied to their cultural and national identity, “The party’s actions follow the UN’s definition of ethnic cleansing to the letter, and Tibetans, Uighurs and Mongolians are fighting for their very existence.” He added that the international community would eventually suffer consequences if it continued to tolerate Beijing’s ethnic cleansing policies. 

Pastor Huang Chun-sheng of the Che-lam Presbyterian Church addressed the event, “[CCP] not only indiscriminately imprisons and kills Christians, expels missionaries, destroys Bibles and cracks down on churches, but even edits Christian scriptures and vilifies Jesus to glorify itself.” The Pastor further deliberated that the move in 2018 to place all religious affairs under the United Front Work Department showed that the party believes that it supersedes all religions. 

Chairman Wuer Kaixi of Taiwan Association for Democracy Advancement said that CCP is afraid of religion because its ideological pull is stronger than the party’s. He further remarked, “At its core, the CCP is a criminal organization that after stealing the country used its position to plunder China’s resources, and has fanatically persecuted anyone who stands in its way.” As a Uyghur prominent leader during the Tiananmen Square protests, he said that in the Muslim Xinjiang region, having a beard, wearing a veil or not eating pork is considered extremist behaviour. 

Falun Gong Human Rights Lawyer Working Group’s spokesperson Teresa Chu recalled the past 20 years of persecution of an unknown number of followers forced to harvest their organs. She referred to the forced harvesting as the “biggest human-made disaster of the 21st century”, citing a 2007 report by Southern Weekly that confirmed that Oriental Organ Transplant Centre in China earned 100 million yuan (approx. US$14.95 million) from liver transplants alone.  

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