China May Be A Trade Partner ...
...but on the heels of this report from al-Reuters, this is a relationship we may want to reconsider:
A respected Canadian human rights lawyer and a former Canadian cabinet member lent their weight on Thursday to charges that China has been killing Falun Gong dissidents so it can use their organs.
The two men -- lawyer David Matas, and David Kilgour, former secretary of state for Asia and the Pacific -- spent two months investigating the accusations, which China has regularly denied.
"It is simply inescapable that this is going on," Kilgour told reporters as he and Matas released their findings.
They provided transcripts of phone calls placed in Chinese to detention centers and organ transplant clinics in which officials said organs from Falun Gong practitioners could be made available for speedy use.
Some of the calls were placed on behalf of the Falun Gong by people inquiring about whether they could get organ transplants. Matas and Kilgour said they had carefully examined phone records and had sat with certified Mandarin translators as they listened to the taped conversations.
They also conducted interviews of their own and investigated government records and other evidence.
"Believe me, I used to be a prosecutor. I knew there would be cynicism and I did my utmost to make sure that everything was satisfactorily and properly and ethically done," Kilgour said.
One call, made on June 8, was to a Mr. Li in the Mishan City Detention Center in Heilongjiang province, according to the transcript.
"Do you have Falun Gong (organ) suppliers?" Li was asked.
"We used to have, yes," he replied.
"What about now?"
"Yes," Li replied.
"Can we come to select, or you provide directly to us?"
"We provide them to you," Li said, adding that price would be discussed when the caller arrived. He said he had "quite a few" Falun Gong males under age 40 from whom organs could be taken.
Kilgour released the transcript of an interview he conducted with a woman who said her former husband, a surgeon, had taken corneas from 2,000 people over two years. She said the victims would first be given an injection that would cause heart failure.
China has banned Falun Gong, a spiritual group, since 1999. It rejects the organ harvesting accusations.
Matas said the practice amounted to a crime against humanity. "Our findings are shocking. To us, this is a form of evil we have yet to see on this planet," he said.
He said that if China rejects the findings it should make sure hospitals keep records of the source of each transplant that would be available for inspection by human rights officials.
The suppression of this sect is widely known in the West, and has been condemned by western leaders. Every so often, information comes out about these sorts of tactics. And while the Chinese government may be denying this sort of behavior, they have offered no proof to remove the accusations from the public record. Meanwhile, human rights groups have presented plenty of evidence showing that the Falun Gong practitioners have been abused, tortured, and imprisoned based solely on their popularity. This isn't an issue about whether the government disagrees with their fiath. They disagree with all faiths except the one that the communists embrace, which is faith in the state alone.
If these allegations are true, and they can be proven, the West needs to seriously reconsider their standing with China. We, the United States, stand opposed to such methods. And while they may be a trade partner, I think it's time we apply some pressure to them to end this barbaric practice. The last time the president visited China, he warned the Chinese government that with their efforts to integrate capitalism into their society, calls for greater freedoms will follow. Our Founding Fathers fled England for the colonies in an effort to escape the religious persecutions and oppression they were facing there. This wasn't the only reason they came over here, but it was one of the driving notions behind the idea to move.
And we should be supporting those who are striving for religious freedom around the world as much as others are striving for freedom for the sort of oppression they face daily. This applies to Iran and North Korea as much as it applies to China and Russia. This is intolerable, and I expect to see some sort of condemnation come out of the West over these new allegations.
Publius II
...but on the heels of this report from al-Reuters, this is a relationship we may want to reconsider:
A respected Canadian human rights lawyer and a former Canadian cabinet member lent their weight on Thursday to charges that China has been killing Falun Gong dissidents so it can use their organs.
The two men -- lawyer David Matas, and David Kilgour, former secretary of state for Asia and the Pacific -- spent two months investigating the accusations, which China has regularly denied.
"It is simply inescapable that this is going on," Kilgour told reporters as he and Matas released their findings.
They provided transcripts of phone calls placed in Chinese to detention centers and organ transplant clinics in which officials said organs from Falun Gong practitioners could be made available for speedy use.
Some of the calls were placed on behalf of the Falun Gong by people inquiring about whether they could get organ transplants. Matas and Kilgour said they had carefully examined phone records and had sat with certified Mandarin translators as they listened to the taped conversations.
They also conducted interviews of their own and investigated government records and other evidence.
"Believe me, I used to be a prosecutor. I knew there would be cynicism and I did my utmost to make sure that everything was satisfactorily and properly and ethically done," Kilgour said.
One call, made on June 8, was to a Mr. Li in the Mishan City Detention Center in Heilongjiang province, according to the transcript.
"Do you have Falun Gong (organ) suppliers?" Li was asked.
"We used to have, yes," he replied.
"What about now?"
"Yes," Li replied.
"Can we come to select, or you provide directly to us?"
"We provide them to you," Li said, adding that price would be discussed when the caller arrived. He said he had "quite a few" Falun Gong males under age 40 from whom organs could be taken.
Kilgour released the transcript of an interview he conducted with a woman who said her former husband, a surgeon, had taken corneas from 2,000 people over two years. She said the victims would first be given an injection that would cause heart failure.
China has banned Falun Gong, a spiritual group, since 1999. It rejects the organ harvesting accusations.
Matas said the practice amounted to a crime against humanity. "Our findings are shocking. To us, this is a form of evil we have yet to see on this planet," he said.
He said that if China rejects the findings it should make sure hospitals keep records of the source of each transplant that would be available for inspection by human rights officials.
The suppression of this sect is widely known in the West, and has been condemned by western leaders. Every so often, information comes out about these sorts of tactics. And while the Chinese government may be denying this sort of behavior, they have offered no proof to remove the accusations from the public record. Meanwhile, human rights groups have presented plenty of evidence showing that the Falun Gong practitioners have been abused, tortured, and imprisoned based solely on their popularity. This isn't an issue about whether the government disagrees with their fiath. They disagree with all faiths except the one that the communists embrace, which is faith in the state alone.
If these allegations are true, and they can be proven, the West needs to seriously reconsider their standing with China. We, the United States, stand opposed to such methods. And while they may be a trade partner, I think it's time we apply some pressure to them to end this barbaric practice. The last time the president visited China, he warned the Chinese government that with their efforts to integrate capitalism into their society, calls for greater freedoms will follow. Our Founding Fathers fled England for the colonies in an effort to escape the religious persecutions and oppression they were facing there. This wasn't the only reason they came over here, but it was one of the driving notions behind the idea to move.
And we should be supporting those who are striving for religious freedom around the world as much as others are striving for freedom for the sort of oppression they face daily. This applies to Iran and North Korea as much as it applies to China and Russia. This is intolerable, and I expect to see some sort of condemnation come out of the West over these new allegations.
Publius II
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 1:15 PM
2 Comments:
Crank calls are serious proof for serious allegation like “Auschwitz”?
The report is one-sided and Kilgour’s claim of impartiality is entirely questionable:
- Kilgour can not divorce himrself from the fact his investigation is sponsored by a Falun Gong group in Washington DC that is evidently POLITICAL.
As the vilification Falun Gongt heaped on the Chinese government unrelated to this allegation demonstrates (such as The Nine [POLITICAL] Commentaries and “10 million quit the CCP” propaganda, in anticipation of Chinese leader’s stateside visit).
- The report failed to account for many contrarian facts that have brought question to Falun Gong’s claim, which are freely available outside China. Not able to go to China does not absolve him of his duty to critically examine ALL evidence:
* Two US government investigation started 2nd week of March/06 independently found the allegation not credible;
* Other media investigations, including Hong Kong newspaper Takunpao with circulation in Canada also found the allegation not credible. FYI Takunpao lost their government subsidies after they reported critically on Tiananmen Square Massacare.
* Other experts have doubted Falun Gong’s claim, including Harry Wu of Laogai Research Foundation;
* Malaysian government’s prior year visit to the alleged camp, which is a joint-venture and has been open to the public for years;
* Epoch Times’ rehashing of old, unrelated stories and mis-representing autopsy photo that do not prove torture or vivisection. The fact the photo show autopsy being performed and murder investigation held by the Chinese government proves the opposit.
Clear Wisdom’s original report on Wang Bin and Liu Yufeng had no mention of organ harvesting, yet years later these stories are rehased in Epoch Times’ 2006 story.
By Ignoring these facts, Kilgour demonstrated his agenda and LACK OF impartiality.
If China has nothing to hide, then why did they make the U.S. investigation team wait two weeks to visit the "hospital". Why did they have to be guided through the hospital by government officials? Why are the investigators not free to interview anyone privately? Why are all investigations conducted in China strictly guided and guarded by government officials? If they are so sure these accusations are false, why won't they grant these two Canadian investigators Visas' to go to China and investigate. If they have nothing to hide then they would accomodate these requests.
Post a Comment
<< Home