Thursday, October 16, 2008

China moving toward religious freedom? Secret trials suggest otherwise

October 16, 2008

CW: Eleven Falun Gong Practitioners Sentenced to Prison in Sichuan Province


CC: A leading figure in China's Communist party has said that his country plans to expand religious and political freedoms, establishing a real participatory democracy within the next decade. The Australian newspaper, The Age notes that the official "could be a testing of the waters after the chilling effect on debate this year caused by the Tibetan protests." That chilling effect is still being felt, regardless of promises about future religious freedom; 8 Tibetan Buddhist monks have been recently convicted in secret trials and given life sentences.

Source(s): these links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

OLYMPIC WATCH: Human Rights in China and Beijing 2008

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