EU Motion/Resolution on the Olympics

EU-China: Beijing summit and human rights dialogue

Excerpt from a Press Release via Save Tibet: Turning to the 2008 Olympic Games, Parliament argues "that human rights concerns should receive much more focus in the build-up to the Beijing Olympic Games" and points in this connection to Articles 1 and 2 of the Olympic Charter. It also requests the International Olympic Committee "to publish its own assessment of China's compliance with the undertakings given in 2001 before the Games were awarded to Beijing".

The resolution highlights political persecution related to the Olympics, of human rights defenders, journalists and others. The repression of ethnic groups such as the Uighurs and religious groups such as the Falun Gong is also condemned, as is the surveillance and censorship of information on the internet. In addition, Parliament wants the Chinese authorities "to establish a moratorium on executions during the Olympic Games in 2008, and to withdraw the list of 42 banned categories of people".

Lastly, among other demands, the resolution calls on China "to implement the recommendations of the UN special rapporteur on torture" and "to stop its ongoing support for the regimes in Myanmar and Darfur".

The resolution can be found here

12.12.2007 B6-0543/2007 }

JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

pursuant to Rule 103(4) of the Rules of Procedure, by

– Edward McMillan-Scott, Georg Jarzembowski, Tunne Kelam, Patrick Gaubert

and Laima Liucija Andrikien÷, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group

– Hannes Swoboda, on behalf of the PSE Group

– Dirk Sterckx and Marco Cappato, on behalf of the ALDE Group

– Brian Crowley, on behalf of the UEN Group

– Hélène Flautre, Raül Romeva i Rueda, Helga Trüpel, Eva Lichtenberger and

Milan Horáček, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group

– Vittorio Agnoletto and Esko Seppänen, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group

replacing the motions by the following groups:

European Parliament resolution on EU/China Summit - EU/China human rights dialogue

The European Parliament,

– having regard to the Joint Statement of the 10th China-EU Summit held in Beijing on 28

November 2007,

– having regard to the public hearing held on 26 November 2007 by its Subcommittee on

Human Rights on 'Human Rights in China in the run-up to the Olympics',

– having regard to the rounds of the EU-China Dialogue on Human Rights held in Beijing on

17 October 2007 and in Berlin on 15-16 May 2007,

– having regard to its resolution of 6 September 2007 on the functioning of the human rights

dialogues and consultations on human rights with third countries1,

– having regard to its resolution of 15 February 2007 on the dialogue between the Chinese

government and the envoys of the Dalai Lama2,

– having regard to its resolution of 7 September 2006 on EU-China relations3 and to its

previous resolutions on China,

– having regard to the European Union Guidelines on Human Rights Dialogues, adopted on

13 December 2001, and to the evaluation of the implementation of these guidelines,

adopted on 9 December 2004,

– having regard to its previous annual resolutions on human rights in the world,

– having regard to the UN Olympics Truce, as passed by the UN General Assembly on

31 October 2007 (A/RES/62/4), inviting UN Member States to observe and promote peace

during the Olympic Games,

– having regard to the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

– having regard to Rule 103(4) of its Rules of Procedure,

–

A. whereas since the set up of the EU-China Summit mechanism in 1998, China-EU relations

have strongly developed politically and economically,

B. whereas any decision to initiate a human rights dialogue is taken on the basis of certain

criteria adopted by the Council, which notably take into consideration the major concerns

on the part of the EU about the human rights situation on the ground in the country

concerned, a genuine commitment on the part of the authorities of the country concerned,

with regard to such dialogue, to improving the human rights situation on the ground, and

the positive impact which a human rights dialogue may have on the human rights situation,

C. whereas the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games should constitute an ideal opportunity for

focusing the world attention on the human rights situation in China,

D. whereas the EU is based upon and defined by its adherence to the principles of liberty,

democracy and respect for human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law;

recalling, at the same time, that the EU considers that adherence to these principles

constitutes the prerequisite for peace and stability in any society,

E. whereas the EU-China strategic partnership is of great importance for the relations between

the EU and China and whereas a genuine partnership must be based on shared common

values,

F. whereas the strengthening and deepening of EU-China relations could help to develop

convergent views for actions to tackle global challenges such as climate change, security,

terrorism and non-proliferation of arms,

G. whereas there are continuous disturbing reports of political repression, particularly of

journalists, human rights activists and members of religious and ethnic minorities,

allegations of torture, widespread use of forced labour, frequent use of the death penalty

and systematic repression of freedom of religion, speech and the media including the

Internet, and the strict controls exercised by the Chinese Government over information

about and access to the Tibetan areas of China; whereas it is therefore difficult to

determine accurately the scope of human rights abuses,

H. whereas China's engagement and influence in the world have increased considerably over

the last decade, and considering that credibility, democratic values and responsibility

should constitute the fundamental basis of the relationship between the EU and China,

EU-China Summit

1. Welcomes the Joint Statement of the 10th EU-China Summit in which both sides reaffirm

their commitment to developing a comprehensive strategic partnership to meet global

challenges, as well as the further development of EU-China relations and their closer

cooperation in order to deal with a wide range of issues;

2. Regrets the fact that once again the Council and Commission have failed to raise in a firm

manner human rights issues at the EU-China Summit in order to give more political weight

to human rights concerns, and that the EU did not take the opportunity of the approach of

the Olympics to address serious human rights concerns in China;

3. Calls on China and the EU to ensure a more balanced trade and economic partnership

which should lead to sustainable growth and social development, in particular in the areas

of climate change, environment and energy;

4. Considers that the pirating and counterfeiting of European products and brands by Chinese

industries constitutes a serious violation of international trade rules; urges the Chinese

authorities to considerably improve the protection of the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR);

5. Calls at the same time for greater coherence and consistency between human rights on one

side and trade and security on the other side; urges therefore the EU, to ensure that

improved trading relationship with China is contingent upon human rights reforms, and

calls on the Council, in this regard, to make a comprehensive evaluation of the human

rights situation before finalizing any new Partnership and Cooperation Framework

Agreement (PCFA);

6. Welcomes, therefore, the launch and start of negotiations on a PCFA, which will cover the

full scope of the EU-China bilateral relationship, including an effective and operational

human rights clause, as well as strengthened and enhanced cooperation on political

matters; reiterates its demand concerning inclusion of the EP in all future bilateral relations

between the parties, taking into account that, without the EP's formal assent, there can be

no PCFA;

7. Insists that the EU arms embargo on China following the Tiananmen events must remain

intact until substantial progress is made on human rights issues; reminds the EU Member

States that the EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports includes as a criterion respect for

human rights in the country of final destination of such exports;

8. Is concerned that, despite repeated representations by the Chinese government of intentions to ratify the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), ratification is still pending; urges then China, without further delay to ratify and implement it;

EU-China human rights dialogue

9. Regrets that China's human rights record remains a matter of serious concern; emphasises,

therefore, the need to considerably strengthen and improve the EU-China human rights

dialogue; calls on the Council to provide a more detailed briefing to the Parliament;

considers it relevant to continue to organise the EU-China legal seminar on human rights,

which used to precede the dialogue, with the participation of academic and civil society

representatives, and in this regard welcomes the establishment of an EU-China Human

Rights Academic Network under Objective 3 of the European Instrument for Democracy

and Human Rights (IDHR) and calls on the Commission to ensure that this network will

effectively function in cooperation with Parliament;

10. Considers that the matters discussed in the successive rounds of dialogue with China,

such as ratification of the ICCPR, reform of the criminal justice system, including the death

penalty and the system of re-education through work, freedom of expression, particularly

on the Internet, freedom of the press, freedom of access to information, freedom of

conscience, thought and religion, the situation of minorities in Tibet, the release of

detainees following the events in Tiananmen Square, and workers' and other rights, must

continue to be raised in the context of the dialogue, in particular with regard to the

application of the recommendations resulting from previous dialogues mutually agreed

upon by both parties and seminars on legal affairs; to this end, calls on the Council to

consider extending the time period of the dialogue and to allow more time for discussion of

the issues raised; calls, furthermore, on the Council and Commission to pay special

attention to compliance with the International Labour Organisation's conventions with

regard, in particular, to independent trade unions and child labour;

11. Notes China's commitment to support the UN Human Rights Council in performing its

function of addressing human rights issues in a credible, objective and non-selective

manner, and calls for a strengthened cooperation in the UN system as well as to cooperate

with the UN human rights mechanisms and the international human rights standards

provided for in the relevant international human rights instruments, including the rights of

minorities;

12. Draws attention to the need for China to allow the free expression and practice of religion

and thought; affirms the need, particularly in the light of the discussions among Chinese

officials about the definition of 'religion' and especially 'legal religion', for a

comprehensive law on religion meeting international standards and guaranteeing genuine

religious freedom; deplores the contradiction between the constitutional freedom of belief

(enshrined in Article 36 of the Chinese Constitution) and the ongoing interference of the

state in the affairs of religious communities, in particular as regards the training, selection,

appointment and political indoctrination of ministers of religion;

13. Regrets that the sixth Sino-Tibetan round of talks has brought about no results; calls on the parties to make every effort in order to continue the dialogue and calls upon the Chinese

government to engage in substantive negotiations taking into due consideration the

demands of the Dalai Lama for autonomy for Tibet; calls on China to refrain from exerting

pressure on states that have friendly relations with the Dalai Lama;

14. Reiterates its concern over the reports of continuing human rights violations in Tibet and in the other provinces inhabited by Tibetan people, including torture, arbitrary arrest and

detention, repression of religious freedom, arbitrary restrictions on free movement, and

rehabilitation through labour camps; deplores the intensification of the so-called 'patriotic

education' campaign since October 2005 in Tibet's monasteries and nunneries, forcing

Tibetans to sign declarations denouncing the Dalai Lama as a dangerous separatist; calls

upon China to allow an independent body to have access to Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, the

Panchen Lama of Tibet, and his parents, as requested by the UN Committee on the Rights

of the Child;

15. Calls on China, as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, to implement the

recommendations of the UN special rapporteur on torture and to issue a standing invitation

to China to UN experts;

16. Is of the opinion that human rights concerns should receive much more focus in the buildup to the Beijing Olympic Games; and reiterates "respect for universal fundamental ethical principles" and the promotion of a peaceful society concerned "with the preservation of human dignity' as enshrined in Articles 1 and 2 of the Olympic Charter;

17. Requests the International Olympic Committee to publish its own assessment of China's

compliance with the undertakings given in 2001 before the Games were awarded to

Beijing; stresses the responsibility of the EU to take note of such an assessment and to

work with its Olympic Network to create a basis for responsible behaviour in preparation

for, during and after the Olympics;

18. Is strongly concerned by the recent increase of political persecutions related to the

Olympics of human rights defenders, journalists, lawyers, petitioners, civil society

activists, ethnic groups such as the Uighurs, religious of all beliefs, especially Falun Gong

practitioners; calls on the Chinese authorities to release these people immediately and to

put an end to these human rights violations, as well as to the demolition of substantial

numbers of houses without compensation to make way for the Olympic infrastructures;

19. Calls on China to make concrete steps to grant freedom of expression, and to respect

freedom of the press, both for Chinese and foreign journalists, raises particular concerns

about the lack of implementation of the new regulation on international journalists active

in China, and urges the Chinese authorities to immediately stop censoring and blocking -

especially with the help of multinational companies - thousands of news and information

websites based abroad, calls for the release of all journalists, Internet users and cyberdissidents detained in China for exercising their right to information; reiterates its call on the Chinese authorities to establish a moratorium on executions during the Olympic Games in 2008, and to withdraw the ban list of 42 categories of people;

20. Draws attention to the conclusions of the 17th Chinese Communist Party National

Congress, held in mid-October 2007, at which different perspectives and openness arose

towards the implementation of higher international human rights benchmarks in China;

21. Urges China to stop its ongoing support for the regimes in Myanmar and the situation in

Darfur;

22. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the

Governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Government of the People's

Republic of China, the Chinese National People's Congress, the Secretary-General of the

United Nations, and the Board of the International Olympic Committee.

Why Canada Should Boycott the Beijing Olympics

By OnTheWeb: Martin Tampier Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Canada Free Press: In 2010, the world will get together in Vancouver-Whistler for the Olympic Winter Games. We will welcome them to an open society that appreciates different cultures and grants its citizens the freedoms that are so important to living with of dignity. Not so next year, at the Beijing Olympics.

Pastor Wang ZaiqingChina has been, and still is today, a society that denies these rights and freedoms to its citizens. You may have heard about their killing prisoners to sell the organs to Western customers. Or their disregard of local residents in their rapid expansion of construction, industry and power generation projects.

Or the child workers employed to make souvenirs for the upcoming Olympics. We also know what happened in 1989 at Tiananmen Square, where the army brutally suppressed a worker and student protest, leaving several hundred dead. And we would all like to believe that these things are past, and that China is now becoming more open and a more responsible citizen of the world. But this is far from being the case.

Since the announcement that Beijing would get the Olympics, we are seeing a drastic, but underreported, crackdown on religious minorities. This time it’s not only Falun Gong members, but also Christian churches that are being raided by the Chinese military police. Here are some examples from this year:

22 evangelical leaders were arrested in June. Authorities of the eastern Shandong province condemned two leaders of evangelical house churches to a year of “re-education through labour”. Others were detained for several days without charge, or were also likely to be condemned to work in a labour camp.

In July, 15 house church leaders were detained by military police within one week in Inner Mongolia, Jiangsu and Anhui province. A Vacation Bible School for 150 children was attacked and two teachers were beaten and hospitalized. Police did not provide any legal paper for the arrest, blaming one pastor of being involved in “illegal religious activities.”

This December, 270 Chinese pastors were arrested during a Bible study gathering. 40-50 policemen from 12 different towns were involved in the massive detention.

Last year alone, according to China Aid Association, the Chinese government arrested 1,958 pastors and members of unregistered Protestant churches. A similar number was reported for 2005. This absolute disregard for what we hold dear in Canada – religious freedom, freedom of expression, freedom to assemble – shows that the Western strategy of “opening up” China with increased trade and the Olympic Games is not working. Canada has a long history of standing up for what’s right. Our own government website states, “Canada has been a consistently strong voice for the protection of human rights and the advancement of democratic values, from our central role in the drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1947-8 to our work at the United Nations today.” It also states, “Responses to specific situations depend upon a number of considerations, including a government’s relative commitment to human rights and the effectiveness of the means of influence at our disposal.” When could there be a more effective moment to act than when we host the Winter Olympics just two years after Beijing?

A 2006/2007 scorecard report by UN Watch praised Canada for its stance on human rights, but went on to say that it fails to speak out often or strongly enough for victims of most of the world’s worst regimes, remaining silent when it came to notorious abuses in China, Cuba, Saudi Arabia and Zimbabwe. Is this the legacy we want?

A boycott by Canada would but follow good advice from many others who are concerned. For example, actor Richard Gere, Chairman of the International Campaign for Tibet, is calling for a boycott of the Games because of the Tibet question. Reporters without Borders have asked for a boycott because of human rights violations. Others, including 106 lawmakers in the U.S., call for a boycott because of China’s support for Omar al-Bashir, who is responsible for governmental violence in Darfour (Sudan). From within China, voices of disappointment about the impact of the Olympic Games can also be heard. An open letter sent to the Chairman of the Olympic Committee by a group of Chinese lawyers and human rights activists in 2006 states, “The Chinese government is already preparing an illusion of peace and prosperity to mislead visitors. In doing so, they feel that voices critical of the government need to be crushed. That is exactly why they are engaging in large scale suppression of the human rights movement in China”.

Then again, why mix sports with politics? Should we not keep these issues out of the Olympic Games? The problem is, the entire idea if having the Games in Beijing is pure politics. Beijing’s bid for the Games ran against Istanbul, Osaka, Toronto, and Paris. Was the decision to go to China taken because of their better plans? The nicer environment? The more accommodating culture? No – it was taken precisely in order to engage China and to help it integrate better with the rest of the world. Even the Olympic Charter states, “The goal of Olympism is to place sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.”

So, from the start, the Olympics were meant to make China a better place. And that certainly is not happening. If we don’t use this opportunity now to speak out against Chinese Gestapo practices (meant to “clean the streets” before the Olympics take place), we never will. And China will never change. They will have gotten away with it once again and the West will have turned a blind eye. That’s politics, too: remaining silent for political reasons. Not wanting to upset anybody. When is enough, enough?

To quote the letter from the group of Chinese lawyers again, “the Seoul Games and those held in South Africa were turning points for the countries hosting them and this is why we are writing to you: we know the IOC is not a humanitarian or a political organization but according to its expressed goals, we believe the committee is obligated to press the Chinese government to improve human and civil rights in China.”

A boycott will upset our trade relationships with China. It will upset the 2010 Winter Olympics. Is it worth the price? Ask the ones who were imprisoned; ask the ones who are praying for them. They are hoping for a different China. We must not miss our chance to take a stand before it is too late!

Sign Petition to the IOC to remove Olympic Ban of Falun Gong

Dear Friend:

Below is a self-explanatory letter to the International Olympic Committee listing major concerns affecting the international community and arising out of appalling policies of the Beijing government, which are only now garnering international attention. Please consider co-signing this letter to indicate your solidarity with those who are determined “never again” to stand idly by and turn their eyes away from genocide as the world did from 1931 to 1945. You may co-sign this letter by going *online Your support in advancing the cause of human dignity is invaluable at this crucial time and it is greatly appreciated. The *online version can be found here:

http://mwcnews.net/content/view/18735/42/

Clive Ansley, US-CANADA Chair
Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of Falun Gong, and
China Country Monitor for Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada

__________________________________________________________________________________

Mr. Jacques Rogge, President
Members of the International Olympic Committee
Chateau De Vidy, Case Postale 356
1007 Lausanne, Switzerland
Fax: +41-21-621-6216
jacques.rogge@ioc.olympic.org

Dear Mr. Rogge and members of the IOC:

On November 8, 2007, Li Zhanjun, News Director of the Beijing Olympics media center, responded to western criticism of religious restrictions previously announced by Beijing, saying that the Chinese Communist government would now allow athletes and tourists to bring religious objects for personal use during the Olympics. However, this policy will not apply to Falun Gong practitioners: "Falun Gong texts, Falun Gong activities in China are forbidden," and "Foreigners who come to China must respect and abide by the laws of China." (AP)

We are distressed at this policy which is in direct violation of article 5 of the Olympic Charter, which states that: "Any form of discrimination with regard to a country or a person on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise is incompatible with belonging to the Olympic Movement."

As well, Article 36 of China’s own constitution declares that citizens "enjoy freedom of religious belief," and that, "No state organ, public organization or individual may compel citizens to believe in, or not to believe in, any religion; nor may they discriminate against citizens who believe in, or do not believe in, any religion."

The persecution of Chinese citizens who practise Falun Gong constitutes a violation of China’s constitution by the Beijing government. That persecution of Chinese citizens is well-known. However, the host country for the 2008 Olympic Games has now extended its discriminatory religious policies to the entire international community through these recent declarations. Beijing, as host country, is saying that while participating foreign athletes who are Christians will be allowed to bring Bibles into the Olympic Village and to practise their faith while residing there, foreign athletes who are Falun Gong practitioners will not be allowed to bring Falun Gong materials or to practise their Falun Gong exercises. In fact, foreign athletes who are adherents of Falun Gong may not be allowed to participate in the Games at all.

This is eerily reminiscent of the situation which obtained before and during the Nazi Olympics of 1936 in Berlin. Within Germany, Hitler barred Jewish citizens from competing for places on the German Olympic team. Unlike his contemporary counterparts in Beijing with respect to Falun Gong, Hitler did not go so far as to impose restrictions on Jewish competitors from other countries. Nevertheless, his discriminatory racial and religious policies within Germany itself provoked a widespread call in the United States for a boycott of the Nazi Olympics, and many Jewish athletes refused to participate.

Not only does this latest order further demonstrate the Chinese regime’s unwillingness to fulfil its 2001 promise to the IOC to improve human rights in China, but it is also clear proof that any hope of improving Chinese human rights through the Olympics is futile because of Beijing’s total and demonstrable insincerity.

You may recall that in April 2007, Beijing’s Ministry of Public Service issued a blacklist barring “antagonistic elements” from attending the Games, including adherents of Falun Gong, “religious infiltrators” and others. Although this was a clear violation of the Olympic Charter, we are unaware of any declaration by the International Olympic Committee that it will enforce that Charter or that the IOC is at all concerned about the fact that Beijing has trampled upon the Charter.

Li Zhanjun's response clearly demonstrates that the Chinese government's policy of persecuting Falun Gong and its practitioners continues unabated. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has overtly extended the regime's persecution of Falun Gong to the Olympics—a most noble institution that is respected worldwide. Such abuse and discrimination against the followers of a peaceful spiritual teaching not only trash the Olympic Spirit, but also constitute a spurning of fundamental morality and ethics in the international society.

Having called upon the world not to politicize the Olympics, Beijing’s leaders have persistently, continuously, and consistently turned their hosting of the Games into a totally political propaganda extravaganza designed to glorify, whitewash, and strengthen their single-party dictatorship. They have from the outset exploited the opportunity afforded them by the IOC in precisely the same way as Goebbels and Hitler before them.

Therefore, we call on the IOC to:

Ø Require Beijing to rescind its policy of barring Falun Gong from the Olympics, which constitutes a severe breach of the Olympic Charter;

Ø Reconsider the eligibility of the Communist regime to stage the Olympic Games, given the steadily worsening human rights situation in China today;

Ø Discuss the possibility of holding the Olympics in another nation.

We also urge the international community and athletes from around the world to condemn Beijing’s trashing of the Olympic spirit and its scorn for the Olympic Charter.

The whole world is about to learn what religious repression “made in China” means. Beijing's characterization of Falun Gong as “illegal” is a clumsy attempt to justify a pogrom of government sanctioned violence and persecution. There is no basis in the Chinese Constitution or in any other Chinese law for Beijing’s claim that Falun Gong is illegal in China. It is “illegal” only because the top leadership declared it to be “illegal”, and no Chinese court has the authority to interpret the Constitution and overturn the fiats of the top leaders. No judicial process was ever involved in rendering Falun Gong “illegal”.

It is clear that the Chinese regime must stop using the Olympics as a cover for launching a crackdown on peaceful people of faith both in China and abroad and to halt the persecution of Falun Gong and all Chinese citizens.

Hence, we, the undersigned, believe that the IOC has the moral obligation to bring the true Olympic spirit to the Chinese people as set forth in the Olympic Charter. It’s not too late for the IOC to renegotiate the location of the Olympics and bring some well-deserved sobriety and human dignity into this situation for the sake of the Chinese people and our proud athletes.

Previous Olympics devolved into propaganda bonanzas for dictatorial hosts, such as the Nazis in 1936 and the Soviets in 1980, rather than promoting the universal celebration of peaceful competition and sport for people of all colours and creeds in accordance with the Olympic ideal. Beijing cannot possibly expect to freely continue with rampant political oppression, mass executions, forced abortions, illicit organ harvesting, religious persecution, and a slew of other human rights abuses, while attempting to present a civilized face to the world as host of the Summer Games in 2008.

Sincerely,

……………………………………………………….

Name, Title

Organization:…………………………………….

Address: (City,Prov/State, Country)…….

Crimes against humanity and the Olympics cannot coexist in China.

http://humanrightstorch.org http://cipfg.org

China Detains Hundreds Of House Church Pastors In Massive Operation

Radio Free Asia: China Detains 70 in Raid on Shandong House Church Meeting 2007.12.11 HONG KONG—Authorities in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong are holding more than 70 people following a raid on a Bible study meeting of house church pastors involving more than 270 people. Police burst in on the Dec. 7 meeting in the apparent belief that the participants were engaged in proselytizing for the outlawed Falun Gong spiritual movement, according to those detained at the meeting in Linyi city. “When the police burst into the room, there wasn’t any reaction at all from any of us,” one man released from detention Sunday told RFA’s Cantonese service. It is unlikely that they would be wearing manacles. As for when they will be released, I really don’t know. It depends on circumstances. Police official “They divided us into pairs and handcuffed us all together with our partner and marched us off to the police station for questioning. Some members of the congregation were beaten during our detention, during questioning. Others were frequently subjected to mental torture,” he said. Each person was told they had to pay 300 yuan for their living expenses during their 15-day detention period. The police then refused to give back any of the money when many of the detainees were released after 2-3 days, he said. The 270 attendees had gathered as part of a fast to honor Jesus’ suffering, taking advantage of the lack of agricultural work to be done in winter, according to another participant, identified only as Pastor Li. Li said the police acted like bandits, confiscating two computers, videotapes and a video recorder, a television, and some copies of the Bible. “At about 1 p.m., police officers from a dozen or so different villages and townships burst into the room.” They had made arrangements to detain all of us. Each police station held 20-30 people. We were detained for three days and three nights. Some of us have now been released, but some have been transferred to a detention center—more than 70 people, in all. Participant Another participant told RFA’s Mandarin service that the raid was well organized. “They had made arrangements to detain all of us. Each police station held 20-30 people. We were detained for three days and three nights. Some of us have now been released, but some have been transferred to a detention center—more than 70 people, in all.” Pastor Zhang, who also attended, said the police appeared to have acted on the basis of allegations that the group were Falun Gong missionaries. “They had got a warrant all in a hurry and then staged this raid on our church, arresting people with no rhyme or reason to it. They said we would have to register with the religious authorities before they would accept there is a religious reason for our meetings. We don’t want to register because if we are refused permission to meet, then we will have no religious freedom anywhere in mainland China.” An employee who answered the phone at the Hedong district police station in Linyi confirmed that some church members were still being detained for illegal assembly. When asked whether the detainees were wearing manacles or to answer questions about when they would be released, she said she didn’t know. “It is unlikely that they would be wearing manacles. As for when they will be released, I really don’t know. It depends on circumstances.” Original reporting in Cantonese by Fung Yat-yiu and in Mandarin by Yan Ming. Cantonese service director: Shiny Li. Mandarin service director: Jennifer Chou. Translated and written for the Web in English by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Sarah Jackson-Han. Source http://www.rfa.org/english/news/2007/12/11/china_religion/ Tuesday, 11 December 2007 ( less than one hour ago)

By BosNewsLife News Center

A house church gathering. Via CAA BEIJING, CHINA (BosNewsLife)-- At least 150 house church pastors were believed to be behind bars Tuesday, December 11, after Chinese security forces broke up a Christian meeting in China's Shandong Province, fellow believers said.

Advocacy group China Aid Association (CAA) told BosNewsLife that initially 270 were detained December 7 in Hedeng District of Linyi City where they had gathered for a Bible study gathering. Chinese officials have reportedly said that the meeting was an “illegal religious gathering," held without official permission. House churches are organized in homes or other accommodations of believers, outside the 'official' churches backed by the Chinese Communist Party. In a statement released by CAA, an eyewitness identified only as Pastor Li said up to 50 policemen from 12 different towns were involved in the massive detentions. The pastors were allegedly handcuffed "two-by-two and taken to the local police station for questioning," CAA said. Since Monday, December 10, "150 pastors remain in custody,” the group said, adding that other church leaders were released after paying a fine of about $40, described as an "interrogation fee". "PASTORS' HUMILATION" CAA said that the “humiliation these pastors received by being led away in handcuffs as common criminals, for attending a Bible study is an unjustifiable act of religious persecution.” It added that the “large scale and high profile of the detentions shows the apathy of Chinese officials in moving towards a policy for toleration of religious freedom,” ahead of the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. Chinese officials have not released any statements yet, but several church groups and advocacy groups have noted a “major crackdown” on house churches and other Christian workers amid apparent concerns within the Chinese government about the spread of Christianity in the country. There may be as many as 130 million Christians in China, according to some official estimates, about 10 percent of the population. The United States Central Intelligence Agency says up to four percent of the population has been identified as Christian.

China fishes for secrets in rich, vulnerable waters

Toronto Star: Dec 11, 2007 04:30 AM

Andrew Mitrovica

China's smile will be on global display during next summer's Olympic Games. The athletic and cultural extravaganza will be a well choreographed 17-day magic act designed to ensure Beijing's woeful human rights record vanishes.

The imprisonment of scores of human rights activists will be conveniently forgotten. So, too, will the abuse of lawyers, writers, academics and HIV/AIDS campaigners who have challenged the unyielding regime. Indeed, in its most recent annual report, Human Rights Watch described China's already tattered human rights standing as having "deteriorated significantly."

Western governments, including Canada, will likely look the other way for fear of alienating the host nation and jeopardizing lucrative trade deals with Asia's economic behemoth.

Governments of various political pedigrees will also, no doubt, continue to look askance at Beijing's audacious and technologically sophisticated spying that constitutes a much less savoury counterpoint to the happy face the dictatorship intends to relentlessly market to the world come August.

There was more evidence of this fact when the British government recently issued an extraordinary alert to 300 top executives and security chiefs at banks, accounting and law firms warning of an "electronic espionage attack" from "Chinese state organizations."

Not surprisingly, Beijing denied that it had carried out any state-sponsored cyber-espionage against pillars of Britain's economy. But the official British warning echoes, in part, the alarm raised earlier this year by Chen Yonglin, a former Chinese diplomat who defected to Australia in 2005, insisting that China had 1,000 agents operating there.

Chen has also claimed that a similarly sized legion of Chinese spies also manoeuvres covertly in Canada. Though his allegations appear outlandish, they have been treated as credible by authorities.

That Chen bandied about a headline-grabbing number wasn't particularly persuasive for China watchers inside the spook world. The more reliable aspect of his disclosures was the description of the subtle nature of Chinese spying.

Patience and penetration are central to the Chinese espionage model. Trained spies pilfer military, economic and trade secrets. Their covert work, Chen said, is abetted by a network of informants – from students to businessmen – who are recruited to feed intelligence to Beijing. And all of it is tolerated by the western democracies in the name of commerce and at the expense of human rights.

None other than Jim Judd, the head of Canada's spy service, CSIS, appeared to confirm Chen's portrait of the scope and character of Chinese spying in Canada during testimony before the Senate Committee on National Security and Defence this past April. Judd told the panel that China is the agency's most formidable adversary, preoccupying almost half of CSIS's counter-intelligence apparatus.

Judd's testimony was surprising for a number of instructive reasons. It represented a striking about-face by CSIS mandarins concerning the threat posed by Chinese espionage to Canada's national security.

A few years earlier, Judd's predecessor, Ward Elcock, had publicly dismissed the findings of a joint RCMP-CSIS probe into China's espionage in Canada, dubbed Project Sidewinder, as an "interesting theory" that couldn't withstand scrutiny.

In the late 1990s, the Sidewinder analysts produced a report that mirrored the central thrust of recent "revelations" by Chen and Judd. Rather than being feted as prescient, the team was disbanded at the behest of CSIS over the objections of RCMP brass who insisted that the civilian spy service had effectively torpedoed the hush-hush probe.

In internal correspondence, the Mounties accused senior CSIS officers of having "compromised the integrity" of intelligence reports to Ottawa about existing and emerging security threats and charged that CSIS analysts had been forced to bury their findings.

In fact, CSIS officials had ordered the initial Sidewinder report to be softened and documents related to the study destroyed. (A copy of the original, unsanitized report was leaked to the media.)

Of course, when Elcock made his disparaging remarks about the work of some of his own intelligence officers, a Liberal government was spending considerable diplomatic and political currency cultivating trade ties with China.

Now that Stephen Harper's Conservatives have taken a harder line toward China, CSIS has suddenly and predictably changed its tune.

The RCMP and CSIS officers involved in the ill-fated Sidewinder probe are surely bemused by it all. They were apparently on the right track at the wrong time. They probably know that by the time the Olympic torch is lit in Beijing, all the talk and reports of Chinese espionage will become mute. Canada and the world will be too busy smiling with China.

Media rights group banned from entering China

Agence France-Presse
Last updated 10:00pm (Mla time) 12/10/2007

Inquirer.net: HONG KONG -- Global media rights watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said Monday it had been banned from entering mainland China, branding it the world's biggest prison for journalists.

Five activists from RSF unfurled a banner outside the representative office of the Chinese government in Hong Kong with the Olympic rings replaced by handcuffs to coincide with international human rights day, two days after they were refused visas.

"China is the biggest jail in the world for journalists and with the Olympic Games coming, it is the right time to do something about it," said Robert Menard, secretary-general of RSF.

Menard said that around 33 journalists and 49 cyber-dissidents were currently serving sentences in appalling conditions on trumped-up charges of "subversion" or "disseminating state secrets."

The group was blocked from entering China from Hong Kong, Vincent Brossel from RSF's Asia desk said. They had planned to unfurl the banner in Tiananmen Square in Beijing.

"We know that some of us are blacklisted by the Chinese immigration services," RSF said in a statement.

"At a time when the government is compiling files on foreign journalists and human rights activists in advance of the Olympic Games, this refusal is evidence of its determination to keep critics at a distance."

China has denied operating a blacklist of journalists who want to come to Beijing to cover the Olympics next year and the government insists that freedom of speech is guaranteed by its constitution.

"I believe that Reporters Without Borders are just singing the same old tunes," said Sun Weide, spokesman of the Beijing Olympic organizing committee (BOCOG).

In August, police searched the hotel of four members of RSF campaigners visiting Beijing for a protest after earlier detaining about a dozen journalists covering the event.

China's communist rulers have trumpeted what they call the lifting of restrictions on foreign journalists ahead of the 2008 Olympics, but media rights groups say harassment and intimidation continue.

Sun denied the charge and said that BOCOG and the Chinese government "welcome all reporters from around the world to come and cover the Beijing Games."

"We will try our best to provide them with the services and conveniences they need," he added.

AI: Olympic Committee can bring positive change in China

© Amnesty International">

Rubber stamp used to stamp banners in an Amnesty International China Olympic Action

© Amnesty International

10 December 2007

The Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) begins meeting today in Switzerland. Amnesty International urges the IOC to ensure that human rights concerns are addressed in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.

China will host the games next year and the Beijing Olympics offer an opportunity for a positive human rights legacy for the country. Specifically, progress on the death penalty, detention without trial, freedom of expression and the protection of human rights activists, would contribute to such a legacy.

Human rights reforms are the primary responsibility of the Chinese authorities, but Amnesty International believes that the IOC can still make a significant contribution by using its influence to bring about positive change. According to the Olympic Charter, the IOC has a role in promoting a positive Olympic legacy for the cities and countries hosting the Games.

The philosophy of the Olympic Movement is laid out most clearly in The Fundamental Principles of Olympism, which form part of the Olympic Charter. These Principles stress the importance of “universal fundamental ethical principles” and “the preservation of human dignity” to the Olympic spirit. President of the IOC, Dr Jacques Rogge has publicly stated that “We are convinced that the Olympic Games will improve human rights in China.”

A number of recent cases underscore the urgent need for action on the human rights situation in China in the lead up to the games.

On 10 October Wang Ling was assigned to 15 months ‘Re-education Through Labour" for signing petitions and preparing banners in protest against the demolition of her property for Olympic construction projects. Beaten, detained and imprisoned on numerous occasions, Wang Ling is currently being held at Daxing Re-education Through Labour Facility in Beijing.

"Re-education Through Labour" is used against people considered by the Chinese police to have committed offences not serious enough to be punished under the Criminal Law. These include petty criminals, critics of the government and followers of banned beliefs.

Yang Chunlin was detained and reportedly tortured for his involvement in a petition "We Want Human Rights, not the Olympics", signed by farmers protesting against the confiscation of their land. Since his detention in July, he has had his arms and legs stretched and chained to the four corners of an iron bed on numerous occasions. He has then been left to eat, drink and defecate in that position. He is still in detention.

Housing rights activist, Ye Guozhu, is serving a four-year sentence after he applied for permission to hold a demonstration about forced evictions in Beijing. His home and business were demolished as a result of Olympics-related construction and his family received no compensation. He is reported to have been tortured in prison.

His son and brother, Ye Mingjun and Ye Guoqiang, were detained by Beijing police on suspicion of "inciting subversion" at the end of September 2007. They had protested against forced evictions that were supposedly carried out to clear space for construction for the Beijing Olympics. At the end of October, Ye Mingjun was released on bail and now awaits trial. Ye Guoqiang is still in detention.

These detainees must be released immediately and unconditionally. The reports of torture must be investigated and measures taken against anyone found responsible. Those abused must receive reparation.

Group: China to Evict 1.5M for Olympics

Look here for a report from COHRE. China was given top award by COHRE for the worst human rights violators in regards to housing rights (BBC)

By BRADLEY S. KLAPPER

GENEVA (AP) — China continues to evict 13,000 people each month in preparation for the Beijing Olympics, despite worldwide attention and increased scrutiny, a housing rights group said Wednesday.

The Center on Housing Rights and Evictions said a recent trip to the Chinese capital confirmed an estimate it made earlier this year that 1.5 million people would be displaced by the time the 2008 Games are held.

Beijing says the group is grossly inflating the number of people being relocated as a result of the Olympic preparations, and that residents are content with the compensation they have received.

"Despite courageous protests inside China, and condemnation by many international human rights organizations, the Beijing municipality and Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games have persisted with these evictions and displacements," said Jean du Plessis, the Geneva-based COHRE's deputy director.

The group — which claimed in June that 1.25 million had already been displaced — said it returned to Beijing in August and found that forced evictions were continuing unabated.

In September, the Beijing municipality demolished several buildings in a run-down neighborhood called the "petitioners' village" in Fengtai District, which provided housing for thousands from all over China who came to complain to the central government about land seizures, forced evictions and corruption, COHRE said.

"Evictions in Beijing often involve the complete demolition of poor peoples' houses," the group said. "The inhabitants are then forced to relocate far from their communities and workplaces, with higher transportation costs driving them further into poverty.

"In Beijing, and in China more generally, the process of demolition and eviction is characterized by arbitrariness and lack of due process. In many cases, tenants are given little or no notice of their eviction and do not receive the promised compensation."

The group said it was pleased the International Olympic Committee is taking housing rights more seriously, including guaranteed commitments that local people would not be displaced in its deal with Russia for the 2014 Winter Games, which will be hosted by the Black Sea resort of Sochi.

In August, the director of Beijing's construction committee said only about 40,000 people were being relocated yearly, and about 2,000 were moved to build new venues for the games. Sui Zhenjiang also said residents were adequately compensated, adding that 16,000-17,000 "affordable" houses had been built in the city of 15 million.

"The 1.5 million figure is definitely wrong," Sui said of COHRE's estimation.

COHRE also criticized Myanmar and Slovakia on Thursday for "pervasive housing rights violations" in 2007.

It said Myanmar, also known as Burma, was responsible for the "mass displacement of more than 1 million civilians from their lands and homes."

Slovakia was cited because "municipalities deliberately neglect to improve — or indeed actively strive to worsen — the housing conditions of Roma," also known as Gypsies, said Claude Cahn, COHRE's advocacy chief.

It's all about the money again

by Claire Hoy

Orangeville Citizen, Canada: December 6, 2007 - Early last month, our so-called "national broadcaster" the CBC, was accused by critics of buckling under to pressure from the Chinese government in delaying the airing of a documentary on China's outrageous persecution of the religious sect the Falun Gong.

The CBC denied that any pressure from China was responsible for their decision to pull the documentary entitled Beyond the Red Wall after the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa objected to claims in the film that China arbitrarily imprisons and tortures Falun Gong members and uses them as slave labor.

Indeed, two prominent Canadian human rights activists, Winnipeg lawyer David Matas and former Alberta MP David Kilgrour, revealed absolute evidence last year that China executes Falun Gong members in order to harvest their body parts for transplants.

You can bet that if some right-wing dictatorship was accused of such crimes against humanity, a call from the local embassy would fall on deaf ears at the CBC.

But then, the CBC has committed hundreds of millions of dollars - much of it from your taxes - to broadcast next year's Bejing Olympics, making it susceptible, despite its' firm denials, to some heavy-handed Chinese blackmail. At the time of the controversy, the CBC - which had aired the documentary in French - claimed that the only reason it changed the scheduled (and heavily-advertised) viewing time is to make it "the most truthful and credible work possible."

One assumes - or should be able to assume - that before the CBC signed off on the project and paid producer Peter Rowe for his work, they would have first made sure it was "truthful" and - credible, making it difficult to accept the CBC's lame excuse for kow-towing to Chinese pressure.

But as distasteful as this incident was, surely there is a bigger issue at play here: given the indisputable fact that China is one of the world's worst human rights abusers, a)- why is the west catering to their Olympics at all; and b)-why not simply boycott the entire extravaganza?

This is, of course, an issue far beyond the competence of the CBC. Mind you, this writer has long found it simply wrong that the CBC uses taxpayer's money to outbid the private television networks in this country. Indeed, this writer finds it wrong that the CBC, rather than operate on its own strengths - and it has many - continues to live off the welfare of taxpayers at all.

On the bigger issue, however, while Prime Minister Stephen Harper is to be congratulated for holding a public meeting with the Dali Lama in Ottawa, much to the consternation of Chinese officials, why not go the extra step and pull all federal funding for Canadian athletes, officials and media for next year's Olympics.

It's not just Harper. We haven't heard a peep from NDP Leader Jack Layton or Liberal Leader Stephane Dion about the morality of handing the Olympics to one of the world's most disgraceful bully-countries. And we're not likely to hear anything any time soon, although again, you can rest assured that if the Olympics were being staged in the home country of right-wing tyrants, Layton and Dion would be falling over each other to express their total outrage.

The reason why we can not expect our leaders - or, for that matter, any western leaders - to officially boycott China's Olympics has nothing to do with human rights but, alas, everything to do with trade.

It was one thing to stand firm against South Africa's apartheid regime - and so we should have given how vile it was - because we did such little relative trade with them anyway. It's quite another thing to balk at such a huge trading partner as China.

Just to put things in perspective, Chinese imports as a percentage of Canada's total imports, while climbing dramatically in recent years, still represents less than 10 percent of our total imports. But in 2006, for example, Chinese imports to Canada were valued at almost $350 million, with total trade reaching close to $420 million and it continues to rise, jumping an additional $32 million between January and May this year compared to the same period last year. That's a lot of money to endanger for moral reasons, which is why it's not likely to happen.

The sheer size of the Chinese economy gives it a strength in world trade and other geo-political issues which no amount of human rights abuses on its' part can affect.

And the same people who constantly dump on the United States, a paragon of moral virtue compared to China, for its' transgressions, are, for the most part, the biggest cheerleaders in increasing sales and other cultural contacts with the Chinese. So what else is new, eh?

Source
http://www.citizen.on.ca/news/2007/1206/Columns/031.html

Olympic heat

Dec 5th 2007

From Economist.com

More than light in China debate

SEOUL in 1988, or Berlin in 1936? Debate about the staging of next year’s Olympic games in Beijing tends to polarise opinion. Most Chinese—and foreigners optimistic about the country's direction—see it as a fitting symbol of China’s emergence as a global power. They also argue the games will ease political repression and open China up to the outside world.

The Berlin-1936 camp argues that China’s record of human-rights abuses and repression is such that it should never have been awarded the games at all. And far from bringing liberalisation, the Olympics will actually make things worse: residents in places earmarked for stadiums will be uprooted, dissidents harassed and protesters locked up.

ReutersFooling nobody

A debate just staged in London by The Economist and the Stockholm Network, a European think-tank, followed a familiar pattern. A Chinese economist claimed things are improving in her country. Audience members and opposing panellists, including a representative of Amnesty International, a human-rights organisation, disagreed volubly.

The audience included some who had been victims of persecution at the hands of the Chinese state. One follower of Falun Gong, a quasi-Buddhist religious sect that China’s government bans, gave an impassioned and harrowing account of her ordeal.

This same argument has been going on for a decade, but since China was awarded the Olympics in 2001, it has become anachronistic. Hardly anyone (certainly not Amnesty) is calling for a boycott of the Beijing games, and, barring some unforeseen disaster, they will go ahead.

The proposition actually up for debate was rather different: that “the Beijing Olympics will allow China to fool the world.” In other words, at issue was not whether China “deserved” the games, or whether they will be good or bad for the human rights of its citizens. The question was actually whether the international attention brought by the Olympics will allow China to present itself to the outside world as something it is not.

It is possible that the thousands of journalists who converge on Beijing for the games will simply file awe-struck panegyrics about the spectacular Olympic architecture, dazzled descriptions of the new-found wealth of China’s urban elite and naive interpretations of patriotic pride as evidence of devotion to the Communist Party.

They might ignore the poverty that still afflicts large parts of China, the hideous environmental cost being paid for China’s breakneck growth and the government’s efforts to prevent or quash protests.

But this seems unlikely. Sports reporters aside, editors will expect journalists cover both sides of “the China story”: the spectacular economic advance as well as the survival of one-party dictatorship, with all the repressive consequences that implies.

The authorities may—indeed, almost certainly will—try to thwart their efforts to report the latter story. As with other big events in Beijing, such as the Communist Party’s quinquennial congress in October, security will be stepped up, dissidents warned not to make trouble and censorship tightened. But that will become the news.

One of the panellists opposing the motion, David Smith, economics editor of the Sunday Times, made a convincing case that the increased scrutiny the games will bring will make it harder, not easier, for China to fool the world.

He seemed to win over the audience. In a straw poll before the speakers had opened their mouths, a majority supported the motion, presumably as an expression of their distaste for China’s government. But at the end of the debate, the motion was comfortably defeated.

Even one of the proposers had switched sides, having re-learned the lesson that is drummed into every schoolchild at exam time: answer the question, even if you think it is the wrong one.

Journalists oppose China's Rose Parade float

Look here to see the giant billboard. Hat tip to Ann Lau and the Visual Guild. And look here for a related article.

Southland NewsMonday, December 03, 2007 | 10:10 PM

By Jovana Lara

ABC - PASADENA -- Human rights groups are angry that China has been given permission to have a float in next year's Rose Parade, and they want you to know it.

Monday, a billboard was unveiled to protest China's treatment of journalists. The diplomatic storm is intensifying in Pasadena.

They call themselves "Reporters Without Borders," and Monday they unveiled a billboard in Pasadena, not far from the Rose Parade route.

The billboard takes a stand against China's entry in this year's Rose Parade. Protesters are urging parade organizers and city leaders to keep the float from appearing in the parade, which is seen worldwide.

The billboard represents the Olympic rings, but features handcuffs instead, symbolizing what the group says is China's imprisonment of journalists in the country.

Reporters Without Borders says the Chinese government is censoring the media and restricting their rights. The group also says Chinese officials are detaining Internet users who may be taking a stand against the government.

Protesters go on to say that the Chinese government has even warned journalists to be careful about what they say in regards to the upcoming Summer Games in Beijing.

"This means more arrests of dissidents. This means no more social protest, and more censorship," said Lucie Morillon, U.S. director of Reporters Without Borders. "We also learned that the propaganda department sends to the leading Chinese media a directive telling them not to write negative stories about issues affecting the games."

This would be the first time China has ever taken part in the Rose Parade with a float. This year's float was to commemorate the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Protesters are now threatening to demonstrate during the parade if that float is allowed to take part.

China’s treatment of journalists is worrying

The IOC’s attitude to China’s treatment of journalists is worrying
DOUG GILLON, Athletics Correspondent

The Herald, UK - December 05 2007 - When younger colleagues bleat about difficulties in modern journalism - and shouldering a laptop has to be easier than carting a typewriter and basket of homing pigeons to football matches - I'm inclined to remind them that it beats working for a living.

Readers don't give a toss if our job is difficult, and care less for reading about it. Quite rightly. Being paid to watch and report top-class sport is one of life's great privileges.

It is, to say the least, "interesting". But next year, the Beijing Olympics may become so in the context of the sinister legendary Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times".
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My concerns about the difficulties of the hack's life were not allayed by China's response yesterday to criticism of its record on press freedom. A Foreign Ministry spokesman, Qin Gang, said: "The Chinese government and people sincerely welcome reporters from around the world to come to China and cover the Games in a fair and objective way."

This followed an open letter to International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge from a journalists' rights group, Reporters Without Borders. They criticised Rogge's silence on abuse of journalists. Western perceptions of what constitutes "objective" journalism are unlikely to gel with China.

Qin said the Paris-based media group had "consistently attacked China". They have focused on the reluctance of politicians and police to allow domestic complaint to foreign media about lost land, corruption, and human rights issues.

Reuters cite a reporter being manhandled by security guards on Monday while attempting to talk to residents of a Beijing apartment block scheduled for demolition to make way for a security lane close to the Olympic stadium. Reporters Without Borders talk of foreign correspondents briefly detained and assaulted while investigating other sensitive topics.
Reporters Without Borders talk of foreign correspondents detained and assaulted while investigating sensitive topics

The Olympic movement remains confident China will deliver on its commitment to media freedom comparable with previous Games.

"The IOC believes in the good will of the Chinese to deliver the necessary environment for the 20,000 accredited media," they said in response to the letter, adding that the IOC believe the Games will be "a catalyst for constructive dialogue".

That is not the experience of Falun Dafa, or Falun Gong, the spiritual movement. They say Beijing Olympic organisers have a policy of banning their adherents from attending next year's Olympics, in contradiction of the country's constitution and Olympic Charter.

Last month, America's Associated Press reported Beijing's allegedly more tolerant religious policies "don't apply to Falun Gong" and only reassert "China's determination to marginalize, persecute and eradicate it."

Li Zhanjun, director of the Olympic media centre, says: "Falun Gong texts, Falun Gong activities in China, are forbidden . . . Foreigners who come to China must respect and abide by the laws of China."

That, lest there be any misunderstanding, includes journalists.

Yet branding Falun Gong "illegal" actually breaches articles 35 and 36 of China's constitution. It promises citizens "freedom of speech, the press, of assembly, of association, of procession, and of demonstration".

Article 36 promises "freedom of religious belief" and bans any state organ from "discriminating against citizens who believe in, or do not believe in, any religion".

Falun Dafa claim to have verified details of more than 63,000 instances of torture, and over 3000 deaths in custody. They believe the real figure for the latter to have exceeded 10,000.

A 2005 UN report says 66% of reported torture victims in China were Falun Gong adherents. In 2006 the same UN agency said "reports of arrest, detention, ill treatment, torture, sexual violence, deaths, and unfair trial of members may reflect a deliberate and institutionalised policy of the authorities to target specific groups."

So what is so dangerous about the group the atheist Communist rulers brand "a cult"? They believe in "Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance". Founder Li Hongzhi said in 1999: "We are not against the government now, nor will we be in the future. Other people may treat us badly, but we do not treat others badly, nor do we treat people as enemies."

Canadian broadcaster CBC, which needs Chinese cooperation to cover the Olympics, last month pulled a Falun Dafa documentary. It featured a contribution from Ian Johnston, who received a Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Falun Dafa.

Ours is a tough old game. But we won't write about it. Much.