(Minghui.org) The US Department of State issued a statement urging the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to stop the persecution of Falun Gong and release all people imprisoned for their spiritual beliefs on July 20, 2024.

Statement by the U.S. Department of State published on July 20, 2024.

The statement reads, “We solemnly mark 25 years today since the People’s Republic of China (PRC) began a campaign of repression against practitioners of Falun Gong, a self-described spiritual practice. For two and a half decades, PRC authorities have targeted Falun Gong practitioners and their families in a campaign of abuses and rights violations.

“The United States will continue to speak out for human rights, including freedom of religion or belief. We will also continue to promote accountability for those responsible for human rights abuses and violations. We call upon the PRC to cease its repressive campaign and release all who have been imprisoned for their beliefs.”

Matthew Miller, spokesperson of the Department of State, posted a statement on X (Twitter) on July 20, 2024.

The post reads, “Today, we mark 25 years of People's Republic of China repression against practitioners of the spiritual movement Falun Gong. We call upon the PRC to respect the freedom of religion or belief and release all those imprisoned for their beliefs.”

Post from Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC) on X, condemning the CCP’s persecution.

The IPAC posted a “Statement on the 25th Anniversary of the Persecution of Falun Gong Practitioners.”

The post reads, “Today marks the 25th anniversary of the Chinese government's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners - a quarter of a century of protracted and profound suffering.

“Hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been imprisoned, with an unknown number subjected to the most severe forms of torture, including widespread credible reports of state-sponsored forced organ harvesting.

“We join with the many groups and individuals in deploring the denial of basic Article 18 rights to Falun Gong practitioners, who, along with Islamic minority groups, Christians, and Tibetan Buddhists, among others, do not enjoy freedom of thought, conscience or religion in contemporary China.

“No minority, irrespective of their beliefs, deserves to be stripped of fundamental rights. We call upon our governments to insist that Beijing immediately cease their persecution of religious minorities, and uphold the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which China is a signatory.”