(Minghui.org) The 27th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) persecution of Falun Gong is July 20, 2026. In recognition of this, the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), a German human rights organization, issued a press release condemning the CCP’s persecution and transnational repression against Falun Gong practitioners and others in exile.
The Society for Threatened Peoples issued a press release to condemn the persecution of Falun Gong. (STP website)
The Society for Threatened Peoples (STP) is a non-governmental organization founded in 1970 that is dedicated to protecting persecuted ethnic and other minorities. The organization holds a special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council, and participatory status with the Council of Europe.
The press release reads, “Since July 20, 1999, Falun Gong practitioners in China have been systematically persecuted, detained, tortured, and forced into labor and re-education. Furthermore, there has been credible evidence for years of state-organized forced organ harvesting from detained Falun Gong practitioners.”
“Since the persecution began, the Chinese regime has sought to legitimize its crackdown on Falun Gong despite the lack of a legal basis. The “Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress,” which took effect on July 1, 2026, significantly intensifies restrictions, particularly on freedom of belief, religion, and expression. The CCP thereby obligates the Chinese population and religious communities to “submit to the comprehensive leadership of the Communist Party of China” and requires parents to “educate and guide their minor children to love the Communist Party of China.
“The law creates a legal basis for the persecution of individuals and organizations outside China who are accused of undermining ‘ethnic unity’ or promoting ‘ethnic division.’ These vague formulations make it possible to criminalize spiritual and religious practices as well as critical statements made by people living in exile. “In doing so, the law for the first time provides a legal basis for a systematic practice that China has already been carrying out: transnational repression against people in exile,” explained Mirjam Kobold, Advisor for Asia at STP.
She said that the practitioners in China have not been able to practice freely for 27 years, and that many people have been imprisoned for their belief while facing torture, and their lives are in danger. The CCP extends the persecution to other countries, including Germany and other European Union countries. This is a serious threat to Falun Gong practitioners in these countries.
The statement referred to the Freedom House 2025 report that ranked China as the world’s most active state in transnational repression. Freedom House documented 319 physical incidents, among which 23 percent of all cases since 2014 were attributed to China. In addition to practitioners, the affected people also include Uyghurs, Tibetans, Hong Kongers, and others.
The press release concluded, “Transnational repression threatens not only the fundamental rights of individuals but also the national security and sovereignty of democratic states. The STP strongly urges the German federal government to consistently prosecute transnational repression under criminal law, to expand effective and efficient protection mechanisms for those affected—including Falun Gong practitioners—in Germany and the EU, and to advocate internationally for an independent investigation into the ongoing persecution of religious groups and ethnic minorities in China.”
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Category: July 20 Events
