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In a bold move, the US State Department has declared its intention to enforce visa restrictions on Chinese officials implicated in the oppression of religious and ethnic minorities within China.
This action is a direct response to the People’s Republic of China’s disregard for its human rights obligations. The backdrop to this decision is a series of reports that shed light on Beijing’s relentless persecution and suppression of religious believers.
The State Department’s 2023 report on international religious freedom paints a grim picture of the Chinese Communist Party’s iron-fisted control over religious groups, resulting in a litany of human rights abuses including harassment, torture, arrest, detainment, and even death. This decisive action by the US government reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the global protection of human rights and religious freedom, according to a press release.
The US State Department has made a significant announcement: Visa restrictions are to be imposed on Chinese officials who are part of the oppression of religious and ethnic minorities in China. This action is a response to the People’s Republic of China’s failure to honour its commitments to human rights.
“We are taking steps today to impose visa restrictions on PRC officials due to their involvement in the repression of marginalised religious and ethnic communities,” said Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the department, in a press statement on July 12.
He emphasised that the PRC has not fulfilled its obligations to respect and protect human rights.
Miller pointed to several instances of human rights violations as justification for the visa restrictions. These include the on-going genocide and crimes against humanity in Xinjiang, the diminishing of fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong, persistent human rights abuses in Tibet, and global transnational repression.
However, he did not disclose the identities of the officials who would be affected by these visa restrictions or the number of individuals involved.
This announcement follows numerous reports that have highlighted Beijing’s continuous oppression and harassment of religious followers. It also comes at a time when there are increasing demands in Congress and other platforms for measures to safeguard the rights of persecuted groups in China.
The 2023 State Department report on international religious freedom reveals the Chinese Communist Party’s on-going suppression of religious groups, citing evidence from NGOs and media. The CCP’s restrictive control over religious freedom, particularly towards groups seen as threats, is highlighted.
Followers of these faith groups endure severe hardships, including harassment, torture, arrest, detainment, physical abuse, and even death, as per the report. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom’s May report identified China’s communist regime as one of the world’s most egregious violators of religious freedom and a leading actor in cross-border repression and other harmful activities.
The 2023 report from the commission highlighted a decline in religious freedom in China, as the regime intensified its “sinicisation of religion,” mandating adherence to the CCP’s ideology and policies by all major religious groups. This sinicisation necessitates compliance with the CCP’s Marxist interpretation of religion, even to the extent of modifying religious texts and doctrines.
The report also disturbingly revealed that organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners and Uyghurs is occurring, sometimes while the victims are still alive.
In a recent move, the House approved the Falun Gong Protection Act, aimed at countering the CCP’s organ harvesting crimes and putting an end to the long-standing persecution of the spiritual group Falun Dafa. Furthermore, the House had previously passed the Stop Forced Organ Harvesting Act of 2023 in the preceding year.
The commission exhorted the US Federal government to “keep up with sanctions, as a team with partners, against Chinese authorities and elements responsible for grave infringement of strict opportunity.” It further approached Congress to preclude unfamiliar campaigning by specialists addressing the Chinese government and its state-subsidiary business substances that sabotage strict opportunity and related basic liberties.
The commission likewise approached the State Department to re-designate China as a “nation of specific worry” for “taking part in precise, progressing, and terrible infringement of strict opportunity” as framed in the Global Strict Opportunity Act. Washington frequently involves visa limitations to target Chinese Authorities’ contribution in common liberties infringement.
In August last year, the Division of State forced visa limitations on Chinese authorities because of their job in the effective digestion of north of 1 million Tibetan kids in government-run live-in schools. In May this year, the State Division likewise forced visa limitations on Chinese and Hong authorities over the blameworthy decision gave over on 14 Hong Kong supportive of a vote based system activists under the Beijing-forced Public Safety Regulation.
