In June 2017, Minnesota State Senator Jim Abeler penned an open letter to president Xi Jinping regarding the persecution of Falun Gong in China. The letter urges Xi to end the persecution and to openly condemn the practice of forced organ harvesting. The letter—signed by 103 Minnesota State House Members and State Senators—was also copied to President Donald Trump.
Xi Jinping Office
Xinhua Gate, Zhong Nan Hai
West Chang’an Street, Beijing 100017
People’s Republic of China
Re: Falun Gong
Dear President Xi,
There is a very serious and critical situation in China that warrants your attention. On July 20th, 1999, the persecution of Falun Gong was initiated by Communist Party leader Jiang Zemin. Eighteen years later, this situation remains unresolved.
The persecution was initiated with a massive propaganda campaign used to vilify Falun Gong practitioners. This was followed by mass arrest, incarceration and torture. Some of those victimized in China are current residents of the State of Minnesota.
Coinciding with the persecution of Falun Gong was a dramatic increase in organ transplantation which cannot be explained with officially recognized organ sources, such as criminals executed for a capital offense. There is a substantial new report which can be viewed at EndOrganPillaging.org, which concludes that between 60,000 and 100,000 organ transplants have been conducted in China annually. This is a drastic contrast to the often officially cited 10,000 transplants per year. This report was referenced in a recent Freedom House report: The Battle for China’s Spirit.
It is the conclusion of many organizations, such as the United States House of Representatives, the European Union Parliament, NGOs such as Doctors Against Forced Organ Harvesting (DAFOH) and others, that the majority of organs procured in China are sourced from prisoners of conscience, primarily from Falun Gong practitioners. In spite of a large and growing body of evidence regarding forced organ harvesting in China, the Chinese transplant community continues to operate in secrecy and the sourcing of organs is not conducted in an open and transparent fashion, as required by World Health Organization standards. According to Ethan Gutmann, investigative Journalist and author of The Slaughter: “This is one of the central tests of our time … this is a new form of genocide. It’s using the most respected members of society to implement it and for these reasons we cannot avoid this any longer.”
President Xi, while we acknowledge that it is not you who are responsible for initiating the campaign against Falun Gong, we believe that you are in a unique position to bring it to a conclusion. Given the nature and scope of this crime against humanity, we feel it is important for you to openly condemn the practice. Such a significant contribution will be remembered.
Sincerely,
