(Minghui.org) On the 21st anniversary of Falun Gong practitioners’ peaceful resistance to the persecution of their faith by the Chinese Communist Party, Sam Brownback, the United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, recorded a video statement, expressing his support for the practitioners.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Falun Gong practitioners were unable to host their annual rally at Capitol Hill to call for ending the persecution. Many government officials instead sent supporting letters and videos.
In his video statement, Ambassador Brownback said, “We stand with you here on July 20th. We recognize it’s the 21st anniversary of a terrible thing, and untold suffering that’s happened in between. May next year be not the 22nd anniversary that we recognize the persecution, but the first year we recognize the freedom of the people of Falun Gong and everybody throughout China to practice their faith freely.”
In the past 21 years, hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been arrested, detained, tortured, and imprisoned for their faith. Many were killed alive for their organs. As of July 21, 2020, 4,544 practitioners were confirmed to have died from the persecution due to torture, imprisonment, and harassment. The number of practitioners who’ve died from organ harvesting is expected to be much higher.
