Switzerland: Support from 38 Federal and Cantonal Legislators Opposed to the CCP’s Persecution (Part 1)

(Minghui.org) July 2025 marks the 26th anniversary since the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) began the suppression of Falun Gong in 1999. Thirty-eight Swiss federal and cantonal legislators sent videos and letters to support practitioners for persisting in their faith, Falun Gong, and upholding the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, while peacefully opposing the CCP’s persecution, both in China and the recent transnational repression.

These 38 legislators include 9 members of the National Council of the Federal Assembly and 29 cantonal and municipal councilors from seven cantons, including Geneva, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Fribourg, Valais, Jura in the Romandy region of Switzerland, as well as Ticino in the Italian-speaking region.

First row (left to right): Members of the National Council of the Swiss Federal Assembly are from Geneva (Daniel Sormanni, Nicolas Walder, Delphine Klopfenstein, Laurence Fehlamn-Rielle, Vicent Maitre, Christian Dandrès), from Vaud (Leonore Porchet, Yvan Pahud) Second row (from left to right): from Valais (Philippe Nantermod); Ana Roch (President of the Geneva Cantonal Council); Members of the Geneva Cantonal Council (Dilara Bayrak, Patrick Dimier, Jean-Charles Rielle, Natasha Buffet Desfayes, Cedric Jeanneret, Christian Flury) Third row (from left to right): Members of the Geneva City Council (Anne Carron, Fabienne Baud, Emmanuel Deonna, Charlotte Meierhofer); Members of the Vaud Cantonal Council (Jean-Rémy Chevalley, Hadrien Buclin, Didier Lohri, Yannick Maury Fourth row (from left to right): Eliane Aubert; Members of the Neuchâtel Cantonal Council (Ammann Tschopp Christine, Richard Gigon, Blaise Fivaz, Blaise Courvoisier, and Brigitte Leitenberg)Members of the Fribourg Cantonal Council (Hubert Dafflon, Fritz Glauser Fifth row (from left to right): Bertrand Gaillard; Member of the Valais Cantonal Council (Maxime Moix), Members of the Jura Cantonal Council (Nicolas Girard, Jelica Aubry-Janketic, Sophie Guenot), and Member of the Ticino Cantonal Council (Maria Pia Ambrosetti)

The Persecution of Falun Gong is Unacceptable

Daniel Solmani, member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva

Daniel Sormanni, a member of the National Council from Geneva, said in his video of support, “Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are of vital importance. Twenty-six years of persecution is enough! I call on the Chinese government, the Chinese communist regime, to stop suppressing free people and those who believe in Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. Continuing this repression in China is completely unacceptable. This repression is too harsh and has even extended abroad, including to Switzerland and elsewhere.”

Falun Gong Practitioners are Defending the Values We Should Promote

Nicolas Wald, member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva

In his video of support, National Council member Nicolas Walder said, “The [CCP] has brutally persecuted Falun Gong practitioners for 26 years and has never stopped. They [Falun Gong practitioners] defend their own values, the values of kindness and tolerance, which are universal values and the values we should promote.

“I call on the Chinese Communist Party and the Beijing authorities to stop the repression. This cross-border repression of Falun Gong practitioners in Switzerland and other parts of the world is completely unacceptable and must stop. We must return to these universal values of respect for every individual.”

Defending the Basic Rights of Falun Gong Practitioners

Delphine Klopfenstein, member of the National Council from Geneva

Delphine Klopfenstein, another member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva, said in her video message, “We are facing persecution, discrimination, and torture. However, I choose to defend the basic rights of citizens, including the basic rights of Falun Gong practitioners. Freedom of belief is very important. Freedom of conscience is a universal right.”

Falun Gong Practitioners Should be Able to Continue Practicing Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance

Laurence Ferram-Lille, member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva

In her video message Laurence Fehlamn-Rielle, a member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva, said, “I stand in solidarity with Falun Gong practitioners who have suffered discrimination and persecution in China for 26 years. This persecution is sometimes reflected in our own country, because we know that these people, all those who suffer persecution in their own countries, deserve protection and must be able to continue practicing Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. I just still don't understand why they suffer so much persecution.”

We Support Falun Gong Practitioners and ask Them to Continue Opposing the Persecution

Vincent Mettel, member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva

Vincent Maitre, a member of the National Council, said in his video, “I want to assure all Falun Gong practitioners who have suffered unjust detention, arbitrary detention, and abuse: First, I express my deepest solidarity and support, and sincerely convey the most positive message to them. Second, I encourage them to muster up the courage to continue working for this just but difficult cause.”

Supporting Falun Gong Practitioners is My Responsibility

Christian Denderès, member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva

Christian Dandrès, a member of the Swiss National Council from Geneva, said in his video, “For 26 years, the Chinese [Communist Party] regime has continuously suppressed you practitioners, ignoring your dignity and basic rights. You have been persecuted for your beliefs.

“I am not affiliated with any religious or spiritual movement, but I feel it is my responsibility to support you and all those who are being persecuted in China.”

Respecting Human Rights and Religious Freedom

Léonore Porcher, member of the Swiss National Council from Vaud

Leonore Porchet, a member of the Swiss National Council from Vaud, wrote in her letter of support, “I would like to express my support and solidarity with Falun Gong practitioners, who are still suffering from brutal persecution by the Chinese government. I urge the Chinese government to respect human rights and religious freedom, and I ask the Swiss government to commit to ensuring that the Chinese government respects these basic rights of its citizens.”

Fully Supporting Falun Gong Practitioners’ Just and Non-violent Resistance to the Persecution

Ivan Pahud, member of the Swiss National Council from Vaud

Yvan Pahud, a member of the National Council for canton Vaud, said in a letter of support, “For 26 years, men and women in China and around the world have peacefully stood up to defend a fundamental right: the right of every person to freedom of belief, to practice their faith, and to live according to the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. Their approach to resisting the persecution is nonviolent and their cause is just. I fully support them.”

Responsibility to Demand an End to the Persecution

Philippe Nantmoed, a member of the Swiss National Council from Valais

Philippe Nantermod, a member of the Swiss National Council from Valais, said, “Respect for human dignity, freedom of belief, and the right to live without fear and persecution is at the core of our most fundamental values. These innate rights transcend human geography.”

In his letter of support, he wrote, “China’s persecution of Falun Gong demonstrates a particularly serious form of abuse of power: when a regime deems it legitimate to suppress, detain, or even eliminate those who think, believe, or pray differently from it. It can detain, torture, and forcibly harvest their organs.

“We cannot resist totalitarianism with silence, nor can we confront barbarity with indifference. We have a responsibility to demand that no one be imprisoned or executed for their spiritual beliefs.”

(To be continued)