Israel Branch of Amnesty International writes to the Israeli Foreign Minister: Help Rescue Xiong Wei

January 5 2003

To:
Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu
The Foreign Minister

We are writing to you on behalf of Mr. Zion Xiong, the Israeli citizen whose sister was arrested in China a year ago because of her association with the “Falun Gong” organization. We would like to verify what is known to us about the persecution going on in China against the members of the group, and ask you to try to help the Xiong family to contact the sister.

[...]

Since the beginning of the crackdown in April 2001, the local authorities in China extended their mission objectives and employed the same measures when dealing with suspects of conscience, including those who are members of organizations or groups that were declared as illegal.

The “Falun Gong” organization was established in the early 90’s. In essence, it is a system that combines physical relaxation techniques with a meditation method and spiritual practice. The organization won millions of believers in China and throughout the world, as well as in Israel. According to the standards of the international law, there is no just cause for the ban on the system. It seems that the gathering of millions of people in a single movement poses a threat to the stability of the regime. Since its ban, thousands of activists were arrested without trial and were sent to forced labor camps. It is worth noting that while serving the penalty at the forced labor camps, detainees in China are subjected to severe torture. In many cases, these tortures lead to loss of life. The “Amnesty International” organization has learnt of some 200 “Falun Gong” activists, half of which are women, that died in custody apparently due to torture.

Given the evidence we have presented to you, we believe that Wei Xiong is a prisoner of conscience who was arrested only [because she is a Falun Gong practitioner], and as it appears, has not received a fair trail. We are concerned for her well-being, and are afraid that she is subjected to severe torture that might claim her life. We sympathize with the pain of the family and with the great anxiety they are experiencing, as throughout the long period of her arrest her family has successfully contacted her only once. Wei Xiong is due to serve another half a year in the labor camp, where she is to undergo the so-called “re-education”.

We ask you to do whatever you can to find out the condition Wei Xiong is in and to verify that she is not subjected to torture and that she is treated fairly. We will continue with our efforts to claim the release of the prisoners of conscience wherever they might be. Nevertheless, we believe that the Israeli Foreign Ministry should intervene, so as to ease the suffering of the Israeli citizen Zion and his family.

Sincerely,
Yael Weisz-Rind, Manager
Amnesty International, Israeli Branch