Georgia House of Representatives Passes Resolution Condemning the Persecution of Falun Gong and Urging the US Government to Rescue Zhou Xuefei

On April 22, 2003 at 9 p.m., 164 State representatives of the Georgia House of Representatives unanimously passed House Resolution 624 condemning the Jiang regime's brutal persecution of Falun Gong and violation of basic human rights, and urged the US government to rescue Zhou Xuefei, who is detained in a Chinese forced labour camp.

Zhou Xuefei, the wife of Sam Lu of Smyrna, Georgia, has been detained and tortured in Guangdong Province Sanshui Women's Forced labour Camp for more than two years. The resolution was initiated by Wendell Willard, a Republican from District 40 and cosponsored by Mr. Calvin Smyre, Chairman of the Rules Committee and a Democratic from District 111. The resolution received wide support from both parties.

Reporters from Atlanta's CBS TV Station and Atlanta's major newspaper, the Atlanta Constitution, interviewed Falun Gong practitioners on the spot.

House Resolution 624

Urging the United States Department of State to seek the release of Xuefei Zhou, the wife of a Georgia resident, imprisoned by the Chinese government for the practise of Falun Gong; and for other purposes.

WHEREAS, on July 20, 1999, President Jiang Zemin of the People's Republic of China officially banned the practise of Falun Gong in China and initiated a brutal persecution campaign that has included the murder of hundreds of practitioners and the imprisonment and torture of tens of thousands during the past two years; and

WHEREAS, Falun Gong practitioners value Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and seek to incorporate these principles into their lives to improve their mind, body, and spirit; and

WHEREAS, United States citizens and permanent resident aliens have been subjected to arbitrary detention, imprisonment, and torture in the People's Republic of China and the U.S. Congress unanimously passed House Concurrent Resolution 188 urging the release of practitioners and calling for investigation by the United States government; and

WHEREAS, Xuefei Zhou, the wife of Sam Lu of Smyrna, Georgia, is among the detained practitioners and has been tortured in a Chinese labour camp for more than two years; and

WHEREAS, the brutal oppression of peaceful practitioners of Falun Gong is a blatant violation of human rights and appropriate action by the United States government is urged.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of this body urge the United States Department of State to seek the release of Xuefei Zhou, imprisoned by the Chinese government for the practise of Falun Gong and to appropriately address this blatant violation of human rights.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorised and directed to transmit appropriate copies of this resolution to the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives and each member of the Georgia congressional delegation and to the U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.