Germany’s New Chancellor: Germany will continue to pay attention to China’s human rights violations including Falun Gong issue

Prior to Chinese President Hu Jintao’s state visit to Germany, a Falun Gong practitioner in Germany’s Ruhr district sent a petition to Ms. Angela Merkel, who will be sworn in as chancellor today, in which she detailed the torture she underwent at a female forced labour camp in Beijing from September 2001 to January 2003. In addition to the corporal abuse such as brutal beating, long hours of standing, deprivation of sleep, etc., she also mentioned the physical and spiritual trauma she has suffered in the wake of being forced to view videos slandering Falun Gong and doing long hours of slave labour.

On November the 8th, Mr. Lackamp, Head of human rights Affairs of the Christian Democratic Union, sent a letter to the practitioner on behalf of Ms. Merkel, to the effect that she was regretful to learn that Falun Gong practitioners are still persecuted in China. The letter also indicated that the Christian Democratic Union has raised the issues concerning the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners many times in Germany’s Parliamentary sessions and various levels of the Sino-German dialogue. In the letter, she also assured the practitioner that the Union will continue to pay attention to China’s human right problems including Falun Gong issues in the future.