Resolution calling for an end to the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners
WHEREAS, Falun Gong is a traditional, peaceful and nonviolent form of personal belief that includes exercise and meditation; and
WHEREAS, Falun Gong has tens of millions of adherents in China, the United States, and over 55 countries around the world; and
WHEREAS, with the goal of self-improvement, people who engage in Falun Gong practice meditative exercises while striving to live in accordance with the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance; and
WHEREAS, Falun Gong is considered to be a form of spiritual exercise that draws energy to the body in order to maintain health and a peaceful approach to life; and
WHEREAS, Since its introduction in China in 1992 by its founder, Li Hongzhi, Falun Gong has grown in popularity and is now followed by people of all social backgrounds, races, religions, and age groups; and
WHEREAS, ln July 1999, China's former president launched a campaign to eradicate Falun Gong, leading to the detention and torture of hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners because of their beliefs; and
WHEREAS, Some of the detained Falun Gong members have been inappropriately charged with political offenses, such as violations of China's vague "Official State Secrets" law, and under the new legislation Falun Gong adherents are chargeable with such offenses as murder, fraud, endangering national security for no reason other than their personal beliefs; and
WHERE AS, the number of organ transplant operations in China has increased by more than 500 percent within 5 years after 1999, directly corresponding with the launch of the campaign to eradicate Falun Gong and the increase in imprisonment; and
WHEREAS, this increase in organ transplants is not attributable to an overall public organ donation system or other publicly-recognized organ donation source. The People's Republic of China has not offered any explanation for the sudden increase in donor organs and short wait times of mere weeks for kidney and liver transplants; and
WHEREAS, as documented by the United States Department of State, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and various other governmental organizations, over 3700 Falun Gong practitioners have been persecuted to death, and many of their bodies were missing internal organs: and
WHEREAS, The United Nations Committee Against Torture has expressed concerns over the allegations of organ harvesting from Falun Gong members, and have called on the Republic of China to increase transparency in their organ transplant system; and
WHEREAS, The People's Republic of China neither acknowledges the organ harvesting from prisoners, nor expresses their commitment to terminate these practices; and
WHEREAS, This brutal crackdown and imprisonment of Falun Gong members is in direct violation of the fundamental human right to freedom of personal belief and practice; and
WHEREAS, the killing of religious prisoners for the purpose of selling their internal organs for transplant is an intolerable and abhorrent violation of the fundamental human right to life; and
WHEREAS, the Chinese Government has condoned the atrocities committed against Falun Gong members, we call on the federal government to do everything its power to help stop these actions and seek that the Government of the People's Republic of China immediately end the practice of organ harvesting from the Falun Gong adherents; now therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, The Mayor and members of the Chicago City Council, gathered together on this 20th day of July 2016 AD, do hereby support those who follow the peaceful practice of Falun Gong.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Falun Gong practitioners of Chicago as a token of our good wishes.
Willie B. Cochran
Alderman, 20th Ward