Washington D.C., Oct 6, 2017 / 12:01 pm
The Trump administration should act to address "severe violations of religious freedom" in China, a bipartisan congressional commission said Thursday.
"Efforts to shutter and harass Protestant Christian 'house churches' and the demolition of renowned Tibetan Buddhist institutes of learning, Larung Gar and Yachen Gar, are particularly concerning developments," the committee chairmen said in an Oct. 5 letter to US President Donald Trump.
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) chairs the Congressional-Executive Commission on China. Rep. Christopher Smith (R-N.J.) co-chairs the commission, which includes senior-level officials of the executive branch, U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives. The commission issued its annual report on human rights issues in China on Thursday.
"Nothing good happens in the dark," Smith said in a statement on the report's release. "That is why the Administration should shine a light on the Chinese government's failures to abide by universal standards, shine a light on the cases of tortured and abused political prisoners, shine a light on China's unfair trade practices and still coercive population control policies."