The United States is taking action to prevent human-rights abusers from entering the country.
Last Friday, the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom, Sam Brownback, slammed the Chinese Communist Party’s grave violation of religious freedom, and its continuous intensification of repression and control. “The Chinese Communist Party will fail in their efforts that they’re doing today to control religions throughout China,” he said.
According to a news release on May 31 by Minghui.org, the State Department is increasing its scrutiny of visa applications which may result in more visa-denials for human rights violators, including perpetrators involved in religious persecution.
The release also said a State Department official advised Falun Gong practitioners in the U.S. that they could submit a list of Chinese officials known to be involved in the persecution—a move that has been applauded by human rights activists.
Former U.S. Congressman Frank Wolf said of the move: “What the administration’s done is very, very positive. No one connected to that activity ought be ever allowed to come into the United States.”
“I think that’s very, very important, and we have to get other countries to join in. We have to get Canada, we have to get the European countries, we have to get Australia and other countries to join in, to have targeted sanctions against Chinese officials who are guilty of gross human rights violations,” Carl Gershman, President of the National Endowment for Democracy said.
Executive Director of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation Marion Smith said, “It’s important that the United States use whatever diplomatic or policy tool that we have to show that we have a commitment to human rights in China.”
On June 24, Vice President Pence plans to give another important speech on U.S.-China relations on behalf of the Trump administration, which will reportedly focus on the Chinese Communist Party’s poor record on human rights and religious freedom.
“And I compliment the President about aggressively dealing with China when so many before him were not willing to aggressively deal with the situation,” Brownback said. “It’s difficult, it’s hard, but he’s been aggressively addressing this problem.”
