NGOs’ Appeal at Xi Jinping’s Visit to EU: Economics Shouldn’t Override Human Rights

April 30, 2019

Since Xi Jinping came to power, the human rights situation in China has significantly deteriorated; the persecution of religious practitioners, ethnic minorities, and dissidents is now comparable to that in the Cultural Revolution. The United States’ Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2018 stated that China is the country with the most serious human rights violations, and it also mentioned the systematic persecution suffered by Uyghurs, Falun Gong practitioners, and members of The Church of Almighty God (CAG) in China. Many Christians have been forced to flee the country because of the CCP’s brutal suppression and persecution of religious beliefs. However, the CCP employs political and diplomatic tactics as well as economic pressure in an effort to force democratic countries to return all Chinese Christian refugees to China where the persecution will continue. The CCP’s criminal acts of violating and trampling on human rights have drawn attention and condemnation from the international community. During Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Europe, some human rights organizations and persecuted groups organized protests calling on the governments of Western countries to focus on the human rights situation in China while conducting business dealings with the country.