Religious Freedom Violations ‘Particularly Severe’ in China, US Report Says

0:00Religious Freedom Violations, particularly severe in China, US reports as Washington. China's communist regime has continued to engage in particularly severe violations of religious freedom in 2025, targeting people in China and abroad. A US religious freedom watchdog said in its annual report released on March 5th. Religious figures and followers who refuse to submit to the Chinese regime's intrusive system of control are subjected to harassment, fines, detention, political reeducation, forced labor, imprisonment, enforced disappearance, torture, and other abuse. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom and Independent Federal Commission states in the report. The Chinese Communist Party deepened its crackdown on all religious activities that dared to operate outside of its tight-fisted control. Asif Mahmoud, Vice Chair of the Commission, said at the roll-out event for the report.

1:00Maureen Ferguson, a Usherf Commissioner, said the suppression in China is across the board and systematic. The situation in China is particularly egregious because they are persecuting every faith community, from the Uighur Muslims to Fallen Gong to the Tibetan Movement to the underground Catholic Church to the Christian House Churches. Ferguson told the epic times. Usherf also drew attention to Beijing's massive crackdown on Protestant Christian House Churches, citing the jailing of dozens of religious leaders such as the Zion Church founder Ezra Jean. The Chinese Communist Party is engaging in transnational repression outside of China, the report states, using high-tech and emerging technologies to silence religious and ethnic minorities. One example in the report was the arrest of a Chinese national in Australia in August last year, for allegedly spying on a Canberra-based Buddhist group on behalf of the CCP's Public Security Bureau. Last February, Thailand, under Chinese pressure, deported dozens of Uighur Muslims to China

2:04despite international leaders speaking out against it. In the United States, former New York City police Sergeant Michael McMahon was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April last year for acting as an illegal agent of Beijing. He was one of three men convicted in 2023 of stocking a former Chinese official and his family in New Jersey as part of the CCP's expatriation campaign, called Operation Fox Hunt. The Usherf report urges the Department of Justice to prioritize investigating and prosecuting the Chinese regime's transnational repression against religious minorities and activists. It also called for Congress to pass legislation to assist those fleeing religious persecution in China. A call for greater attention. Representative Brad Sherman, who serves on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, attended the report's rollout event, saying that there is nothing more important to American values than freedom of religion. The Usherf report comes just weeks before President Donald

3:07Trump's trip to China from March 31 to April 2, during which he is scheduled to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Speaking to the epic times, Sherman said that U.S. engagement abroad should reflect American values. I would want a president who recognizes that the values of the country need to be expressed in our foreign policy," Sherman said. There are so many religious groups in China, from the Catholic Church to Fallen Gong to so many others that are being oppressed by that government. I hope very much that Trump brings that to the world's attention. The Usherf report notes that several elderly people died during their imprisonment in 2025, and an 87-year old began serving a 3.5-year sentence in August last year. Mingui.org, a U.S.-based website that tracks the persecution of Fallen Gong in China, identified the 87-year-old as Zhao Yanggu, retired factory worker from the Northern Chinese capital city of Harbin. Zhao's wife, Li Shuumi, also a Fallen Gong practitioner, died at the age of 77 in May 2019

4:14as a result of persecution, according to the website. They are not the only elders targeted for their faith. According to Mingui, Murnching Jia, 72, was sentenced to eight years in prison in 2025 over practicing Fallen Gong. Prior to her latest sentencing, she had been in jail for nine years. Additionally, Mingui reported on the torture of 90-year old Liu Shuishan, also a Fallen Gong practitioner, including being forced to sit on a small stool for extended periods and facing restricted access to food and restroom facilities. The CCP's persecution of Fallen Gong is well-documented, Sherman said. Ferguson at the event highlighted the unjust attention of 78-year-old Jimmy Li, a Catholic and critic of Beijing, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison last month in a Hong Kong national security case. She said that sentencing an elderly person like Zhao and Li is, in effect, a life sentence. It's a sentence to die in prison. Ferguson told the

5:16epic times. It just shows how the CCP is just determined to exert complete control over religion and severely repress anyone who tries to speak out. Fallen Gong, also known as Fallen Dafa, is a spiritual practice based on the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and forbearance. The CCP saw its popularity as a threat to its control and launched a campaign against the practice in 1999. The ongoing persecution has resulted in millions of practitioners being detained or tortured, with thousands dying of abuse while in custody, according to the Fallen Dafa Information Center. Ferguson said the International Religious Freedom Act requires the United States to prioritize freedom in its foreign policy. A principle she hopes will shape discussions during Trump's trip. We hope the president and his team, inside meetings, will raise the cases of these prisoners of conscience, she said. Transnational repression The Chinese regime's campaign against Fallen Gong has extended beyond its borders. Since January,

6:21six world leaders have been targeted by bomb and death threats in a CCP-linked campaign aimed at stopping Shinyun performing arts shows in their countries. Shinyun, headquartered in New York, was founded by practitioners of Fallen Gong. Its performances showcase classical Chinese dance and music under the slogan China Before Communism, and highlight the ongoing human rights abuses in China. Stephen Schneck, a Usherf commissioner, told the epic times that the commission is watching closely Beijing's transnational repression against Fallen Gong and Shinyun. They're tracking Fallen Gong practitioners in countries around the world, and it's very concerning, Shneck said, adding that the threats of violence are tremendously serious and illegal. The entire world is watching China on issues like this, he said. A head of President Trump's visit to China, we're going to very strongly encourage our government to stand up and to speak out for religious freedom around the world, and, among other things,

7:23to address this problem of transnational repression. Authorities in Switzerland, Turkey, and Australia have uncovered alleged Chinese spying targeting Uyghur to Beten and Buddhist communities, according to the Usherf report. On a trip to Finland in 2025, former Hong Kong leader Liang Chenning, who is now Vice Chairman of China's top political advisory body, threatened a group of local Fallen Gong practitioners at a tourist site, saying that he could investigate them once he had their names. The Usherf report called on the United States to coordinate with international partners to impose sanctions on Chinese agencies, entities, and officials responsible for religious freedom violations. We already have many sanctions in place. In regards to China, I would encourage the extension of those sanctions in regards to religious freedom as broadly as the United States government can do, Shnek said. Sherry Dong contributed to this report.