(Clearwisdom.net) In the morning of September 27, Manitoba capital Winnipeg's city council unanimously passed a resolution to call on the Government of Canada to condemn the crime of harvesting organs from Falun Gong practitioners and other involuntary donors in China, request the provincial government to tighten the Manitoba laws against organ trafficking. For example, doctors should be required to report to their respective authorities any evidence that a patient has received an organ from a trafficked person abroad.
On July 26, city councilor Jenny Gerbasi raised a motion to address the organ harvesting atrocities happening in China. The motion was passed unanimously at the council on September 27. During the meeting, Ms. Gerbasi first elaborated on the background of the motion, several councilors then in succession gave speeches, requesting the council to pass the motion unanimously. The first councilor said that the motion was unexpected and yet he was willing process it as an exception because this issue was very important.
Several councilors stood up to thank Ms. Gerbasi for bring up this motion. One councilor commented that the council had discussed human rights issues twice: The first discussion was regarding establishment of a human rights monument in Winnipeg and such a discussion paved the way for this motion. Two practitioner representatives attended the meeting.
After the resolution was passed unanimously, Winnipeg City Council will send a letter of concern about the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners to its sister city of Chengdu.
The City of Burnaby and the City of Vernon passed a similar resolution on September 11 and August 30, respectively.
MOTION NO. 2
Reference: Executive Policy Committee
THE CITY OF WINNIPEG
Council Meeting of July 26, 2006
NOTICE OF MOTION
Moved by _______ (Councillor Gerbasi)
Seconded by _______ (Councillor Smith)
WHEREAS the City of Winnipeg has a sister city relationship with the City of Chengdu in China;
AND WHEREAS since July 1999, when China's former president launched the "eradication" campaign against Falun Gong, hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners have been detained and tortured for their beliefs;
AND WHEREAS Chinese Communist Party (CCP) authorities have reportedly expressed the desire to have the practice of Falun Gong completely wiped out before the 2008 Beijing Olympics;
AND WHEREAS an independent investigation, conducted by former MP the Honourable David Kilgour and human rights lawyer David Matas, concluded on July 6 that "there has been and continues today to be large scale organ seizures from unwilling Falun Gong practitioners.";
AND WHEREAS the Kilgour-Matas report stated, "the government of China and its agencies in numerous parts of the country ...since 1999 have put to death a large but unknown number of Falun Gong prisoners of conscience. Their vital organs, including hearts, kidneys, livers and corneas, were virtually simultaneously seized involuntarily for sale at high prices, sometimes to foreigners, who normally face long waits for voluntary donations of such organs in their home countries."
AND WHEREAS the number of organ transplants performed in China increased exponentially following the official crackdown on Falun Gong in 1999 with the report stating that about 41,500 organs transplanted in China in the last six years might have come from Falun Gong practitioners;
AND WHEREAS it is the responsibility of free and democratic nations to condemn the act of crimes against humanity and shameless disregard for human life wherever they occur;
AND WHEREAS it is also our responsibility as human beings to raise awareness necessary to stop horrific crimes against our fellow human beings no matter what the cost;
AND WHEREAS the City of Oshawa passed the following resolution in April of 2006: " That the City of Oshawa write to the Prime Minister urging the Canadian government to take actions to rescue the surviving Falun Gong practitioners who face danger of being killed at any time and protect the rights of those in China".
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT Winnipeg City Council send a letter of concern about the treatment of Falun Gong practitioners to our contacts in our Sister City of Chengdu, China;
AND BE IT FURTHEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT Winnipeg City Council call on the Government of Canada to condemn the crime of harvesting organs from Falun Gong practitioners and other involuntary donors in China;
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT the City of Winnipeg request the provincial government to tighten the Manitoba laws against organ trafficking and doctors should, for example, be required to report to their respective authorities any evidence that a patient has received an organ from a trafficked person abroad.
