Photo : Representatives from Action Alliance to Redress 1219 present Sam Brownback, co-chair of the IRF Summit 2021, with two books on human rights, the rule of law, and religious freedom: Who Stole Their Youth and The Tai Ji Men Case in Taiwan: A Bitter Winter Anthology, both of which garnered praise at the IRF Summit.

 

 

July 24,2021

 

The 25-year-long human rights persecution of Tai Ji Men in Taiwan has recently received the attention and support of international human rights and religious freedom experts and organizations, and it was a key topic at this year’s International Religious Freedom (IRF) Summit, the world’s largest and most important religious freedom event, on July 13. 

 

The IRF Summit 2021 took place in Washington, D.C., USA. More than 4,300 advocates attended this religious freedom forum in person or online. And IRF’s partner, Action Alliance to Redress 1219, organized a side event, “A Matter of Justice: The Tai Ji Men Case,” in which many experts urged the Taiwanese government to resolve the Tai Ji Men case and protect everyone’s religious freedom.

 

On July 13, Pamela Chen, a representative of Action Alliance to Redress 1219, informed Summit Co-Chairs Sam Brownback and Katrina Lantos Swett that the freedom of faith of Tai Ji Men Shifu (grandmaster) and Dizi (similar to students) has been politically suppressed in Taiwan for 25 years, stating that the Supreme Court of Taiwan ruled in 2007 that Tai Ji Men was innocent of all charges and no taxation was levied. In 2020, the National Taxation Bureau and the Administrative Enforcement Agency unlawfully auctioned off the Tai Ji Men’s sacred places and brought them into state control, forcefully stealing individuals of their property, and so on.

 

Tai Ji Men Dizi residing in the United States are appealing to the world community for help, asking the Taiwanese government to correct its errors, restore the assets that belong to Tai Ji Men Shifu and Dizi, and preserve the people’s fundamental right to religious and political freedom.

 

Volunteers from Action Alliance to Redress 1219 also presented the two summit chairs with two new books on the Tai Ji Men case: Who Stole Their Youth, a searing account of the victims’ suffering, and The Tai Ji Men Case in Taiwan: A Bitter Winter Anthology, a collection of commentary from international experts.

 

Sam Brownback, former US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and co-chair of the IRF Summit 2021, also spoke at a side event organized by Action Alliance to Redress 1219 on July 15, emphasizing that religious freedom is a fundamental human right without which humanity cannot flourish. He emphasized that religious freedom should be protected for everyone, everywhere, and at all times. While religious groups may practice their beliefs in various ways, the purpose of government is to “safeguard a person’s freedom to select his or her own route to the future for his or her own soul.” 

 

Ambassador Brownback also lauded Professor Massimo Introvigne, the primary author of The Tai Ji Men Case in Taiwan: A Bitter Winter Anthology, and editor-in-chief of the renowned human rights journal Bitter Winter, stating that Professor Introvigne is an outstanding researcher with a talent for researching events, presenting them, and emphasizing their essential aspects.

 

Dr. Katrina Lantos Swett, President of the Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice and co-chair of the IRF Summit 2021, emphasized the importance of conscience, saying that the world is full of temptation and ugliness, but if people listen to their conscience at all times, it will tell them the difference between right and wrong. The Tai Ji Men case has a lot to do with conscience, exactly as Dr. Swett said. 

 

Many people were drawn to the booth of Action Alliance to Redress 1219 by the brightly colored costumes to learn about the Tai Ji Men Dizi who, under the leadership of their Shifu Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze, have continued to promote love, peace, and conscience around the world despite 25 years of endless persecution for human rights and religious freedom.

Photo : Sam Brownback, former US Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom and co-chair of the IRF Summit 2021, believes that religious freedom should be protected for everyone, everywhere, all the time.