JIANG: CHINA HAS FREEDOM OF RELIGION
by Glen on 2002-03-06 00:05:51
The Associated Press reports:
Chinese President Jiang Zemin insisted Thursday that his people are free to worship as they choose, and said Roman Catholic bishops detained there must have broken the law.
Jiang was asked twice at a news conference with Bush about allegations of religious repression there, and about the detention and surveillance of the bishops.
He initially declined twice to discuss the matter. But he returned to it at the end of the session with reporters.
“Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China, all our constitutions, various versions, have provided for the freedom of religious belief,” Jiang said.