Stamford, Connecticut, U.S.A. - The Cardinal Kung Foundation, an advocate of the underground Roman Catholic Church in China, reports the release by the Chinese authorityof the following two underground Roman Catholic clergies from jail by the Chinese authority.
"We welcome the above two releases. However, until the Chinese Government starts releasing large numbers of prisoners of conscience, and stops arresting any more dissidents, these two releases should not be prematurely and naively taken as an evidence that President Clinton's policy of constructive engagement is bearing fruit. Besides, to transfer Bishop Zeng from a labor detention center to house arrest can hardly be called a true release.
"We hope that the release of Bishop Zeng on the eve of President Clinton's visit is not merely a symbolic gesture to welcome the President of the United States. The Chinese Government must give Bishop Zeng complete freedom in his twilight years to practice and to carry out his religious duties without further interference from the government. In the meantime, we wish to remind the world that there are about 30 documented arrests of Catholic Clergies and probably thousands of other undocumented arrests of Catholic and non-Catholic religious believers. They too await their releases from jail. The world must not forget them." said Joseph Kung, the President of the Cardinal Kung Foundation.