China rejects US allegations of violation of religious freedom

China on Thursday slammed the US for designating it along with Pakistan and others as ‘countries of particular concern’ for the violation of religious freedom and accused Washington of frequently using religious issues to interfere in the internal affairs of other nations.

The US on Wednesday designated several nations, including China, Pakistan, Iran, North Korea and Myanmar, as “countries of particular concern for having engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.”

China firmly opposes groundless accusations as it smears the country’s religious freedom, Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told the media here. When asked about the US charge, Zhao said, “Chinese Government protects citizens’ religious freedom in accordance with the law”.

He said China has nearly 200 million religious believers, over 3.80 lakh clerical personnel, 5500 religious groups and 1.40 lakh places of worship for religious activities. “People in China enjoy full freedom of religious belief. Facts speak louder than words and a lie repeated a thousand times is still a lie,” he said.

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken asserted that the United States will not waiver in its commitment to advocate for freedom of religion or

belief for all and in every country and said the challenges to religious freedom in the world today are structural, systemic, and deeply entrenched.