(Washington, D.C. — July 10, 2025) To mark the 10th anniversary of China’s “709 Crackdown,” ChinaAid and Shining Light Media co-hosted a symposium on Capitol Hill. More than 100 attendees participated, with dozens more registered but unable to attend. U.S. government officials, members of Congress, NGO leaders, scholars, and members of the Uyghur and Hong Kong communities gathered to discuss the devastating consequences of Xi Jinping’s assault on rule of law and religious freedom. Yet a clear message emerged from the event: there is still hope for China, and its transformation is unstoppable.
Speakers that were in attendance included:
- Congressman Chris Smith, Former Chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China
- Ambassador Nathan A. Sales, a distinguished fellow with the Atlantic Council and former U.S. Department of State Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights (acting)
- Maureen Ferguson, Commissioner of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom
- Tony Perkins, President of Family Research Council
- Professor Terence Halliday, a Research Professor Emeritus at the American Bar Foundation
- Dr. Sophie Richardson, Co-Executive Director of Chinese Human Rights Defenders
- Chen Guangcheng, a renowned human rights activist
- Director Piero Tozzi, Staff Director of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China
- Sophie Luo Shengchun, activist and wife of jailed Chinese human rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi
- Zubayra Shamseden, Outreach Director of Uyghur Human Rights Project
- Frances Hui (Xu Yingtin), Policy and Advocacy Coordinator of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation
The symposium was co-hosted by Dr. Bob Fu and Ms. Anna Wang.
The “709 Crackdown,” which began on July 9, 2015, marked a pivotal moment in China’s development trajectory. It symbolized the end of the reform and opening-up era and underscored the Chinese Communist Party’s inability to adapt or self-correct. The systematic repression of human rights lawyers and activists revealed the authoritarian nature of the CCP and its fundamental opposition to the rule of law.