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University Admissions Policy Discriminates Against Falun Gong and Political Nonconformists

Test scores are not the only criteria for admission into Chinese universities and colleges. The applicant must pass a political background check to ensure that he or she has always followed the Party line. The political background check is particularly strict for military academies, law schools and law enforcement schools.  This policy is evident from the following government notices on political background checks. Falun Gong has been explicitly singled out, indicating ongoing systematic discrimination against members of the spiritual group and the extent to which the authorities treat its suppression as a high priority. Political background checks also include broader affiliations that are believed to indicate nonconformist political views such as religious beliefs, previous detentions in re-education through labor camps (an increasingly used punishment against petitioners), or family members sentenced for ‘Endangering State Security’ (vagule laws often used to imprison political dissidents).

Regulations on Political Qualifications Applicable to Military Academies Enrolling Regular High School Graduates and on the Military Recruiting of Regular College Graduates [1]

(The Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Public Security and the General Political Department of the People’s Liberation Army)

Joint Notice No. 1 [2001] May 31, 2001

To strengthen ideological and political construction among the officers of the armed forces and based on the Law of the People’s Republic of China on Officers in Active Service, Military Service Law of the People’s Republic of China and other relevant laws and regulations, now therefore the regulations on regulations on political qualifications applicable to military academies enrolling regular high school graduates and on the military recruiting of regular college graduates are prescribed as follows:

Love the Chinese Communist Party; love the socialist motherland; love the people; love the people’s army; support the Party’s line, principles and policies; comply with the Constitution and the laws; have a clean history, be politically reliable, upright, politically correct, and of good moral character; serve the people wholeheartedly; willing to be fully dedicated to national defense with the determination to defend the motherland and people to work in peace. No one shall be enrolled and accepted if found to fall into any of the following categories:

1. Those who are dissatisfied, in word or deed, with the Chinese Communist Party and the socialist system.

2. Those who have leaked the Party, State and military’s secrets; maintain close ties with immediate family members who fled abroad or joined in espionage and reactionary organizations in foreign countries, thus being politically suspicious.

3. Those who have organized or participated, inside and outside China, in organizations that endanger national security as well as triads (identified by local public security departments); have organized or supported unlawful assemblies, marches, demonstrations, sit-ins, hunger strikes, students’ strikes and other activities.

4. Those who have a prior history of imprisonment, criminal detention, control or being deprived of political rights; a prior history of re-education through labor in accordance with the law, or administrative detention; have been subject to criminal investigation, prosecution, or trials that have not closed, and crime suspects under investigation and surveillance; have been parties to litigation of civil and economic disputes yet to be resolved.

5. Those who have participated in "Falun Gong" or qigong organizations that the public security departments have identified as harmful to society; have immediate family members or other close relatives who practice Falun Gong or qigong organizations harmful to society and are core members or refuse to change and continue to adhere to the wrong position.

6. Those who have engaged in indecency, theft, robbery, fraud, gambling, smuggling, prostitution, drug addiction, production and distribution of pornographic materials and other illegal activities.

7. Those who believe in religions or have participated in the activities of religious organizations.

8. Those who have bad moral character, poor discipline and have been reprimanded for serious mistakes.

9. Those who wear tattoo designs, words, or points not due to ethnic customs and bear symbols of problematic political issues and criminal gangs.

10. Those who cannot correctly accept that their immediate family members, close relatives or other directly fostered persons were sentenced or disciplined.

11. Those whose background cannot be easily investigated due to various reasons.

It is a joint task of the military and local authorities to do well in investigating political qualifications when military academies enroll regular high school graduates and the armed forces recruit regular college graduates. We must strengthen the leadership. The military cognizant departments shall carry out well-organized implementation.  Local departments of education and public security should actively assist, cooperate closely within their duties, and check carefully to ensure the political quality of the enrollees and those accepted.

Public Announcement of Hainan on Admission Interviews for Military Academies, Public Security Schools, Schools of Riot Police and Judicial and Law Schools [2]

June 29, 2008, Examinations Bureau of Hainan Province

……

The interviewing institutions shall provide candidates who passed interviews with the “Form of Interviews, Physical Tests and Political Qualification of Public Security Higher Educational Institutions.” The candidates shall bring the forms to their high schools (graduates of priors years should go to their village or streets committee offices), local police station and city/county public security bureau for political background approval.  Candidates shall submit the completed form to the education section under the personnel division of the Political Department, the Provincial Public Security Bureau.

The political qualification process covers political behavior, obeying the law and the public morality of the candidates, their immediate family members and major social associations.

Candidates shall be politically disqualified if they committed one of the following:

Have received a criminal sentence, re-education through labor, juvenile disciplinary administration or punishment for disorderly social behavior in the past five years.

Are currently under criminal investigation and surveillance.

Have records of expulsion from school, the Communist Youth League, the Communist Party or have been written up in personnel files or more in the past three years.

Have practiced Falun Gong or other illegal organizations or groups of organized crimes.

Have a history of drug addiction.

Have immediate family members or close relatives that have received the death sentence or were sentenced for endangering State security or are serving terms for other crimes.

Have immediate family members or close relatives that are suspects currently under criminal investigation by the authorities or hard core members of Falun Gong and other illegal organizations who refuse to change their wrong positions; and other situations that are not appropriate for enrollment.

2009 Enrollment Charter for National Defense Students
Dalian Science and Industry University [3]

……

3. Admission criteria

(1) Support the party’s line, loyal to the motherland, love the military, willing to be dedicated to national defense, have not participated in any illegal social groups and organizations, have no connection with Falun Gong, meet the standards in the Regulations on Political Qualifications Applicable to Military Academies Enrolling Regular High School Graduates and Military Recruiting Regular College Graduates (Joint Notice No. 1 [2001]).

Lanzhou University: If You Want To Become a Military Officer [4]
……

4.  What are the admission criteria for candidates?

(1) Meet the standards in the Regulations on Political Qualifications Applicable to Military Academies Enrolling Regular High School Graduates and Military Recruiting Regular College Graduates, willing to be dedicated to national defense and will accept assigned posts upon graduation. The candidate, the guardian and the immediate family members have not participated in any illegal social organizations, particularly Falun Gong.

2009 Beijing Regulations on Admissions at Regular Higher Educational Institutions [5]
……

4. Anyone who falls into one of the following categories shall not be accepted:

a. Have opposed the basic principles of the Constitution or participated in cults [Editor’s Note: as the government has been extensively referring to Falun Gong as a “cult,” in the official’s language in China, “cult” has become synonymous with Falun Gong].

b. Have violated social order regulations, and been disciplined as a result, where the violations were of a serious and egregious nature.

2009 Heilongjiang Regulations on Admissions at Regular Higher Educational Institutions [6]
……

9. Anyone that falls into one of the following categories shall fail in the political and moral qualifications. 

a. Have opposed the basic principles of the Constitution or participated in cults.
b. Have violated social order regulations, and been disciplined as a result, where the violations were of a serious and egregious nature.
……

Endnotes:
[1] University of Science and Technology of China
http://hbjg.ustc.edu.cn/index.php?Aid=323
[2] Examinations Bureau of Hainan Province
http://ea.hainan.gov.cn/phtml/2008/06/30/1529.html
[3] Dalian University of Technology
http://recruit.dlut.edu.cn/Display.aspx?NewsID=259
[4] Lanzhou University
http://xpb.lzu.edu.cn/ReadNews.asp?NewsID=550
[5] Beijing Education Examination Authority
http://www.bjeea.cn/218425681439096832/20090402/37700.shtml
[6] Xinhua, May 20, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/edu/2009-05/20/content_11404791.htm