[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 38 (Thursday, March 30, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1977-S1978]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO CARDINAL KUNG

 Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Cardinal Kung, who passed away on March 12 in Stamford, CT, at the age 
of 98. Cardinal Kung was a historic figure in the Roman Catholic Church 
and a symbol of strength and hope for all of us who care about 
religious freedom. In China, his native land, the Cardinal endured 
terrible persecution because of his unwillingness to surrender his 
religious beliefs. My state, Connecticut, had the great honor and 
privilege of welcoming him as a resident for the final years of his 
life.
  Born in Shanghai in 1901, and ordained a priest in 1930, Cardinal 
Kung's heroic story began soon after the Communists took power in 
China. In 1949, he became the Bishop of Shanghai and, in 1950, the 
Apostolic Administrator of Soochow and Nanking. Resisting the new 
regime's attempt to control the Catholic Church, he refused to join the 
government-sanctioned Catholic Patriotic Association, which cut ties to 
the Vatican. Instead, Cardinal Kung remained loyal to the Pope and led 
the devoutly Catholic Legion of Mary, which the Communists declared to 
be counter-revolutionary.
  After 5 years of tension, the Chinese Government in 1955 arrested 
Cardinal Kung and several hundred other people involved in the 
unofficial Catholic Church. Dragged into a stadium in Shanghai for a 
public confession, the Cardinal, with his hands tied behind his back, 
instead courageously shouted: ``long live Christ the King, long live 
the Pope.'' The security forces rushed him off the stage, and Cardinal 
Kung was held in detention for another 5 years. When he was finally 
brought to trial in 1960, the authorities convicted Cardinal Kung and 
sentenced him to life imprisonment for the so-called counter-
revolutionary activity of pursuing his Catholic faith.
  Cardinal Kung was a prisoner of conscience whose plight became known 
around the world. He suffered 30 years of isolating imprisonment, 
during which time he was denied visits from family and concerned 
representatives of the international community, and other forms of 
contact such as written correspondence. Despite this tortuous 
experience, he refused to renounce his beliefs or give in to his 
oppressors. In fact, when told that he could win his release by 
denouncing the Pope and cooperating with the government-sanctions 
Catholic Patriotic Association, he responded: ``I am a Roman Catholic 
Bishop. If I denounce the Holy Father, not only would I not be a 
Bishop, I would not even be a Catholic. You can cut off my head, but 
you can never take away my duties.'' The Vatican has recognized 
Cardinal Kung's extraordinary devotion and sacrifice to the Roman 
Catholic Church. In 1979, while he was still serving his life sentence, 
Pope John Paul II secretly elevated Kung to Cardinal, in pectore (in 
his heart), and the Pope announced this to the world in 1991.
  In 1985, after sustained pressure from his family, human rights 
organizations, and foreign governments, the Chinese Government moved 
Cardinal Kung to house arrest, and in 1987 finally released him, though 
they notably did not exonerate him. He soon traveled to the United 
States for medical treatment and lived with his nephew, Joseph Kung, in 
Connecticut. In 1998, the Chinese Government refused to renew Cardinal 
Kung's passport, effectively exiling him, and the Cardinal never 
returned to his country.
  Cardinal Kung's life demonstrates, I believe, the power of an 
individual's

[[Page S1978]]

faith and will to resist the repression of the state, and thus 
replenish the wellspring of human liberty for others. He refused to 
bend, to abandon his commitment to his Church, and his example inspired 
millions of his countrymen to hold firm in their beliefs and to their 
rights. When the Communists took power, there were an estimated 3 
million Roman Catholics in China. According to current Chinese 
government statistics, there are now 4 million persons registered with 
the official Catholic Church. However, according to China's unofficial 
Catholic Church, for whom Cardinal Kung was the greatest symbol, the 
number of underground Catholics has swelled to as many as 9-10 million.
  It is no secret that religious persecution in China, including of 
underground Catholics, continues. It is my hope that the spirit of 
Cardinal Kung will endure and continue to inspire others in China and 
around the world to follow his courageous example. And that one day 
there will be the complete religious freedom in China that Cardinal 
Kung lived, worked, and prayed for.

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