My name is Yang Sen, an electrical engineer in Chicago. In mid-November 2004, I went to the Chinese Consulate in Chicago to submit my application to renew my passport. A week later, I went back to the consulate to pick up my passport. A consul by the surname Zhou called me into his office and told me, “Mr. Yang, we have discussed your application and based on your current situation, we cannot renew your passport. We will call you when we can renew it.” I specifically asked him, “What is the main reason why my passport can’t be renewed?” Consul Zhou replied, “There’s no reason.” I then said, “Please renew my passport if you don’t have any reason not to.” Zhou, however, repeatedly told me, “Based on your current situation, we can’t renew your passport.” I asked him, “What situation?” Zhou refused to explain himself, so I then asked him, “Is it because I practice Falun Gong.” Zhou then showed a baffled expression, indicating it was a decision from higher authorities and the consulate had to carry out the order.

This reminded me of what the Chinese Consulate told my friends, Xu Zhiwei and Zhu Jiang, who also practice Falun Gong when they refused to renew their passports. The consulate alleged that my friends had “jeopardized China’s honor and state security” and so their passports couldn’t be renewed. Then when it came to my turn, why was I only told “No Reason”?