China urged the US on Monday to stop using "so-called religious issues" to meddle in its internal affairs, rejecting a report released by Washington last week on religious freedom. People of all ethnic groups in China are fully entitled to the freedom of religious belief as prescribed by law," Mao added. In China, she said, there are close to 200 million religious believers, over 380,000 clerical personnel, about 5,500 religious groups and over 140,000 places registered for religious activities. "Religious discrimination and persecution is commonplace and religious freedom is severely eroded. "We urge the US to respect the facts, correct its wrongdoings, and stop using so-called religious issues to meddle in China’s internal affairs," she added.
