China firmly opposes U.S. smears on religious freedom: FM spokesperson

BEIJING, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- China firmly opposes the groundless accusations and smearing of China's religious freedom by the United States, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian said here Thursday, adding the Chinese government protects citizens' freedom of religious belief in accordance with the law.

Zhao made the remarks at a daily news briefing in response to a query on religious freedom in China. "Chinese people of all ethnic groups enjoy full freedom of religious belief," said Zhao.

According to Zhao, China has nearly 200 million religious believers, over 380,000 clerical personnel, some 5,500 religious organizations and more than 140,000 lawfully registered venues for religious activities.

Facts speak louder than words and a lie can never become truth, even if it's repeated a thousand times, Zhao stressed.

Noting that extreme views such as "Islamophobia" are rampant in the United States and have caused many tragedies, Zhao said that the U.S. side does not reflect on its own problems, but frequently uses religious issues to interfere in other countries' domestic affairs in disregard of the facts.

"The U.S. side should face up to its own problems, conduct its own affairs well, respect facts, discard prejudice and stop using religious issues to interfere with and smear other countries," he said.