[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 117 Introduced in House (IH)]







104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 117

 Concerning writer, political philosopher, human rights advocate, and 
                Nobel Peace Prize nominee Wei Jingsheng.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            December 5, 1995

  Mr. Smith  of New Jersey (for himself, Mr. Gilman, Ms. Pelosi, Mr. 
 Wolf, Mr. Solomon, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Cox of California, Mr. Berman, Mr. 
  Rohrabacher, and Mr. Gejdenson) submitted the following concurrent 
   resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Concerning writer, political philosopher, human rights advocate, and 
                Nobel Peace Prize nominee Wei Jingsheng.

Whereas Wei Jingsheng is a writer, political philosopher, and human rights 
        advocate who is widely known and respected in China and throughout the 
        world;
Whereas on November 21, 1995, the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        announced the arrest of Wei Jingsheng and its intention to try him for 
        ``attempt[ing] to overthrow the government'';
Whereas prior to this announcement Wei had been detained since April 1994 
        without formal charges or the opportunity to communicate with his family 
        or with legal counsel, in violation of Article 9 of the Universal 
        Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards 
        prohibiting arbitrary arrest and detention;
Whereas the government had previously imprisoned Wei from 1979 until 1993 on a 
        charge of ``spreading counterrevolutionary propaganda'' for his peaceful 
        participation in the Democracy Wall movement;
Whereas Wei's analysis of democracy in 1979 as a necessary ``fifth 
        modernization'' was an important theoretical and practical contribution 
        to the movement for freedom and democracy in China and also to modern 
        political philosophy;
Whereas during his long imprisonment Wei was subjected to torture and other ill 
        treatment which left him in extremely poor health;
Whereas after his release in 1993 Wei devoted his time to humanitarian 
        activities, including visiting and assisting the families of victims of 
        the June 4, 1989, massacre at Tiananmen Square, as well as the surviving 
        victims themselves, and assisting the civilian effort to secure 
        compensation for damages caused to the Chinese people by the Japanese 
        Government during World War II;
Whereas, far from advocating an ``overthrow'' of the Government of China, Wei 
        has been a strong advocate of nonviolence and a peaceful transition to 
        democracy;
Whereas Wei was regarded as a leading contender for the 1995 Nobel Peace Prize, 
        having been nominated by parliamentarians throughout the world, 
        including 58 members of the United States Congress, and endorsed by 
        hundreds of prominent human rights advocates including past Nobel 
        Laureates Oscar Arias Sanchez, Elie Wiesel, and His Holiness the Dalai 
        Lama;
Whereas Wei was also the recipient of the 1995 Olaf Palme Foundation Award, the 
        1994 Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Award, and the 1993 Gleitsman 
        Foundation International Activist Award; and
Whereas because of his great courage, the force of his ideas, and his long 
        unjust imprisonment Wei has come to embody the aspirations of the people 
        of China for democracy and for the enjoyment of free speech and other 
        universal and inalienable human rights, and his fate has come to 
        symbolize their fate: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That the United States Congress--
            (1) urges the immediate and unconditional release of Wei 
        Jingsheng and the dismissal of all charges against him;
            (2) urges, in the event Wei Jingsheng is not immediately 
        released, that he be afforded all internationally recognized 
        human rights, including the right to consult freely with 
        counsel of his choice, to assist in the preparation of his 
        defense, and to communicate with his family, and that his trial 
        be open to the domestic and foreign press, to diplomatic 
        observers, and to international human rights monitors;
            (3) urges the United States Department of State to make the 
        release of Wei Jingsheng and the protection of his 
        internationally recognized human rights among its primary 
        objectives in relations with the Government of China, and that 
        it raise these issues forcefully and effectively in every 
        available bilateral and multilateral forum; and
            (4) recommends that Wei Jingsheng once again be nominated 
        and carefully considered for the Nobel Peace Price in 1996.
                                 <all>