[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 121 Engrossed in House (EH)]


                 In the House of Representatives, U.S.,

                                                         July 23, 2001.
Whereas on March 6, 2001, an explosion at the Fanglin elementary school in the 
        Jianxi province of the People's Republic of China's killed at least 42 
        people, including 37 children;
Whereas the children, all between the ages of 9 and 11, were being forced by 
        elementary school officials to manufacture fireworks when this tragedy 
        occurred;
Whereas the parents of the deceased children report that the mandatory labor, 
        which involved mounting fuses and detonators into large firecrackers, 
        had been a daily practice at the school for years;
Whereas this systematic exploitation of children in the elementary school was 
        not only known about but actually organized by individuals holding 
        official responsibilities with the local Chinese Government; and
Whereas Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji has taken the important step of 
        acknowledging these violations of internationally recognized labor 
        standards: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) expresses its sincerest condolences to the families of the 42 
        people killed in the March 6, 2001, explosion at the Fanglin elementary 
        school in the Jianxi province of the People's Republic of China, 
        including to the parents and families of the 37 young children who lost 
        their lives as a result of this dangerous and forced child labor; and
            (2) expresses its gratitude to the Chinese and international 
        journalists who reported the true cause of the explosion in response to 
        the Chinese Communist Party's original attempts to put forward an 
        ``authorized'', but false, version of the events.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.