[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 56 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 56

   Urging the appropriate representative of the United States to the 
 United Nations Commission on Human Rights to introduce at the annual 
   meeting of the Commission a resolution calling upon the People's 
   Republic of China to end its human rights violations in China and 
                     Tibet, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 26, 2001

   Mr. Lantos (for himself, Mr. Wolf, Ms. Pelosi, Mr.  Smith of New 
Jersey, Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Mr. Frank, Mr. Capuano, Mr. McGovern, 
and Ms.  Rivers) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
              to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
   Urging the appropriate representative of the United States to the 
 United Nations Commission on Human Rights to introduce at the annual 
   meeting of the Commission a resolution calling upon the People's 
   Republic of China to end its human rights violations in China and 
                     Tibet, and for other purposes.

Whereas the annual meeting of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in 
        Geneva, Switzerland, provides a forum for discussing human rights and 
        expressing international support for improved human rights performance;
Whereas, according to the Department of State and international human rights 
        organizations, the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        continues to commit widespread and well-documented human rights abuses 
        in China and Tibet;
Whereas the People's Republic of China has yet to demonstrate its willingness to 
        abide by internationally accepted norms of freedom of belief, 
        expression, and association by repealing or amending laws and decrees 
        that restrict those freedoms;
Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China continues to ban and 
        criminalize groups it labels as cults or heretical organizations;
Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China has repressed 
        unregistered religious congregations and spiritual movements, including 
        Falun Gong, and persists in persecuting persons on the basis of 
        unauthorized religious activities using such measures as harassment, 
        prolonged detention, physical abuse, incarceration, and closure or 
        destruction of places of worship;
Whereas authorities in the People's Republic of China have continued their 
        efforts to extinguish expressions of protest or criticism, have detained 
        scores of citizens associated with attempts to organize a peaceful 
        opposition, to expose corruption, to preserve their ethnic minority 
        identity, or to use the Internet for the free exchange of ideas, and 
        have sentenced many citizens so detained to harsh prison terms;
Whereas Chinese authorities continue to exert control over religious and 
        cultural institutions in Tibet, abusing human rights through instances 
        of torture, arbitrary arrest, and detention of Tibetans without public 
        trial for peacefully expressing their political or religious views;
Whereas bilateral human rights dialogues between several nations and the 
        People's Republic of China have yet to produce substantial adherence to 
        international norms; and
Whereas the People's Republic of China has signed the International Covenant on 
        Civil and Political Rights, but has yet to take the steps necessary to 
        make the treaty legally binding: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) at the 57th Session of the United Nations Human Rights 
        Commission in Geneva, Switzerland, the appropriate 
        representative of the United States should solicit 
        cosponsorship for a resolution calling upon the Government of 
        the People's Republic of China to end its human rights abuses 
        in China and Tibet, in compliance with its international 
        organizations; and
            (2) the United States Government should take the lead in 
        organizing multilateral support to obtain passage by the 
        Commission of such resolution.
                                 <all>