[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2777 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2777

   To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, in 
 recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to democracy, 
               human rights, and peaceful change in Cuba.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 13, 2008

  Mr. Martinez (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. 
Ensign, and Mr. Coleman) introduced the following bill; which was read 
  twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To award a Congressional Gold Medal to Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, in 
 recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to democracy, 
               human rights, and peaceful change in Cuba.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet was born on July 20, 1961, in 
        Havana, Cuba;
            (2) Dr. Biscet is married to fellow democracy advocate, 
        Elsa Morejon Hernandez, and he has 2 children;
            (3) Dr. Biscet is currently serving a 25-year prison 
        sentence for allegedly committing crimes against the 
        sovereignty of the Cuban regime;
            (4) in 1997, Dr. Biscet founded the Lawton Foundation for 
        Human Rights, one of the first independent civic groups in 
        Havana, which promotes the study, defense, and denunciation of 
        human rights violations inside Cuba and wherever the rights and 
        liberties of human beings are disregarded;
            (5) as a physician, Dr. Biscet denounced the double-
        standards and systematic repression of the Cuban National 
        Health Care System, and as a result he was forbidden from 
        practicing medicine;
            (6) on February 27, 1999, Dr. Biscet was imprisoned for 3 
        years, after hanging the national flag sideways at a press 
        conference;
            (7) although Cuban independence and democracy advocates 
        have always used this statement as a sign of civil 
        disobedience, the regime nonetheless accused Dr. Biscet of 
        insulting the nation's symbols, public disorder, and inciting 
        criminal activity;
            (8) once released in 2002, and unable to practice medicine, 
        Dr. Biscet engaged in organizing seminars on the Universal 
        Declaration of Human Rights;
            (9) on December 6, 2002, on his way to one such meeting, he 
        and several of the seminar's participants were beaten and 
        arrested;
            (10) on April 7, 2003, Dr. Biscet was sentenced to 25 years 
        in prison and sent to a special state security prison, Kilo 
        Cinco y Medio in Pinar Del Rio province;
            (11) Dr. Biscet has declared himself a ``plantado'', a 
        political prisoner who refuses to undertake ideological 
        ``reeducation'' or wear a common prisoner's uniform and 
        therefor remains in Cuba's political gulag.
            (12) on November 5, 2007, President Bush recognized Dr. 
        Biscet and presented him (in absentia) with the Presidential 
        Medal of Freedom, stating that ``Dr. Biscet is a champion in 
        the fight against tyranny and oppression. Despite being 
        persecuted and imprisoned for his beliefs, he continues to 
        advocate for a free Cuba in which the rights of all people are 
        respected.''; and
            (13) Dr. Biscet is a follower of the Dalai Lama, Ghandhi, 
        and Martin Luther King, and continues to fight every day to 
        bring democracy and justice to Cuba.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.

    (a) Presentation Authorized.--The President Pro Tempore of the 
Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall make 
appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of the 
Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design, to Dr. Oscar Elias 
Biscet in recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to 
democracy, human rights, and peaceful change in Cuba.
    (b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation referred 
to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in 
this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a gold medal with suitable 
emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.

SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.

    The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 
medal struck pursuant to section 2, under such regulations as the 
Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost 
thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and 
overhead expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.

SEC. 4. STATUS OF MEDALS.

    (a) National Medals.--The medals struck pursuant to this Act are 
national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States 
Code.
    (b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of 
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be 
considered to be numismatic items.

SEC. 5. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.

    (a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to be 
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprises Fund such 
amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck 
pursuant to this Act.
    (b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate 
bronze medals authorized under section 3 shall be deposited into the 
United States Mint Public Enterprises Fund.
                                 <all>