[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 643 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 643
Calling for greater dialogue between the Dalai Lama and the Government
of China regarding rights for the people of Tibet, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 1, 2008
Mr. Smith (for himself and Mr. Feingold) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
September 17, 2008
Committee discharged; considered and agreed to with an amended preamble
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Calling for greater dialogue between the Dalai Lama and the Government
of China regarding rights for the people of Tibet, and for other
purposes.
Whereas, on April 25, 2008, China's official news agency Xinhua expressed the
willingness of the Government of China to meet with envoys of the Dalai
Lama;
Whereas, on May 4, 2008, Special Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama Lodi Gyari
and Envoy Kelsang Gyaltsen met with Chinese Executive Vice Minister Zhu
Weiqun and Executive Vice Minister Sithar for one day of talks, in which
the Government of China alleged that the Dalai Lama instigated the March
2008 unrest in autonomous Tibetan areas of China, and was sabotaging the
Olympic Games;
Whereas Hu Jintao, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, released a
statement after this meeting saying that his Government of China was
committed to a ``serious'' dialogue with the Dalai Lama;
Whereas, at the United States-European Union (EU) Summit on June 10, 2008, the
United States and the European Union issued a joint statement welcoming
the decision by the Government of China to hold talks with
representatives of the Dalai Lama, and urged ``both parties to move
forward with a substantive, constructive and results-oriented dialogue
at an early date'';
Whereas the Envoys of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's Kelsang Gyaltsen and Lodi
Gyari visited Beijing from June 30 to July 3, 2008, to conduct the
seventh round of the Tibetan-Chinese dialogue;
Whereas, during these talks, the Government of China issued a new set of
demands, including that the Dalai Lama prove that he does not support
Tibetan independence or disruption of the Olympic Games in Beijing;
Whereas the Dalai Lama has stated multiple times he does not favor the
independence of Tibet and is instead seeking negotiations to address the
legitimate grievances of, and provide genuine autonomy for, the Tibetan
people within the People's Republic of China, and is committed to non-
violence;
Whereas the Dalai Lama has repeatedly and publicly declared his support for the
Olympic Games in China, as well as his intention to attend the opening
ceremony, if invited;
Whereas, at the conclusion of the July round of talks, officials of the
Government of China did not accept a proposal by the representatives of
the Dalai Lama to agree to a joint statement supporting a continuation
of the dialogue process;
Whereas Special Envoy Lodi Gyari said on July 5, 2008, that the talks with the
Government of China, called for by the international community, were
``disappointing and difficult'';
Whereas, in contrast to the opinion of Special Envoy Lodi Gyari, President
George W. Bush said on July 6, 2008, that ``it looks like there's some
progress, at least in the talks with the Dalai Lama'';
Whereas officials of the Government of China subsequently stated that the talks
with the Dalai Lama's envoys are only about the Dalai Lama's personal
future, rather than about the future of Tibet;
Whereas the Office of the Dalai Lama on July 17, 2008, restated its position
that the talks are about ``the future of 6,000,000 Tibetans in Tibet and
not His Holiness the Dalai Lama'';
Whereas, on July 11, 2008, the European Parliament adopted a resolution that
``welcomes the resumption of contacts, after the events of March 2008 in
Lhasa, between the representatives of the Dalai Lama and the Chinese
authorities'' and ``encourages the two parties to intensify these
contacts so as to establish the bases for mutual trust, without which it
will be impossible to arrive at a mutually acceptable political
solution''; and
Whereas China's People's Armed Police troops have been sent to monasteries in
Tibetan areas to give monks ``relevant information'' about the Olympics,
and Chinese authorities have stepped up ``patriotic education''
campaigns designed to conform the religious practices of Tibetan
Buddhists to Communist Party rules, including forcing monks and nuns to
denounce the Dalai Lama: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) urges the Dalai Lama or his representatives and the
Government of the People's Republic of China to begin earnest
negotiations, without preconditions, to provide for a mutually
agreeable solution that addresses the legitimate grievances of,
and provides genuine autonomy for, the Tibetan people;
(2) urges that the talks in October 2008 between the
Government of China and the Dalai Lama should focus on the
welfare, cultural, political, and religious autonomy of the
Tibetan people, and not on the person of the Dalai Lama;
(3) affirms that the human rights of Tibetans and their
right to practice religion free of government regulation is not
an internal matter of any one country;
(4) urges the President to take a more personal and engaged
interest in the successful conclusion of these negotiations,
both unilaterally and in coordination with United States
allies; and
(5) calls on the United States Government to press the
Government of China--
(A) to respect freedom of speech and freedom of
association, as required by international law and as
enshrined in the Constitution of China and to release
those who have committed no crime other than peaceful
protest; and
(B) to end the ``patriotic education'' campaign
against lay and clerical Tibetans and allow Tibetans to
practice their religion freely.
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