[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 67 Referred in Senate (RFS)]

<DOC>
115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 67


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 10, 2017

      Received and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
      Urging the Government of the People's Republic of China to 
unconditionally release Liu Xiaobo, together with his wife Liu Xia, to 
 allow them to freely meet with friends, family, and counsel and seek 
                medical treatment wherever they desire.

Whereas Liu Xiaobo has inspired untold numbers of people in the People's 
        Republic of China and globally for his courageous stands for democracy, 
        the protection of human rights, and peaceful change in China;
Whereas, on December 9, 2008, a diverse group of more than 300 Chinese scholars, 
        writers, lawyers, and activists issued Charter 08, a manifesto calling 
        on the

              

 Chinese Communist Party to abandon authoritarian rule in favor of 
democracy, the guarantee of human rights, and the rule of law;

Whereas Liu Xiaobo was one of the original drafters of Charter 08 and was taken 
        into custody one day before the manifesto was released;
Whereas in December 2009, a Beijing court sentenced Liu Xiaobo to eleven years 
        in prison for ``inciting subversion of state power'', in part for his 
        role in Charter 08;
Whereas in recognition of Liu Xiaobo's long and non-violent struggle for 
        fundamental human rights in the People's Republic of China, he was 
        awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2010;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo's wife Liu Xia, has been held in extralegal home confinement 
        since October 2010, two weeks after her husband's Nobel Peace Prize 
        award was announced, and has reportedly suffered severe health problems 
        over the years which required hospitalization;
Whereas in May 2011, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention 
        issued opinions declaring that the Chinese Government's imprisonment of 
        Liu Xiaobo and the detention of Liu Xia both contravened the Universal 
        Declaration of Human Rights;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer in May 2017 and 
        granted permission to access medical treatment outside of prison and is 
        currently hospitalized in China;
Whereas, according to news and family reports, Liu Xiaobo's cancer has 
        metastasized and the Chinese Government has refused requests by his 
        family to transfer him to Beijing for medical treatment; and
Whereas Liu Xiaobo currently cannot freely meet with friends and family or seek 
        medical care outside of China: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) recognizes Liu Xiaobo for his decades of peaceful 
        struggle for basic human rights and democracy in the People's 
        Republic of China;
            (2) urges the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        to unconditionally release Liu Xiaobo, together with his wife 
        Liu Xia, to allow them to freely meet with friends, family, and 
        counsel and seek medical treatment wherever they desire; and
            (3) urges the Administration to seek humanitarian transfer 
        from the People's Republic of China for Liu Xiaobo, together 
        with his wife Liu Xia, so that he can seek medical treatment in 
        the United States or elsewhere overseas.

            Passed the House of Representatives June 29, 2017.

            Attest:

                                                 KAREN L. HAAS,

                                                                 Clerk.