[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 223 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 223

Honoring the life and legacy of Liu Xiaobo for his steadfast commitment 
 to the protection of human rights, political freedoms, free markets, 
democratic elections, government accountability, and peaceful change in 
                    the People's Republic of China.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 19, 2017

 Mr. Cruz (for himself, Mrs. Feinstein, and Mr. Gardner) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Honoring the life and legacy of Liu Xiaobo for his steadfast commitment 
 to the protection of human rights, political freedoms, free markets, 
democratic elections, government accountability, and peaceful change in 
                    the People's Republic of China.

Whereas Liu Xiaobo was born on December 28, 1955, in Changchun, People's 
        Republic of China;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo received his bachelor's degree in literature from Jilin 
        University in 1982, his master's degree at Beijing Normal University in 
        1984, and his doctorate degree in 1988 in literature, after publishing 
        several best-selling books over the course of pursuing his doctorate 
        degree;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo began his work as a visiting lecturer at universities across 
        the world, including Columbia University in New York, New York;
Whereas over the tenure of his career, Liu Xiaobo authored 18 major 
        publications;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo was active in the Tiananmen Square protests, where he 
        initiated the Tiananmen Four Gentlemen Hunger Strike, which lasted 3 
        days;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo has been credited for saving many students' lives by helping 
        to negotiate their evacuation from Tiananmen Square;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo was detained and jailed in 1989 through 1991 for his role in 
        the protests, and then jailed again in 1996 through 1999 for advocating 
        that the Government of the People's Republic of China redress its 
        wrongdoings in the student protest;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo married Liu Xia in 1996, who has stood bravely by his side as 
        a partner and fellow activist;
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 Communist Party of China 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 just days before the manifesto was released;
Whereas in December 2009, a court in Beijing sentenced Liu Xiaobo to 11 years in 
        prison for ``inciting subversion of state power'' for his involvement in 
        drafting Charter 08;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on October 8, 2010, ``for 
        his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in 
        China'';
Whereas Liu Xiaobo's wife, Liu Xia, has been held in extra-legal home 
        confinement since October 2010, 2 weeks after her husband's Nobel Peace 
        Prize award was announced, and has reportedly suffered severe health 
        problems over the years that required hospitalization;
Whereas in May 2011, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention 
        issued opinions declaring that the imprisonment of Liu Xiaobo and the 
        detention of Liu Xia by the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        contravened the Universal Declaration of Human Rights;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo has also received more than a dozen awards and honors from 
        several international groups for his work as a defender of the press, an 
        outstanding democratic activist, and a defender of human rights;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer in May 2017;
Whereas Liu Xiaobo died on July 13, 2017, while serving his 11-year prison 
        sentence; and
Whereas Liu Xiaobo dedicated his life to human rights, not only in his own 
        country, but across the globe: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) recognizes the life and accomplishments of Liu Xiaobo; 
        and
            (2) calls for the Government of the People's Republic of 
        China to release Liu Xiaobo's wife, Liu Xia, from house arrest, 
        and allow her to settle in a place or country of her own 
        choosing.
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