[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 138 Reported in Senate (RS)]
<DOC>
Calendar No. 367
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 138
To amend the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 to modify certain provisions of
that Act.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 30, 2023
Mr. Merkley (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Cardin, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr.
Braun, Mr. Coons, Mr. Romney, Ms. Smith, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Risch, Mr.
Crapo, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Butler, and Mr. Welch) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Foreign Relations
May 7, 2024
Reported by Mr. Cardin, with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 to modify certain provisions of
that Act.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Promoting a Resolution to
the Tibet-China Conflict Act''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 2. FINDINGS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Congress finds the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) It has been the long-standing policy of the
United States to encourage meaningful and direct dialogue
between People's Republic of China authorities and the Dalai
Lama or his representatives, without preconditions, to seek a
settlement that resolves differences.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) Ten rounds of dialogue held between 2002 and
2010 between the People's Republic of China authorities and the
14th Dalai Lama's representatives failed to produce a
settlement that resolved differences, and the two sides have
not met since January 2010.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) An obstacle to further dialogue is that the
Government of the People's Republic of China continues to
impose conditions on His Holiness the Dalai Lama for a
resumption of dialogue, including a demand that he say that
Tibet has been part of China since ancient times, which the
Dalai Lama has refused to do because it is false.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) United States Government statements that the
United States considers Tibet a part of the People's Republic
of China have reflected the reality on the ground that the
Government of the People's Republic of China has exerted
effective control over Tibet.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) The United States Government has never taken
the position that Tibet was a part of China since ancient times
or that the means by which the Government of the People's
Republic of China came to exert effective control over Tibet
was consistent with international law or included the free or
meaningful consent of the Tibetan people.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) United States Government documents dated
January 9, 1919, June 1, 1944, June 17, 1949, April 4, 1951,
December 3, 1951, March 23, 1961, and February 14, 1963, listed
Tibet as an entity separate and distinct from China.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (7) Article 1 of the International Covenant on
Civil and Political Rights and Article 1 the International
Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights provide that
``All peoples have the right of self-determination. By virtue
of that right they freely determine their political status and
freely pursue their economic, social and cultural
development.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (8) Under international law, including United
Nations General Assembly Resolution 2625, the right to self-
determination is the right of a people to determine its own
destiny and the exercise of this right can result in a variety
of outcomes ranging from independence, federation, protection,
some form of autonomy or full integration within a
State.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (9) United Nations General Assembly Resolution
1723, adopted on December 20, 1961, called for the ``cessation
of practices which deprive the Tibetan people of their
fundamental human rights and freedoms, including their right to
self-determination.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (10) In a December 30, 1950, note to the
Governments of the United Kingdom and India, the Department of
State wrote that ``The United States, which was one of the
early supporters of the principle of self-determination of
peoples, believes that the Tibetan people has the same inherent
right as any other to have the determining voice in its
political destiny. It is believed further that, should
developments warrant, consideration could be given to
recognition of Tibet as an independent State.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (11) In a June 2, 1951, telegram to the United
States Embassy in New Delhi, the State Department wrote that
Tibet should not ``be compelled by duress [to] accept [the]
violation [of] its autonomy'' and that the Tibetan people
should ``enjoy certain rights [of] self-determination,
commensurate with [the] autonomy Tibet has maintained since
[the] Chinese revolution.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (12) Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a May
26, 2022, speech entitled ``The Administration's Approach to
the People's Republic of China,'' said that the rules-based
international order's ``founding documents include the UN
Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which
enshrined concepts like self-determination, sovereignty, the
peaceful settlement of disputes. These are not Western
constructs. They are reflections of the world's shared
aspirations.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (13) The Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C.
6901 note), in directing the United States Government ``to
promote the human rights and distinct religious, cultural,
linguistic, and historical identity of the Tibetan people''
acknowledges that the Tibetan people possess a distinct
religious, cultural, linguistic, and historical
identity.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (14) Department of State reports on human rights
and religious freedom have consistently documented repression
by the People's Republic of China authorities against Tibetans
as well as acts of defiance and resistance by Tibetan people
against the People's Republic of China policies.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (15) Section 355 of the Foreign Relations
Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1992 and 1993 (Public Law 102-
138; 105 Stat. 713) stated that it is the sense of Congress
that--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) ``Tibet, including those areas
incorporated into the Chinese provinces of Sichuan,
Yunnan, Gansu, and Qinghai, is an occupied country
under the established principles of international
law'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) ``Tibet's true representatives are the
Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in exile as
recognized by the Tibetan people'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) ``Tibet has maintained throughout its
history a distinctive and sovereign national, cultural,
and religious identity separate from that of China and,
except during periods of illegal Chinese occupation,
has maintained a separate and sovereign political and
territorial identity'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) ``historical evidence of this separate
identity may be found in Chinese archival documents and
traditional dynastic histories, in United States
recognition of Tibetan neutrality during World War II,
and in the fact that a number of countries including
the United States, Mongolia, Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal,
India, Japan, Great Britain, and Russia recognized
Tibet as an independent nation or dealt with Tibet
independently of any Chinese government'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (E) ``1949-1950, China launched an armed
invasion of Tibet in contravention of international
law'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (F) ``it is the policy of the United
States to oppose aggression and other illegal uses of
force by one country against the sovereignty of another
as a manner of acquiring territory, and to condemn
violations of international law, including the illegal
occupation of one country by another''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (G) ``numerous United States declarations
since the Chinese invasion have recognized Tibet's
right to self-determination and the illegality of
China's occupation of Tibet.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (16) The joint explanatory statement to accompany
division K of the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal
Year 2023 (Public Law 117-328) states that ``Funds appropriated
by the Act shall not be used to produce or disseminate
documents, maps, or other materials that recognize or identify
Tibet, including the Tibet Autonomous Region and other Tibetan
autonomous counties and prefectures, as part of the PRC until
the Secretary of State reports to the appropriate congressional
committees that the Government of the PRC has reached a final
negotiated agreement on Tibet with the Dalai Lama or his
representatives or with democratically elected leaders of the
Tibetan people.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.</DELETED>
<DELETED> It is the policy of the United States that--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) the Tibetan people are a people entitled to
the right of self-determination under international law,
including the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights and that their ability to exercise this right
is precluded by the current policies of the People's Republic
of China; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) the conflict between Tibet and the People's
Republic of China is unresolved, and that the legal status of
Tibet remains to be determined in accordance with international
law.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> It is the sense of Congress that--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) claims made by officials of the People's
Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party that Tibet
has been a part of China since ancient times are historically
false;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) the Government of the People's Republic of
China has failed to meet the expectations of the United States
to engage in meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his
representatives toward a peaceful settlement of the unresolved
conflict between Tibet and the People's Republic of China;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) United States public diplomacy efforts should
counter disinformation about Tibet from the Government of the
People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party,
including disinformation about the history of Tibet, the
Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions including that of the
Dalai Lama.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 5. MODIFICATIONS TO THE TIBETAN POLICY ACT OF
2002.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) Tibet Negotiations.--Section 613(b) of the Tibetan
Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' at the
end;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at
the end and inserting ``; and''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) efforts to counter disinformation about
Tibet from the Government of the People's Republic of China and
the Chinese Communist Party, including disinformation about the
history of Tibet, the Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions
including that of the Dalai Lama.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan
Issues.--Section 621(d) of the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C.
6901 note) is amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6), (7), and (8)
as paragraphs (7), (8), and (9), respectively; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(6) work to ensure that United States Government
statements and documents counter, as appropriate,
disinformation about Tibet from the Government of the People's
Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party, including
disinformation about the history of Tibet, the Tibetan people,
and Tibetan institutions including that of the Dalai
Lama;''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (c) Geographic Definition of Tibet.--The Tibetan Policy
Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED>``SEC. 622. GEOGRAPHIC DEFINITION OF TIBET.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``In this Act and in implementing policies relating to the
Tibetan people under other provisions of law, the term `Tibet', unless
otherwise specified, means--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) the Tibet Autonomous Region; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) the Tibetan areas of Qinghai, Sichuan,
Gansu, and Yunnan provinces.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 6. AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS TO COUNTER DISINFORMATION
ABOUT TIBET.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Amounts authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made
available to carry out section 201(c) of the Asia Reassurance
Initiative Act of 2018 (22 U.S.C. 2292 et seq.) are authorized to be
made available to counter disinformation about Tibet from the
Government of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist
Party, including disinformation about the history of Tibet, the Tibetan
people, and Tibetan institutions including that of the Dalai
Lama.</DELETED>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-
China Dispute Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) It has been the long-standing policy of the United
States to encourage meaningful and direct dialogue between
representatives of the People's Republic of China and the Dalai
Lama, his or her representatives, or democratically elected
leaders of the Tibetan community, without preconditions, to
seek a settlement that resolves differences.
(2) Nine rounds of dialogue held between 2002 and 2010
between the People's Republic of China authorities and the 14th
Dalai Lama's representatives failed to produce a settlement
that resolved differences, and the two sides have held no
formal dialogue since January 2010.
(3) An obstacle to further dialogue is that the Government
of the People's Republic of China continues to impose
conditions on substantive dialogue with the Dalai Lama,
including a demand that he say that Tibet has been part of
China since ancient times, which the Dalai Lama has refused to
do because it is inaccurate.
(4) Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights and Article 1 of the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights provide, ``All peoples
have the right of self-determination. By virtue of that right
they freely determine their political status and freely pursue
their economic, social and cultural development.''.
(5) The United States Government has never taken the
position that Tibet was a part of China since ancient times.
(6) China signed the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights on October 5, 1998, and ratified the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
on March 27, 2001.
(7) Under international law, including United Nations
General Assembly Resolution 2625, the right to self-
determination is the right of a people to determine its own
destiny and the exercise of this right can result in a variety
of outcomes ranging from independence, federation, protection,
some form of autonomy, or full integration within a State.
(8) United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1723,
adopted on December 20, 1961, called for the ``cessation of
practices which deprive the Tibetan people of their fundamental
human rights and freedoms, including their right to self-
determination''.
(9) Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in a May 26, 2022,
speech entitled ``The Administration's Approach to the People's
Republic of China'', said that the rules-based international
order's ``founding documents include the UN Charter and the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which enshrined concepts
like self-determination, sovereignty, the peaceful settlement
of disputes. These are not Western constructs. They are
reflections of the world's shared aspirations.''.
(10) The Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note),
as amended by the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2020
(subtitle E of title III of division FF of Public Law 116-260),
in directing the United States Government ``to promote the
human rights and distinct religious, cultural, linguistic, and
historical identity of the Tibetan people'' acknowledges that
the Tibetan people possess a distinct religious, cultural,
linguistic, and historical identity.
(11) Department of State reports on human rights and
religious freedom have consistently documented systematic
repression by the authorities of the People's Republic of China
against Tibetans as well as acts of defiance and resistance by
Tibetan people against the People's Republic of China policies.
(12) The Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note)
specifies that the central objective of the United States
Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues is to promote
substantive dialogue between the Government of the People's
Republic of China and the Dalai Lama, his or her
representatives, or democratically elected leaders of the
Tibetan community.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) that the Tibetan people are a people with a distinct
religious, cultural, linguistic, and historical identity;
(2) that the dispute between Tibet and the People's
Republic of China must be resolved in accordance with
international law, including the United Nations Charter, by
peaceful means, through dialogue without preconditions;
(3) that the People's Republic of China should cease its
propagation of disinformation about the history of Tibet, the
Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions, including that of the
Dalai Lama;
(4) to encourage the People's Republic of China to ratify
the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and
uphold all its commitments under the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights; and
(5) in accordance with the Tibetan Policy and Support Act
of 2020--
(A) to promote substantive dialogue without pre-
conditions, between the Government of the People's
Republic of China and the Dalai Lama, his or her
representatives, or democratically elected leaders of
the Tibetan community, or explore activities to improve
prospects for dialogue, that leads to a negotiated
agreement on Tibet;
(B) to coordinate with other governments in
multilateral efforts towards the goal of a negotiated
agreement on Tibet; and
(C) to encourage the Government of the People's
Republic of China to address the aspirations of the
Tibetan people with regard to their distinct
historical, cultural, religious, and linguistic
identity.
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) claims made by officials of the People's Republic of
China and the Chinese Communist Party that Tibet has been a
part of China since ancient times are historically inaccurate;
(2) the current policies of the People's Republic of China
are systematically suppressing the ability of the Tibetan
people to preserve their religion, culture, language, history,
way of life, and environment;
(3) the Government of the People's Republic of China is
failing to meet the expectations of the United States to engage
in meaningful dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his
representatives or to reach a negotiated resolution that
includes the aspirations of the Tibetan people; and
(4) United States public diplomacy efforts should counter
disinformation about Tibet from the Government of the People's
Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party, including
disinformation about the history of Tibet, the Tibetan people,
and Tibetan institutions, including that of the Dalai Lama.
SEC. 5. MODIFICATIONS TO THE TIBETAN POLICY ACT OF 2002.
(a) Tibet Negotiations.--Section 613(b) of the Tibetan Policy Act
of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``; and'' and inserting a
semicolon;
(2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the end and
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) efforts to counter disinformation about Tibet from
the Government of the People's Republic of China and the
Chinese Communist Party, including disinformation about the
history of Tibet, the Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions,
including that of the Dalai Lama.''.
(b) United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues.--Section
621(d) of the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is
amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (6), (7), and (8) as
paragraphs (7), (8), and (9), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following new
paragraph:
``(6) work with relevant bureaus of the Department of State
and the United States Agency for International Development to
ensure that United States Government statements and documents
counter, as appropriate, disinformation about Tibet from the
Government of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese
Communist Party, including disinformation about the history of
Tibet, the Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions, including
that of the Dalai Lama;''.
(c) Definition.--The Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901
note) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``SEC. 622. DEFINITION.
``For purposes of this Act, the term `Tibet' refers to the
following areas:
``(1) The Tibet Autonomous Region.
``(2) The areas that the Government of the People's
Republic of China designated as Tibetan Autonomous, as of 2018,
as follows:
``(A) Kanlho (Gannan) Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture, and Pari (Tianzhu) Tibetan Autonomous
County located in Gansu Province.
``(B) Golog (Guoluo) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,
Malho (Huangnan) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Tsojang
(Haibei) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Tsolho (Hainan)
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Tsonub (Haixi) Mongolian
and Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, and Yulshul (Yushu)
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, located in Qinghai
Province.
``(C) Garze (Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,
Ngawa (Aba) Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture,
and Muli (Mili) Tibetan Autonomous County, located in
Sichuan Province.
``(D) Dechen (Diqing) Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture, located in Yunnan Province.''.
SEC. 6. AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS TO COUNTER DISINFORMATION ABOUT TIBET.
Amounts authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available
under section 346 of the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2020
(subtitle E of title III of division FF of Public Law 116-260) are
authorized to be made available to counter disinformation about Tibet
from the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Chinese
Communist Party, including disinformation about the history of Tibet,
the Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions, including that of the
Dalai Lama.
Calendar No. 367
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 138
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 to modify certain provisions of
that Act.
_______________________________________________________________________
May 7, 2024
Reported with an amendment