[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 74 (Wednesday, June 10, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6053-S6054]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 103--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE CONGRESS 
 IN SUPPORT OF THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF JURISTS ON TIBET AND ON 
               UNITED STATES POLICY WITH REGARD TO TIBET

  Mr. MOYNIHAN (for himself, Mr. Helms, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Mack, Mr. 
Wellstone, and Mr. Feingold) submitted the following concurrent 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                            S. Con. Res. 103

       Whereas the International Commission of Jurists is a non-
     governmental organization founded in 1952 to defend the Rule 
     of Law throughout the world and to work towards the full 
     observance of the provisions in the Universal Declaration of 
     Human Rights;
       Whereas in 1959, 1960, and 1964 the International 
     Commission of Jurists examined Chinese policy in Tibet, 
     violations of human rights in Tibet, and the position of 
     Tibet in international law;
       Whereas in 1960, the International Commission of Jurists 
     found ``that acts of genocide had been committed in Tibet in 
     an attempt to destroy the Tibetans as a religious group,...'' 
     and concluded that Tibet was at least ``a de facto 
     independent State'' prior to 1951 and that Tibet was a 
     ``legitimate concern of the United Nations even on the 
     restrictive interpretation of matters `essentially within the 
     domestic jurisdiction' of a State.'',
       Whereas these findings were presented to the United Nations 
     General Assembly, which adopted three resolutions (1959, 
     1961, and 1965) calling on the People's Republic of China to 
     ensure respect for the fundamental human rights of the 
     Tibetan people and for their distinctive cultural and 
     religious life, and to cease practices which deprive the 
     Tibetan people of their fundamental human rights and freedoms 
     including their right to self-determination;
       Whereas in December 1997, the International Commission of 
     Jurists issued a fourth report on Tibet, examining human 
     rights and the rule of law, including self-determination;
       Whereas the President has repeatedly indicated his support 
     for substantive dialogue between the Government of the 
     People's Republic of China and the Dalai Lama or his 
     representatives;
       Whereas on October 31, 1997, the Secretary of State 
     appointed a Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues to oversee 
     United States policy regarding Tibet: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representative 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) expresses grave concern regarding the findings of the 
     December 1997 International Commission of Jurists report on 
     Tibet that----
       (a) repression in Tibet has increased steadily since 1994, 
     resulting in heightened control on religious activity; a 
     denunciation campaign against the Dalai Lama unprecedented 
     since the Cultural Revolution; an increase in political 
     arrests; suppression of peaceful protests; and an accelerated 
     movement of Chinese to Tibet; and
       (b) in 1997, the People's Republic of China labeled the 
     Tibetan Buddhist culture, which has flourished in Tibet since 
     the seventh century, as a ``foreign culture'' in order to 
     facilitate indoctrination of Tibetans in Chinese socialist 
     ideology and the process of national and cultural 
     extermination;
       (2) support the recommendations contained in the report 
     referred to in paragraph (1) that----
       (a) call on the People's Republic of China----
       (i) to enter into discussions with the Dalai Lama or his 
     representatives on a solution to the question of Tibet based 
     on the will of the Tibetan people;
       (ii) to ensure respect for the fundamental human rights of 
     the Tibetan people; and
       (iii) to end those practices which threaten to erode the 
     distinct cultural, religious and national identity of the 
     Tibetan people and, in particular, to cease policies which 
     result in the movement of Chinese people to Tibetan 
     territory;
       (b) call on the United Nations General Assembly to resume 
     its debate on the question of Tibet based on its resolutions 
     of 1959, 1961, and 1965, and to hold a referendum in Tibet; 
     and
       (c) calls on the Dalai Lama or his representatives to enter 
     into discussions with the Government of the People's Republic 
     of China on a solution to the question of Tibet based on the 
     will of the Tibetan people;
       (3) commends the appointment by the Secretary of State of a 
     United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues----
       (a) to promote substantive dialogue between the Government 
     of the People's Republic of China and the Dalai Lama or his 
     representatives;
       (b) to coordinate United States Government policies, 
     programs, and projects concerning Tibet;
       (c) to consult with the Congress on policies relevant to 
     Tibet and the future and welfare of all Tibetan people, and 
     to report to Congress in partial fulfillment of the 
     requirements of Sec. 536(a) of Public Law 103-236; and
       (d) to advance United States policy which seeks to protect 
     the unique religious, cultural, and linguistic heritage of 
     Tibet, and to encourage improved respect for Tibetan human 
     rights;
       (4) calls on the People's Republic of China to release from 
     detention the 9-year old Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, 
     to his home in Tibet from which he was taken on May 17, 1995, 
     and to allow him to pursue his religious studies without 
     interference and according to tradition; and
       (5) call on the President, as a central objective of the 
     1998 presidential submit meeting with Jiang Zemin in Beijing, 
     to secure an agreement to begin substantive negotiations 
     between the Government of the People's Republic of China and 
     the Dalai Lama or his representatives.

  Mr. MOYNIHAN. Mr. President, I offer a resolution which speaks to 
many of the issues now facing the Tibetan people in their long 
struggle. This has been threatened for a half-century now, but there 
are efforts underway to resolve these issues. This resolution puts the 
Congress on record in support of these goals.
  Begin with the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), which has 
closely followed the situation in Tibet since the Dalai Lama was forced 
to flee into exile. In 1959, 1960, and 1964, the ICJ examined Chinese 
policies in Tibet and reported its findings to the Secretary-General of 
the United Nations. The 1960 report made the important international 
legal determination that ``acts of genocide had been committed

[[Page S6054]]

in Tibet in an attempt to destroy the Tibetans as a religious group . . 
.'' and concluded that Tibet was at least ``a de facto independent 
State'' prior to 1951.
  Now the ICJ has returned to the issue of Tibet and produced another 
important report. It finds that repression in Tibet has increased since 
1994. This is an assessment which my daughter Maura shares after having 
visited Tibet and having worked closely for many years with Tibetan 
refugees who continue to make the dangerous journey over the Himalayan 
mountains to flee persecution in their homeland.
  In 1996 she returned from Tibet to report,

       . . . in recent months Beijing's leaders have renewed their 
     assault on Tibetan culture, especially Buddhism, with and 
     alarming vehemence. The rhetoric and the methods of the 
     Cultural Revolution of the 1960s have been resurrected--
     reincarnated, what you will--to shape an aggressive campaign 
     to vilify the Dalai Lama.

  The Dalai Lama, of course, remains unstained, but it is time for the 
Chinese to consider a policy of ``constructive engagement'' of their 
own--with the Tibetans. The recent ICJ report calls on the People's 
Republic of China to enter into discussions with the Dalai Lama or his 
representatives on a solution to the question of Tibet. Mr. President, 
for many years now, the United States Congress has been calling for 
exactly this. I hope that while the President is in China, he will be 
able to convey the importance of this issue to secure a commitment from 
the Government of the People's Republic of China to begin such 
discussions with the Tibetans.
  In 1979, Deng Xiaoping stated that ``except for the independence of 
Tibet, all other questions can be negotiated.'' The Dalai Lama has 
repeatedly stated his unambiguous willingness to begin substantive 
negotiations with the Chinese without preconditions, and that the issue 
of independence need not be on the agenda. This is not a concession 
easily made by the leader of the Tibetan people who, as the ICJ 
concluded in 1960, enjoyed de facto independence before the Chinese 
take-over. Nonetheless, he has made the offer sincerely, and 
repeatedly, and deserves a sincere response.
  The United States can help elicit such a response. In addition to the 
opportunity posed by the upcoming visit by the President, we now have a 
Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, Gregory B. Craig, whom 
Secretary Albright appointed to achieve just such a result. A special 
coordinator is something that our beloved Claiborne Pell proposed in 
the 103d Congress and I am glad we have been able to achieve another 
one of his aspirations. Having a Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues 
will better enable the Administration to facilitate a dialogue between 
the Dalai Lama and the Chinese Government.
  Finally, Mr. President, atheists are rarely involved in choosing 
divine leaders, but the Chinese Communist Party has not only involved 
itself in the selection of the eleventh Panchen Lama, but Chinese 
officials have asserted that it is the party's sole right to make the 
selection, and they have detained the boy the Dalai Lama recognized as 
the next Panchen Lama. This resolution calls attention to this odious 
infringement on religious freedom.
  The Tibetans--I think I am correct in saying--above all value their 
ability to practice religion. Religion infuse every aspect of Tibetan 
culture. We cannot begin to comprehend the affront to Tibetans of 
having an important religious figure detained and declared illegitimate 
by the Communist Party. Add to that affront that another boy is 
produced by the Party and proclaimed as the religious leader.
  This resolution calls for the release of 9-year old Gedhun Choekyi 
Nyima, the boy selected by the Dalai Lama as the next Panchen Lama, who 
has been under detention for 3 years.
  The Senate has always maintained strong support for the Tibetan 
cause. This resolution continues that tradition. I especially wish to 
thank my colleague, the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, 
Senator Helms, for his outstanding leadership on this issue. We are 
also joined in this effort by Senators Leahy, Mack, Wellstone, and 
Feingold. I thank them for their support.

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