[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 110 (Monday, September 18, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1516]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       INCARCERATION OF ZHANG JIE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. LYNN C. WOOLSEY

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, September 18, 2000

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I submit the following letter for the 
Record.

                                Congress of the United States,

                                     Washington, DC, May 15, 2000.
     Zhu Rongji Zongli,
     Premier of the People's Republic of China, Guowuyuan, 
         Beijingshi, People's Republic of China.
       Your Excellency: We are writing to express our strong 
     concern regarding the incarceration of Zhang Jie and to 
     request that you urge the appropriate officials to release 
     information related to his imprisonment and state of being.
       Zhang Jie was a 23-year old unemployed worker from Jinan, 
     Shangdong Province, when, on June 5th, 1989, he was alleged 
     to have organized a rally and denounced the killing of 
     protestors in Tiananmen Square the previous day. Zhang Jie 
     was given an 18-year sentence for ``counter revolutionary 
     incitement.'' Jie was last reported in 1992 to be in 
     Shangdong Prison Number 3, also known as Weifang Shengjian 
     Machinery Works.
       Given our understanding that Zhang Jie was exercising his 
     basic right to freedom of expression--and neither undertook, 
     nor called for, any violent action--we are seriously 
     disturbed by the severity of his sentence. We are also 
     concerned that those involved in international humanitarian 
     efforts to secure his release have been unable to learn 
     anything about his condition. This is all the more 
     distressful when we hear that workers such as Zhang Jie have 
     been subjected to harsh treatment.
       The American people await some sign of progress from the 
     leadership of the People's Republic of China in the treatment 
     of those who speak out on matters of conscience. We call on 
     you to personally ensure that the proper authorities will 
     cooperate and look forward to our request for information on 
     Zhang Jie's's status.
           Sincerely,
         Lynn Woolsey, Luis V. Gutierrez, Martin Frost, Tom 
           Lantos, George Miller, Peter De Fazio, Juanita 
           Millender-McDonald, Major R. Owens, ------ ------, 
           Nancy Pelosi, Christopher Shays, Sam Farr, Cynthia 
           McKinney, Pete Stark, Sherrod Brown, Lloyd Doggett.

           

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