[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 160 (Wednesday, December 14, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H11624-H11629]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CONDEMNING THE LAOGAI
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 294) calling on the
international community to condemn the Laogai, the system of forced
labor prison camps in the People's Republic of China, as a tool for
suppression maintained by the Chinese Government, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H. Con. Res. 294
Whereas the Laogai is a vast prison labor system in the
People's Republic of China and consists of a network of more
than 1,000 prisons, camps, and mental institutions in which
detainees must work at factories, farms, mines, and other
facilities;
Whereas the two major aims of the Laogai are to generate
economic resources for the state through free labor and to
``reform criminals'' through hard labor and political
indoctrination;
Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China
relies on the Laogai as a tool for political suppression of
pro-democracy activists, Internet dissidents, labor
activists, and religious and spiritual believers, including
Han Chinese, Tibetans, Uyghurs, Mongolians, and ``house
church'' Christians;
Whereas, while the Soviet Gulags no longer exist, the
Chinese Laogai is still fully operational, subjecting most of
its three million prisoners to forced labor by threatening
torture;
Whereas fifty million people have suffered as prisoners in
the Laogai since its inception;
Whereas Laogai prisoners are deprived of religious freedom
and forced to give up their political views in order to
become a ``new socialist person'' and uphold communism and
the Chinese Communist Party;
Whereas in recent years, more than 100,000 religious
believers have been unjustly and illegally imprisoned in one
Laogai camp alone, where they have been beaten, tortured, and
often killed;
Whereas Laogai prisoners are forced to work long hours in
appalling conditions, including mining asbestos and other
toxic chemicals with no protective clothing, tanning hides
while standing naked in vats filled with chemicals used for
softening of animal skins, and working in mining facilities
where explosions and other accidents are a common occurrence;
Whereas it is documented that China's national policy since
1984 has been to extract organs from executed prisoners
without prior consent of the prisoners or their family
members, setting China apart from every other country in the
world;
Whereas there are more than 1,000 instances in which organs
are harvested from executed Chinese prisoners every year;
Whereas both Chinese and foreign patients from around the
world receive organs transplanted from executed Chinese
prisoners;
Whereas Laogai prisoners are required to make confessions
of their wrongdoings, which include political and religious
views that the Chinese Communist Party wishes to suppress;
Whereas Chinese citizens are not guaranteed due process of
law nor even a right to trial;
Whereas many individuals are often convicted and sentenced
with no trial at all, or they are convicted with ``evidence''
extracted through torture;
Whereas in one part of the Laogai system known as the
Laojiao, or reeducation-through-labor, Chinese citizens can
be detained for up to three years without any judicial review
or formal appearance in the judicial system;
Whereas goods produced by forced labor in the Laogai system
continue to be exported to the United States and the world;
Whereas the Chinese Government has continuously encouraged
the export of goods produced through the Laogai prison system
and relies on forced labor as an integral part of its
economy;
Whereas forced labor and torture practices carried out in
the Laogai violate international laws, standards, and
treaties to which China is party, including the United
Nations Charter, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman
or Degrading Treatment or Punishment; and
Whereas China, a member State of the International Labor
Organization, also violates many agreements regarding labor
conditions and the rights of workers: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That Congress--
(1) calls on the international community to condemn the
Laogai, the system of forced labor prison camps in the
People's Republic of China, as a tool for suppression
maintained by the Chinese Government;
(2) calls on the Government of the United States to fully
implement United States laws that prohibit the importation of
forced labor products made in the Laogai;
(3) calls on the Government of the United States to take
actions to review the implementation of the Memorandum of
Understanding on Prison Labor in 1992 and the Statement of
Cooperation in 1994 with respect to the Laogai;
(4) will undertake efforts to join with the European
Parliament to urge the introduction of a resolution at the
United Nations Human Rights Commission condemning the Laogai
and the human rights situation in China;
(5) calls on the Government of the People's Republic of
China to release information about the Laogai, including the
total number of Laogai camps and prisoners throughout China,
the exact locations of the camps, and the business production
activities taking place at the camps;
(6) calls on the Government of the People's Republic of
China to release information about the number of executions
of prisoners at the camps that are carried out every year,
and the extent of the harvesting and transplantation of
organs of executed prisoners;
(7) urges the Government of the People's Republic of China
to allow unrestricted visits by international human rights
inspectors, including United Nations inspectors, to Laogai
camps throughout China; and
(8) urges the Congressional-Executive Commission on China
to continue to investigate the Laogai system in China and to
make recommendations for United States policy that will help
protect human rights for Chinese citizens.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution which calls
for the condemnation of the vast Laogai labor system of more than 1,000
prisons, camps and mental institutions maintained by the government of
the People's Republic of China, and of the use of forced labor as an
integral part of China's economy.
I would note parenthetically that, back in 1992, the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Wolf) and I gained access to one of those prison camps,
Beijing Prison Camp Number 1, a horrible place where 40 Tiananmen
Square activists were being punished for their peaceful activities.
Hundreds of others were also imprisoned there for political, religious
and other alleged crimes. The place reeked of cruelty and sadness and
was a nightmarish insight into the dark soul of the Chinese Communist
dictatorship. Today, sadly, the Laogai continues its cruelty unabated.
Indeed, the continued operation of this network of Stalinist camps
within
[[Page H11625]]
China's borders raises grave questions about Beijing's commitment to
engage in reform even after it seeks to be recognized as a leader among
the community of nations.
The Laogai, which was created by the Chinese Communist party under
Mao Zedong and modelled after the Soviet Gulag system, serves the one-
party dictatorship as a tool to maintain control of a population
yearning to be free. The Laogai system has tormented more than 50
million people since its founding and still contains as many as 4
million prisoners today. It not only provides the government a source
of cheap labor, it also serves to instill fear in its citizens lest
they be forced to go through ``reeducation'' through hard labor and
compulsory political indoctrination.
The low cost of maintaining these prisons provides additional
incentive for the PRC to continue its use of the Laogai system. The use
of slave labor to manufacture a product for export as an integral part
of its economy represents not only a violation of international law and
labor standards but represents an unfair trade practice which widens
the trade deficit and threatens American jobs.
As is so common in authoritarian regimes, the PRC represses freedom
of religion and expression through this system of more than 1,000
prisons. As we know, Mr. Speaker, these prisoners are given no legal
rights and are often tortured in order to induce confessions. All
Laogai prisoners are forced to labor in order to remake them as new
socialist persons. New arrivals are subjected to immediate, daily,
lengthy interrogation sessions and forced to admit their ``crimes.''
These sessions may last days, weeks and even months. In some cases,
they last years. If a prisoner resists, he or she is tortured.
The horrifying trade in human organs from China is the latest
development of the Laogai system. The organs of more than 1,000
executed prisoners have reportedly been harvested for money. In the
1990s and to the year 2005, as part of the series of about 24
Congressional hearings that I have chaired on human rights abuses in
China, I conducted one extraordinary hearing on this grizzly business.
In that hearing, with the help of the great Harry Wu, a survivor of the
Laogai himself, we heard from a former PRC police officer who testified
and brought compelling proof as to how prisoners were shot, but not
killed, and moved to awaiting ambulances to begin the process of
removing their organs for transplantation.
The practice reminded me and many others in that hearing of the
atrocities committed by the infamous Nazi, Dr. Joseph Mengele.
Despite numerous human rights treaties, Mr. Speaker, to which the PRC
is a signatory, the government continues to use the Laogai as a means
to suppress groups such as the Falun Gong and other religious
believers, but in the case of the Falun Gong, up to 50 percent of the
Laogai prisoner population is made up of those individuals.
Cyber dissidents and journalists are increasingly being crushed by
the Laogai system as well. As in the case of Shi Tao, a journalist who
is now serving a 10-year forced labor sentence at a jewelry factory
attached to the Chishan prison for sending an e-mail through his Yahoo
account warning journalists of the dangers of social destabilization
and the risks of return of certain dissidents on the 15th anniversary
of the Tiananmen Square massacre.
I point out to my colleagues, and I hope that each and every one of
you will read this, there is a very, very strong statement on torture
by the U.N. rapporteur on torture who has just finished his report,
Manfred Nowak.
He said that the abuse of suspects and prisoners remains widespread.
His report describes some of the torture methods used by China's police
and prison officers to extract confessions and maintain discipline:
Emersion in sewage, sleep deprivation, cigarette burns and beating with
electric prods. Not surprisingly, Mr. Nowak also accused the Chinese
officials of systematically interfering with his investigations.
Victims and family members were intimidated by security personnel
during the visit, placed under surveillance or instructed not to meet
with Mr. Nowak. Among the prisoners, Mr. Nowak said he observed ``a
palpable level of fear and self-censorship'' that he had not seen in
missions in other countries.
One cannot be optimistic given recent events, but killings by gunfire
last week of at least 20 residents in the village of Dongzhou in
southern China by Beijing's security forces is further evidence that
China has a long way to go in achieving the rule of law.
The cold-blooded murder of these villagers protesting over land use
and the corruption demonstrates clearly that, 16 years after Tiananmen
Square, Chairman Mao's famous dictum that ``all political power comes
from the barrel of the gun'' is still the credo of Beijing's leaders.
Those among our friends in Europe who seek removal of an arms embargo
against China should reflect on the use of guns and bullets to kill the
innocent villagers in Dongzhou and to keep 4 million inmates, many
prisoners of conscience, locked up in the vast Laogai system.
This resolution sends a strong message, and I urge its passage.
Special Rapporteur on Torture Highlights Challenges at End of Visit to
China
Introduction
Beijing, 2 December 2005.--The Special Rapporteur of the
United Nations Commission on Human Rights on torture and
other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
concluded a two-week visit to the People's Republic of China
(PRC) today.
Nearly a decade after the initial request, the visit to the
PRC by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture,
Manfred Nowak, finally materialised from 20 November to 2
December, and included visits to Beijing, Lhasa, Tibet
Autonomous Region (TAR) and Urumqi, Xinjiang Uighur
Autonomous Region (XUAR). The long-awaited visit of the
Special Rapporteur on Torture to China has its origins in a
1995 request by the then Special Rapporteur, Sir Nigel
Rodley, for an invitation to carry out a fact-finding visit.
The Government responded in 1999 with an invitation for a
``friendly visit'' in May 2000, however, differences between
the Government and the Special Rapporteur on the standard
methodology for country visits by United Nations human rights
experts (including unannounced visits to detention centres
and private meetings with detainees) prevented it from being
realized. In spring 2004, the Government extended an
unconditional invitation to the then Special Rapporteur, Theo
van Boven, for a two-week visit in June of that year, which
was then postponed by the Government. Upon Manfred Nowak's
appointment as Special Rapporteur on Torture in December
2004, the Government of China renewed its invitation for a
visit in 2005, accepting his Terms of Reference.
The mission's aim was two-fold: fact-finding and starting a
process of cooperation aimed at the common goal of
eradicating torture in the PRC.
The Special Rapporteur wishes to express his deep
appreciation to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in
particular Dr. Shen Yongxiang, Special Representative on
Human Rights Affairs, and his team for their professionalism,
cooperation, and shared commitment to the objectives of the
mission. The Special Rapporteur credits the Ministry for its
great efforts in ensuring that the mission proceeded as
smoothly as possible and that his Terms of Reference were in
principle respected. All meetings with detainees were carried
out in privacy and in locations designated by the Rapporteur.
No request for a meeting or interviewing of a particular
individual was refused. Prison staff were generally
cooperative. The Special Rapporteur was also able to meet
with a number of individuals outside of his official
programme, notwithstanding the obstructions elaborated upon
below.
While visits were also planned for Jinan in Shandong
Province and Yining in the XUAR, the Special Rapporteur
sincerely regrets that he had to cancel these visits due to
time constraints, and expresses his gratitude to the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs and the respective leaderships of Shandong
Province and Yining Autonomous Prefecture for accommodating
these last minute changes to the programme.
While in Beijing, the Special Rapporteur met with
Government officials, including the Assistant Foreign
Minister, the Vice Ministers of Justice and Public Security,
the Deputy Procurator-General, as well as prominent members
of civil society including the All China Lawyers'
Association, the Beijing Lawyers' Association, China
University for Political Science and Law, Renmin University,
Tsinghua University, Beijing University, the Chinese Academy
of Social Sciences, and the Beijing Child Legal and Research
Centre. Meetings were also held with individual lawyers,
human rights defenders, academics, and members of the
diplomatic corps and UN country team. In Lhasa and Urumqi,
the Special Rapporteur met with local officials including
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Court, the
Procuratorate, and Departments of Justice and Public
Security.
In Beijing, the Special Rapporteur visited the Municipal
Detention Centre, Prison No. 2
[[Page H11626]]
(twice), and the Municipal Women's Re-education Through
Labour (RTL) Facility. In Lhasa he visited Lhasa Prison,
Tibet Autonomous Region Prison (also known as Drapchi
Prison), and the recently-opened Qushui Prison. In Urumqi, he
visited Prison Nos. 1, 3, and 4, as well as the Liu Dao Wan
Detention Centre. In all facilities, the Special Rapporteur
met with prison management and interviewed detainees in
private.
Particular circumstances of the fact-finding mission
The Special Rapporteur feels compelled to point out that
some Government authorities, particularly the Ministries of
State Security and Public Security, attempted at various
times throughout the visit to obstruct or restrict his
attempts at fact-finding. The Special Rapporteur and his team
were frequently under surveillance by intelligence personnel,
both in their Beijing hotel as well as in its vicinity.
Furthermore, during the visit a number of alleged victims and
family members were intimidated by security personnel, placed
under police surveillance, instructed not to meet the Special
Rapporteur, or were physically prevented from meeting with
him.
Prison officials imposed their own working hours as limits
for interviews which curtailed the number of facilities that
could be visited and the number of detainees interviewed. The
Special Rapporteur and his team were also prevented from
bringing photographic or electronic equipment into prisons.
Furthermore, in contrast to his previous country visits,
the Special Rapporteur was unable to obtain a letter of
authorization from the relevant authorities to visit
detention centres on his own. Consequently, officials from
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs accompanied him to detention
centres in order to ensure unrestricted access. As the
authorities were generally informed an hour in advance, the
visits could not be considered to have been strictly
``unannounced.'' Nonetheless, this practice significantly
improves upon the modalities employed in previous visits
to China of Special Procedures of the Commission on Human
Rights.
In his interviews with detainees, the Special Rapporteur
observed a palpable level of fear and self-censorship, which
he had not experienced in the course of his previous
missions. A considerable number of detainees did not express
a willingness to speak with the Rapporteur, and several of
those who did requested absolute confidentiality.
Under these conditions and taking into account the size and
complexity of China as well as the limited duration of the
mission, the Special Rapporteur acknowledges the limitations
in drawing up a comprehensive set of findings and conclusions
on the situation of torture and ill-treatment in China.
situation of torture and ill-treatment
The Special Rapporteur recalls that over the last several
years his predecessors have received a significant number of
serious allegations related to torture and other forms of
ill-treatment in China, which have been submitted to the
Government for its comments. These have included a consistent
and systematic pattern of torture related to ethnic
minorities, particularly Tibetans and Uighurs, political
dissidents, human rights defenders, practitioners of Falun
Gong, and members of house-church groups. These allegations
have been and continue to be documented by international
human rights organizations.
The methods of torture alleged include, among others:
beatings; use of electric shock batons; cigarette burns;
hooding/blindfolding; guard-instructed or permitted beatings
by fellow prisoners; use of handcuffs or ankle fetters for
extended periods (including in solitary confinement or secure
holding areas), submersion in pits of water or sewage;
exposure to conditions of extreme heat or cold, being forced
to maintain uncomfortable positions, such as sitting,
squatting, lying down, or standing for long periods of time,
sometimes with objects held under arms; deprivation of sleep,
food or water; prolonged solitary confinement; denial of
medical treatment and medication; hard labour; and suspension
from overhead fixtures from handcuffs. In several cases, the
techniques employed have been given particular terminologies,
such as the ``tiger bench'', where one is forced to sit
motionless on a tiny stool a few centimeters off the ground;
``reversing an airplane'', where one is forced to bend over
while holding legs straight, feet close together and arms
lifted high; or ``exhausting an eagle'', where one is forced
to stand on a tall stool and subjected to beatings until
exhaustion. On the basis of the information he received
during his mission, the Special Rapporteur confirms that many
of these methods of torture have been used in China.
Although he cannot make a detailed determination as to the
current scale of these abuses, the Special Rapporteur
believes that the practice of torture, though on the
decline--particularly in urban areas--remains widespread in
China. Indeed, this is increasingly recognized by Government
officials and reports. According to the 2005 Supreme People's
Procuratorate's (SPP) report to the National People's
Congress presented on 9 March 2005, covering the year
2004), 1595 civil servants had been investigated for
suspected criminal activity in cases involving ``illegal
detention, coercion of confessions, using violence to
obtain evidence, abuse of detainees, sabotaging elections,
and serious dereliction of duty resulting in serious loss
of life or property.'' The report goes on to note that
this is a 13.3 percent increase over the previous year's
totals and that the SPP personally investigated 82 of the
most serious cases. When compared with other national
statistics, these official figures are clearly the tip of
the iceberg in a country the size of China and demonstrate
that most victims and their families are reluctant to file
complaints for fear of reprisal or lack of confidence that
their complaints will be addressed effectively.
efforts by the government to combat torture
In recognizing the problem, the Government has undertaken a
number of measures to tackle torture. In August 2003, the
Minister of Public Security, Zhou Yongkang, issued a set of
unified regulations on the standardization of law-enforcement
procedures for public security institutions entitled,
``Regulations on the Procedures for Handling Administrative
Cases'', including procedures defining police powers in
respect of time limits for confiscation of property, legal
means for gathering evidence, time limits on investigation
and examination of suspects, etc. In 2004, the Ministry
issued regulations prohibiting the use of torture and threats
to gain confessions. The Supreme People's Procurotorate
announced that eliminating interrogation through torture
would be a priority of their work agenda and has instructed
procurators that confessions obtained as a result of torture
cannot form a basis for the formal approval of arrests and
that prosecutors must work to eliminate illegally obtained
evidence.
In addition to initiatives at the central level, the
Zhejiang provincial Public Security Department issued
regulations on forced confessions stating that local police
chiefs will be expected to resign in any district where there
are more than two cases of forced confessions resulting in
injuries, miscarriages of justice or public order problems.
In mid-April 2005, Sichuan law enforcement and judicial
authorities issued a joint opinion that prohibits the use of
illegally obtained evidence, such as coerced confessions in
criminal trials, and requires courts to exclude coerced
statements and confessions if police cannot provide a
rational explanation of the alleged coercion or refuse to
investigate allegations of abuse.
Practical measures to combat torture have included piloting
systems of audio and video recording in interrogation rooms,
strengthening representation during the investigative and
pre-trial phase of the criminal process by placing lawyers on
a 24-hour basis in pilot police stations, designing
interrogation rooms which separate suspects from
interrogators, and placing resident procurators in places of
detention and near public security bureaux to supervise law
enforcement personnel.
The Special Rapporteur also observes positive developments
at the legislative level including the planned reform of
several laws relevant to the criminal procedure, which he
hopes will bring Chinese legislation into greater conformity
with international norms, particularly the fair trial
standards contained in the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights (CCPR) which China signed in 1998 and is
preparing to ratify. He also welcomes the resumption by the
Supreme People's Court (SPC) of its authority to review all
death penalty cases, particularly given the fact that the
quality of the judiciary increases as one ascends the
hierarchy. The Special Rapporteur suggests that China might
use the opportunity of this important event to increase
transparency regarding the number of death sentences in the
country, as well as to consider legislation that would allow
direct petitioning to the SPC in cases where individuals do
not feel that they were provided with adequate relief by
lower courts in cases involving the use of torture, access to
counsel, etc.
Need for further efforts to prevent and address torture
The Special Rapporteur notes that China was among the first
States to ratify the UN Convention against Torture (CAT) in
1988, which requires States parties to take measures for the
prevention of torture and to punish every act of torture with
appropriately serious penalties. Although Chinese law
prohibits gathering evidence through torture and provides for
punishment of those guilty of torture, the Chinese definition
of torture does not fully correspond to the international
standard contained in CAT. In particular, physical or
psychological torture that leaves no physical trace is
difficult if not impossible to punish with appropriate
penalties in China (indeed, the Chinese word for torture,
``kuxing,'' principally connotes physical torture).
Combating torture in China is further impeded by the
absence of essential procedural safeguards necessary to make
its prohibition effective, including: the effective exclusion
of evidence from statements established to be made as a
result of torture; the presumption of innocence; the
privilege against self-incrimination; timely notice of
reasons for detention or arrest; prompt external review of
detention or arrest; granting of non-custodial measures, such
as bail; the right of habeas corpus; and timely access to
counsel and adequate time and facilities to prepare a
defence.
Other serious shortcomings are the lack of an independent
monitoring mechanism of all places of detention and a
functional complaints mechanism. A number of authorities have
pointed out that mechanisms exist in
[[Page H11627]]
China for individuals to report instances of torture,
particularly procurators, some of which are resident in
prisons and near police stations. However, the Special
Rapporteur believes that it is difficult to rely on the
vigilance of procurators whose interest in convicting
suspects as charged might compromise their ability to oversee
the police and prison guards. In addition, procurators
encounter many difficulties in practice to exercise their
supervisory role, including because detainees are afraid to
report instances of torture to them.
During his mission, the Special Rapporteur noted the
inefficiency of current complaint mechanisms. He was
informed, for example, that in Prison No. 4 in Urumqi, the
procurators have not received a single torture complaint
during the last decade. In the Tibetan Autonomous Region,
he was told that no complaint had been received since 2003
and in the Beijing Municipal Detention Centre, none were
received since its establishment in June 2004. In the
Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, two cases of torture
were established by the courts since 2000, and in the
Tibet Autonomous Region one such case had been confirmed.
The Deputy Procurator-General of the PRC informed the
Special Rapporteur that only 33 law enforcement officials
had been prosecuted for torture throughout the country
during the first nine months of 2005.
Indeed, an important element in combating torture is
judicial oversight. However, China lacks an independent
judiciary, and the judiciary suffers from relatively low
status in comparison to other State organs. Without a court
system that judges cases fairly and independently according
to law, thereby redressing grievances in a timely manner, the
problem of torture cannot be brought under effective control,
particularly in a context where police exercise wide
discretion in matters of arrest and detention and are under
great pressure to solve cases.
Forced re-education as a form of inhuman and degrading treatment
The Special Rapporteur also pointed to conceptual or
ideological constraints to the effective implementation of
the prohibition of torture. The criminal justice system is
focused on admission of culpability, and the role of
obtaining confessions continues to be central to successful
prosecutions. In fact even after persons, who have not
confessed to an offence, have been convicted and sentenced,
these persons are subject to restrictions within prison, such
as limited restricted access to telephone or visiting
privileges until they confess, or are provided the incentive
of a reduced sentence if they confess. Moreover, the system
as such places a strong emphasis on change and re-education
of the criminal, and the acceptance of punishment.
Societies that have been successful in establishing a human
rights culture differ from others in the degree of tolerance
of the majority towards those whose behavior deviates from
standard moral and social norms. This right to be different,
which finds its legal expression in the human rights to
privacy, freedom of expression, religion, assembly and
association, lies at the very heart of any democratic
society. These freedoms and political rights were not enacted
to protect conformist behavior, but non-conformist behavior.
Under international human rights law, Governments are only
permitted to interfere with the expression of political
opinions, religious convictions, moral values or minority
views when they constitute incitement to hatred or violence
or a direct threat to national security or public safety in
the country. A system of State surveillance of citizens with
non-conformist views and with severe punishments for such
``deviant behavior'', such as Re-Education through Labour
(RTL), seems to be incompatible with the core values of a
society based upon a culture of human rights and leads to
intimidation, submissiveness, self-censorship and a ``culture
of fear'', which interferes with the right not to be
subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment.
Every society has the right, and indeed is required by
article 10 of the CCPR, to assist convicted criminals during
their prison term through vocational training, education, and
measures aimed at ensuring their equal access to the labour
market in order to become law-abiding citizens. However,
efforts aimed at the rehabilitation and re-socialisation of
persons who committed crimes should be clearly distinguished
from forms of deprivation of liberty aimed at the forceful
re-education of human beings with deviant behaviour through
labour and coercion.
The system of RTL in China and similar methods of re-
education in prisons and even in pre-trial detention centres
go well beyond legitimate rehabilitation measures and aim at
breaking the will of detainees and altering their
personality. Such measures strike at the very core of the
human right to personal integrity, dignity and humanity, as
protected by Articles 7 and 10 of the CCPR, as well as
articles 1 and 16 of the CAT. RTL constitutes not only a
serious violation of the human right to personal liberty, but
must also be considered as a systematic form of inhuman and
degrading treatment or punishment, if not torture. RTL and
similar measures of forced re-education in prisons, pre-trial
detention centres and psychiatric hospitals should therefore
be abolished.
circumstances surrounding capital punishment
The Special Rapporteur also expressed concern about the
circumstances surrounding the death penalty, including the
situation of prisoners on death row. At the Beijing
Municipality Detention Centre, where the Rapporteur spoke
with prisoners sentenced to death at first instance and
awaiting appeal, he noted that these prisoners were
handcuffed and shackled with leg-irons weighing approximately
3kg, 24 hours per day and in all circumstances (Le. including
during meals, visits to the toilet, etc). Prison officials
indicated that the average length of appeal was two months.
This practice is reportedly based on a nation-wide regulation
for detention facilities. When questioned by the Special
Rapporteur on the reasons for the handcuffs and shackles
around the clock, prison officials indicated that this was
necessary for their own safety, the security of others, to
prevent them from fleeing, and to prevent suicide. However,
in the Liu Dao Wan Detention Centre in Urumqi, death row
prisoners were ``only'' shackled and not handcuffed. In the
opinion of the Special Rapporteur this practice is inhuman
and degrading and serves only as an additional form of
punishment of someone already subjected to the stress and
grievance associated with having been sentenced to death. The
Special Rapporteur also expressed concern at the high number
of crimes for which the death penalty can be applied. He
encouraged the Government to both narrow its scope and to be
more transparent towards family members and the public at
large regarding its use; including by making statistics on
the death penalty public information.
Recommendations to the Government of the PRC
Among his key preliminary recommendations to the
Government, the Special Rapporteur recommended:
Reform the criminal law by adding the crime of torture in
accordance with the definition contained in CAT (Art. 1) with
appropriate penalties.
Ensure that the reform of the criminal procedure law
conforms to ICCPR fair trial provisions, including by
providing for the following: the right to remain silent and
the privilege against self-incrimination; the right to cross-
examine witnesses and the effective exclusion of evidence
extracted through torture.
Reform the criminal justice system by transferring several
functions of the procurators to the courts, for example,
authorization of detention and supervision of the police.
Allow lawyers--particularly criminal defense lawyers--to be
more effective in representing the rights and interest of
their clients including through involvement at the earliest
stages of police custody and pre-trial detention.
Abolish Section 306 of the Criminal Law, according to which
any lawyer who counsels a client to repudiate a forced
confession, for example, could risk prosecution.
Take measures to enhance the professionalism, efficiency,
transparency, and fairness of legal proceedings; and raise
the status and independence of judges and courts within the
Chinese legal system.
Reduce the number of pre-trial detainees by enlarging the
use of noncustodial measures such as bail.
Establish an independent complaints mechanism for detainees
subject to torture and ill-treatment.
Accept the right of individual petition to the Committee
against Torture and its competence to initiate an inquiry
procedure in accordance with Articles 20 and 22.
Abolish imprecise and sweeping definitions of crimes that
leave large discretion to law enforcement and prosecution
authorities such as ``endangering national security'',
``disrupting social order'', ``subverting public order,''
etc.
Abolish ``Re-Education through Labour'' and similar forms
of forced reeducation of detainees in prisons and pre-trial
detention centres and psychiatric hospitals.
Bring conditions on death row into conformity with the
right of detainees with humane treatment.
Limit the scope of the death penalty by abolishing it for
economic and nonviolent crimes.
Utilize the opportunity of the planned restoration of
Supreme Court review for all death sentences to publish
national statistics on the application of the death penalty.
Establish a national human rights institution in accordance
with the Paris Principles. The United Nations Commission on
Human Rights and General Assembly have adopted a set of
guiding principles on the role, composition, status and
functions of national human rights institutions commonly
known as the Paris Principles. Commission on Human Rights
Resolution 1992/54 of March 1992 and General Assembly
Resolution A/RES/48/134 of 20 December 1993. With the
authority to carry out unannounced visits to all places of
detention.
Ratify the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against
Torture.
Ratify the UN Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
That OHCHR provide support to the above through its
technical cooperation programme within the framework of the
recent MOU signed between the High Commissioner for Human
Rights and the Chinese Government.
The Special Rapporteur expresses his appreciation to the
Government for inviting him to visit the country and looks
forward to a long-term process of cooperation with the
Government to combat torture and ill-
[[Page H11628]]
treatment. He also expresses his appreciation for the support
of the UN Country Team in China, and the Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
The Special Rapporteur will submit a comprehensive written
report on the visit to the UN Commission on Human Rights at
its sixty-second session in 2006.
Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker I rise in strong support of this resolution. Mr. Speaker,
at the outset, I want to commend my friend from New Jersey for his
eloquent and powerful statement.
It was my great pleasure, Mr. Speaker, to join my good friend and
colleague, my co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, the
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Wolf) in introducing this important
measure regarding China's continued use of forced labor.
{time} 2230
Mr. Speaker, the horrendous treatment of prisoners of conscience in
China's legal system is legendary. Courtrooms are closed to families.
Defense lawyers are imprisoned if they defend their clients vigorously.
And the judges themselves make their decisions based on orders from the
Communist Party, not based upon the law or the facts of the case.
The other failure of the Chinese State to allow freedom of expression
and religion is only exacerbated by the treatment of prisoners upon
their arrival in forced labor camps. Prisoners of conscience are forced
to work under horrendous, life-threatening conditions for years on end,
often with little or no contact with their families.
Thanks to the groundbreaking work of former political prisoner, our
friend Harry Wu, we now have documentation that political prisoners
have been forced to labor in dangerous mines and in toxic chemical
factories with no protective clothing. Other prisoners of conscience
are forced to work on assembly lines for up to 18 hours a day,
generating cheap clothing and other products destined for sale in the
United States and other developed Nations.
Despite two different agreements between the United States and China
on the forced labor issue in the early 1990s, prison labor products
continue to flow into our Nation and are sold by some of America's
largest retailers.
It is also important to remember, Mr. Speaker, that many people are
dispatched to the Laogai prison labor system without any trial
whatsoever. Tens of thousands of Falun Gong members have been sent
involuntarily to psychiatric institutions and other labor camps. Upon
arrival, they have been subjected to forced labor, cruel beatings,
violent torture, and even death.
Mr. Speaker, our resolution once again puts Congress firmly on record
against the Laogai prison labor system, and it demands that the Chinese
open up their prisons and work camps to international inspectors. Our
resolution also calls on the United States to aggressively implement
laws prohibiting the importation of forced labor products.
Mr. Speaker, the existence of the Soviet Gulag is now acknowledged as
one of the darkest chapters of modern Russian history. When the history
of Communist rule in China will be written, maybe 50 years from now,
China's Laogai prison labor system will undoubtedly be treated as a
tragic and despicable act perpetrated by the Chinese leadership upon
the people of China.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
I thank my good friend the gentleman from California (Mr. Lantos) for
his very eloquent statement. This is an issue that very few Americans,
very few lawmakers are really aware of, and it is about time the gross
cruelty of the Laogai become much more well-known and action needs to
be taken.
Mr. WOLF. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairman Hyde and
Ranking Member Lantos for expediting the consideration of H. Con. Res.
294, which condemns the Laogai prison system in China. I would also
like to thank the 44 cosponsors of this resolution.
This system of over 1,000 prisons, camps and mental institutions
serves as one of the Chinese Communist Party's main tools of political
and religious repression. Chinese citizens held in these prisons have
no right to due process, no trial, and are often arrested because of
their political or religious views. Thousands of pro-democracy
activists, Internet dissidents, labor activists, and religious and
spiritual believers, including Han Chinese, Tibetans, Uyghurs,
Mongolians, and ``house church'' Christians are languishing in the
Laogai today.
The conditions in the Laogai prisons are abysmal. The system is based
on a philosophy of reform through labor. Prisoners are forced to work
extremely long hours in shocking conditions that often result in
serious injury and even death.
In direct violation of several international treaties of which China
is part, the Laogai prisoners are used as free labor to generate
products sold on the international market. Next time you buy a product
made in China, know that it may have been made by a Laogai prisoner in
slave-like conditions.
Even more horrifying is the regular organ harvesting conducted in the
prisons. Last week the deputy health minister of China even admitted to
this horrific practice. Thousands of foreign patients and Chinese
citizens receive organs harvested from Laogai prisoners. Can you
imagine receiving an organ cut from someone arrested and killed because
of their religious faith?
The Laogai prisons are truly modern day gulags.
I especially want to thank Harry Wu for his work in raising awareness
about the Laogai system. Harry knows the system all too well, after
spending 19 years behind bars in the Laogai after he was arrested
because of his political beliefs. Harry has been courageous and
relentless in his advocacy for human rights in China.
I am hopeful that this resolution will bring light to this abysmal
system and urge a unanimous vote in support.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker. I am attaching an exchange of
letters between Chairman Hyde and Chairman Thomas concerning H. Con.
Res. 294 ``Calling on the international community to condemn the
Laogai, the system of forced labor prison camps in the People's
Republic of China, as a tool for suppression maintained by the Chinese
Government'' for insertion into the Congressional Record.
Committee on Ways and Means,
House of Representatives,
Washington, DC, December 13, 2005.
Hon. Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman, Committee on International Relations, Rayburn House
Office Building, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Hyde: I am writing in regard to H. Con. Res.
294, which is scheduled for floor consideration on Wednesday,
December 14, 2005. The second clause of the resolution
relates to the use of prison labor in China.
As you know, the Committee on Ways and Means has
jurisdiction over matters concerning imports. The second
resolved clause calls on the Government of the United States
to fully implement its laws prohibiting the importation of
products made in Chinese forced labor camps, and thus falls
within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Ways and Means.
However, in order to expedite this resolution for floor
consideration, the Committee will forgo action on this
resolution. This is being done with the understanding that it
does not in any way prejudice the Committee with respect to
the appointment of conferees or its jurisdictional
prerogatives on this or similar legislation.
I would appreciate your response to this letter, confirming
this understanding with respect to H. Con. Res. 294, and
would ask that a copy of our exchange of letters on this
matter be included in the Congressional Record during floor
consideration.
Best regards,
Bill Thomas,
Chairman.
____
Committee on International Relations, House of
Representatives,
Washington, DC, December 13, 2005.
Hon. William M. Thomas,
Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for your letter concerning H.
Con. Res. 294, calling on the international community to
condemn the Laogai, the system of forced labor prison camps
in the People's Republic of China, as a tool for suppression
maintained by the Chinese Government. The bill has been
referred to the Committee on International Relations.
I concur with your statement concerning the jurisdiction of
the Ways and Means Committee over the second resolved clause
of the resolution, which refers to United States laws
prohibiting the importation of products made in Chinese
forced labor camps. I appreciate your willingness to forgo
consideration of the bill.
I also understand that this action on your part does not in
any way prejudice your Committee with respect to the
appointment of conferees or its jurisdictional prerogatives
on this or similar legislation. I will insert this exchange
of letters into the Congressional Record during the debate of
this bill.
[[Page H11629]]
With best wishes,
Sincerely,
Henry J. Hyde,
Chairman.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for
time, and I yield back the balance of our time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Reichert). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) that the House
suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res.
294, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and
nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will
be postponed.
____________________