[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.

                          ____________________