[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 165 (Monday, October 29, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H12109-H12112]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  CALLING ON CHINA TO RESPECT THE HUMAN RIGHTS OF REFUGEES FROM NORTH 
                                 KOREA

  Mr. TANNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 234) calling on the Government of 
the People's Republic of China to respect the human rights of refugees 
from North Korea.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The text of the concurrent resolution is as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 234

       Whereas the Government of North Korea is a dictatorial 
     regime that commits gross human rights violations against the 
     North Korean people;
       Whereas the Government of North Korea attempts to exert 
     absolute control over the lives of North Koreans through the 
     use of deplorable systems of punishment and torture and by 
     restricting the flow of information;
       Whereas the Government of North Korea engages in the 
     systematic torture, unlawful detainment, and mass murder of 
     tens of thousands of political prisoners, defectors, and 
     refugees, employing the world's most brutal concentration 
     camp system;
       Whereas the lack of freedom, government persecution, and 
     policies of selective starvation have driven hundreds of 
     thousands of North Koreans to northeast China, fleeing for 
     their lives from prison camps or political persecution;
       Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China 
     forcibly repatriates North Korean refugees and imprisons 
     foreign aid workers who try to assist North Korean refugees 
     inside China;
       Whereas to encourage these repatriation efforts, Chinese 
     central government authorities assign local public security 
     bureaus in northeastern China a target number of North 
     Koreans that they must detain in order to receive favorable 
     work evaluations;
       Whereas the refugees returned to North Korea by the 
     Government of the People's Republic of China face 
     imprisonment, brutal persecution, or execution;
       Whereas up to 90 percent of North Korean women refugees 
     fall prey to traffickers in China who sell the refugees into 
     sexual slavery;
       Whereas the United Nations Convention relating to the 
     Status of Refugees, done at Geneva on July 28, 1951 (189 UNTS 
     150), as modified by the Protocol relating to the Status of 
     Refugees, done at New York on January 31, 1967 (606 UNTS 
     267), defines a refugee as a person who, ``owing to well-
     founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, 
     religion, nationality, membership of a particular social 
     group or political opinion, is outside the country of his 
     nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is 
     unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that 
     country'';
       Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China 
     violates its obligations under the United Nations Convention 
     relating to the Status of Refugees and the Protocol relating 
     to the Status of Refugees by impeding access to the United 
     Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and 
     continually classifying North Korean refugees as ``economic 
     migrants'', denying them asylum and forcibly returning them 
     to North Korea without the review to which they are entitled;
       Whereas the UNHCR fails to robustly press the Government of 
     the People's Republic of China to grant the UNHCR access to 
     North Korean refugees and has failed in initiate a binding 
     arbitration proceeding against the Government of the People's 
     Republic of China pursuant to the terms of Article XIV of the 
     Agreement on Upgrading of the UNHCR Mission in the People's 
     Republic of China to the UNHCR Branch Office in the People's 
     Republic of China, done at Geneva on December 1, 1995, 
     governing refugee access and the refugee designation process;
       Whereas the UNHCR's failure to bring such an arbitration 
     proceeding was determined by the United States Congress in 
     the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (Public Law 108-
     333; 22 U.S.C. 7801 et seq.) to constitute a ``a significant 
     abdication by the UNHCR of one of its core 
     responsibilities'';
       Whereas the failure of the People's Republic of China to 
     abide by its treaty obligations toward the United Nations is 
     a critical means by which the Government of North Korea is 
     allowed to subject the people of North Korea to persecution 
     and effectively imprison them within its borders;
       Whereas Special Envoy for Human Rights in North Korea Jay 
     Lefkowitz testified before the House Foreign Affairs 
     Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, and the Global Environment 
     on March 1, 2007, that ``the fact that the Government of 
     China is not honoring its international commitments, is not 
     providing genuine access as it is required to the U.N. High 
     Commissioner on Human Rights, I think is really the single 
     most significant issue we have outside of the North Korean 
     Government's own emigration policies that is a barrier now to 
     the free movement of people in that region'';
       Whereas the International Parliamentarians Coalition for 
     North Korean Refugees' Human Rights, a coalition of 
     parliamentarians from across the globe, met in Seoul, South 
     Korea, on August 29, 2007, and called on the international 
     community to increase its efforts to protect North Korean 
     refugees; and
       Whereas the Korean-American community, acting through 
     various religious and civic organizations, including the 
     ``Let My People Go Campaign'', has worked to bring awareness 
     to the plight of the hundreds of thousands North Korean 
     refugees living in China: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) strongly encourages the Government of the People's 
     Republic of China to honor its obligations under the United 
     Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, done 
     at Geneva on July 28, 1951 (189 UNTS 150), as modified by the 
     Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees, done at New York 
     on January 31, 1967 (606 UNTS 267), by--
       (A) halting the forced repatriation of North Koreans who 
     face a well-founded fear of persecution if they are returned 
     to North Korea;
       (B) making genuine efforts to identify and protect the 
     refugees among the North Korean migrants encountered by 
     Chinese authorities, including providing refugees with a 
     reasonable opportunity to request asylum; and

[[Page H12110]]

       (C) granting the United Nations High Commissioner for 
     Refugees unfettered access to such refugees to determine 
     their status and the degree of assistance to which they are 
     entitled; and
       (2) recognizes the efforts of the Korean-American community 
     for bringing attention to the plight of North Korean 
     refugees.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Tennessee (Mr. Tanner) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-
Lehtinen) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Tennessee.


                             General Leave

  Mr. TANNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Tennessee?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. TANNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume 
in speaking on behalf and in support of this resolution.
  I would first like to thank our colleague, the ranking member of the 
Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade, Ed Royce of 
California, for introducing this resolution.
  North Korea is quite literally, as we know from satellite images, one 
of the darkest places on Earth. One can see that when these images are 
taken from space at night. It has an underdeveloped economy which 
cannot supply even the most basic utilities. People there live under 
this darkness.
  It's well-known that the North Korean regime regularly uses 
imprisonment, forced labor, torture and execution to intimidate the 
people into submission. Therefore, many try to flee their country each 
year, thousands crossing into northeastern China.
  Some are driven by starvation or desperate poverty. Some flee because 
they fear persecution for their thoughts and beliefs.
  I would say that given this situation most North Koreans, given the 
choice, would leave. So the regime clamps down ruthlessly to stop this 
flow of refugees.
  Yet, the sad fact is that those who successfully make it may face 
further human rights abuses by the Government of the People's Republic 
of China. Beijing is fearful of attracting too many refugees. So it 
tries to disincentivize the North Koreans.
  The government sometimes imprisons these people who cross into China; 
and in an attempt to avoid its responsibilities under the United 
Nations Conventions and Protocols that govern the status of refugees, 
to which the PRC is a signatory, China falsely labels North Korean 
refugees as economic migrants.
  This cynical excuse Beijing uses to thwart the legitimate needs of 
these refugees will not allow the U.N. High Commissioner of Refugees 
access to northeastern China to assess the welfare of the North Koreans 
who are there.
  The disturbing truth is that those in China go to great lengths to 
attract North Korean refugees through sex and labor trafficking.
  H. Con. Res. 234 calls on Beijing to stop this awful charade and live 
up to its moral and legal obligations. It further demands that China 
stop repatriating North Korean refugees; that it honor the United 
Nations Conventions and honor the status of refugees; and that it 
provide unfettered access to the U.N. High Commissioner on this 
subject.
  Mr. Speaker, I support this resolution.
  North Korea is quite literally one of the darkest places on Earth. 
Satellite images show us that North Korea at night is covered in an 
eerie black, in sharp contrast to the bright lights emanating from the 
lively, modern cities that dot the rest of North East Asia.
  This dramatic image is stark evidence of North Korea's backwards, 
underdeveloped economy, which cannot supply even the most basic 
utilities.
  But it is also a cold reminder of the horrific conditions that the 
North Korean people, who live under the cover of this darkness, must 
endure.
  It is well known that the North Korean regime regularly uses 
imprisonment, forced labor, torture, and execution to intimidate the 
people of North Korea into submission.
  It is no wonder that so many North Koreans attempt to flee their 
country. Each year, thousands and thousands cross the border into 
Northeastern China.
  Some are driven by starvation or desperate poverty. Some flee because 
they fear persecution for their thoughts, beliefs, or simply because a 
member of the regime has arbitrarily labeled them a risk.
  Pyongyang knows that given the choice most North Koreans would leave, 
and so the regime clamps down ruthlessly to try and stop the flow, 
making an already dangerous trek even more perilous.
  Yet, the sad fact is that those who successfully brave the hazards of 
the border crossing face further human rights abuses by the government 
of the People's Republic of China on the other side.
  Beijing is fearful of attracting too many refugees, and so it 
brutally tries to create disincentives for North Korean refugees.
  The government imprisons North Koreans who cross into China, 
subjecting them to terrible conditions and abuse, only to repatriate 
them to North Korea, where they face likely torture or execution.
  In an attempt to avoid its responsibilities under the United Nations 
Conventions and Protocols that govern the status of refugees, to which 
the PRC is a signatory, China falsely labels North Korean refugees 
``economic migrants.''
  Using this cynical excuse Beijing stubbornly refuses to provide for 
the legitimate needs of these refugees and will not allow the U.N. High 
Commissioner of Refugees access to Northeastern China to assess the 
welfare of North Koreans there.
  The disturbing truth is that there are those in China who go to great 
lengths to attract North Korean refugees, through sex and labor 
trafficking.
  H. Con. Res. 234 calls on Beijing to stop this awful charade, and 
live up to its moral and legal obligations. It demands that China stop 
repatriating North Korean refugees, that it honor the United Nations 
Conventions that govern the status of refugees, and that it provide 
unfettered access to the U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees so that 
these people who have suffered so terribly can finally receive the 
protection and fair treatment they so richly need and deserve.
  I strongly support this resolution and encourage my colleagues to do 
the same.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the Congressional Gold Medal ceremony that was held for 
His Holiness the Dalai Lama earlier this month served to remind us all 
once again that the Chinese leadership has a long way to go before it 
becomes a responsible stakeholder in the international community.
  Nowhere is this more apparent than in the callous disregard of 
Beijing of its international treaty obligations with regard to 
refugees, both North Korean and Tibetan.
  The international press has reported incidents of Chinese border 
guards shooting and killing both North Korean and Tibetan refugees as 
they sought to flee China. These reprehensible acts must stop at once.
  Earlier this month, Beijing demonstrated once again its continued 
contempt for the international refugee conventions. Chinese police 
entered the South Korean international school in Beijing to drag North 
Korean refugees from their hiding places. North Korean refugees had 
sought sanctuary there.
  In the process, the Chinese police roughed up South Korean diplomats 
who were sent by their government to assist these refugees.
  I call on Beijing to act in accordance with the international refugee 
conventions that it has signed and to end the disrespect that it has 
shown toward the diplomats of a major ally of the United States.
  This resolution, put forward by my good friend, Ed Royce of 
California, is particularly timely and essential with the approach of 
the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. Olympic hosts should not include 
oppressors of refugees.
  The forced repatriation of North Korean refugees is both 
irresponsible and immoral. If ever there was a refugee population who 
faced the immediate threat of persecution upon return to their 
homeland, it is the tens of thousands of North Korean refugees now 
hiding in China.
  The office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR, must 
also do a much better job in holding Beijing accountable for its 
reckless disregard of its obligations. If Beijing does not begin to 
address this urgent issue in a

[[Page H12111]]

responsible way, then there should be dire consequences.
  Television viewers around the world next summer could possibly see on 
their screens the scene of a North Korean woman with her baby seeking 
safe haven in an athletes' dormitory at the Olympic village as Chinese 
police ruthlessly pursue her.
  This resolution, therefore, Mr. Speaker, is of vital importance for 
the reaffirmation of our commitment to the protection of refugees and, 
most importantly, for the North Korean refugees themselves.
  I rise in strong support of Mr. Royce's resolution, and I urge my 
colleagues to do the same.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
author and the sponsor of this resolution, Mr. Royce of California.
  Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentlelady for yielding, 
and I want to take a moment and thank Chairman John Tanner, as well as 
of course Ranking Member Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Chairman Lantos for 
their support in bringing this bill to the floor of the House of 
Representatives.
  I would also like to thank Congresswoman Diane Watson. She is the 
coauthor of this resolution, and in August Congresswoman Watson and 
myself traveled to South Korea as Chair and vice-Chair of the U.S.-
Republic of Korea Interparliamentary Exchange. We also had an 
opportunity to go to North Korea at that time. In Seoul, South Korea, 
we held a day-long discussion with our counterparts in the National 
Assembly there in South Korea and took part in a forum of 
parliamentarians from across the globe. We had parliamentarians there 
from seven different countries to discuss the plight of North Korean 
refugees, and this resolution is a product of those discussions and 
what we learned from the defectors that we talked to, and we listened 
to the defectors during these hearings.
  Mr. Speaker, we're all too familiar with the miserable human rights 
conditions in North Korea, and I would just remind the Members of this 
body of reports by the State Department and NGOs that paint a very grim 
picture.
  There is a total denial of political, civil, and religious liberties. 
There is no dissent or criticism allowed of Kim Jong-Il. The media is 
tightly controlled there by the regime.
  Severe, severe physical abuse is inflicted on any citizen who 
violates these laws and restrictions. NGOs describe a system of 
concentration camps. They say this is akin to the Soviet gulags, and 
they house somewhere up to 200,000 inmates.
  Food shortages are a regular problem because the regime distributes 
food based on perceived loyalty and, of course, favors the ruling elite 
and the military.
  This dismal state has led a large number of North Koreans, perhaps as 
many as 300,000, to cross into China. There they seek food, and they're 
looking for work, and hopefully from their standpoint, they're looking 
for resettlement in South Korea. It is thought that nearly 75 percent 
of these refugees are women, and according to the NGOs that study this 
problem, 90 percent of those women end up trafficked.
  In northeast China, North Korean refugees live in constant fear of 
being rounded up by Chinese authorities, and this despite the 
international obligations that China is supposed to keep.
  China forcibly repatriates these refugees; and for many of them, it's 
effectively a death sentence. Some are shot on the spot. Some go to 
these concentration camps or work camps. Many of them live out their 
lives in these concentration camps.

                              {time}  1445

  The Government of North Korea deems leaving their country a crime, in 
some cases a capital offense. If not that, the expense is the gulag.
  China's mistreatment of these refugees is not new but has really 
intensified, according to the State Department, in the last couple of 
years. During 2006, several thousand North Koreans were forcibly 
detained and forcibly returned to North Korea, the State Department 
reports.
  As part of its stepped-up campaign of repatriation, Chinese 
authorities reportedly also have established new detention centers 
along the border with North Korea to accommodate greater numbers of 
North Korean prisoners prior to the repatriation. The Congressional-
Executive Commission on China, on which I serve, recently released its 
annual report finding that during the past 1 or 2 years the Chinese 
Government has intensified its efforts to forcibly repatriate North 
Korean refugees, in part as security preparation for the 2008 Olympic 
Games.
  These refugees deserve better. Certainly, Kim Chun-hee did. Ms. Kim 
is a North Korean woman in her 30s who sought refuge at a school in 
Beijing in December of 2005, only to be repatriated, this despite 
attempts by the United States and others to raise her case to the 
Chinese Government to convince the Chinese Government not to do this. 
To this day it is not known whether she was executed or whether she is 
still alive.
  There are thousands of similar stories. Those associated with 
humanitarian groups who assist North Korean refugees in northeast China 
are also targeted by Chinese officials, and this includes U.S. 
citizens. Last month, American businessman Steve Kim was released from 
a Chinese prison after serving 4 years. His supposed crime was helping 
North Korean refugees who had escaped their homeland and were hiding in 
China hoping to make their way to South Korea.
  Mr. Kim, who recently spoke on Capitol Hill about his experiences, 
recounted, ``When I was in prison, I saw North Korean defectors who I 
shared the prison cell with beaten to a pulp by prison guards.'' Now, 
this is in China. This is before they are sent back to North Korea. We 
have documented the kind of treatment they get when they are sent back.
  This resolution sends a strong message to Beijing. This practice must 
stop. Specifically, the resolution calls on China to honor its 
obligations under the 1951 U.N. convention relating to the status of 
refugees and its 1967 protocol, and to honor that by halting the forced 
repatriation of these refugees, terminating the practice of 
automatically classifying all North Korean border crossers as illegal 
economic migrants and granting the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees 
unfettered access to get into these areas to see these refugees.
  China is signed up to respect refugees. It is past time for them to 
live up to the protocols they have signed to do this. The human rights 
situation in North Korea is a nightmare. These human rights abuses are 
worthy of this House's attention, because North Koreans are suffering. 
Two million were killed at the hands of this regime over this last 
decade. They also tell us something about the regime we are expecting 
to carry out commitments under the Six-Party Talks on North Korea's 
nuclear weapons program. It tells you something about this regime.
  I will quote Andrei Sakharov, the Soviet dissident who once said, ``A 
country that does not respect the rights of its own people will not 
respect the rights of its neighbors.'' Teeing off that quote, Jay 
Lefkowitz, the State Department's Special Envoy for Human Rights in 
North Korea, wrote in The Wall Street Journal last year, ``North Korea 
is a prime example of a regime that doesn't respect either. It wouldn't 
have surprised Sakharov that a government that inflicts on its citizens 
repression reminiscent of the most cruel totalitarian rulers of the 
20th century is today counterfeiting U.S. currency, trafficking in 
narcotics, building a nuclear arsenal, and threatening other nations.''
  In testimony last week before the House Foreign Affairs Committee, 
Assistant Secretary Christopher Hill reported that he is moving the 
ball forward with North Korea in respect to disabling their nuclear 
program. I hope he is right. Part of the February agreement to do so 
involves a U.S. commitment to move toward full diplomatic relations 
with North Korea.
  The administration insists that it still has a clear eye on the North 
Korea human rights situation. However, the Congressional Research 
Service reports that Ambassador Hill increasingly has linked 
normalization of U.S.-North Korean relations solely to a satisfactory 
settlement of the nuclear issue. This body must let it be known that 
relations with North Korea will be far from normal as long as North 
Korea continues to treat its people as we have heard about today.

[[Page H12112]]

  I urge the passage of this important resolution.
  Mr. TANNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to Mr. 
Moran of Virginia.
  Mr. MORAN of Virginia. I thank Mr. Royce for bringing up this issue.
  Mr. Speaker, it's terribly important, it's all about man's inhumanity 
to mankind. Here China envisions itself becoming a superpower in the 
21st century, hosting the world's Olympics.
  We, in the United States, are buying tens of billions of dollars of 
goods from China. China has the opportunity to take its place among the 
nations of the world that matter, that do the right thing, that lead us 
into the future. What a terrific opportunity for China to show that it 
has a moral fiber, that it knows right from wrong, that it is not an 
amoral totalitarian state.
  It knows, beyond any shadow of a doubt, the horrific conditions 
within which the North Korean people exist today, barely surviving. 
Yet, out of total desperation, when they are able to escape North 
Korea, do the Chinese help? No. They make it worse. It's as though they 
have escaped from some purgatory into hell where they get beaten up by 
the Chinese and then sent back to North Korea, probably to be executed.
  This is a situation that just cries out for people around the world 
to speak up. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Royce has given us that 
opportunity in the House of Representatives today.
  Mr. DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Con. Res. 
234, which calls upon the People's Republic of China to abide by its 
obligations with respect to North Korean refugees.
  Mr. Speaker, the people of North Korea suffer under one of the most 
oppressive regimes on Earth. North Koreans enjoy few freedoms. Indeed, 
most aspects of daily life are dictated by government mandate. This 
bleak existence is punctuated by constant fear of the merciless tactics 
employed by the government to command subservience. To add insult to 
injury, North Korea suffers chronic food shortages. The food that is 
available is rationed out based on presumed loyalty to the state, not 
need.
  Not surprisingly, thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, have 
attempted to flee North Korea into China. I would assume almost all 
North Koreans would leave if given the option. The government of Kim 
Jong-Il must assume this as well, because it does everything in its 
power to dissuade North Koreans from doing so. Leaving North Korea is a 
crime. Those caught attempting to escape are beaten, imprisoned in 
concentration camps, or executed.
  Instead of recognizing North Koreans as political refugees, China 
labels them economic migrants. Instead of providing sanctuary, it hunts 
them down and, like the North Korean government, beats and imprisons 
them. Finally, they are forcibly repatriated to North Korea, even 
though this is often tantamount to a death sentence.
  The People's Republic of China is party to the United Nations 
Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol to 
that Convention. These are the international instruments that detail 
the protections for refugees. Despite this, China has not allowed 
United Nations agencies access to the North Koreans living in China, 
and its aforementioned treatment of North Korean refugees violates 
these international agreements.
  I thank my colleague Representative Ed Royce for introducing this 
legislation, and I join his call for China to live up to its 
humanitarian responsibilities with respect to North Korean refugees.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. TANNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hill). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Tanner) that the House 
suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Con. Res. 234.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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