[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 84 (Monday, June 8, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S6273]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




SENATE RESOLUTION 171--COMMENDING THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SACRIFICED THEIR 
  PERSONAL FREEDOMS TO BRING ABOUT DEMOCRATIC CHANGE IN THE PEOPLE'S 
   REPUBLIC OF CHINA AND EXPRESSING SYMPATHY FOR THE FAMILIES OF THE 
PEOPLE WHO WERE KILLED, WOUNDED, OR IMPRISONED, ON THE OCCASION OF THE 
 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE TIANANMEN SQUARE MASSACRE IN BEIJING, CHINA, 
                      FROM JUNE 3 THROUGH 4, 1989

  Mr. INHOFE (for himself, Mr. Brown, Mr. Graham, Mr. Kyl, Mr. Coburn, 
Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Vitter, Mr. Webb, Mr. Brownback, Mr. 
Martinez, Mr. Bunning, Mr. Udall of Colorado, and Mr. Cardin) submitted 
the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

                              S. Res. 171

       Whereas freedom of expression, assembly, association, and 
     religion are fundamental rights that all people should be 
     able to possess and enjoy;
       Whereas, in April 1989, in a demonstration of democratic 
     progress, thousands of students took part in peaceful 
     protests against the communist government of the People's 
     Republic of China in the capital city of Beijing;
       Whereas, throughout the month of May 1989, the students, in 
     peaceful demonstrations, drew more people, young and old and 
     from all walks of life, into central Beijing to demand better 
     democracy, basic freedoms of speech and assembly, and an end 
     to corruption;
       Whereas, from June 3 through 4, 1989, the Government of 
     China ordered members of the People's Liberation Army to 
     enter Beijing and clear Tiananmen Square (located in central 
     Beijing) by lethal force;
       Whereas, by June 7, 1989, the Red Cross of China reported 
     that the People's Liberation Army had killed more than 300 
     people in Beijing, although foreign journalists who witnessed 
     the events estimate that thousands of people were killed and 
     thousands more wounded;
       Whereas more than 20,000 people in China were arrested and 
     detained without trial, due to their suspected involvement in 
     the protests at Tiananmen Square;
       Whereas, according to the Department of State, the 
     Government of China has worked to censor information about 
     the massacre at Tiananmen Square by blocking Internet sites 
     and other media outlets, along with other sensitive 
     information that would be damaging to the Government of 
     China;
       Whereas the Government of China has continued to deny basic 
     human rights, such as freedom of speech and religion;
       Whereas, during the 2008 Olympic Games, the Government of 
     China promised to provide the international media covering 
     the Olympic Games with the same access given the media at all 
     the other Olympic Games, but denied access to certain 
     internet sites and media outlets in attempts to censor free 
     speech;
       Whereas the Department of State Human Rights Report for 
     2008 found that the Government of China had increased already 
     severe cultural and religious suppression of ethnic 
     minorities in Tibetan areas and the Xinjiang Uighur 
     Autonomous Region, detained and harassed dissidents and 
     journalists, and maintained tight controls on freedom of 
     speech and the Internet;
       Whereas the United States Commission on International 
     Religious Freedom in 2009 stated, ``The Chinese government 
     continues to engage in systematic and egregious violations of 
     the freedom of religion or belief, with religious activities 
     tightly controlled and some religious adherents detained, 
     imprisoned, fined, beaten, and harassed.''; and
       Whereas the China Aid Association reported that in 2007, 
     Christians were detained or arrested and Christian house 
     church groups were persecuted by the Government of China: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) commends the people who demonstrated at Tiananmen 
     Square and elsewhere in the People's Republic of China in 
     1989, many of whom sacrificed their lives and freedom to--
       (A) bring about democratic change in China; and
       (B) gain freedom of expression, assembly, association, and 
     religion for the people of China;
       (2) expresses its sympathy for the families of the people 
     who were killed, wounded, or imprisoned due to their 
     involvement in the peaceful protests in Tiananmen Square in 
     Beijing, China from June 3 through 4, 1989;
       (3) condemns the ongoing human rights abuses by the 
     Government of China;
       (4) calls on the Government of China to--
       (A) release all prisoners that are--
       (i) still in captivity as a result of their involvement in 
     the events from June 3 through 4, 1989, at Tiananmen Square; 
     and
       (ii) imprisoned without cause;
       (B) allow freedom of speech and access to information, 
     especially information regarding the events at Tiananmen 
     Square in 1989; and
       (C) cease all harassment, intimidation, and unjustified 
     imprisonment of--
       (i) members of religious and minority groups; and
       (ii) people who disagree with policies of the Government of 
     China;
       (5) supports efforts by free speech activists in China and 
     elsewhere who are working to overcome censorship (including 
     censorship of the Internet) and the chilling effect of 
     censorship; and
       (6) urges the President to continue to support peaceful 
     advocates of free speech around the world.

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