[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 15 (Tuesday, February 2, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S447-S448]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 REAFFIRMING THE CENTRALITY OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND PRESS FREEDOM

  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. Res. 405 submitted earlier 
today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 405) reaffirming the centrality of 
     freedom of expression and press freedom as cornerstones of 
     United States foreign policy and United States efforts to 
     promote individual rights, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motion to reconsider be 
laid upon the table with no intervening action or debate, and any 
statements be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 405) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 405

       Whereas Google announced on January 12, 2010, the mid-
     December 2009 discovery that it had been victimized by a 
     highly sophisticated and targeted cyber attack on its 
     corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted 
     in the theft of its intellectual property;
       Whereas Google also announced it had evidence to suggest 
     that a primary goal of the attackers was accessing the Gmail 
     accounts of Chinese human rights activists, and that the 
     evidence revealed separate attempts to penetrate Gmail 
     accounts of Chinese human rights activists, journalists, and 
     dissidents in the United States, Europe, and China;
       Whereas the targeting of Google is believed to be part of a 
     larger effort to access the computer networks of at least 34 
     companies, including major financial, defense, media, and 
     technology firms and research institutions in the United 
     States;
       Whereas this attack was one in a series of attempts to 
     exploit security flaws and illegally access computer networks 
     of individuals and institutions through the clandestine 
     installation of phishing and malware technology;
       Whereas the 2009 ``Report to Congress of the US-China 
     Economic and Security Review Commission'' stated that ``a 
     significant and increasing body of circumstantial and 
     forensic evidence strongly indicates the involvement of 
     Chinese state and state-supported entities'' in malicious 
     computer activities against the United States;
       Whereas approximately 338,000,000 Internet users in China 
     represent the largest population of Internet users worldwide, 
     and the Government of China employs a sophisticated, multi-
     layered, and wide-ranging apparatus to curtail Internet 
     freedom, as detailed in the 2009 ``Freedom on the Net'' 
     report by the Freedom House organization;
       Whereas Article 35 of the constitution of the People's 
     Republic of China guarantees freedom of speech, assembly, 
     association, and publication;
       Whereas authorities in China employ legal and economic 
     means to coerce Internet service providers, web hosting 
     firms, and mobile phone companies to delete and censor online 
     content and discussions created by Chinese users;
       Whereas the Government of China requires domestic Chinese 
     and foreign companies with subsidiaries in China, including 
     Google, to adjust their business practices to allow increased 
     filtering and supervision by the Government of China, 
     restricting content allowed by technology-based products, and 
     censoring data available on search engines;
       Whereas, in 2003, the Government of China implemented the 
     Golden Shield Project to control access and information on 
     the Internet on grounds of public safety, including through 
     protocol address blocking, domain name system filtering and 
     redirection, uniform resource locator filtering, packet 
     filtering, connection resets, and other online methods that 
     could amount to censorship of high-value speech;
       Whereas the Government of China frequently blocks United 
     States international broadcasting by Radio Free Asia (RFA) 
     and Voice of America (VOA), despite the unimpeded broadcast 
     in the United States of state-run media outlets in China, 
     China Central Television, and China Radio International;
       Whereas, as of December 1, 2009, China had imprisoned 24 
     traditional and online journalists, accounting for nearly 20 
     percent of all imprisoned journalists worldwide at that time, 
     according to the annual prison census of the Committee to 
     Protect Journalists;
       Whereas, following riots in the Xinjiang region of China in 
     July 2009, more than 50 Uighur-language Internet forums were 
     closed and communications were cut in Urumqi, China, and 
     foreign journalists visiting the area were closely monitored 
     by the authorities;
       Whereas, during the Summer 2008 Olympics in Beijing, limits 
     were placed on freedom of expression and media coverage, 
     contrary to

[[Page S448]]

     previous commitments made by the Government of China to the 
     International Olympic Committee;
       Whereas ill-defined charges such as ``subversion of the 
     government'' and ``disseminating rumors'' serve as the legal 
     basis to sentence journalists, bloggers, and others who 
     express or disseminate views critical of the Government of 
     China; and
       Whereas, on January 21, 2010, Secretary of State Hillary 
     Clinton pledged enhanced United States support for Internet 
     freedom, saying, ``We stand for a single internet where all 
     of humanity has equal access to knowledge and ideas . . . 
     countries that restrict free access to information or violate 
     the basic rights of internet users risk walling themselves 
     off from the progress of the next century.'': Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) reaffirms the centrality of freedom of expression and 
     press freedom as cornerstones of United States foreign policy 
     and United States efforts to promote individual rights;
       (2) expresses serious concern over ongoing official efforts 
     in many countries to restrict speech and expression, 
     including attempts to censor, restrict, and monitor access to 
     the Internet;
       (3) welcomes the diplomatic initiative announced by 
     Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on January 21, 2010, to 
     encourage Internet freedom globally by ``supporting the 
     development of new tools that enable citizens to exercise 
     their rights of free expression by circumventing politically 
     motivated censorship . . . with a focus on implementing these 
     programs as efficiently and effectively as possible'';
       (4) condemns the far-reaching cyber attacks allegedly 
     launched from China against Google, at least 34 other 
     companies, and numerous individuals discovered in December 
     2009;
       (5) calls on the Government of China to conduct a thorough 
     review of these cyber intrusions, and to make the 
     investigation and its results transparent;
       (6) pays tribute to the professional and citizen 
     journalists who persevere in their dedication to report in 
     China;
       (7) urges companies to engage in responsible business 
     practices in the face of efforts by foreign governments to 
     restrict the free flow of information by refusing to aid in 
     the curtailment of free expression; and
       (8) calls on the President and the Secretary of State to 
     develop means by which the United States Government can more 
     rapidly identify, publicize, and respond to threats against 
     freedom of press and freedom of expression around the world, 
     including through support of new and existing censorship 
     circumvention technology.

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