[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 91 (Thursday, June 12, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H5343-H5344]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RECIPROCAL ACCESS TO TIBET ACT

  (Mr. McGOVERN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, today, I rise to introduce the Reciprocal 
Access to Tibet Act, H.R. 4851. This bipartisan bill promotes access to 
Tibetan areas of China for U.S. officials, journalists, and average 
citizens. Currently, travel restrictions on Tibet are more severe than 
for any other provincial-level entity of China.
  These restrictions have negative consequences for both U.S. citizens 
and Tibetans. After an October 2013 bus crash with Americans on board, 
U.S. consular officers faced prolonged delays in obtaining access to 
Tibet, hindering their ability to serve Americans in distress; and 
restricted access to Tibet leaves Tibetans in virtual isolation from 
the world community, limiting international exchange and the ability to 
objectively assess the human rights situation there.
  These restrictions are not reciprocal to the access that Chinese 
visitors generally enjoy in the U.S. As reciprocity is the basis for 
diplomacy, this bill renders inadmissible to the U.S. Chinese officials 
who design and implement these restrictions.
  I urge my colleagues to join Congressman Pitts and me in promoting 
freer access to Tibet.

                 Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2014

  Purpose: To promote the freedom to travel by U.S. diplomats, 
journalists, and citizens in Tibetan areas of the People's Republic of 
China.
  What it does: Prohibits visa access to the United States to Chinese 
officials in `senior leadership positions' from provinces with Tibetan 
populations, and others, if the Chinese government allows less U.S. 
access to Tibetan areas than it gives to non-Tibetan areas of the 
People's Republic of China (PRC).
  How it works:
  1. Report on access and leaders. The State Department is required to 
give Congress a report on (a) the level of access granted by Chinese 
authorities to U.S. diplomats, journalists, and tourists to Tibetan 
areas in the PRC, including a comparison with non-Tibetan areas, and 
(b) a list of `senior leadership positions' in Tibetan areas, including 
at the provincial level and some at the national level.
  2. Visa ban. Chinese officials are not eligible for visa entry to the 
U.S., as follows--
  `Senior leaders' from the Tibet Autonomous Region, if the Tibet 
Tourism Bureau permit has not been revoked;
  `Senior leaders' from Sichuan, Qinghai, Yunnan and Gansu, if level of 
U.S. access to Tibetan areas in these provinces is more restricted than 
U.S. access to non-Tibetan areas;
  `Senior leaders' at the regional and national level, if Tibet Tourism 
Bureau permit has not been revoked and if U.S. access to Tibetan areas 
in the four provinces is more restricted than U.S. access to non-
Tibetan areas.
  National interest waiver. The bill allows the Secretary of State to 
waive the prohibition if determined to be in the national interest.
  Definitions. The report defines Tibetan areas as the Tibet Autonomous 
Region and the jurisdictions within the provinces of Sichuan, Qinghai, 
Yunnan and Gansu designated as autonomous for Tibetans. It provides 
definitions for `senior leadership positions' at the county, 
prefecture, provincial, and national level.
  Non-binding language on visa reciprocity. Expresses Sense of the 
House that the Secretary should take into account the level of access 
granted to Tibetan areas when granting visas to people from the PRC to 
come to the U.S.

    [Prepared by the International Campaign on Tibet June 12, 2014]

                Fact Sheet: Access to Tibet by Americans


              What China says: Tibet is open to foreigners

       The government of China sees tourism as a pillar of Tibet's 
     economy. Chinese officials have said that Tibet is open to 
     foreign visitors:
       ``[I]f a foreign official, reporter or scholar wants to go 
     to Tibet as an individual to increase his or her 
     understanding of the Tibetan people and their culture, we 
     will welcome them.''--Zhu Weiqun, executive vice minister of 
     the United Front Work Department, 2012.1
       ``Many foreigners, including reporters, have traveled to 
     Tibet for work, tours and interviews. I believe we'll see 
     more foreigners coming to Tibet as the region develops and 
     conditions improve constantly.''--Padma Trinley, chairman of 
     the Tibet Autonomous Region legislature, 2013.2
       ``We hope that (people) from all fields within the country 
     and outside go to Tibet often to look around, study and 
     travel, but as to some other aspects, we are not that 
     welcoming.''--Qiangba Puncog, former chairman of the Tibet 
     Autonomous Region legislature.3


        What China does: Restrict access to Tibet by foreigners

       In reality, American tourists, diplomats and journalists 
     still face many barriers to get into Tibet. All foreigners 
     are required to get a special permit to enter the Tibet 
     Autonomous Region (TAR)--a permit that is not required for 
     any other provincial-level entity of the People's Republic of 
     China. Travel to Tibetan areas outside the TAR is also 
     tightly controlled.
     Restrictions on U.S. tourists
       American tourists are required to obtain the `Tibetan 
     Tourist Permit' to enter the TAR. The permits can only be 
     obtained through a Chinese government-run or -approved travel 
     agency. In some cases, and depending on the area in Tibet one 
     wants to visit, additional permits such as the ``Tibet Group 
     Visa'', ``Alien's Travel Permit'' and ``Military Permit'' are 
     required.4
       The State Department advises American travelers that 
     ``permits are not always granted'' and that at ``certain 
     times the PRC may not allow foreigners to enter an area it 
     deems restricted.'' 5 It adds that the ``TAR 
     remains a sensitive area for travel, and even when travel to 
     Tibet is allowed, usually only Lhasa and part of Shan Nan are 
     open to foreigners.'' 6
       During certain times, the Chinese government closes off the 
     entire TAR to foreign tourists for months, often with no 
     warning.7 Usually such closures coincide with what 
     the Chinese government claims are ``sensitive periods'' such 
     as during March, the anniversary of the Tibetan uprising in 
     1959,8 or during the time of the Communist Party 
     sessions in Beijing.9 The Chinese government also 
     imposes arbitrary rules on obtaining the Tibet travel permit. 
     For example in 2012 and 2013 only groups of no less than five 
     people could apply.10 In 2014, this rule was then 
     said to be no longer in effect, but it was reported that 
     tours to Mount Kailash (a holy mountain and pilgrimage site 
     for Hindus, Jains and Buddhists) and far western Tibet were 
     not permitted at all after May 23, 2014.11
     Restrictions on U.S. journalists
       American journalists have difficulty reporting from Tibet, 
     and are subject to many of the same restrictions faced by 
     tourists. The Washington Post reported that ``[T]here are 
     more foreign journalists in North Korea than there are in 
     Tibet.'' 12
       The State Department has reported that ``[t]he Chinese 
     government severely restricted travel by foreign journalists 
     to Tibetan areas. Additionally, the Chinese government 
     subjected Tibetans who spoke to foreign reporters, attempted 
     to provide information to persons outside the country, . . . 
     to harassment or detention.'' 13 In 2013 a few 
     foreign journalists could get into Tibet only because they 
     accepted a government-sponsored tour which made any 
     independent reporting difficult. The State Department quotes 
     Australian Journalist Rowan Callick saying, ``I had accepted 
     an invitation from the State Council Information Office--the 
     media arm of China's cabinet--to visit Tibet, since there is 
     no other way in which journalists can enter without 
     subterfuge.'' 14 During a February 2014 visit to 
     China, Secretary of State John Kerry urged China's leaders to 
     allow journalists, diplomats, and other observers 
     unrestricted access to China's Tibetan areas.15
     Restrictions on U.S. diplomats
       Diplomats face similar restrictions on access to Tibetan 
     areas, limiting their ability to do reporting, monitoring and 
     consular work. The State Department reported that its 
     officials submitted more than 16 requests for diplomatic 
     access to the TAR between May 2011 and November 2013, but 
     only two were granted. Its report added, ``The Chinese 
     government . . . repeatedly prevented foreign diplomatic 
     personnel from visiting Tibetan areas outside the TAR for 
     which permission was not officially required.'' 16
       The Department also reported ``foreign diplomats who 
     legally traveled in Tibetan areas outside the TAR . . . were 
     repeatedly approached by local police and sometimes forced to 
     leave without reasonable explanation.''17
       The Chinese government has permitted two visits by two U.S. 
     Ambassadors to Lhasa in recent years--by Ambassador Gary 
     Locke in 2013 and Ambassador Jon Huntsman in 2010. Each was a 
     three-day, government-organized trip, which was highly 
     controlled,18 and they did not visit areas in the 
     TAR outside of Lhasa. On his visit, Ambassador Locke urged 
     Beijing to open up Tibet to foreign diplomats, journalists 
     and tourists.19


                                ENDNOTES

       1 ``Chinese official talks with EU 
     representatives on Tibet issue,'' China Tibet Online, 
     February 8, 2012, http://

[[Page H5344]]

     www.china embassy.ee/eng/ztlm/ zgxz/t903102.htm
       2 ``Tibet welcomes more visitors from abroad,'' 
     China Daily Europe, March 13, 2013, http://ca.china-
     embassy.org/ eng/kxz/t1022572.htm
       3 ``China says no to foreign rights monitors for 
     Tibet,'' Reuters, November 9, 2012, http://www.reuters.com/
article/2012/11/09/us-china-congress-tibet-idUSBRE8A80 
     QP20121109
       4 ``Disneyfication of Tibet,'' Washington 
     Monthly, January/February 2014, www.washington monthly.com/
     magazine
       5 State Department travel advisory for China, 
     travel.state.gov/content/ passports/English/country/
     china.html
       6 Ibid
       7 ``Tibet again off limits to tourists,'' Travel 
     Weekly, September 2012, http://www.travel weekly.com/ Asia-
     Travel/Tibet-again-off-limits-to-foreign-tourists/
       8 ``China closes Tibet to tourists for 
     anniversary of riots,'' The Guardian, March 7, 2011 http://
www.the guardian.com/ world/2011/mar/07/china-closes- tibet-
     tourist-visas
       9 ``China says no to foreign rights monitors for 
     Tibet,'' Reuters, November 9, 2012, http://www.reuters.com/
article/2012/11/09/us-china-congress-tibet- idUSBRE8A8 
     0QP20121109
       10 Ibid
       11 ``Explore Tibet, a travel agency based in 
     Lhasa, http://www.exploretibet.com/Essential-Info/Tibet-
Visa-Permits/
       12 ``North Korea is more accessible to foreign 
     journalists than Tibet is,'' Washington Post, December 17, 
     2013 http://www.washington post.com/blogs/world views/wp/
     2013/ 12/17/north-korea-is-more-accessible- to-foreign-
     journalists-than-tibet-is/
       13 State Department Country Reports on Human 
     Rights Practices for 2013, http://www.state.gov/i/drl/rls/
 hrrpt/human rights report/index.htm? dynamic_load_id= 
     220187&year= 2013#wrapper
       14 Ibid
       15 State Department Daily Press Briefing, 
     February 25, 2014 http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2014/02/
222442.htm#CHINA2
       16 State Department Country Reports on Human 
     Rights Practices for 2013, http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/
hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm? dynamic_load_ 
     id=220187&year=2013 #wrapper
       17 State Department Country Reports on Human 
     Rights Practices for 2011, http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/
hrrpt/2011/eap/187481.htm
       18 ``Ambassador to China makes rare visit to 
     Tibet,'' CBSNews.com, June 27, 2013, http://www.cbsnews.com/
news/us-ambassador-to-china-gary-locke-makes-rare-visit-to-
tibet-urges-beijing-to-open-region-up/
       19Ibid

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