[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 118 (Monday, July 15, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H5793-H5796]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
RECOGNIZING WIDENING THREATS TO FREEDOMS OF THE PRESS AND EXPRESSION
AROUND THE WORLD
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the
resolution (H. Res. 345) recognizing widening threats to freedoms of
the press and expression around the world, reaffirming the centrality
of a free and independent press to the health of democracy, and
reaffirming freedom of the press as a priority of the United States in
promoting democracy, human rights, and good governance in commemoration
of World Press Freedom Day on May 3, 2019, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
[[Page H5794]]
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 345
Whereas Article 19 of the United Nations Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, adopted at Paris, December 10,
1948, states, ``Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion
and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions
without interference and to seek, receive and impart
information and ideas through any media and regardless of
frontiers.'';
Whereas, in 1993, the United Nations General Assembly
proclaimed May 3 of each year as ``World Press Freedom
Day''--
(1) to celebrate the fundamental principles of freedom of
the press;
(2) to evaluate freedom of the press around the world;
(3) to defend the media against attacks on its
independence; and
(4) to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives
while working in their profession;
Whereas, on December 18, 2013, the United Nations General
Assembly adopted Resolution 68/163 on the safety of
journalists and the problem of impunity, which unequivocally
condemns all attacks on, and violence against, journalists
and media workers, including torture, extrajudicial killing,
enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, and intimidation
and harassment in conflict and nonconflict situations;
Whereas the theme for World Press Freedom Day 2019, is
``Media for Democracy: Journalism and Democracy in Times of
Disinformation'';
Whereas Thomas Jefferson, who recognized the importance of
the press in a constitutional republic, wisely declared, ``.
. . were it left to me to decide whether we should have a
government without newspapers, or newspapers without a
government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the
latter.'';
Whereas the Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act of 2009
(Public Law 111-166; 22 U.S.C. 2151 note), signed into law by
President Barack Obama in 2010, expanded the examination of
the freedom of the press around the world in the annual
country reports on human rights practices of the Department
of State;
Whereas the 2019 World Press Freedom Index, published by
Reporters Without Borders, warns, ``The number of countries
regarded as safe, where journalists can work in complete
security, continues to decline, while authoritarian regimes
tighten their grip on the media.'';
Whereas, Freedom House's publication ``Freedom in the World
2019'' noted that global freedom of expression has declined
each year for the past 13 years;
Whereas, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists,
in 2018--
(1) at least 54 journalists were killed around the world
for their work, of which at least 34 were singled out for
murder;
(2) the 2 deadliest countries for journalists on assignment
were Afghanistan and Syria;
(3) the most dangerous subject for a journalist to report
on was politics, followed by war;
(4) 251 journalists worldwide were in prison, with Turkey,
China, and Egypt responsible for more than half of the jailed
journalists;
(5) 13 percent of the journalists in jail were female, an
increase from 8 percent in 2017;
(6) 70 percent of the journalists who were imprisoned
around the world faced antistate charges, such as belonging
to or aiding groups deemed by authorities as terrorist
organizations; and
(7) the number of journalists imprisoned on charges of
false news rose to 28 globally, compared with 9 such
imprisonments in 2016;
Whereas the People's Republic of China maintains one of the
worst media environments in the world and seeks to curtail
political speech inside and outside the country including
by--
(1) targeting independent and foreign media in China
through systematic harassment including the denial of visas
to foreign journalists, imprisonment, the denial of medical
care to imprisoned journalists, and curtailing access to
legal representation;
(2) pervasively monitoring and censoring online and social
media content, including through the banning of virtual
private networks;
(3) using the full force of the State to stifle internal
dissent including dissent online, particularly dissent that
could lead to political change and content that criticizes
China's leaders, however trivial, reportedly even to the
point of censoring comparisons of Xi Jingping's looks with
Winnie the Pooh;
(4) spreading propaganda to foreign audiences through the
United Front Work Department and related activities;
(5) seeking to intimidate American-based journalists
working for Radio Free Asia and reporting on gross human
rights violations in China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous
Region by jailing or otherwise harassing members of their
families; and
(6) championing a ``sovereign Internet'' model and
exporting technology to enhance the ability of like-minded
authoritarian regimes to suppress dissent online and monitor
the activity of their people;
Whereas, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo,
recipients of the 2018 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award were
arrested in December 2017 for investigating the murder by the
Burmese military of 10 Rohingya men in the village of Inn
Dinn in Rakhine State and were unjustly detained for 500 days
before they were released on May 7, 2019, as part of a mass
amnesty of 6,520 prisoners;
Whereas freedom of the press has been under considerable
pressure in recent years throughout Southeast Asia, including
in the Philippines, where the Government has waged a campaign
of judicial harassment against the news website Rappler and
its editor, Maria Ressa;
Whereas, Nouf Abdulaziz, Loujain Al-Hathloul, and Eman Al-
Nafjan, recipients of the 2019 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write
Award, who wrote in opposition to Saudi Arabia's repressive
Guardianship system, have been subjected to imprisonment,
solitary confinement, and torture by the Government of the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia since May 2018 in an apparent effort
to suppress dissent and silence the voices of women;
Whereas, Washington Post journalist and United States
resident Jamal Khashoggi was murdered by a team of Saudi
operatives while visiting the Saudi Arabian consulate in
Istanbul, Turkey;
Whereas the Senate unanimously approved a resolution
stating that Mr. Khashoggi's murder was carried out at the
behest of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman;
Whereas journalist Mimi Mefo Takambou was jailed for 4 days
in Cameroon in November 2018 on charges of spreading false
news while investigating the death of an American missionary,
where 4 out of the 7 total journalists imprisoned in Cameroon
were jailed for spreading false news, which is a rising trend
in Cameroon and elsewhere around the world;
Whereas according to the Committee to Protect Journalists,
at least 26 journalists were killed in Honduras since 2007,
making it one of the most deadly countries for journalists in
the Americas, and where journalist Leonardo Gabriel Hernandez
was murdered in March 2019 after receiving threats related to
his work;
Whereas in Nicaragua, Miguel Mora and Lucia Pineda Ubau,
the directors of the country's only 24-hour cable news
network, have been jailed since December 2018 on charges of
fomenting hate, spreading fake news, and terrorism, and
prominent journalist Carlos Fernando Chamorro has fled the
country as President Daniel Ortega cracks down on free
expression in a bid to silence dissent and end the protests
against him;
Whereas in Mexico, which remains the most dangerous country
in the Western Hemisphere for journalists--
(1) murders, death threats, and legal impunity cause
journalists to self-censor their reporting out of fear;
(2) investigative journalist Carlos Dominguez Ramirez, who
wrote frequently on local politics and corruption, was
brutally murdered in front of family members on January 13,
2018, in Nuevo Laredo, and a politician he was investigating
was subsequently arrested in connection with this heinous
act; and
(3) Rafael Murua Manriquez was abducted and murdered in
January 2019 after reporting threats from an official in the
municipal government for critical reporting;
Whereas Slovakian journalist Jan Kuciak and his partner
Martina Kusnirova were murdered in February 2018, allegedly
in retaliation for his investigative reporting of tax fraud
in connection to a businessman with close ties to Slovakia's
ruling party, where the perpetrator awaits trial, just 4
months after the murder of another European journalist,
Malta's Daphne Caruana Galizia, for her reporting on
corruption;
Whereas the world's growing cadre of ethical and hard-
hitting investigative journalists, including those
contributing to the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting
Project--
(1) adhere to the highest professional standards;
(2) uncover abuses and corruption being committed in their
own countries; and
(3) deserve the international community's support and
praise for taking on the risky job of fostering
accountability and transparency in their respective
countries;
Whereas, under the auspices of the United States Agency for
Global Media, the United States Government provides financial
assistance to several editorially independent media outlets,
including Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty,
Radio Free Asia, Radio y Television Marti, and the Middle
East Broadcast Networks--
(1) which report and broadcast news, information, and
analysis in critical regions around the world; and
(2) whose journalists regularly face harassment, fines, and
imprisonment for their work; and
Whereas freedom of the press--
(1) is a key component of democratic governance, activism
in civil society, and socioeconomic development; and
(2) enhances public accountability, transparency, and
participation in civil society and democratic governance:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) condemns threats to freedom of the press and free
expression around the world;
(2) remembers the bravery of journalists and media workers
around the world who, despite threats to their safety, play
an essential role in--
(A) promoting government accountability;
(B) defending democratic activity; and
(C) strengthening civil society;
(3) remembers journalists who have lost their lives
carrying out their work;
[[Page H5795]]
(4) calls on governments abroad to implement United Nations
General Assembly Resolution 163 (2013) by thoroughly
investigating and seeking to resolve outstanding cases of
violence against journalists, including murders and
kidnappings, while ensuring the protection of witnesses;
(5) condemns all actions around the world that suppress
freedom of the press;
(6) reaffirms the centrality of freedom of the press to
efforts of the United States Government to support democracy,
mitigate conflict, and promote good governance around the
world; and
(7) calls on the President and the Secretary of State--
(A) to preserve and build upon the leadership of the United
States on issues relating to freedom of the press, on the
basis of the protections afforded the American people under
the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States;
(B) to improve the rapid identification, publication, and
response by the United States Government to threats against
freedom of the press around the world;
(C) to urge foreign governments to transparently
investigate and bring to justice the perpetrators of attacks
against journalists; and
(D) to highlight the issue of threats against freedom of
the press in the annual country reports on human rights
practices of the Department of State and through diplomatic
channels.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. Engel) and the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
General Leave
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have
5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include
extraneous material on H. Res. 345.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I would first like to thank Representative Schiff and
Representative Chabot for introducing this resolution which recognizes
that the freedoms of the press and expression are being threatened
globally.
A free press is an essential pillar in every democracy. It shines
light on corruption, speaks truth to power, and holds the government
accountable. However, in recent years, there has been a growing assault
on a free press.
Mr. Speaker, there are far too many shocking examples of journalists
being silenced, imprisoned, tortured, and even murdered around the
world, with each abuse only furthering a 13-year decline in the freedom
of expression.
The price of protecting these rights has become extremely high.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, in 2018, 54
journalists were killed and 64 went missing.
At a time when the world looks to the United States to be champions
for a free press, some call our journalists the enemy of the people.
This administration's attack on the media undermines the First
Amendment and creates a culture of intimidation and hostility towards
journalists.
By accusing media outlets of producing fake news, journalists find
themselves less safe, and our country is less informed. So H. Res. 345
condemns threats to independent media and calls on governments to
continue to address journalists' safety. It also reiterates the vital
importance of a free press in the U.S. and to well-functioning
democracies abroad, as well.
It is our duty now, more than ever, to protect the freedom of the
press and the public's right to information. I ask all Members to
support this bipartisan resolution, and I reserve the balance of my
time.
{time} 1545
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time
as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution to condemn
dangerous threats to freedom of the press and freedom of expression
around the world, understanding that the media has a responsibility of
fairness without bias and an independent media is a cornerstone of an
educated society and a necessary pillar to a healthy democracy.
Unfortunately, freedom of the press and freedom of expression are not
protected in many countries.
Dictators fear anything that challenges their power. They go to great
lengths to restrict the rights of their citizens and control their own
people. They attack human rights activists and protesters who march in
the street.
The last thing that a tyrant wants is to be exposed as a corrupt and
immoral leader. As a result, they intimidate, arrest, and sometimes
kill members of the media for doing their jobs.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 251 reporters
worldwide were being held in prison in 2018. More than half of them
were being held in Turkey, China, and Egypt.
Last year, over 54 journalists were killed in the line of duty.
Thirty-four of them were murder victims.
Of course, sadly, we are all familiar with the heinous killing of
Jamal Khashoggi, a columnist for The Washington Post who was murdered
by Saudi agents.
These crimes are completely unacceptable. Republicans and Democrats
stand together as Americans in condemning foreign governments that
attack journalists and crack down on press freedoms.
This resolution allows us to speak in a unified voice to express our
support for those who want to report the news without fearing for their
lives. I hope all of my colleagues will join me in supporting this
bill.
I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Schiff), who is the author of this bill and the
chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.
Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H. Res. 345, a
resolution to recognize the central importance of press freedom in a
democratic society and calling attention to threats to press freedom
around the globe.
I am proud to sponsor this bipartisan legislation, which I introduced
with my colleague, Congressman Steve Chabot, with whom I co-chair the
Press Freedom Caucus. I thank, as well, Mr. Engel and Ranking Member
McCaul for moving forward this resolution.
Every day, journalists around the world bring forward vital
information and stories, sometimes from behind the curtain of the
world's most repressive regimes and amid war zones. Journalists expose
corruption, malfeasance, and abuse that the wealthy and powerful may
seek to conceal. For that, they face harassment, threats, persecution,
assaults, and even death.
The purpose of this resolution today is to call attention to those
threats and to make clear that Congress supports press freedoms here
and around the world.
Recent years have been some of the most dangerous and deadly in
memory for journalists. As we confront a rising tide of
authoritarianism around the world, threats to press freedom are
proliferating in many countries from repressive governments. Elsewhere,
inadequate security and a lack of accountability have made journalists
vulnerable to criminal or terrorist actors.
The resolution before the House today lists just a small sample of
the cases in which journalists around the world have been killed or
imprisoned for their work. I would like to speak to just a few of these
cases and those that have occurred in the short months since the
resolution's introduction.
Among them, of course, is the case of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi
human rights advocate, U.S. resident, and Washington Post columnist who
last year was brutally murdered and dismembered at the orders of the
highest reaches of the Saudi Government.
Jamal's murder has been a rallying cry of sorts, but it stands alone
in the worldwide attention it has received. All the same, it is
tragically far from unique.
Fewer are aware of the cases involving Loujain Al-Hathloul, Nouf
Abdulaziz, and Eman Al-Nafjan, three Saudi women who wrote critically
of the kingdom's treatment of women and who have been imprisoned for
more than a year; or of the acute threat to journalists in the
Philippines where the regime of Rodrigo Duterte has attacked
independent media with a campaign of judicial harassment and
investigation, including the online media outlet Rappler lead and its
editor, Maria Ressa; or in China, where authorities target independent
and foreign media for harassment and detention, including the labor
reporter Wei
[[Page H5796]]
Zhili, who was arrested in March. Authorities also block American-based
journalists and others who have sought to report on human rights
violations and mass detention of Uighurs in Xinjiang province.
Turkey has become the leading jailer of journalists under the rule of
President Erdogan, where, just last month, Turkish authorities charged
two Bloomberg journalists who reported on the economic crisis in Turkey
with undermining the Turkish economy and sought to imprison them.
In Iran, economics reporter Marzieh Amiri was arrested covering May
Day demonstrations and has been held since, with little information
about her well-being or the status of the charges against her.
In Mexico, reporters can pay with their lives for reporting on the
crimes of drug cartels or corrupt local officials, including
investigative journalists like Carlos Rodriguez, who was murdered in
front of his family, or, more recently, Norma Sarabia, who was murdered
in her home in Tabasco state and whose killers remain at large.
Of course, many Americans are all too well aware of the case of
Austin Tice, an American working as an independent journalist in Syria
who was kidnapped by forces aligned with the Syrian regime in 2012 and
today is believed to still remain a hostage nearly 7 years later. We
continue to do all we can to obtain information about his whereabouts
and to secure his safe return.
Mr. Speaker, today, by passing this legislation, the House can send a
message to journalists who face persecution for their work that we
stand with them and value their contributions. For those who seek to
intimidate and silence them, we send the message that we are watching.
The voice of people seeking justice cannot be silenced forever. We
will stand strongly with all those around the world fighting for
accountability and truth.
Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time
as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, I thank Chairman Schiff and Congressman
Chabot for their bipartisan work on this issue. The United States must
continue to provide a strong voice for a free press and independent
media across the globe emphasizing fairness. Supporting a free press
must remain an essential part of America's foreign policy, and I urge
all Members to support this resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. ENGEL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume for
the purpose of closing.
Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 345 is an important resolution that honors
journalists and calls on the United States and governments abroad to
protect the freedom of the press. I commend Mr. Schiff and Mr. Chabot
for this.
Press freedom is fundamental in democracies and enhances public
accountability, transparency, and participation in governance. I
strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this measure, and
I yield back the balance of my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, as a senior member of the Committee on
the Judiciary, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 345, in
commemoration of World Press Freedom Day.
This resolution recognizes widening threats to freedoms of the press
and expression around the world, affirms the centrality of a free and
independent press to the health of democracy, and holds freedom of the
press as a central principle in promoting democracy, human rights, and
good governance in commemoration of World Press Freedom Day on May 3,
2019.
In this resolution, the House of Representatives:
Expresses concern about threats to freedom of the press and free
expression around the world on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day;
commends journalists and media workers around the world, despite
threats to their safety, for their essential role in--
promoting government accountability;
defending democratic activity; and
strengthening civil society;
pays tribute to journalists who have lost their lives carrying out
their work;
calls on governments abroad to implement United Nations General
Assembly Resolution 163 (2013), by thoroughly investigating and seeking
to resolve outstanding cases of violence against journalists, including
murders and kidnappings, while ensuring the protection of witnesses.
Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 345 also condemns all actions around the world
which suppress freedom of the press; and recognizes the importance of a
free and independent press in supporting democracy, mitigating
conflict, and promoting good governance around the world.
Finally, the resolution calls on the President and the Secretary of
State:
To preserve and build upon the leadership of the United States on
issues relating to freedom of the press, on the basis of the
protections afforded the American people under the First Amendment to
the Constitution of the United States;
to improve the rapid identification, publication, and response by the
United States Government to threats against freedom of the press around
the world;
to urge foreign governments to transparently investigate and bring to
justice the perpetrators of attacks against journalists; and
to highlight the issue of threats against freedom of the press in the
annual country reports on human rights practices of the Department of
State and through diplomatic channels.
I stand in strong support of this resolution and I urge my colleagues
to join me in voting to pass H. Res. 345, to commemorate the importance
of World Press Freedom Day.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 345, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
The title of the resolution was amended so as to read: ``A resolution
responding to widening threats to freedoms of the press and expression
around the world, reaffirming the centrality of a free and independent
press to the health of democracy, and reaffirming freedom of the press
as a priority of the United States in promoting democracy, human
rights, and good governance on World Press Freedom Day.''.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________