[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 187 (Thursday, November 21, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S6728]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                               Hong Kong

  Mr. THUNE. Madam President, I would like to comment on the Hong Kong 
legislation that we passed this week. Tuesday night, the Senate 
unanimously passed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, led by 
Senators Rubio and Cardin, Foreign Relations Chairman Risch, and 
Ranking Member Menendez, and a supporting cast of colleagues. This bill 
is intended to spur Hong Kong officials and pro-Beijing constituencies 
to protect Hong Kong's autonomy and its special relationship with the 
United States and to hold those committing human rights violations in 
Hong Kong accountable. It builds on the 1992 United States-Hong Kong 
Policy Act, which asserts that the United States has a ``strong 
interest in the continued vitality, prosperity, and stability of Hong 
Kong.'' I am grateful for the leadership of the Senators who worked to 
advance this bill.
  The issue at hand is Hong Kong's right to an independent judicial 
system and its unique status in a one-country, two-system construct. 
The bill that spurred the June protests in Hong Kong--a bill pushed by 
the communist Chinese central government that sought to impose 
extraditions from Hong Kong to mainland China--would have directly 
undercut this judicial independence. This bill has been withdrawn, but 
a number of other grievances have boiled over into protests.
  Hong Kong's autonomy is under attack, and China is posturing to 
``mainlandize'' their economy. Recent educational reforms seek to 
undermine Hong Kong's culture and traditions through compulsory 
Mandarin classes instead of the Cantonese that most Hongkongers speak. 
The Chinese Government will say that westerners have the wrong 
impression of what is going on there, that this is strictly an internal 
matter. We beg to differ. There are more than 85,000 American citizens 
in Hong Kong. Moreover, the human rights of the people of Hong Kong are 
directly tied to U.S. interests in Hong Kong and Hong Kong's economic 
prosperity.
  China has threatened repercussions if the Hong Kong Human Rights and 
Democracy Act is enacted. I imagine China is fearful that attention to 
human rights abuses in Hong Kong will draw increased attention to other 
human rights abuses in China, such as the estimated 1.5 million Muslim 
Uighurs in forced detention in one of China's western provinces.
  Papers leaked this week from the government of the Communist Party 
and General Secretary Xi detail the coercive ``reeducation'' that goes 
on in these internment camps. Christians in China also face regular 
persecution and imprisonment for following their faith and living out 
their beliefs. The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act will help 
shed increased light on Beijing's aggression and on human rights abuses 
in Hong Kong.
  Last night, the House sent this Senate bill to the President's desk 
with a resounding 417-to-1 vote--a clear statement that Congress stands 
with Hong Kong.