[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 192 (Tuesday, December 3, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H9201-H9208]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 UYGHUR HUMAN RIGHTS POLICY ACT OF 2019

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(S. 178) to condemn gross human rights violations of ethnic Turkic 
Muslims in Xinjiang, and calling for an end to arbitrary detention, 
torture, and harassment of these communities inside and outside China, 
as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                 S. 178

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Uighur Intervention and 
     Global Humanitarian Unified Response Act of 2019'' or the 
     ``UIGHUR Act of 2019''.

     SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

       The purpose of this Act is to direct United States 
     resources to address human rights violations and abuses, 
     including gross violations of human rights, by the People's 
     Republic of China's mass surveillance and internment of over 
     1,000,000 Uighurs and other predominantly Turkic Muslim 
     ethnic minorities in China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous 
     Region.

     SEC. 3. APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.

       In this Act, the term ``appropriate congressional 
     committees'' means--
       (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 
     Financial Services, and the Committee on Appropriations of 
     the House of Representatives; and
       (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on 
     Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate.

     SEC. 4. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The Government of the People's Republic of China has a 
     long history of repressing Turkic Muslims, particularly 
     Uighurs, in China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.
       (2) In May 2014, Chinese authorities launched their latest 
     ``Strike Hard against Violent Extremism'' campaign, using 
     wide-scale, internationally-linked threats of terrorism as a 
     pretext to justify pervasive restrictions on and human rights 
     violations of members of the ethnic minority communities of 
     the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. The August 2016 
     transfer of former Tibet Autonomous Region Party Secretary 
     Chen Quanguo to become the Xinjiang Party Secretary prompted 
     an acceleration in the crackdown across the region. Scholars, 
     human rights organizations, journalists, and think tanks have 
     provided ample evidence substantiating the establishment by 
     Chinese authorities of ``reeducation'' camps. Since 2014, 
     Chinese authorities have detained no less than 800,000 
     Uighurs, ethnic Kazahks, Kyrgyz, and other ethnic minorities 
     in these camps.
       (3) Those detained in such facilities have described forced 
     political indoctrination, torture, beatings, and food 
     deprivation, as well as denial of religious, cultural, and 
     linguistic freedoms, and confirmed that they were told by 
     guards that the only way to secure release was to demonstrate 
     sufficient political loyalty. Poor conditions and lack of 
     medical treatment at such facilities appear to have 
     contributed to the deaths of some detainees, including the 
     elderly and infirm.
       (4) Uighurs and ethnic Kazakhs, who have now obtained 
     permanent residence or citizenship in other countries, attest 
     to receiving threats and harassment from Chinese officials. 
     At least five journalists for Radio Free Asia's Uighur 
     service have publicly detailed abuses their family members in 
     Xinjiang have endured in response to their work exposing 
     abusive policies across the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous 
     Region.
       (5) In September 2018, United Nations High Commissioner for 
     Human Rights Michele Bachelet noted in her first speech as 
     High Commissioner the ``deeply disturbing allegations of 
     large-scale arbitrary detentions of Uighurs and other Muslim 
     communities, in so-called re-education camps across 
     Xinjiang''.

[[Page H9202]]

       (6) The Government of the People's Republic of China's 
     actions against Turkic Muslims in the Xinjiang Uighur 
     Autonomous Region, whose population was approximately 13 
     million at the time of the last Chinese census in 2010, are 
     in contravention of international human rights laws, the 
     International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of 
     Racial Discrimination, and the Convention against Torture and 
     Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 
     both of which China has signed and ratified, and the 
     Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International 
     Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which China has 
     signed.

     SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress that--
       (1) the President should condemn abuses against Turkic 
     Muslims by Chinese authorities and call on such authorities 
     immediately--
       (A) to close the ``reeducation'' camps;
       (B) to lift all restrictions on and ensure respect for 
     human rights; and
       (C) to allow those inside China to reestablish contact with 
     their loved ones, friends, and associates outside China;
       (2) the Secretary of State should--
       (A) fully implement the provisions of the Frank R. Wolf 
     International Religious Freedom Act (Public Law 114-281); and
       (B) should consider strategically employing sanctions and 
     other tools under the International Religious Freedom Act of 
     1998 (22 U.S.C. 6401 et seq.), including measures required by 
     reason of the designation of the People's Republic of China 
     as a country of particular concern for religious freedom 
     under section 402(b)(1)(A)(ii) of such Act that directly 
     address particularly severe violations of religious freedom;
       (3) the Secretary of State should work with United States 
     allies and partners as well as through multilateral 
     institutions to condemn the mass arbitrary detention of 
     Uighurs in China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region and 
     coordinate closely with the international community on 
     targeted sanctions and visa restrictions; and
       (4) the journalists of the Uighur language service of Radio 
     Free Asia should be commended for their reporting on the 
     human rights and political situation in the Xinjiang Uighur 
     Autonomous Region despite efforts by the Government of the 
     People's Republic of China to silence or intimidate their 
     reporting through the detention of family members and 
     relatives in China, and the United States should expand the 
     availability of and capacity for Uighur language programming 
     on Radio Free Asia in the region.

     SEC. 6. UPDATING STATEMENT OF UNITED STATES POLICY TOWARD THE 
                   PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA.

       Section 901(b) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, 
     Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991 (Public Law 101-246; 104 Stat. 84) 
     is amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraphs (7), (8), and (9) as 
     paragraphs (8), (9), and (10), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the following:
       ``(7) United States policy toward the People's Republic of 
     China should be explicitly linked with the situation in 
     China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, specifically as to 
     whether--
       ``(A) the mass internment of ethnic Uighur and other Turkic 
     Muslims in `political education' camps has ended;
       ``(B) all political prisoners in the region are released;
       ``(C) the use of high-tech mass surveillance and predictive 
     policing to discriminate against and violate the human rights 
     of members of specific ethnic groups is evident in other 
     parts of China; and
       ``(D) the Government of the People's Republic of China has 
     ended efforts aimed at cultural assimilation and particularly 
     severe restrictions of religious practice in the region;''.

     SEC. 7. APPLICATION OF SANCTIONS UNDER GLOBAL MAGNITSKY HUMAN 
                   RIGHTS ACCOUNTABILITY ACT WITH RESPECT TO 
                   CERTAIN SENIOR OFFICIALS OF THE PEOPLE'S 
                   REPUBLIC OF CHINA.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the 
     appropriate congressional committees a list of senior 
     officials of the Government of the People's Republic of China 
     who the President determines are responsible for or who have 
     knowingly engaged in serious human rights abuses against 
     Turkic Muslims in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region and 
     elsewhere in China. Such list shall include the following:
       (1) Senior Chinese officials, such as Xinjiang Party 
     Secretary Chen Quanguo, who are directly responsible for the 
     ongoing repression in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region.
       (2) Senior Chinese officials responsible for mass 
     incarceration, political indoctrination, or reeducation 
     efforts targeting Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim 
     ethnic minorities.
       (b) Form.--The list required under subsection (a) shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified 
     annex.
       (c) Sanctions Imposed.--On the date on which the President 
     submits to the appropriate congressional committees the list 
     described in subsection (a), and as appropriate thereafter, 
     the President shall impose the sanctions described in section 
     1263(b) of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability 
     Act (subtitle F of title XII of Public Law 114-328; 22 U.S.C. 
     2656 note) with respect to any foreign person that the 
     President has identified on the list.
       (d) Exception for United Nations Headquarters Agreement; 
     Enforcement.--Subsections (e) and (f) of section 1263 of the 
     Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act apply with 
     respect to the imposition of sanctions under this section to 
     the same extent as such subsections apply with respect to the 
     imposition of sanctions under such section 1263.
       (e) Waiver for National Interests.--The President may waive 
     the imposition of sanctions under subsection (c) if the 
     President--
       (1) determines that such a waiver is in the national 
     interests of the United States; and
       (2) submits to the appropriate congressional committees 
     notice of, and a justification for, the waiver.
       (f) Regulatory Authority.--The President shall issue such 
     regulations, licenses, and orders as are necessary to carry 
     out this section.
       (g) Exception Relating to Importation of Goods.--
       (1) In general.--The authorities and requirements to impose 
     sanctions authorized under this Act shall not include the 
     authority or requirement to impose sanctions on the 
     importation of goods.
       (2) Good defined.--In this subsection, the term ``good'' 
     means any article, natural or man-made substance, material, 
     supply or manufactured product, including inspection and test 
     equipment, and excluding technical data.

     SEC. 8. REPORT ON HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN CHINA'S XINJIANG 
                   UIGHUR AUTONOMOUS REGION.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in 
     consultation with the heads of other relevant Federal 
     departments and agencies and civil society organizations, 
     shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees and 
     make available on the website of the Department of State a 
     report on human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Uighur 
     Autonomous Region.
       (b) Matters to Be Included.--The report required by 
     subsection (a) shall include the following:
       (1) An assessment of the number of individuals detained in 
     political ``reeducation camps'' in the region and conditions 
     in the camps for detainees, including an assessment, to the 
     extent practicable, of whether detainees endure torture, 
     efforts at forced renunciation of their faith, or other 
     mistreatment.
       (2) An assessment of, to the extent practicable, the number 
     of individuals in the region in highly-controlled forced 
     labor camps.
       (3) A description of the methods used by People's Republic 
     of China authorities to ``reeducate'' Uighur detainees, 
     including an identification of the Chinese agencies in charge 
     of such reeducation.
       (4) An assessment of the use and nature of forced labor in 
     and related to the detention of Turkic Muslims in the 
     Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, and a description of 
     foreign companies and industries benefitting from such labor 
     in the region.
       (5) An assessment of the level of access to the region 
     Chinese authorities grant to foreign diplomats and consular 
     agents, independent journalists, and representatives of 
     nongovernmental organizations.
       (6) An assessment of the repressive surveillance, 
     detection, and control methods used by Chinese authorities in 
     the region.
       (7) A description, as appropriate, of diplomatic efforts by 
     United States allies and other nations to address the gross 
     violations of universally recognized human rights in the 
     region and to protect asylum seekers from the region.

     SEC. 9. RESTRICTIONS ON EXPORT, REEXPORT, AND IN-COUNTRY 
                   TRANSFERS OF CERTAIN ITEMS THAT PROVIDE A 
                   CRITICAL CAPABILITY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF THE 
                   PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA TO SUPPRESS 
                   INDIVIDUAL PRIVACY, FREEDOM, AND OTHER BASIC 
                   HUMAN RIGHTS.

       (a) Statement of Policy.--It is the policy of the United 
     States to protect the basic human rights of Uighurs and other 
     ethnic minorities in the People's Republic of China.
       (b) List of Covered Items.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 120 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, and as appropriate thereafter, the 
     President--
       (A) shall identify those items that provide a critical 
     capability to the Government of the People's Republic of 
     China, or any person acting on behalf of such Government, to 
     suppress individual privacy, freedom of movement, and other 
     basic human rights, specifically through--
       (i) surveillance, interception, and restriction of 
     communications;
       (ii) monitoring of individual location or movement or 
     restricting individual movement;
       (iii) monitoring or restricting access to and use of the 
     internet;
       (iv) monitoring or restricting use of social media;
       (v) identification of individuals through facial 
     recognition, voice recognition, or biometric indicators;
       (vi) detention of individuals who are exercising basic 
     human rights; and
       (vii) forced labor in manufacturing; and

[[Page H9203]]

       (B) shall, pursuant to the Export Control Reform Act of 
     2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.), include items identified 
     pursuant to subparagraph (A) on the Commerce Control List in 
     a category separate from other items, as appropriate, on the 
     Commerce Control List.
       (2) Support and cooperation.--Upon request, the head of a 
     Federal agency shall provide full support and cooperation to 
     the President in carrying out this subsection.
       (3) Consultation.--In carrying out this subsection, the 
     President shall consult with the relevant technical advisory 
     committees of the Department of Commerce to ensure that the 
     composition of items identified under paragraph (1)(A) and 
     included on the Commerce Control List under paragraph (1)(B) 
     does not unnecessarily restrict commerce between the United 
     States and the People's Republic of China, consistent with 
     the purposes of this section.
       (c) Special License or Other Authorization.--
       (1) In general.--Beginning not later than 180 days after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall, 
     pursuant to the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 
     4801 et seq.), require a license or other authorization for 
     the export, reexport, or in-country transfer to or within the 
     People's Republic of China of an item identified pursuant to 
     subsection (b)(1)(A) and included on the Commerce Control 
     List pursuant to subsection (b)(1)(B).
       (2) Presumption of denial.--An application for a license or 
     other authorization described in paragraph (1) shall be 
     subject to a presumption of denial.
       (3) Public notice and comment.--The President shall provide 
     for notice and public comment with respect actions necessary 
     to carry out this subsection.
       (d) International Coordination and Multilateral Controls.--
     It shall be the policy of the United States to seek to 
     harmonize United States export control regulations with 
     international export control regimes with respect to the 
     items identified pursuant to subsection (b)(1)(A), including 
     through the Wassenaar Arrangement and other bilateral and 
     multilateral mechanisms involving countries that export such 
     items.
       (e) Termination of Suspension of Certain Other Programs and 
     Activities.--Section 902(b)(1) of the Foreign Relations 
     Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991 (Public Law 
     101-246; 22 U.S.C. 2151 note) is amended--
       (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by inserting 
     ``and China's Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region'' after 
     ``Tibet'';
       (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (3) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``or'' after the 
     semicolon and inserting ``and''; and
       (4) by adding the following new subparagraph:
       ``(F) the ending of the mass internment of ethnic Uighurs 
     and other Turkic Muslims in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous 
     Region, including the intrusive system of high-tech 
     surveillance and policing in the region; or''.
       (f) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Commerce control list.--The term ``Commerce Control 
     List'' means the list set forth in Supplement No. 1 to part 
     774 of the Export Administration Regulations under subchapter 
     C of chapter VII of title 15, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (2) Export, in-country transfer, item, and reexport.--The 
     terms ``export'', ``in-country transfer'', ``item'', and 
     ``reexport'' have the meanings given such terms in section 
     1742 of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 
     4801)

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Sires) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Sires).


                             General Leave

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on S. 178.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Sires)?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Pelosi), the Speaker of the House.
  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding and for 
his leadership and thank he and Mr. Smith, two gentlemen from New 
Jersey, for being champions for human rights.
  I also thank Mr. McCaul and Mr. Eliot Engel, the ranking member and 
the chair of the committee.
  And I thank Mr. Malinowski for being a champion for human rights even 
before he came to Congress.
  My colleagues, next week marks 71 years since the nations of the 
world gathered in Paris to enshrine our global commitment to human 
rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  The opening words of that declaration read: ``Recognition of the 
inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members 
of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in 
the world.
  ``Whereas, disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in 
barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind.''
  Today, the human dignity and human rights of the Uighur community are 
under threat from Beijing's barbarous actions, which are an outrage to 
the collective conscience of the world.
  Across the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region, the Uighur people and 
other Muslim minorities face brutal repression: a pervasive state of 
mass surveillance, including the arbitrary and nonconsensual collection 
of children's DNA; the mass incarceration of 1 to 3 million innocent 
people with beatings, solitary confinement, deprivation of food and 
medical treatment, forced sterilizations, and other forms of torture; 
incidents of mass shootings and extrajudicial killings; and the 
intimidation and suppression of journalists courageously exposing the 
truth.
  Mihrigul Tursun, a former detainee, testified she faced treatment so 
brutal that ``I thought I would rather die than go through this torture 
and begged them to kill me.''
  Another former detainee, Tursunay Ziyawudun, testified, ``We were all 
helpless and unable to defend ourselves. We all went through all kinds 
of mistreatment. The screaming, pleading, crying is still in my head.''
  Today, with this bicameral and overwhelmingly bipartisan legislation, 
the United States Congress is taking a critical step to counter 
Beijing's horrific human rights abuses against Uighurs.
  I thank Chairman Engel, Representative Brad Sherman, Representative 
Suozzi, and Chairman McGovern for their leadership on this important 
legislation.
  We are sending a message to Beijing: America is watching, and we will 
not stay silent.
  This legislation helps uncover the truth, requiring reports by the 
DNI, Director of National Intelligence; the State Department; and the 
FBI about the depths of the crisis and about China's campaign against 
journalists exposing the facts.
  It creates accountability, ensuring transparency of Chinese and 
foreign companies involved in the camps.
  And it engages the full firepower of American law and leadership, 
including by urging the application of Global Magnitsky and other 
related sanctions and the full implementation of the Frank R. Wolf 
International Religious Freedom Act, named for our distinguished former 
colleague and human rights champion, Congressman Frank Wolf.
  Sadly, Beijing's human rights abuses extend beyond the Uighurs, from 
the decades-long abuse faced by the Tibetan people; to Hong Kong's 
fight for democracy and rule of law; and to the jailing of journalists, 
human rights lawyers, Christians, and democracy advocates on the 
mainland.
  In the Congress, Democrats and Republicans stand united with all 
people fighting for human rights in the face of China's abuses. Last 
month, we were proud to pass the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy 
Act, which has now become law, and we are grateful that the President 
has signed that legislation.
  If America does not speak out for human rights in China because of 
commercial issues, we lose all moral authority to speak out for human 
rights anyplace in the world.
  In honor of the millions fighting for their dignity, safety, and 
rights in China and around the world, I urge a strong bipartisan vote 
for the Uighur Intervention and Global Humanitarian Unified Response 
Act.
  I thank Mr. Smith, Mr. Sires, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Suozzi, Chairman Eliot 
Engel, and Mr. McCaul for their leadership. And I acknowledge the 
leadership of Senator Rubio in the United States Senate on this 
important legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge an ``aye'' vote.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, first, I want to thank the Speaker for her very eloquent 
remarks and for her tenacity in promoting human rights and respect for 
the rule of law in all of China, including and especially with today's 
focus on Xinjiang, where, unfortunately, Xi

[[Page H9204]]

Jinping is conducting massive, massive crimes against humanity against 
the Muslim Uighurs. So I thank her for that leadership.
  I thank Chairman Engel, Ranking Member McCaul, Brad Sherman, and 
Ranking Member Ted Yoho for their deep and abiding commitment to the 
suffering people of Xinjiang as well.

  I would also like to express my special thanks to the 128 bipartisan 
cosponsors of my bill, the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2019, H.R. 
649, comprehensive human rights legislation that I introduced earlier 
this year with lead Democratic cosponsor Tom Suozzi to address the 
massive crimes against humanity committed by the Chinese Government 
against the Uighurs.
  The legislation would require the administration to categorize and 
report on the human rights abuses being committed by the Chinese 
Communist Party each and every day, take specific steps to sanction 
Chinese officials for these abuses, especially through the use of the 
Magnitsky Act, and stop, to the greatest extent possible, the Chinese 
Government's efforts to create a high-tech police and surveillance 
state.
  With endorsement of our bill 12 months ago and cosponsorship by the 
Speaker herself, as well as endorsement by the Washington Post, which 
said, a full year ago, ``This has become''--that is to say, the 
situation in Xinjiang--``one of the world's most urgent human rights 
crises. Congress should pass the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act.'' 
Today the Senate bill is before us, and I encourage my colleagues and 
the cosponsors of H.R. 649 to vote for it.
  Mr. Speaker, at a congressional hearing that I cochaired last year, 
Mihrigul Tursun recounted her horrifying ordeal with torture, sexual 
abuse, and detention in one of China's mass internment camps in 
Xinjiang.
  She broke down weeping, telling us that she pleaded with God to end 
her life. Her Chinese jailers restrained her to a table, increased the 
electrical currents coursing through her body, and mocked her belief in 
God. She was tortured simply for being an ethnic Uighur and a Muslim in 
China.
  There are millions of stories like this waiting to be told about the 
crimes against humanity being committed each and every day by the 
Chinese Government against the Uighurs, the Kazakhs, and the Turkic 
Muslims.
  Given that this year is the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square 
massacre, maybe we should not be surprised by the cruelty and brutality 
of the Chinese Communist Party. But the size and scale of what is 
happening in Xinjiang is audaciously repressive, even by China's low 
standards:
  The mass internment of millions of people on a scale that has not 
been seen since the Holocaust; children ripped from the warm embrace of 
their families to be indoctrinated in communist ideology and forced to 
renounce their religious culture and language; rape, sexual abuse, and 
forced abortions of women being held in internment camps; forced labor 
on a scale that allows Chinese companies to profit from modern-day 
slavery.
  That atrocities such as these can exist in the 21st century is 
astounding and enormously sad.
  We cannot be silent. We must demand an end to these barbaric 
practices and accountability from the Chinese Government. We must say 
``never again'' to the cultural genocide and the atrocities suffered by 
the Uighurs and others in China.
  Chinese authorities initially denied the existence of mass internment 
camps, Mr. Speaker, and even now portray them as vocational training 
centers. What a cruel joke. They employed lies, censorship, and 
economic coercion to stifle discussion of their crimes.
  But documents obtained by The New York Times and the International 
Consortium of Investigative Journalists have exposed the brutality 
behind Beijing's plans to radically and coercively transform the 
culture and religion of ethnic Uighurs, Kazakhs, and other Muslims in 
China.
  The leaked internal papers show detailed plans to intern between 1 
million and 3 million Uighurs in modern-day concentration camps, where 
they are subjected to severe human rights abuses and Orwellian 
indoctrination efforts for those ``whose thinking has been infected.''
  At the same time, Beijing instituted plans to erase the influence of 
Islam in western China, bulldozing mosques and shrines, severely 
throttling all religious practice, and forcing camp detainees to 
renounce their faith.
  The leaked documents also show that Xi Jinping himself has directed 
the crackdown, saying that the Communist Party must put ``the organs of 
dictatorship'' to work and show--his words--``absolutely no mercy'' in 
dealing with the Uighurs and other Muslims.
  In one speech exposed by the leaked documents, President Xi Jinping 
says, ``The weapons of the people's democratic dictatorship must be 
wielded without any hesitation or wavering.''
  In 2017, he told thousands of police officers and troops standing at 
attention to prepare for ``a smashing, obliterating offensive.''
  According to the documents, Communist Party officials who were 
reluctant to carry out Xi's draconian policies were investigated and 
expunged--and worse:
  ``Secret teams of investigators traveled across the region, 
identifying those who were not doing enough. In 2017, the party opened 
more than 12,000 investigations into party members in Xinjiang.''
  Xi Jinping has created, Mr. Speaker, one of the worst human rights 
tragedies on the face of the Earth. Xi Jinping and his government are 
directly responsible--directly responsible--for these crimes against 
humanity.
  Our hope is that a reckoning is coming, but only if the international 
community stands up to China. I would note with some sadness, notably 
absent are voices from many Muslim countries, and I have raised it 
myself with many leaders of Muslim countries.

                              {time}  1730

  They have not been as critical of China as they ought to be. They 
need to speak out and to do it boldly and very clearly.
  I do want to commend the Trump administration for its actions over 
the past several years. They have issued strong statements and, 
according to the U.S. Commerce Department just last month, 28 
government agencies and businesses were placed on the Entity List and 
barred.
  The way the Secretary of Commerce put it: `` `The U.S. Government and 
Department of Commerce cannot and will not tolerate the brutal 
suppression of ethnic minorities within China,' said Secretary of 
Commerce Wilbur Ross. `This action will ensure that our technologies, 
fostered in an environment of individual liberty and free enterprise, 
are not used to repress defenseless minority populations.' ''
  These are important steps. This legislation, however, takes the next 
step. More must be done. Chinese officials, as I said earlier, need to 
be held accountable for crimes against humanity, including Global 
Magnitsky and international sanctions and U.N. investigations.
  Those who tortured Mihrigul Turson should know that justice is coming 
for them as well. And the Chinese Government companies profiting from 
forced labor need to be barred from selling their products made so 
horribly by forced labor from coming into this country.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Let me first thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Sherman) and 
the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith) for their work on this 
legislation.
  I also want to acknowledge the work of the Congressional-Executive 
Commission on China, led by the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. 
McGovern). His expertise, and that of his staff, has made a significant 
contribution to the development of this legislation.
  This bill addresses one of the most egregious violations of human 
rights in the world today. More than 1 million Uighurs and other Muslim 
ethnic minorities have been detained by the Chinese Government and sent 
to camps in Xinjiang, where they face torture, sexual abuse, 
brainwashing, and other abuses in an attempt to erase their culture and 
their religion.
  The Chinese Government is engaging in these atrocities under the 
guise of

[[Page H9205]]

antiterrorism efforts, and the victims have been denied any due 
process. The severity of this disgrace was recently confirmed by a 
trove of leaked confidential Chinese documents that detail just how 
sinister these policies are.
  Meeting with members of the Uighur American community is a sobering 
experience. They have stories about family members in China who can no 
longer be reached, friends who have gone missing, report after report 
of violence, abuse, and mistreatment.
  The intention of the top Chinese Communist Party leadership through 
this campaign is clear: In the short-term, turn Xinjiang into a prison 
for ethnic and religious minorities, and, in the longer term, force 
these minorities to assimilate completely, erasing the evidence of 
their unique culture, history, and religion.
  The Chinese Government has a long record of oppressing Tibetan 
Christians, the Falun Gong, and other ethnic religious minorities. But 
what makes these efforts different is the use of technology to erase 
the Uighur people and their way of life. In some cases, these 
technologies can be traced back to American companies and research 
institutions.
  Unfortunately, we have yet to see an adequate response from the Trump 
administration. While the administration's decision to announce its 
visa restrictions and add abuse-enabling Chinese tech firms to the 
Entity List were good steps, they do not go far enough. There needs to 
be real consequences for those who have designed and built these 
internment camps.
  With the bill we are considering today, the House of Representatives 
is making clear that there needs to be more serious repercussions. 
Specifically, this bill calls on the Secretary of State to designate 
those responsible for these abuses with Global Magnitsky sanctions, 
including the freezing of their assets. It would also require the 
American firms to do due diligence on where and how their technology is 
being used so that they do not unwittingly become part of the Chinese 
Government's campaign to violate the human rights of their own 
citizens.
  This legislation is a necessary response to one of the most pressing 
human rights concerns in the world today. I am glad the House is 
considering it, and I encourage all Members to vote for its passage.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
                                         House of Representatives,


                                   Committee on the Judiciary,

                                 Washington, DC, December 3, 2019.
     Hon. Eliot L. Engel,
     Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
     House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Engel: This is to advise you that the 
     Committee on the Judiciary has now had an opportunity to 
     review the provisions in S. 178, the ``Uyghur Human Rights 
     Policy Act of 2019'' that fall within our Rule X 
     jurisdiction. I appreciate your consulting with us on those 
     provisions. The Judiciary Committee has no objection to your 
     including them in the bill for consideration on the House 
     floor, and to expedite that consideration is willing to forgo 
     action on S. 178, with the understanding that we do not 
     thereby waive any future jurisdictional claim over those 
     provisions or their subject matters.
       In the event a House-Senate conference on this or similar 
     legislation is convened, the Judiciary Committee reserves the 
     right to request an appropriate number of conferees to 
     address any concerns with these or similar provisions that 
     may arise in conference.
       Please place this letter into the Congressional Record 
     during consideration of the measure on the House floor. Thank 
     you for the cooperative spirit in which you have worked 
     regarding this matter and others between our committees.
           Sincerely,
                                                   Jerrold Nadler,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                                 Commtttee on Foreign Affairs,

                                 Washington, DC, December 2, 2019.
     Hon. Jerrold Nadler,
     Committee on the Judiciary,
     House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Nadler: I am writing to you concerning S. 
     178, the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2019. I appreciate 
     your willingness to work cooperatively on this legislation.
       I acknowledge that provisions of the bill fall within the 
     jurisdiction of the Committee on the Judiciary under House 
     Rule X, and that your Committee will forgo action on S. 178 
     to expedite floor consideration. I further acknowledge that 
     the inaction of your Committee with respect to the bill does 
     not waive any future jurisdictional claim over the matters 
     contained in the bill that fall within your jurisdiction. I 
     will also support the appointment of Committee on the 
     Judiciary conferees during any House-Senate conference 
     convened on this legislation.
       Lastly, I will ensure that our exchange of letters is 
     included in the Congressional Record during floor 
     consideration of the bill. Thank you again for your 
     cooperation regarding the legislation. I look forward to 
     continuing to work with you as the measure moves through the 
     legislative process.
           Sincerely,
                                                   Eliot L. Engel,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the distinguished gentleman from Texas (Mr. McCaul), the 
ranking member.
  Mr. McCAUL. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bipartisan 
UIGHUR Act.
  I want to commend my colleagues, all three of them, from New Jersey--
I think this is New Jersey Day on the floor--Mr. Smith, Mr. Sires, and 
Mr. Malinowski.
  For the last several years, the Communist dictatorship in Beijing has 
been unleashing a brutal crackdown on the Uighur and Turkic Muslims in 
western China.
  It is believed that between 1 to 3 million ethnic minorities have 
been detained and sent to internment camps where they are indoctrinated 
with state propaganda and tortured. The goal of the Chinese Government 
is to strip these individuals of their religious and cultural identity.
  Many people detained are never heard from again. Families have been 
torn apart. Sons and daughters are left wondering if they will ever be 
reunited with their moms and dads.
  Some of our most senior officials, including National Security 
Advisor Robert O'Brien, have described these detention centers as 
``concentration camps.'' Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has referred to 
China's repression as the ``stain of the century.''
  The Chinese Government states that these camps are part of their 
efforts to combat violent extremism. They also say these detention 
centers are job training facilities. But what is happening is nothing 
less than a state-sponsored and systematic campaign designed to enforce 
a ``cultural genocide.''
  As the beacon of hope and freedom to the rest of the world, the 
United States cannot stay silent. If we do, our silence will be 
remembered as our complicity; our inaction will become our appeasement.
  We know that the Chinese Communist Party would love nothing more than 
for the rest of the world to mirror its authoritarianism. We cannot 
allow this to happen.
  This legislation gives us the opportunity to take real action and 
help stop these evil crimes:
  First, it provides that the United States policy towards China should 
be explicitly linked to the human rights abuses;
  Second, it requires the application of the Global Magnitsky sanctions 
on Chinese officials responsible for repression against Uighur or 
Turkic Muslims;
  Third, it mandates the State Department submit to Congress a report 
on human rights abuses in this western province of China; and
  Fourth, it restricts the export of certain U.S. technology items to 
China that are used to suppress individual privacy, freedom of 
movement, and basic human rights.
  This is a very important bill, and, again, I would like to thank our 
colleagues--and particularly Brad Sherman, who introduced this along 
with Senator Rubio--for all their efforts to get this done to where we 
are today.
  So let's come together as Republicans and Democrats to ensure that 
atrocities committed by the Communist dictatorship in Beijing will have 
consequences. Let's show the world that the United States will impose a 
cost on the Chinese Communist Party's leaders for their crimes now and 
in the future.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Sherman), the chairman of the Subcommittee on Asia, the 
Pacific, and Nonproliferation.
  Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in favor of S. 178, the 
UIGHUR Act of 2019.
  This bill has the best of both worlds: It has a Senate bill number 
and House of Representatives content. The bill came over from the 
Senate, and then we unanimously adopted, in the Foreign Affairs 
Committee, my amendment in the nature of a substitute,

[[Page H9206]]

which put together three bills focused on the Uighur issue. It included 
the work of Senators Marco Rubio and Robert Menendez found in S. 178; 
the work found in H.R. 649 of Chris Smith and  Tom Suozzi of this 
House; and the legislation that I reintroduced with the ranking member 
of the Asia, the Pacific, and Nonproliferation Subcommittee, Ted Yoho, 
H.R. 1025.
  So this bill represents putting together those three bills to deal 
with the detention of over 1 million Uighurs and other Muslim 
minorities in Xinjiang and other Chinese repression of its Muslim 
minority population.
  The Chinese Government has sought to erase the distinct Uighur Muslim 
culture and religious traditions through mass detentions, reeducation 
camps, and a coordinated campaign under the banner ``Strike Hard 
Against Violent Extremism'' launched in 2014.
  Thanks to recently leaked Chinese Communist Party documents, we now 
know that the impetus for this campaign came from the highest levels of 
the Chinese Communist Party.
  In April 2014, General Secretary Xi ordered the party officials to, 
and these are the words, show ``absolutely no mercy'' in using ``organs 
of dictatorship,'' another quoted phrase, to suppress Muslim 
minorities. More than a million Uighurs were then imprisoned in camps.
  In a country with the rule of law, you are incarcerated by the state 
because you have been convicted of a defined statutory offense. Why are 
1 million people behind barbed wire in the Xinjiang province of China? 
The charge against them is ``their thinking has been infected by 
unhealthy thoughts.''
  Where in the world would anyone be free if a million people can be 
incarcerated because the government has determined that their thoughts 
are unhealthy?
  Along with reeducation camps, the Strike Hard campaign has also 
involved high-tech surveillance and monitoring of Uighurs, monitoring 
and suppressing Muslim religious practice, including funeral practices, 
and suppression of the Uighur language.
  Beyond its borders, the party has tried to intimidate Chinese Muslim 
minorities who are living abroad. And in China, some individuals with 
permanent residency status in the United States have been prohibited 
from leaving the region. In Xinjiang, the party has forced Uighur 
families to have Han Chinese agents live in their homes.

  The extent of this Chinese effort to, in effect, ``sinofy'' the 
Muslim population of western China is staggering. The legislation 
before us is an important start, but it is only a start in our efforts 
to counter Chinese repression of its Muslim minorities, and we will 
have hearings in the Asia, the Pacific, and Nonproliferation 
Subcommittee to develop additional steps that America could take.
  I want to highlight two parts of this legislation. First, the bill 
requires the President to impose the Global Magnitsky sanctions against 
all Chinese officials who are responsible for the repression of the 
Uighurs. We are long past the point when this should have been done, 
and it should not be linked to ongoing negotiations on trade or any 
other issue.
  Second, the bill requires the Commerce Department to update our 
export controls to ensure that the Commerce Control List, which covers 
dual-use items, is updated to create a special regime for China. 
Commerce will be required to identify items that assist in the 
monitoring, surveillance, mass detention, and forced labor we see going 
on in China today, and deny licenses for the export or reexport of 
those items to China.
  U.S. technology should not be used to further one of the most 
egregious human rights abuses of our time. And in writing this 
legislation and the amendment in the nature of a substitute that came 
out of the Foreign Affairs Committee, we worked diligently to ensure 
that we avoid capturing too much and unduly hindering legitimate and 
beneficial commerce, including thorough discussions with the tech 
industry.
  So I thank Chairman Engel and Ranking Member McCaul, of course, our 
Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, who was here. I thank Senators Rubio and 
Menendez, Chris Smith, and  Tom Suozzi. I thank  Jim McGovern for his 
work, and I thank my partner in running the Asia, the Pacific, and 
Nonproliferation Subcommittee, Mr. Yoho.

                              {time}  1745

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho).
  Mr. YOHO. Mr. Speaker, I just want to give my strong support for S. 
178.
  I look back over the years when we have seen this, and we have had 
these discussions in our Foreign Affairs Committee about the atrocities 
that are going on in the Xinjiang province.
  Last year we talked about the concentration camps that we see going 
up, and then there were reports about the crematoriums that were going 
in. And we read advertisements to hire guards for the crematoriums. 
They must be physically fit, they must be able to defend themselves, 
and they need to know how to use a weapon. So they had armed 
crematoriums set up in this province.
  My question is: Why do you need armed crematoriums if it is a 
crematorium to burn people? You know, the dead.
  And I think the intent of what China is doing is self-evident. And 
America, as the leader of the free world, and all countries that 
believe in freedom and liberty, they must stand up against this 
injustice because this is going on around the world. And if you believe 
the words of General Eisenhower at Auschwitz and other Nazi 
concentration camps after the end of World War II when he said: Never 
again. Never again will we allow this to happen. But it is happening 
right now. And it is happening in an area that we know in a country 
that is suppressing freedom around the world.
  We see it in Hong Kong. We have seen what they have done with Tibet. 
They want to do it to any country or any population that is against the 
Communist Party, the Chinese Communist Party. And this is something, if 
we don't do this, this will go on. And this is where the world needs to 
wake up, and they need to say, any time we buy something made in China, 
we are empowering this country and Xi Jinping and the Communist Party 
complex to do the same thing over and over again.
  It is time we make a strong stand and S. 178 is a great start to 
doing this. I look for strong support in the House. I look for it to be 
signed into law and that we send a strong signal from America, being 
the leaders in the free world, to the rest of the world to follow suit 
and send a strong signal back to China that this is not going to be 
tolerated. We will not put up with this.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the sponsors of this bill for 
doing what they are doing, because this is a message for the people 
around the world who don't know what is going on. It is this body that 
is kind of leading the charge on this, and I am proud to be associated 
with it, so thank you all.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Suozzi).
  Mr. SUOZZI. Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Sires for yielding me this time.
  I rise in strong support of the bipartisan Senate bill 178, which 
holds the Chinese Government accountable for their truly horrific 
treatment--let me say that again--truly horrific treatment of the 
Uighur Muslim minorities, including the mass internment of over 1 
million people who are subjected to systemized brainwashing, sexual 
abuse, and forced labor in western China.
  I want to start by thanking Chairman Engel and Subcommittee Chairman 
Sherman for bringing attention to this issue and supporting this 
legislation to penalize China for its egregious human rights violations 
against the Uighurs. I am proud to have worked with Representative 
Chris Smith from New Jersey and Senator Marco Rubio from Florida to 
help write part of this truly bipartisan legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, Uighur families are prohibited from practicing their 
Muslim faith. They are often separated from their family members and 
prohibited from reading the Koran, making their daily prayers, and in 
some instances are forced to eat pork even during Ramadan, which, of 
course, violates their religion.
  The so-called reeducation camps in China where Uighurs are forced to 
work in food, textile, or manufacturing

[[Page H9207]]

jobs in or near the mass internment camps are, of course, repugnant to 
our values and violate human rights.
  The brutal religious-based persecution of the Uighurs in China is 
alarming, but it is not new. China has continued to repress anyone who 
does not conform to their system, including Tibetans, Christians, and, 
of course, the people of Hong Kong, as we have seen in recent events.
  Since President Nixon went to China in 1971, most Americans have 
believed that with increased economic integration and exposure to our 
system of democracy in the west, the Chinese Government would some day 
adopt some of our fundamental values. This clearly has not happened.
  Not only does the Chinese Government reject any real steps towards 
democracy, continue its unfair trade practices, and cheat by stealing 
our intellectual property, but it also continually violates human 
rights.
  The United States must hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable 
for its repression of the Uighurs and active disregard for 
international law.
  I urge my colleagues to support the passage of this important and, 
again, truly bipartisan legislation.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. Speaker, beyond what has been done to date, Chinese companies 
profiting from forced labor in Xinjiang must be prohibited from 
exporting goods to the United States and to other countries. The 
administration has, to its credit, blocked one Chinese company for 
forced labor manufacturing, but there are many other companies, 
particularly in the manufacturing of cotton and garments, that are 
profiting off the slavery of detained Uighurs. Many more companies need 
to be barred from entry into the U.S. market.

  In addition to the crimes against humanity that Xi Jinping has 
imposed upon the people of Xinjiang, the United States also needs to 
address the high-tech authoritarianism of the future being auditioned 
in Xinjiang.
  Beijing is using Xinjiang as a proving ground for an all-knowing 
police and surveillance state. The technology used to construct China's 
high-tech police state is being exported around the world to some 
countries in Africa, central Asia, and beyond. Every petty dictator and 
aspiring totalitarian can use this technology to crush democratic 
aspirations, human rights, religious freedom, and the rule of law.
  Let me also say a word or two about Uighur Americans, like the great 
Rebiya Kadeer, who I have been friends with since 2006--I have had her 
at hearings. She is an unbelievable leader. Her entire family and 
extended family, dozens of people, have been rounded up and have been 
put into prison. Nury Turkel, Rushan Abbas, and Gulchehra Hoja have had 
their families, as well, threatened and detained because they dared to 
speak up here in the United States.
  So many Uighur Americans have experienced the agony of family 
detentions and disappearances, again, a cruelty laid at the feet of Xi 
Jinping. He not only goes after the individual, he goes after the whole 
family. And again, the women in prisons in China are sexually abused 
and tortured. The men are abused, as well.
  For those watching us today, the message you hear should be clear. 
The United States wants to hold the Chinese Government and the Chinese 
companies accountable for crimes against humanity and the cruelty they 
inflict on your families and your loved ones. We will not be silent. 
Justice is coming. We are demanding accountability.
  I also want to take a moment to thank the reporters of Radio Free 
Asia's Uyghur Service. Their families have been rounded up and put into 
prison, into concentration camps by Xi Jinping's dictatorship. This is 
beyond horrific, and we need to respond accordingly.
  I also want to thank and note the contribution of Dr. Scott Flipse to 
the legislation before us today, and also the Uyghur Human Rights 
Policy Act and, frankly, to the Hong Kong Democracy and Human Rights 
Act that was signed into law just a few days ago.
  I also want to thank former CECC staff directors Paul Protic and 
Elyse Anderson and current staff members Jon Stivers, Peter Mattis, 
Megan Fluker, and Amy Reger for helping this Congress shine a bright 
light on the atrocities.
  And, of course, our full and subcommittee staffers, as well, have 
done yeoman's work on this terrible issue.
  We are united today. We need to be united with all Americans in 
saying, never again.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
  It has been more than 3 years since the Chinese authorities have 
accelerated and expanded their repressive campaign in Xinjiang. The 
global response to these abuses, up until now, has been insignificant, 
partly due to the successful campaign by Beijing to coerce silence from 
those who speak out.
  Where there has been talk, there has sadly been little action. Today, 
we have an opportunity to turn the tide by sending a strong message of 
support to the Uighur people and accountability for those Chinese 
officials who have violated their own people's rights and religious 
freedom for years with impunity.
  I urge my colleagues to join me today in sending a strong message to 
both the perpetrators and the victims alike with an overwhelming vote 
in support for this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, before I yield, I would like to point out that there are 
three Members of the New Jersey delegation here. Two of them are 
refugees from communism.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, today I am proud the House of 
Representatives is considering S. 178, the ``Uighur Intervention and 
Global Humanitarian Unified Response Act'' or the ``UIGHUR Act.''
  In the last year, Chinese authorities have expanded their network of 
mass internment camps, where it is now estimated that 1.8 million or 
more Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims have been involuntarily detained 
in approximately 1,400 extrajudicial internment facilities in the 
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).
  Detainees are subjected to torture, extended solitary confinement, 
and political indoctrination. Many scholars and human rights groups 
argue that these practices may amount to ``crimes against humanity.''
  Over the last month, leaks of highly classified Chinese government 
documents uncovered operations manuals for the mass internment camps 
and exposed details about the mass detention and surveillance systems 
in Xinjiang. Among the findings in the Chinese government's own 
documents:
  Reeducation centers are designed to ``wash clean the brains'' of 
those interned in them;
  Those who show signs of resistance are subjected to ``assault-style 
re-education'' efforts;
  Children of detainees are reportedly often placed in orphanages, 
welfare centers, and boarding schools;
  Special security measures are mandated to ensure detainees cannot 
``escape,'' thereby refuting Chinese government assertions that 
detainees are there voluntarily; and
  The establishment and expansion of the mass internment camps are part 
of a systematic policy directed by General Secretary Xi Jinping and 
carried out by XUAR Communist Party Secretary Chen Quanguo as well as 
other senior officials at the central and local levels.
  Further, we also have become more aware of the widespread use of a 
government-subsidized and large-scale system of forced labor in both 
mass internment camps and in factories throughout the Xinjiang region.
  Satellite imagery, personal testimonies, and official documents 
indicate that detainees in camps, and some who have been released, are 
forced to work in food production, textile, and other manufacturing 
jobs. Products reportedly produced with forced labor include:
  Textiles, such as yarn, clothing, gloves, bedding, and carpet; 
Electronics, including cell phones and computers; Food products, shoes, 
tea, and handicrafts.
  Current U.S. law prohibits the import of any product made with forced 
labor. Any U.S. or international company that produces or has a supply 
chain in Xinjiang may be complicit with forced labor and human rights 
violations. Customs and Border Protection rightly stopped the import of 
some goods from Xinjiang, but much more needs to be done to ensure that 
Americans are not purchasing products made with forced labor.
  The UIGHUR Act is an essential update and strengthening of U.S. 
policy in response to gross human rights abuses in Xinjiang. The bill 
calls on the President to submit a list to

[[Page H9208]]

Congress of Chinese officials responsible for the mass incarceration, 
political indoctrination, or reeducation efforts and to impose Global 
Magnitsky Act sanctions for all those on the list. It also includes 
needed export restrictions on technology critical to the Chinese 
government's ability to suppress human rights and individual privacy.
  With passage of this legislation, it should be clear that Congress 
stands in solidarity with the Uyghur people and other suppressed 
minorities affected by the mass internment and surveillance system in 
the Xinjiang region, and we will continue to do all we can to support 
the full exercise of their human rights in Xinjiang and in China.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Sires) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, S. 178, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________