[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 45 (Monday, March 9, 2020)]
[House]
[Pages H1547-H1548]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1645
                   DIVIDED FAMILIES REUNIFICATION ACT

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 1771) to require consultations on reuniting Korean Americans with 
family members in North Korea, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1771

       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 ``Divided Families 
     Reunification Act''.

     SEC. 2. CONSULTATIONS ON REUNITING KOREAN AMERICANS WITH 
                   FAMILY MEMBERS IN NORTH KOREA.

       (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The division of the Korean Peninsula into South Korea 
     and North Korea separated thousands of Koreans from family 
     members.
       (2) Since the signing of the Agreement Concerning a 
     Military Armistice in Korea, signed at Panmunjom July 27, 
     1953 (commonly referred to as the ``Korean War Armistice 
     Agreement''), there has been little to no contact between 
     Korean Americans and family members who remain in North 
     Korea.
       (3) North Korea and South Korea first agreed to reunions of 
     divided families in 1985 and have since held 21 face-to-face 
     reunions and multiple video link reunions.
       (4) Those reunions have subsequently given approximately 
     24,500 Koreans the opportunity to briefly reunite with loved 
     ones.
       (5) The most recent family reunions between North Korea and 
     South Korea took place in August 2018 and did not include any 
     Korean Americans.
       (6) The United States and North Korea do not maintain 
     diplomatic relations and certain limitations exist on Korean 
     Americans participating in face-to-face reunions.
       (7) According to the most recent census, more than 
     1,700,000 people living in the United States are of Korean 
     descent.
       (8) The number of first generation Korean and Korean 
     American family members divided from family members in North 
     Korea is rapidly diminishing given the advanced age of those 
     family members. More than 3,000 elderly South Koreans die 
     each year without having been reunited with their family 
     members.
       (9) Many Korean Americans with family members in North 
     Korea have not seen or communicated with those family members 
     in more than 60 years.
       (10) The inclusion of Korean American families in the 
     reunion process would constitute a positive humanitarian 
     gesture by the Government of North Korea.
       (11) Section 1265 of the National Defense Authorization Act 
     for Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110-181; 122 Stat. 407) 
     required the President to submit to Congress a report on 
     ``efforts, if any, of the United States Government to 
     facilitate family reunions between United States citizens and 
     their relatives in North Korea''.
       (12) The position of Special Envoy on North Korean Human 
     Rights Issues has been vacant since January 2017, although 
     the President is required to appoint a Senate-confirmed 
     Special Envoy to fill this position in accordance with 
     section 107 of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 
     U.S.C. 7817).
       (13) In the report of the Committee on Appropriations of 
     the House of Representatives accompanying H.R. 3081, 111th 
     Congress (House Report 111-187), the Committee urged ``the 
     Special Representative on North Korea Policy, as the senior 
     official handling North Korea issues, to prioritize the 
     issues involving Korean divided families and to, if 
     necessary, appoint a coordinator for such families''.
       (b) Consultations.--
       (1) Consultations with south korea.--The Secretary of 
     State, or a designee of the Secretary, should consult with 
     officials of South Korea, as appropriate, on potential 
     opportunities to reunite Korean American families with family 
     members in North Korea from which such Korean American 
     families were divided after the signing of the Korean War 
     Armistice Agreement, including potential opportunities for 
     video reunions for Korean Americans with such family members.
       (2) Consultations with korean americans.--The Special Envoy 
     on North Korean Human Rights Issues of the Department of 
     State should regularly consult with representatives of Korean 
     Americans who have family members in North Korea with respect 
     to efforts to reunite families divided after the signing of 
     the Korean War Armistice Agreement, including potential 
     opportunities for video reunions for Korean Americans with 
     such family members.
       (3) No additional authorization of appropriations.--No 
     additional amounts are authorized to be appropriated to the 
     Department of State to carry out consultations under this 
     subsection.
       (c) Additional Matter in Report.--The Secretary of State, 
     acting through the Special Envoy on North Korean Human Rights 
     Issues, shall include in each report required under section 
     107(d) of the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 (22 
     U.S.C. 7817(d)), a description of the consultations described 
     in subsection (b) conducted during the year preceding the 
     submission of each report required under such section 107(d).

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


                             General Leave

  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 
5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous materials on H.R. 1771.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from New Jersey?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to start by thanking Ms. Meng for sponsoring this 
good bill to provide much-needed relief to Korean Americans who have 
been separated from their family members, many of them for decades now.
  The Korean war tore families apart almost 70 years ago, and it is a 
humanitarian tragedy that many of them have been separated ever since. 
It is long past time for these families to be able to reunite. People 
who lost their parents when they were only toddlers are now senior 
citizens with children and grandchildren of their own.
  The Divided Families Reunification Act requires the Department of 
State to consult with our South Korean allies, and the Korean-American 
community to make more of these reunions happen as soon as possible. 
Anyone who has seen footage of these reunions can attest to their 
profound significance--they demonstrate that the bonds of family cannot 
be severed by wars, by decades, by distance, or by government 
repression.
  This bill also requires the Department of State to report to Congress 
on opportunities to facilitate more reunions by video connection, which 
is especially important to allow all Korean Americans, including those 
who might have difficulty with traveling long distances, a real 
opportunity to reconnect with their family members.
  An important role in executing this humanitarian policy is the 
Special Envoy on North Korean Human Rights issues. It is deeply 
concerning that the Trump administration has left this position vacant 
for over 2 years, since January 2017. Human rights in North Korea 
remains a bipartisan priority for this Congress, but if we are going to 
effectively advance these policies, we

[[Page H1548]]

need to make sure that we have the people in place to execute them.
  Mr. Speaker, the Divided Families Reunification Act is an excellent, 
bipartisan bill to continue United States' efforts to reunite families 
torn apart by the Korean war. I hope all Members will join me in 
supporting it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. YOHO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Divided Families 
Reunification Act introduced by Representative Meng.
  The sad legacy of the Korean war is with us even today, almost 70 
years after the Korean Armistice Agreement was signed. The Korean 
Peninsula remains divided between a nation of free people and a nation 
that subjects its people to tyranny.
  The Kim regime continues to threaten the peace and security of the 
region and of the world. Families remain broken, from those still 
fighting to bring their loved ones' remains home, to those with family 
members trapped in North Korea.
  Our vibrant Korean-American community feels this legacy strongly, so 
I commend Congresswoman Meng for her bill, which directs the State 
Department to consult with South Korea and Korean Americans on 
opportunities to reunite families separated by the DMZ.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill. I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. SIRES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time for the 
purpose of closing.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a good bill to support the thousands of Korean 
Americans whose families were torn apart by the Korean war.
  One of the most important tasks carried out by the State Department 
is the reunion of Americans with their family members, and this act 
would focus that good work on a group of people who have waited decades 
for that chance.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support the passage of this legislation, and 
I urge my colleagues to support the same.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  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, H.R. 1771, 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.

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