[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 101 (Friday, June 14, 2024)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E635]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         PROMOTING A RESOLUTION TO THE TIBET-CHINA DISPUTE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                           HON. NANCY PELOSI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 11, 2024

  Ms. PELOSI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in favor of the Promoting a 
Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act.
  Sixty-five years ago, in the Tibetan Uprising of 1959, thousands of 
courageous Tibetans risked their lives for their freedoms as they took 
a stand against Chinese occupation. When the People's Liberation Army 
security forces tightened their hold on Lhasa in response to the 
uprising, a young Dalai Lama was forced to flee his country--and he has 
lived in exile ever since.
  The leadership of His Holiness the Dalai Lama serves as a symbol of 
the bravery and resilience of the Tibetan people--and his story 
challenges the conscience of all freedom-loving people. It was my 
privilege to lead Congressional delegations to visit the His Holiness 
in Dharamsala in 2008, and 2017. On those trips, we saw firsthand the 
aspirations of the Tibetan people--especially in the eyes of the 
children who had only known relentless intimidation by the Chinese 
Communist Party.
  In the decades since the uprising, Beijing has only accelerated its 
aggression against Tibetans. The world has witnessed unconscionable and 
intolerable actions of the Chinese Communist Party against the Tibetan 
people: mandatory political education, restrictions on religious 
freedom, a mass surveillance regime, and further closing off Tibet from 
the world. Yet despite their oppression, the children of Tibet still 
yearn for a future where they can speak their language, practice their 
faith and celebrate their culture without fear.
  The United States of America has a clarion moral duty to stand up for 
Tibet and speak out against Beijing's abuses. In the Congress, there 
has long been strong, bipartisan, bicameral support for the Tibetan 
people. We were proud to enact the Tibet Policy Act in 2019: promoting 
Tibetans' religious, linguistic and cultural identity, and including 
the right to select their own religious leaders in accordance with 
their own belief system.
  It has been my privilege to help shape this bill--including through 
our annual Tibet Strategy Meetings when I was Speaker and in further 
sessions convened in my office in recent months. Alongside Ranking 
Member McGovern and fearless Tibetan advocates, we workshopped the bill 
language to strengthen American efforts for a diplomatic solution to 
Tibet's status, from establishing a statutory definition of Tibet, to 
further empowering the U.S. Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues to 
combat disinformation.
  It was with great pride that I voted for this bill's passage in the 
House in February--and I am proud to support this bill's passage again 
today. I urge a strong `aye' vote today to reaffirm Congress's 
bipartisan and unbreakable support for human rights in Tibet and thank 
Chairman McCaul and Ranking Member Meeks for their leadership.

                          ____________________