[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3026]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               WE MUST PUT FREEDOM AND HUMAN RIGHTS FIRST

  (Mrs. DAVIS of California asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. DAVIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak on an 
international issue that merits our attention here in Congress. This 
month, hundreds of thousands of concerned citizens, 140,000 and 
counting, have signed a petition to the White House. The petition calls 
on the administration to stop expanding trade with Vietnam at the 
expense of human rights.
  I know it's hard for all of us here in this Chamber to imagine, but 
in Vietnam, the mere act of composing songs can be sufficient grounds 
for the Communist government to put someone in jail. In fact, that's 
exactly what happened to Viet Khang, a Vietnamese citizen who was 
arrested and who is currently being detained for merely composing and 
singing two protest songs about his own country. This arrest and many 
others in recent years are issues that have to be at the forefront of 
our trade negotiations with the Vietnamese Government.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in urging the President to put 
freedom and human rights first.

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