From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord@igc.org>
Newsgroups: soc.rights.human
Date: 22 Jul 92 10:00 PDT
Subject: tibet hearing and senate MFN
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1476700247:000:8823
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!hrcoord    Jul 22 10:00:00 1992


From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: tibet hearing and senate MFN

/* Written  5:27 pm  Jul 21, 1992 by iclt in cdp:tibet.action */
URGENT ACTION
REQUESTED

July 21, 1992


SUBJECT:  Hearing on Tibet

ACTION:   Letters to your Senators

TIME:     IMMEDIATELY (Hearing scheduled for July 28)


On Tuesday, July 28 at 10:00am, the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee will hold a hearing on Tibet. This historic hearing, the
first to focus solely on Tibet in the Senate, will provide an
unprecedented forum to discuss the current concerns of the Tibetans
and the best way that the U.S. Congress can most affectively
address these concerns. Among other witnesses, Lodi Gyari, Special
Envoy of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, will provide testimony. 

Members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee need to be urged
to attend this important forum ASAP! On the back of this page you
will find a sample letter to send to members of the Committee
urging them to attend and a list of those senators.  Also, phone
calls to the Senators' offices are extremely effective.  We also
encourage any of you to attend the hearing if you are in the
Washington area.


Please contact Rachel Lostumbo at the International Campaign for
Tibet 202/628-4123 or Lisa Keary at the U.S. Tibet Committee
212/213-5011 if you have any questions or need further information.

Thank you for all your efforts.


SAMPLE LETTER
                                        Your Name
                                        Address
                                        City, State  Zip

                                        Date

The Honorable _________________
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC  20510

Dear Senator _________________:

     On July 28, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hold
hearings on Tibet.  As a member of the Committee, I would welcome
and appreciate your attendance at this hearing. 

     The Tibetan people have been brutalized by communist China's
forty-year occupation. Governments have long ignored Tibet and it
is only through such a hearing that the atrocities can come to
light.
     
     China defiantly tries to keep the world in the dark about
conditions in Tibet. Journalists are routinely barred from entering
Tibet.  And, Senators Pell and Boren were denied visas when they
tried to see for themselves conditions in Tibet.

     I also encourage you to attend the hearing because it will
provide critical information on the current situation in Tibet. 
Also, as a buffer state between Russia, the Central Asian
Republics, India and China, Tibet has strategic importance to all
of Asia. Massive deforestation and the use of Tibet for nuclear
activities is destroying Tibet's unique environment, which could,
in turn, affect all of South Asia's ecosystem.

     Instability in Asia--due to political, security, or
environmental reason--makes it imperative that the U.S. give the
region the attention it deserves.

     I therefore urge you to attend the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee hearing on Tibet and thank you for your attention to my
concerns.

                                        Sincerely,



           Senators on the Foreign Relations Committee

Democrats                                             Republicans
Claiborne Pell--Rhode Island          Jesse Helms--North Carolina
Joseph R. Biden, Jr.--Delaware          Richard G. Lugar--Indiana
Paul S. Sarbanes--Maryland         Nancy Landon Kassebaum--Kansas
Alan Cranston--California            Larry Pressler--South Dakota
Christopher J. Dodd--Connecticut          Frank Murkowski--Alaska
John F. Kerry--Massachusetts            Mitch McConnell--Kentucky
Paul Simon--Illinois                         Hank Brown--Colorado
Terry Sanford--North Carolina                Orrin G. Hatch--Utah
Daniel P. Moynihan--New York
Charles S. Robb--Virginia
Wofford--Pennsylvania



URGENT ACTION
REQUESTED

July 21, 1992

SUBJECT:  Most-Favored-Nation Legislation

ACTION:   Letters to your Senator

TIME:     IMMEDIATELY (Senate will vote prior to August 13)

President Bush has unconditionally extended China's most-favored-
nation (MFN) trading status for another year. This means that China
will receive the lowest tariffs available when exporting its goods
to the United States. Last year, China earned $19 billion as a
result of MFN privileges, and that figure is projected to be even
higher for 1992. This helps the Chinese leaders finance their
military occupation of Tibet.

Congress is now working to pass legislation to direct the President
to withhold MFN for China. Each body of Congress must introduce and
pass their own individual MFN bills. If the legislation passes both
bodies, then the Senate and the House go into conference to design
a single bill that will be voted on by the entire Congress. A two-
thirds majority in both houses is needed to override an anticipated
presidential veto of the bill.

At this point, both the House and the Senate have introduced their
bills.  The House is schedule to vote on their bill by the end of
July. It is anticipated that the Senate will be voting on their
bill by August 13.

     YOUR SENATOR IS A KEY PLAYER IN THIS YEAR'S MFN BATTLE!

It is imperative you (your friends, colleagues and Tibet
supporters) write letters to your senators encouraging them to
support the current MFN bill, S. 2808. A sample letter is provided
on the reverse side of this page. Letters on stationary showing
business, professional or university affiliation are especially
effective.  This is the first step in a long process. We will keep
you notified of developments as they occur, and future action we
will need you to take.

                  For more information contact:

Lisa Keary                         Rachel Lostumbo
U.S. Tibet Committee               International Campaign for Tibet
241 E. 32nd Street                 1518 K Street N.W., Suite 410
New York, NY  10016                Washington, DC  20005
Tel: 212/213-5011                  Tel: 202/628-4123
Fax: 212/779-9245                  Fax: 202/347-6825


SAMPLE LETTER

                                        Your Name
                                        Address
                                        City, State  Zip

                                        Date
The Honorable _______________
U.S. Senate
Washington, DC  20510

Dear Senator __________:

     I welcome your support on Senator Mitchell's legislation, S.
2808, conditioning China's most-favored-nation (MFN) status.
Imposing higher tariffs on exports from state-owned enterprises if
China does not meet the stated MFN conditions will send a strong
signal to the leaders in Beijing that they must abide by certain
standards if they want to retain economic privileges.

     Those of us working for freedom and democracy throughout the
world welcome the language in the bill which mandates improvements
in trade, weapons proliferation and the human rights conditions in
"China and Tibet." 

     While the Tibetan and Chinese people share a common goal in
encouraging the establishment of democratic traditions, the
Tibetans' struggle is different from the Chinese. The Tibetans are
fighting for the very survival of their culture and homeland. It is
imperative that we in the United States do not take any actions
that could legitimize Beijing's claims to sovereignty over
Tibet.    In light of Congress' explicit recognition of Tibet as an
occupied country in last year's Foreign Relations Authorization Act
1992-93 (Public Law 102-138), I am confident that Congress will
reinforce that sentiment by retaining the "China and Tibet"
language in this year's legislation.

     This year's MFN legislation allows the U.S. government to
maintain "constructive engagement" with China without penalizing
private business. Your vote in support of MFN conditions will
enable the United States to use economic leverage to promote fair
trade practices, nuclear deterrence and human rights in both China
and Tibet.

     Please give your full approval of S. 2808 when it comes to a
floor vote, in particular the human rights provisions addressing
"China and Tibet."

     Thank you.

                                        Respectfully yours, 


cc:  Senator George Mitchell  (please send a copy of your letter
                              to Senator George J. Mitchell, U.S.
                              Senate, 176 Senate Russell Office
                              Building, Washington, DC  20510.)


                    For further information:

Lisa Keary                    Rachel Lostumbo
U.S. Tibet Committee          International Campaign for Tibet
241 East 32nd Street          1518 K Street N.W., Suite 410
New York, NY  10016           Washington, DC  20005
Tel: 212/213-5011             Tel: 202/628-4123
Fax: 212/779-9245             Fax: 202/347-6825