III 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 21 

Urging the Government of the People’s Republic of China to unconditionally 

release Liu Xiaobo, together with his wife Liu Xia, to allow them to 

freely meet with friends, family, and counsel and seek medical treatment 

wherever they desire. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 29, 2017 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Mr. MERKLEY, and Mr. CRUZ) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 

Foreign Relations 

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 

Urging the Government of the People’s Republic of China 

to unconditionally release Liu Xiaobo, together with his 

wife Liu Xia, to allow them to freely meet with friends, 

family, and counsel and seek medical treatment wherever 

they desire. 

Whereas Liu Xiaobo has inspired untold numbers of people 

in the People’s Republic of China and globally for his 

courageous stands for democracy, the protection of 

human rights, and peaceful change in China; 

Whereas, on December 9, 2008, a diverse group of more than 

300 Chinese scholars, writers, lawyers, and activists 

issued Charter 08, a manifesto calling on the Chinese 

Communist Party to abandon authoritarian rule in favor 


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2 

•SCON 21 IS 

of democracy, the guarantee of human rights, and the 

rule of law; 

Whereas Liu Xiaobo was one of the original drafters of Charter 08 and was taken into custody one day before the 

manifesto was released; 

Whereas, in December 2009, a Beijing court sentenced Liu 

Xiaobo to 11 years in prison for ‘‘inciting subversion of 

state power,’’ in part for his role in Charter 08; 

Whereas, in recognition of Liu Xiaobo’s long and non-violent 

struggle for fundamental human rights in the People’s 

Republic of China, he was awarded the Nobel Peace 

Prize in October 2010; 

Whereas Liu Xiaobo’s wife, Liu Xia, has been held in extralegal home confinement since October 2010, 2 weeks 

after her husband’s Nobel Peace Prize award was announced, and has reportedly suffered severe health problems over the years which required hospitalization; 

Whereas, in May 2011, the United Nations Working Group 

on Arbitrary Detention issued opinions declaring that the 

Chinese Government’s imprisonment of Liu Xiaobo and 

the detention of Liu Xia both contravened the Universal 

Declaration of Human Rights; 

Whereas Liu Xiaobo was diagnosed with terminal liver cancer 

in May 2017 and granted permission to access medical 

treatment outside of prison, and is currently hospitalized 

in China; 

Whereas, according to news and family reports, Liu Xiaobo’s 

cancer has metastasized and the Government of the People’s Republic of China has refused requests by his family 

to transfer him to Beijing for medical treatment; and 


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•SCON 21 IS 

Whereas Liu Xiaobo currently cannot freely meet with 

friends and family or seek medical care outside of China: 

Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 

2 concurring), That Congress— 

3 (1) recognizes Liu Xiaobo for his decades of 

4 peaceful struggle for basic human rights and democ5 racy in the People’s Republic of China; 

6 (2) urges the Government of the People’s Re7 public of China to unconditionally release Liu 

8 Xiaobo, together with his wife Liu Xia, to allow 

9 them to freely meet with friends, family, and counsel 

10 and seek medical treatment wherever they desire; 

11 and 

12 (3) urges the President to seek humanitarian 

13 transfer from the People’s Republic of China for Liu 

14 Xiaobo, together with his wife Liu Xia, so that he 

15 can seek medical treatment in the United States or 

16 elsewhere overseas. 

Æ 


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