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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 633 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 633

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the deterioration of respect for 
 privacy and human rights in the People's Republic of China before the 
                     2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 30, 2008

  Mr. Brownback (for himself and Mr. Bunning) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
Expressing the sense of the Senate on the deterioration of respect for 
 privacy and human rights in the People's Republic of China before the 
                     2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Whereas, on July 13, 2001, the International Olympic Committee announced the 
        awarding of the 2008 Olympic Games to Beijing, People's Republic of 
        China;
Whereas, prior to that announcement, the bidding documents submitted by the 
        Government of the People's Republic of China to the International 
        Olympic Committee stated, ``We are confident that the Games coming to 
        China not only promotes our economy, but also enhances . . . human 
        rights.'';
Whereas those documents also stated, ``There will be no restrictions on 
        journalists in reporting on the Olympic Games. . . . There will be no 
        restriction concerning the use of media material produced in China and 
        intended principally for broadcast outside.'';
Whereas Beijing's Action Plan for the Olympics states, ``In the preparation for 
        the Games, we will be open in every aspect to the rest of the country 
        and the whole world.'';
Whereas, on April 23, 2002, after the Olympic Games had been awarded to Beijing, 
        the President of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, 
        said, ``We are convinced that the Olympic Games will improve the human 
        rights record [in China].'';
Whereas, on March 13, 2008, the United States Department of State released the 
        annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices;
Whereas the report on the People's Republic of China states that in 2007 the 
        Government of the People's Republic of China ``tightened restrictions on 
        freedom of speech and the press, particularly in anticipation of and 
        during sensitive events, including increased efforts to control and 
        censor the Internet'';
Whereas that report also states that in 2007 authorities of the People's 
        Republic of China ``monitored telephone conversations, facsimile 
        transmissions, e-mail, text messaging, and Internet communications'';
Whereas, on July 29, 2008, Amnesty International released a report entitled 
        ``People's Republic of China: The Olympics Countdown--Broken Promises'', 
        which finds, regarding the promises of the Government of the People's 
        Republic of China to the International Olympic Committee in 2001, 
        ``[T]here has been no progress towards fulfilling these promises, only 
        continued deterioration. . . . In fact, the crackdown on human rights 
        defenders, journalists and lawyers has intensified because Beijing is 
        hosting the Olympics.'';
Whereas, that report also states, ``Chinese journalists continue to operate in a 
        climate of official censorship and control, with many still languishing 
        in jail for reporting on issues deemed politically sensitive. Internet 
        controls have been increasingly tightened as the Olympics approach with 
        control, regulation and censorship extending to various categories of 
        internet users, including Internet Service Providers, bloggers and 
        website owners. Numerous websites have been closed down for providing 
        information deemed sensitive by the authorities. Internet users who post 
        such information risk detention, prosecution and imprisonment.'';
Whereas, in April 2008, the Government of the People's Republic of China issued 
        an order requiring hotels to allow the Public Security Bureau to install 
        hardware devices and new software programs on the hotel networks that 
        are designed to send sensitive information about users, including 
        foreign visitors and journalists, to the Public Security Bureau;
Whereas, on July 29, 2008, Agence France-Presse reported that ``China will 
        censor the Internet used by foreign media during the Olympics . . . 
        reversing a pledge to offer complete media freedom at the games'', 
        citing confirmation by Sun Weide, spokesman for the Beijing Olympic 
        Organizing Committee;
Whereas the Olympic Charter states that the mission of the International Olympic 
        Committee is ``to promote a positive legacy from the Olympic Games to 
        the host cities and host countries'';
Whereas, on December 25, 2007, the Vice-President of the International Olympic 
        Committee, Thomas Bach, stated, ``The Games can act as a catalyst and 
        contribute to the opening of a society.''; and
Whereas, on March 23, 2008, the President of the International Olympic 
        Committee, Jacques Rogge, stated that the Olympic Games are a ``force 
        for good'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) calls upon the Government of the People's Republic of 
        China--
                    (A) to rescind the order requiring hotels to allow 
                the Public Security Bureau to install hardware and 
                software on the hotel networks; and
                    (B) to refrain from targeting, on the basis of 
                information collected from Internet monitoring, any 
                individual who visits websites related to politics or 
                human rights or who expresses opinions related to 
                politics or human rights in electronic communication;
            (2) expresses grave concern regarding the deterioration of 
        respect for human rights in the People's Republic of China 
        leading up to the Beijing Olympics;
            (3) notes that the behavior of the Government of the 
        People's Republic of China violates several international 
        conventions to which the country is a signatory, violates the 
        Government's commitments to the International Olympic 
        Committee, and is contrary to longstanding Olympic tradition 
        and spirit; and
            (4) remains concerned for the safety and privacy of 
        international visitors and journalists traveling to the 
        People's Republic of China for the Beijing Olympics, in 
        particular visitors and journalists involved in documenting 
        human rights abuses and promoting human rights improvements.
                                 <all>
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