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[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1154 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1154

 To preserve certain actions brought in Federal court against Japanese 
 defendants by members of the United States Armed Forces held by Japan 
                as prisoners of war during World War II.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 29, 2001

Mr. Smith of New Hampshire (for himself and Mr. Warner) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
 To preserve certain actions brought in Federal court against Japanese 
 defendants by members of the United States Armed Forces held by Japan 
                as prisoners of war during World War II.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Justice for United States Prisoners 
of War Act of 2001''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress finds the following:
            (1) During World War II, members of the United States Armed 
        Forces held as prisoners of war by Japan were forced to provide 
        labor for Japanese privately owned corporations in functions 
        unrelated to the prosecution of the war.
            (2) International law, including international conventions 
        relating to the protection of prisoners of war, was violated 
        when these Japanese corporations--
                    (A) failed to pay wages to captured United States 
                servicemembers for their labor;
                    (B) allowed and promoted torture and mistreatment 
                of captured United States servicemembers; and
                    (C) withheld food and medical treatment from 
                captured United States servicemembers.
            (3) In the Treaty of Peace with Japan, signed at San 
        Francisco September 8, 1951 (3 UST 3169), the Government of 
        Japan admitted liability for illegal conduct toward the Allied 
        Powers and, in particular, liability for illegal and inhumane 
        conduct toward members of the armed forces of the Allied Powers 
        held as prisoners of war.
            (4) Despite this admission of liability, Article 14(b) of 
        the Treaty has been construed to waive all private claims by 
        nationals of the United States, including private claims by 
        members of the United States Armed Forces held as prisoners of 
        war by Japan during World War II.
            (5) Under Article 26 of the Treaty, the government of Japan 
        agreed that if Japan entered into a war claims settlement 
        agreement with a country that is not a party to the Treaty that 
        provides more favorable terms to that country than the terms 
        Japan extended to the parties to the Treaty, then Japan would 
        extend those more favorable terms to each of the parties to the 
        Treaty, including to the United States.
            (6) Since the entry into force of the Treaty in 1952, the 
        Government of Japan has entered into war claims settlement 
        agreements with countries that are not party to the Treaty that 
        provide more favorable terms than those extended to the parties 
        to the Treaty, such as terms that allow claims by nationals of 
        those countries against Japanese nationals to be pursued 
        without limitation, restriction, or waiver or any type.
            (7) In accordance with Article 26 of the Treaty, Japan is 
        obligated to extend those same favorable terms to the United 
        States, including to nationals of the United States, who as 
        members of the United States Armed Forces, were held as 
        prisoners of war by Japan during World War II and who were 
        forced to provide labor without compensation and under inhumane 
        conditions.
            (8) The people of the United States owe a deep and eternal 
        debt to the heroic United States servicemembers held as 
        prisoners of war by Japan for the sacrifices those 
        servicemembers made on behalf of the United States in the days 
        after the ignominious aggression of Japan against the United 
        States at Pearl Harbor, Bataan, and Corregidor.
            (9) The pursuit of justice by those servicemembers through 
        lawsuits filed in the United States, where otherwise supported 
        by Federal, State, or international law, is consistent with the 
        interests of the United States and should not be preempted by 
        any other provision of law or by the Treaty.
            (10) Despite repeated requests for disclosure by United 
        States servicemembers, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and 
        Congress, the United States Government has withheld from those 
        servicemembers and their physicians Japanese records that were 
        turned over to the United States and that relate to chemical 
        and biological experiments conducted on United States 
        servicemembers held as prisoners of war by Japan during World 
        War II.

SEC. 3. SUITS AGAINST JAPANESE NATIONALS.

    (a) In General.--In an action brought in a Federal court against a 
Japanese defendant by a member of the United States Armed Forces who 
was held as a prisoner of war by Japan during World War II that seeks 
compensation for mistreatment or failure to pay wages in connection 
with labor performed by such a member to the benefit of the Japanese 
defendant during World War II, the court--
            (1) shall apply the applicable statute of limitations of 
        the State in which the Federal court hearing the case is 
        located;
            (2) shall not construe Article 14(b) of the Treaty as 
        constituting a waiver by the United States of claims by 
        nationals of the United States, including claims by members of 
        the United States Armed Forces, so as to preclude the pending 
        action.
    (b) Sunset.--Paragraph (1) of subsection (a) shall cease to apply 
at the end of the 10-year period beginning on the date of enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 4. APPLICABILITY OF RIGHTS UNDER ARTICLE 26 OF THE TREATY OF PEACE 
              WITH JAPAN.

    It is the policy of the United States Government to ensure that all 
terms under any war claims settlement agreement between Japan and any 
other country that are more favorable than those terms extended to the 
United States under the Treaty, will be extended to the United States 
in accordance with Article 26 of the Treaty with respect to claims by 
nationals of the United States who, as members of the United States 
Armed Forces, were held as prisoners of war by Japan during World War 
II and who were forced to provide labor without compensation and under 
inhumane conditions.

SEC. 5. AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION RELATING TO CERTAIN CHEMICAL AND 
              BIOLOGICAL TESTS CONDUCTED BY JAPAN DURING WORLD WAR II.

    (a) Availability of Information to the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs may request from, and the head of the department or 
agency so requested shall provide to the Secretary, information 
relating to chemical or biological tests conducted by Japan on members 
of the United States Armed Forces held as prisoners of war by Japan 
during World War II, including any information provided to the United 
States Government by Japan.
    (b) Availability of Information to Interested Members of the Armed 
Forces.--Any information received by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 
under subsection (a), with respect to an individual member of the 
United States Armed Forces held as a prisoner of war by Japan during 
World War II, may be made available to that individual to the extent 
otherwise provided by law.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Japanese defendant.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``Japanese defendant'' 
                means a Japanese national, an entity organized or 
                incorporated under Japanese law, an affiliate of an 
                entity organized or incorporated under Japanese law 
                that is organized or incorporated under the laws of any 
                State, and any predecessor of that entity or affiliate.
                    (B) Limitation.--The term does not include the 
                Government of Japan.
            (2) State.--The term ``State'' means the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, and any commonwealth, territory or 
        possession of the United States.
            (3) Treaty.--The term ``Treaty'' mean the Treaty of Peace 
        with Japan, signed at San Francisco on September 8, 1951 (3 UST 
        3169).
                                 <all>
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