I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1872 

To promote access for United States officials, journalists, and other citizens 

to Tibetan areas of the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 4, 2017 

Mr. MCGOVERN (for himself, Mr. HULTGREN, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. POCAN, Mr. STEWART, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. ELLISON, 

Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. KEATING, Mr. NEAL, 

Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. WELCH, Mr. CONNOLLY, and Mr. POLIS) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To promote access for United States officials, journalists, 

and other citizens to Tibetan areas of the People’s Republic of China, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reciprocal Access to 

5 Tibet Act of 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The Government of the People’s Republic of 

4 China does not grant United States officials, jour5 nalists, and other citizens access to China on a basis 

6 that is reciprocal to the access that the Government 

7 of the United States grants Chinese officials, jour8 nalists, and citizens. 

9 (2) The Government of China imposes greater 

10 restrictions on travel to Tibetan areas than to other 

11 areas of China. 

12 (3) Officials of China have stated that Tibet is 

13 open to foreign visitors. 

14 (4) The Government of China is promoting 

15 tourism in Tibetan areas, and at the Sixth Tibet 

16 Work Forum in August 2015, Premier Li Keqiang 

17 called for Tibet to build ‘‘major world tourism des18 tinations’’. 

19 (5) The Government of China requires for20 eigners to obtain permission from the Tibet Foreign 

21 and Overseas Affairs Office or from the Tibet Tour22 ism Bureau to enter the Tibet Autonomous Region, 

23 a restriction that is not imposed on travel to any 

24 other provincial-level jurisdiction in China. 

25 (6) The Department of State reports that— 


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1 (A) officials of the Government of the 

2 United States submitted 39 requests for diplo3 matic access to the Tibet Autonomous Region 

4 between May 2011 and July 2015, but only 

5 four were granted; and 

6 (B) when such requests are granted, diplo7 matic personnel are closely supervised and given 

8 few opportunities to meet local residents not ap9 proved by authorities. 

10 (7) The Government of China delayed United 

11 States consular access for more than 48 hours after 

12 an October 28, 2013, bus crash in the Tibet Autono13 mous Region, in which three citizens of the United 

14 States died and more than a dozen others, all from 

15 Walnut, California, were injured, undermining the 

16 ability of the Government of the United States to 

17 provide consular services to the victims and their 

18 families, and failing to meet China’s obligations 

19 under the Convention on Consular Relations, done 

20 at Vienna April 24, 1963 (21 UST 77). 

21 (8) Following a 2015 earthquake that trapped 

22 dozens of citizens of the United States in the Tibet 

23 Autonomous Region, the United States Consulate 

24 General in Chengdu faced significant challenges in 


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1 providing emergency consular assistance due to a 

2 lack of consular access. 

3 (9) The Country Reports on Human Rights 

4 Practices for 2015 of the Department of State stat5 ed ‘‘With the exception of a few highly controlled 

6 trips, the Chinese government also denied multiple 

7 requests by foreign diplomats for permission to visit 

8 the TAR.’’. 

9 (10) Tibetan-Americans, attempting to visit 

10 their homeland, report having to undergo a discrimi11 natory visa application process, different from what 

12 is typically required, at the Chinese embassy and 

13 consulates in the United States, and often find their 

14 requests to travel denied. 

15 (11) The Country Reports on Human Rights 

16 Practices for 2016 of the Department of State stat17 ed ‘‘The few visits to the TAR by diplomats and 

18 journalists that were allowed were tightly controlled 

19 by local authorities.’’. 

20 (12) A September 2016 article in the Wash21 ington Post reported that ‘‘The Tibet Autonomous 

22 Region . . . is harder to visit as a journalist than 

23 North Korea.’’. 

24 (13) The Government of China has failed to re25 spond positively to requests from the Government of 


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1 the United States to open a consulate in Lhasa, 

2 Tibet Autonomous Region. 

3 (14) The Foreign Correspondents Club of 

4 China reports that— 

5 (A) 2008 rules prevent foreign reporters 

6 from visiting the Tibet Autonomous Region 

7 without prior permission from the Government 

8 of such Region; 

9 (B) such permission has only rarely been 

10 granted; and 

11 (C) although the 2008 rules allow journal12 ists to travel freely in other parts of China, Ti13 betan areas outside such Region remain ‘‘effec14 tively off-limits to foreign reporters’’. 

15 (15) The Department of State reports that in 

16 addition to having to obtain permission to enter the 

17 Tibet Autonomous Region, foreign tourists— 

18 (A) must be accompanied at all times by a 

19 government-designated tour guide; 

20 (B) are rarely granted permission to enter 

21 the region by road; 

22 (C) are largely barred from visiting around 

23 the March anniversary of a 1959 Tibetan upris24 ing; and 


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1 (D) are banned from visiting the area 

2 where Larung Gar, the world’s largest center 

3 for the study of Tibetan Buddhism, and the site 

4 of a large-scale campaign to expel students and 

5 demolish living quarters, is located. 

6 (16) Foreign visitors also face restrictions in 

7 their ability to travel freely in Tibetan areas outside 

8 the Tibet Autonomous Region. 

9 (17) The Government of the United States gen10 erally allows journalists and other citizens of China 

11 to travel freely within the United States. The Gov12 ernment of the United States requires diplomats 

13 from China to notify the Department of State of 

14 their travel plans, and in certain situations, the Gov15 ernment of the United States requires such dip16 lomats to obtain approval from the Department of 

17 State before travel. However, where approval is re18 quired, it is almost always granted expeditiously. 

19 (18) The United States regularly grants visas 

20 to Chinese officials, scholars, and others who travel 

21 to the United States to discuss, promote, and dis22 play the perspective of the Government of China on 

23 the situation in Tibetan areas, even as the Govern24 ment of China restricts the ability of citizens of the 


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1 United States to travel to Tibetan areas to gain 

2 their own perspective. 

3 (19) Chinese diplomats based in the United 

4 States generally avail themselves of the freedom to 

5 travel to United States cities and lobby city councils, 

6 mayors, and governors to refrain from passing reso7 lutions, issuing proclamations, or making statements 

8 of concern on Tibet. 

9 (20) The Government of China characterizes 

10 statements made by officials of the United States 

11 about the situation in Tibetan areas as inappro12 priate interference in the internal affairs of China. 

13 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this Act: 

15 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT16 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com17 mittees’’ means— 

18 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations 

19 and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Sen20 ate; and 

21 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 

22 the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

23 Representatives. 

24 (2) SENIOR LEADERSHIP POSITIONS.—The 

25 term ‘‘senior leadership positions’’ means— 


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1 (A) at the national level, the Chairperson 

2 of the National Committee of the Chinese Peo3 ple’s Political Consultative Conference and the 

4 Head and Deputy Heads of the Communist 

5 Party Central Committee’s United Front Work 

6 Department; 

7 (B) at the sub-national level— 

8 (i) members of the Communist Party 

9 Standing Committee of the Tibet Autono10 mous Region; 

11 (ii) the Director of the Tibet Autono12 mous Region Tourism Bureau; 

13 (iii) the heads of United Front Work 

14 Departments of Sichuan, Qinghai, Gansu, 

15 and Yunnan Provinces; and 

16 (iv) members of the Communist Party 

17 Standing Committees of the areas listed 

18 under paragraph (3)(B); and 

19 (C) any other individual determined by the 

20 Secretary of State to be personally and substan21 tially involved in the formulation or execution of 

22 policies related to access for foreigners to Ti23 betan areas. 

24 (3) TIBETAN AREAS.—The term ‘‘Tibetan 

25 areas’’ includes— 


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1 (A) the Tibet Autonomous Region; and 

2 (B) the areas that the Chinese Government 

3 designates as Tibetan Autonomous, as follows: 

4 (i) Kanlho (Gannan) Tibetan Autono5 mous Prefecture, and Pari (Tianzhu) Ti6 betan Autonomous County located in 

7 Gansu Province. 

8 (ii) Golog (Guoluo) Tibetan Autono9 mous Prefecture, Malho (Huangnan) Ti10 betan Autonomous Prefecture, Tsojang 

11 (Haibei) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 

12 Tsolho (Hainan) Tibetan Autonomous Pre13 fecture, Tsonub (Haixi) Mongolian and Ti14 betan Autonomous Prefecture, and Yulshul 

15 (Yushu) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, 

16 located in Qinghai Province. 

17 (iii) Garze (Ganzi) Tibetan Autono18 mous Prefecture, Ngawa (Aba) Tibetan 

19 and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture, and 

20 Muli (Mili) Tibetan Autonomous County, 

21 located in Sichuan Province. 

22 (iv) Dechen (Diqing) Tibetan Autono23 mous Prefecture, located in Yunnan Prov24 ince. 


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1 SEC. 4. ANNUAL REPORT. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

3 date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

4 the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate con5 gressional committees a report that includes— 

6 (1) an assessment of the level of access Chinese 

7 authorities granted diplomats, journalists, and tour8 ists from the United States to Tibetan areas, includ9 ing— 

10 (A) a comparison with the level of access 

11 granted to other areas of China; 

12 (B) a comparison between the levels of ac13 cess granted to Tibetan and non-Tibetan areas 

14 in relevant provinces; 

15 (C) a comparison of the level of access in 

16 the reporting year and the previous reporting 

17 year; and 

18 (D) a description of the required permits 

19 and other measures that impede the freedom to 

20 travel in Tibetan areas; and 

21 (2) a list of each individual who holds a senior 

22 leadership position. 

23 (b) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The report required 

24 under subsection (a) shall be made available to the public 

25 on the website of the Department of State. 


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1 SEC. 5. INADMISSIBILITY OF CERTAIN ALIENS. 

2 (a) INELIGIBILITY FOR VISAS.—No individual who is 

3 included on the most recent list required under section 

4 4(a)(2) may be eligible to receive a visa to enter the 

5 United States or be admitted to the United States if the 

6 Secretary of State determines that— 

7 (1)(A) the requirement for specific official per8 mission for foreigners to enter the Tibetan Autono9 mous Region remains in effect; or 

10 (B) such requirement has been replaced by a 

11 regulation that has a similar effect and requires for12 eign travelers to gain a level of permission to enter 

13 the Tibet Autonomous Region that is not required 

14 for travel to other provinces in China; and 

15 (2) restrictions on travel by officials, journal16 ists, and citizens of the United States to areas des17 ignated as ‘‘Tibetan Autonomous’’ in the provinces 

18 of Sichuan, Qinghai, Yunnan, and Gansu of China 

19 are greater than any restrictions on travel by such 

20 officials and citizens to areas in such provinces that 

21 are not so designated. 

22 (b) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.—The Secretary of 

23 State shall revoke, in accordance with section 221(i) of 

24 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), 

25 the visa or other documentation to enter or be present in 

26 the United States issued for an alien who would be ineliVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:53 Apr 08, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1872.IH H1872

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1 gible to receive such a visa or documentation under sub2 section (a). 

3 (c) WAIVER FOR NATIONAL INTERESTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State may 

5 waive the application of subsection (a) or (b) in the 

6 case of an alien if the Secretary determines that 

7 such a waiver— 

8 (A) is necessary to permit the United 

9 States to comply with the Agreement Regarding 

10 the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed 

11 at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered 

12 into force November 21, 1947 (TIAS 1676), or 

13 any other applicable international obligation of 

14 the United States; or 

15 (B) is in the national security interests of 

16 the United States. 

17 (2) NOTIFICATION.—Upon granting a waiver 

18 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of State shall 

19 submit to the appropriate congressional committees 

20 a document detailing the evidence and justification 

21 for the necessity of such waiver, including, if such 

22 waiver is granted pursuant to paragraph (1)(B), 

23 how such waiver relates to the national security in24 terests of the United States. 


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1 SEC. 6. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON VISA POLICY. 

2 (a) FINDING.—Congress finds that reciprocity forms 

3 the basis of diplomatic law and the practice of mutual ex4 changes between countries. 

5 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con6 gress that— 

7 (1) a country should give equivalent consular 

8 access to the nationals of a foreign country in a 

9 manner that is reciprocal to the consular access 

10 granted by such foreign country to citizens of the 

11 country; and 

12 (2) the Secretary of State, when granting dip13 lomats from China access to parts of the United 

14 States, should take into account the extent to which 

15 the Government of China grants diplomats from the 

16 United States access to parts of China, including the 

17 level of access afforded to such diplomats to Tibetan 

18 areas. 

Æ 


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