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[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4331 Engrossed in House (EH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4331

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 
To modify and reauthorize the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. MODIFICATIONS TO AND REAUTHORIZATION OF TIBETAN POLICY ACT OF 
              2002.

    (a) Tibetan Negotiations.--Section 613 of the Tibetan Policy Act of 
2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by inserting ``without preconditions'' 
                        after ``a dialogue'';
                            (ii) by inserting ``or democratically-
                        elected leaders of the Tibetan community'' 
                        after ``his representatives''; and
                            (iii) by adding at the end before the 
                        period the following: ``and should coordinate 
                        with other governments in multilateral efforts 
                        toward this goal'';
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph 
                (3); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
            ``(2) Policy communication.--The President shall direct the 
        Secretary of State to ensure that, in accordance with this Act, 
        United States policy on Tibet, as coordinated by the United 
        States Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues, is communicated 
        to all Federal departments and agencies in contact with the 
        Government of the People's Republic of China.'';
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
                            (i) by striking ``until December 31, 
                        2021''; and
                            (ii) by inserting ``and direct the 
                        Department of State to make public on its 
                        website'' after ``appropriate congressional 
                        committees'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (C) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; and'' ; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) the steps taken by the United States Government to 
        promote the human rights and distinct religious, cultural, 
        linguistic, and historical identity of the Tibetan people, 
        including the right of the Tibetan people to select, educate, 
        and venerate their own religious leaders in accordance with 
        their established religious practice and system.''.
    (b) Tibet Project Principles.--Section 616 of such Act (22 U.S.C. 
6901 note) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (d), by striking paragraphs (1) through 
        (9) and inserting the following:
            ``(1) neither provide incentive for, nor facilitate the 
        migration and settlement of, non-Tibetans into Tibet;
            ``(2) neither provide incentive for, nor facilitate the 
        transfer of ownership of, Tibetan land or natural resources to 
        non-Tibetans;
            ``(3) neither provide incentive for, nor facilitate the 
        involuntary or coerced relocation of, Tibetan nomads from their 
        traditional pasture lands into concentrated settlements;
            ``(4) be implemented in consultation with the Tibetan 
        people and, as appropriate, after the conduct of cultural and 
        environmental impact assessments;
            ``(5) foster self-sufficiency and self-reliance of 
        Tibetans;
            ``(6) respect human rights and Tibetan culture and 
        traditions;
            ``(7) be subject to ongoing monitoring and evaluation; and
            ``(8) be conducted, as much as possible, in the Tibetan 
        language.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) United States Assistance.--The President shall provide funds 
to nongovernmental organizations to support sustainable development, 
cultural and historical preservation, health care, education, and 
environmental sustainability projects for Tibetan communities in Tibet, 
in accordance with the principles specified in subsection (d) and with 
the concurrence of the United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan 
Issues under section 621(d).''.
    (c) Diplomatic Representation Relating to Tibet.--Section 618 of 
such Act (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 618. DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION RELATING TO TIBET.

    ``(a) United States Consulate in Lhasa, Tibet.--The Secretary 
should seek to establish a United States consulate in Lhasa, Tibet--
            ``(1) to provide consular services to United States 
        citizens traveling in Tibet; and
            ``(2) to monitor political, economic, and cultural 
        developments in Tibet.
    ``(b) Policy.--The Secretary may not authorize the establishment in 
the United States of any additional consulate of the People's Republic 
of China until such time as a United States consulate in Lhasa, Tibet, 
is established under subsection (a).''.
    (d) Religious Persecution in Tibet.--Section 620(b) of such Act (22 
U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended by adding at the end before the period the 
following: ``, including with respect to the reincarnation system of 
Tibetan Buddhism''.
    (e) United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues.--Section 
621 of such Act (22 U.S.C. 6901 note) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (c) to read as follows:
    ``(c) Objectives.--The objectives of the Special Coordinator are 
to--
            ``(1) promote substantive dialogue without preconditions 
        between the Government of the People's Republic of China and 
        the Dalai Lama or his representatives or democratically-elected 
        leaders of the Tibetan community leading to a negotiated 
        agreement on Tibet and coordinate with other governments in 
        multilateral efforts toward this goal;
            ``(2) encourage the Government of the People's Republic of 
        China to address the aspirations of the Tibetan people with 
        regard to their distinct historical, cultural, religious, and 
        linguistic identity;
            ``(3) promote the human rights of the Tibetan people;
            ``(4) promote activities to preserve environment and water 
        resources of the Tibetan plateau;
            ``(5) encourage sustainable development in accordance with 
        section 616(d), cultural and historical preservation, health 
        care, education, and environmental sustainability projects for 
        Tibetan communities in Tibet; and
            ``(6) promote access to Tibet in accordance with the 
        Reciprocal Access to Tibet Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-330).'';
            (2) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph 
                (8); and
                    (C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
            ``(6) provide concurrence with respect to all projects 
        carried out pursuant to assistance provided under section 
        616(e);
            ``(7) seek to establish international diplomatic coalitions 
        to--
                    ``(A) oppose any effort by the Government of the 
                People's Republic of China to select, educate, and 
                venerate Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders in a manner 
                inconsistent with Tibetan Buddhism in which the 
                succession or identification of Tibetan Buddhist lamas, 
                including the Dalai Lama, should occur without 
                interference, in a manner consistent with Tibetan 
                Buddhists' beliefs; and
                    ``(B) ensure that the identification and 
                installation of Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders, 
                including any future Dalai Lama, is determined solely 
                within the Tibetan Buddhist faith community, in 
                accordance with the universally-recognized right to 
                religious freedom; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Personnel.--The Secretary shall ensure that the Office of the 
Special Coordinator is adequately staffed at all times to assist in the 
management of the responsibilities of this section.''.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY REGARDING THE SUCCESSION OR REINCARNATION 
              OF THE DALAI LAMA.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Notwithstanding that Tibetan Buddhism is practiced in 
        many countries including Bhutan, India, Mongolia, Nepal, the 
        People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, and the 
        United States, the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        has repeatedly insisted on its role in managing the selection 
        of Tibet's next spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, through 
        actions such as those described in the ``Measures on the 
        Management of the Reincarnation of Living Buddhas'' in 2007.
            (2) On March 19, 2019, Chinese Ministry of Affairs 
        spokesperson reiterated that the ``reincarnation of living 
        Buddhas including the Dalai Lama must comply with Chinese laws 
        and regulations and follow religious rituals and historical 
        conventions''.
            (3) The Government of the People's Republic of China has 
        interfered in the process of recognizing a successor or 
        reincarnation of Tibetan Buddhist leaders, including in 1995 by 
        arbitrarily detaining Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, a 6-year old boy 
        who was identified as the 11th Panchen Lama, and purporting to 
        install its own candidate as the Panchen Lama.
            (4) The 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, issued a statement 
        on September 24, 2011, explaining the traditions and spiritual 
        precepts of the selection of Dalai Lamas, setting forth his 
        views on the considerations and process for selecting his 
        successor, and providing a response to the Chinese government's 
        claims that only the Chinese government has the ultimate 
        authority in the selection process of the Dalai Lama.
            (5) The 14th Dalai Lama said in his statement that the 
        person who reincarnates has sole legitimate authority over 
        where and how he or she takes rebirth and how that 
        reincarnation is to be recognized and if there is a need for a 
        15th Dalai Lama to be recognized, then the responsibility shall 
        primarily rest with the officers of the Dalai Lama's Gaden 
        Phodrang Trust, who will be informed by the written 
        instructions of the 14th Dalai Lama.
            (6) Since 2011, the 14th Dalai Lama has reiterated publicly 
        on numerous occasions that decisions on the successions, 
        emanations, or reincarnations of the Dalai Lama belongs to the 
        Tibetan Buddhist faith community alone.
            (7) On June 8, 2015, the United States House of 
        Representatives unanimously approved House Resolution 337 which 
        calls on the United States Government to ``underscore that 
        government interference in the Tibetan reincarnation process is 
        a violation of the internationally recognized right to 
        religious freedom * * * and to highlight the fact that other 
        countries besides China have long Tibetan Buddhist traditions 
        and that matters related to reincarnations in Tibetan Buddhism 
        are of keen interest to Tibetan Buddhist populations 
        worldwide''.
            (8) On April 25, 2018, the United States Senate unanimously 
        approved Senate Resolution 429 which ``expresses its sense that 
        the identification and installation of Tibetan Buddhist 
        religious leaders, including a future 15th Dalai Lama, is a 
        matter that should be determined solely within the Tibetan 
        Buddhist faith community, in accordance with the inalienable 
        right to religious freedom''.
            (9) The Department of State's Report on International 
        Religious Freedom for 2018 reported on policies and efforts of 
        the Government of the People's Republic of China to exert 
        control over the selection of Tibetan Buddhist religious 
        leaders, including reincarnate lamas, and stated that ``U.S. 
        officials underscored that decisions on the reincarnation of 
        the Dalai Lama should be made solely by faith leaders.''.
    (b) Statement of Policy.--It is the policy of the United States 
that--
            (1) decisions regarding the selection, education, and 
        veneration of Tibetan Buddhist religious leaders are 
        exclusively spiritual matters that should be made by the 
        appropriate religious authorities within the Tibetan Buddhist 
        tradition and in the context of the will of practitioners of 
        Tibetan Buddhism;
            (2) the wishes of the 14th Dalai Lama, including any 
        written instructions, should play a determinative role in the 
        selection, education, and veneration of a future 15th Dalai 
        Lama; and
            (3) interference by the Government of the People's Republic 
        of China or any other government in the process of recognizing 
        a successor or reincarnation of the 14th Dalai Lama and any 
        future Dalai Lamas would represent a clear violation of the 
        fundamental religious freedoms of Tibetan Buddhists and the 
        Tibetan people.
    (c) Holding Chinese Officials Responsible for Religious Freedom 
Abuses Targeting Tibetan Buddhists.--It is the policy of the United 
States to consider senior officials of the Government of the People's 
Republic of China who are responsible for, complicit in, or have 
directly or indirectly engaged in the identification or installation of 
a candidate chosen by China as the future 15th Dalai Lama of Tibetan 
Buddhism to have committed--
            (1) a gross violation of internationally recognized human 
        rights for purposes of imposing sanctions with respect to such 
        officials under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights 
        Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 2656 note); and
            (2) a particularly severe violation of religious freedom 
        for purposes of applying section 212(a)(2)(G) of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(G)) with 
        respect to such officials.
    (d) Department of State Programming To Promote Religious Freedom 
for Tibetan Buddhists.--Consistent with section 401 of the Frank R. 
Wolf International Religious Freedom Act (Public Law 114-281; 130 Stat. 
1436), of the funds available to the Department of State for 
international religious freedom programs, the Ambassador-at-Large for 
International Religious Freedom should support efforts to protect and 
promote international religious freedom in China and for programs to 
protect Tibetan Buddhism in China and elsewhere.

SEC. 4. POLICY REGARDING THE ENVIRONMENT AND WATER RESOURCES ON THE 
              TIBETAN PLATEAU.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Tibetan Plateau contains glaciers, rivers, 
        grasslands, and other geographical and ecological features that 
        are crucial for supporting vegetation growth and biodiversity, 
        regulating water flow and supply for an estimated 1.8 billion 
        people. Global warming threatens the glaciers in Tibet that 
        feed the major rivers of South and East Asia, which supply 
        freshwater to an estimated 1.8 billion people.
            (2) Rising global temperatures--especially in the Tibetan 
        Plateau where the average temperature has increased at twice 
        the global average--will result in variable water flows in the 
        future.
            (3) The construction in Tibet of large hydroelectric power 
        dams intended to be used in part to transmit power to Chinese 
        provinces outside of Tibet, as well as other infrastructure 
        projects, including the Sichuan-Tibet railroad, may also lead 
        to the resettlement of thousands of Tibetans and transform the 
        environment.
            (4) The grasslands of Tibet play a significant role in 
        carbon production and sequestration and Tibet's rivers support 
        wetlands that play a key role in water storage, water quality, 
        and the regulation of water flow, support biodiversity, foster 
        vegetation growth, and act as carbon sinks.
            (5) Rising temperatures and intensifying evaporation, can 
        affect the water supply, cause desertification, and destabilize 
        infrastructure on the Tibetan Plateau and beyond.
            (6) Traditional Tibetan grassland stewardship practices, 
        which can be key to mitigating the negative effects of warming 
        on the Tibetan Plateau, are undermined by the resettlement of 
        nomads from Tibetan grasslands.
            (7) The People's Republic of China has approximately 20 
        percent of the world's population but only around 7 percent of 
        the world's water supply, while many countries in South and 
        Southeast Asia rely on the rivers flowing from the Himalayas of 
        the Tibetan Plateau.
            (8) The People's Republic of China has already completed 
        water transfer programs diverting billions of cubic meters of 
        water yearly and has plans to divert more waters from the 
        Tibetan plateau in China.
    (b) Water Resources in Tibet and the Tibetan Watershed.--The 
Secretary of State, in coordination with relevant agencies of the 
United States Government, should--
            (1) pursue collaborative efforts with Chinese and 
        international scientific institutions, as appropriate, to 
        monitor the environment on the Tibetan Plateau, including 
        glacial retreat, temperature rise, and carbon levels, in order 
        to promote a greater understanding of the effects on 
        permafrost, river flows, grasslands and desertification, and 
        the monsoon cycle;
            (2) engage with the Government of the People's Republic of 
        China, the Tibetan people, and nongovernmental organizations to 
        encourage the participation of Tibetan nomads and other Tibetan 
        stakeholders in the development and implementation of grassland 
        management policies, in order to utilize their indigenous 
        experience in mitigation and stewardship of the land and to 
        assess policies on the forced resettlement of nomads; and
            (3) encourage a regional framework on water security, or 
        use existing frameworks, such as the Lower Mekong Initiative, 
        to facilitate cooperative agreements among all riparian nations 
        that would promote transparency, sharing of information, 
        pollution regulation, and arrangements on impounding and 
        diversion of waters that originate on the Tibetan Plateau.

SEC. 5. DEMOCRACY IN THE TIBETAN EXILE COMMUNITY.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) The 14th Dalai Lama advocates the Middle Way Approach, 
        which seeks genuine autonomy for the six million Tibetans in 
        Tibet.
            (2) The 14th Dalai Lama has overseen a process of 
        democratization within the Tibetan polity, beginning in Tibet 
        in the 1950s and continuing in exile from the 1960s to the 
        present and to address the needs of the Tibetan people until 
        such time as genuine autonomy in Tibet is realized, the 14th 
        Dalai Lama devolved his political responsibilities to the 
        elected representatives of the Tibetan people in exile in 2011.
            (3) In 2011 and again in 2016, members of the Tibetan exile 
        community across some 30 countries held elections to select 
        political leaders to serve in the Central Tibetan 
        Administration parliament and as chief executive, elections 
        which were monitored by international observers and assessed to 
        be free and fair.
            (4) The Dalai Lama has said that the Central Tibetan 
        Administration will cease to exist once a negotiated settlement 
        has been achieved that allows Tibetans to freely enjoy their 
        culture, religion and language in Tibet.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) Tibetan exile communities around the world should be 
        commended for the adoption of a system of self-governance with 
        democratic institutions to choose their leaders;
            (2) the Dalai Lama should be commended for his decision to 
        devolve political authority to elected leaders in accordance 
        with democratic principles; and
            (3) as consistent with section 621(d)(3) of the Tibetan 
        Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note), the United States 
        Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues should continue to 
        maintain close contact with the religious, cultural, and 
        political leaders of the Tibetan people.

SEC. 6. SUSTAINABILITY IN TIBETAN COMMUNITIES SEEKING TO PRESERVE THEIR 
              CULTURE, RELIGION, AND LANGUAGE.

    The Secretary of State should urge the Government of Nepal to honor 
the Gentleman's Agreement with the United Nations High Commissioner for 
Refugees and to provide legal documentation to long-staying Tibetan 
residents in Nepal who fled a credible threat of persecution in Tibet 
in order to allow them to more fully participate in the economy and 
society of Nepal.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Office of the United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan 
Issues.--There is authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of 
the fiscal years 2021 through 2025 for the Office of the United States 
Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues.
    (b) Tibetan Scholarship Program and Ngawang Choephel Exchange 
Programs.--
            (1) Tibetan scholarship program.--There is authorized to be 
        appropriated $675,000 for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 
        2025 to carry out the Tibetan scholarship program established 
        under section 103(b)(1) of the Human Rights, Refugee, and Other 
        Foreign Relations Provisions Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-319; 
        22 U.S.C. 2151 note).
            (2) Ngawang choephel exchange programs.--There is 
        authorized to be appropriated $575,000 for each of the fiscal 
        years 2021 through 2025 to carry out the ``Ngwang Choepel 
        Exchange Programs'' (formerly known as ``programs of 
        educational and cultural exchange between the United States and 
        the people of Tibet'') under section 103(a) of the Human 
        Rights, Refugee, and Other Foreign Relations Provisions Act of 
        1996.
    (c) Humanitarian Assistance and Support to Tibetan Refugees in 
South Asia.--Amounts authorized to be appropriated to carry out chapter 
9 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Migration and 
Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 for each of the fiscal years 2021 
through 2025 are authorized to be made available for humanitarian 
assistance, including food, medicine, clothing, and medical and 
vocational training, for Tibetan refugees in South Asia who have fled 
facing a credible threat of persecution in the People's Republic of 
China.
    (d) Tibetan Autonomous Region and Tibetan Communities in China.--
There is authorized to be appropriated $8,000,000 for each year of the 
fiscal years 2021 through 2025 under chapter 4 of part II of the 
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq.) to support 
activities which preserve cultural traditions and promote sustainable 
development, education, and environmental conservation in Tibetan 
communities in the Tibet Autonomous Region and in other Tibetan 
communities in China.
    (e) Assistance for Tibetans in India and Nepal.--There is 
authorized to be appropriated $6,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 
2021 through 2025 under part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
(22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) for programs to promote and preserve Tibetan 
culture and language development, and the resilience of Tibetan 
communities in India and Nepal, and to assist in the education and 
development of the next generation of Tibetan leaders from such 
communities.
    (f) Tibetan Governance.--There is authorized to be appropriated 
$3,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 2025 for programs 
to strengthen the capacity of Tibetan institutions and strengthen 
democracy, governance, information and international outreach, and 
research.
    (g) Voice of America and Radio Free Asia.--
            (1) Voice of america.--There is authorized to be 
        appropriated $3,344,000 for each of the fiscal years 2021 
        through 2025 to Voice of America for broadcasts described in 
        paragraph (3).
            (2) Radio free asia.--There is authorized to be 
        appropriated $4,060,000 for each of the fiscal years 2021 
        through 2025 to Radio Free Asia for broadcasts described in 
        paragraph (3).
            (3) Broadcasts described.--Broadcasts described in this 
        paragraph are broadcasts to provide uncensored news and 
        information in the Tibetan language to Tibetans, including 
        Tibetans in Tibet.

SEC. 8. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

    The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying 
with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by 
reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO 
Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional 
Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that 
such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

            Passed the House of Representatives January 28, 2020.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
116th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 4331

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

To modify and reauthorize the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002, and for other 
                               purposes.
```