I

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1779

To support the aspirations of the Tibetan people to safeguard their distinct

identity.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MAY 9, 2001

Mr. LANTOS (for himself, Mr. KIRK, Mr. ACKERMAN, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. BOUCHER, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. STARK,

Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr.

SHERMAN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. KING, Mr. HOEFFEL, Mr.

FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. GILMAN, Mr. FRANK, Mr. COX, Mr. WEXLER, Mr.

MENENDEZ, Mr. WOLF, Mr. BONIOR, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr. ALLEN, Ms.

KAPTUR, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. RODRIGUEZ, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. BLUNT,

Mr. EVANS, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. SUNUNU, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. SANDERS, Mr.

TANCREDO, and Ms. MCCOLLUM) introduced the following bill; which was

referred to the Committee on International Relations

A BILL

To support the aspirations of the Tibetan people to safeguard

their distinct identity.

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 ‘‘Tibetan Policy Act of

5 2001’’.
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1 SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE.

2 The purpose of this Act is to support the aspirations

3 of the Tibetan people to safeguard their distinct identity.

4 SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

5 Congress makes the following findings:

6 (1) The People’s Republic of China has failed

7 to respond to efforts by the United States and oth8 ers to initiate a dialogue between the Chinese leader9 ship and the Dalai Lama or his representatives lead10 ing to a mutually beneficial negotiated solution with

11 respect to Tibet.

12 (2) Tibet has maintained throughout its history

13 a national identity distinct from that of China.

14 (3) On October 1, 1949, the People’s Republic

15 of China was formally proclaimed in Beijing and the

16 following year launched an armed invasion of Tibet.

17 (4) Under the 1951 Seventeen Point Agreement

18 between the People’s Republic of China and rep19 resentatives of the Tibetan Government, which in20 corporated Tibet into China, China guaranteed no

21 alteration of Tibetan political, cultural, and religious

22 systems and institutions.

23 (5) The failure of the People’s Republic of

24 China to adhere to or uphold the Seventeen Point

25 Agreement, and the imposition of so-called demo26 cratic reform, led to the March 1959 uprising in
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1 Lhasa and the Dalai Lama’s repudiation of the Sev2 enteen Point Agreement and flight to exile.

3 (6) Since the revolt against Chinese rule in

4 Tibet that began in 1956 and through the end of the

5 Cultural Revolution in 1976, an estimated 1,200,000

6 Tibetans were killed and more than 6,000 religious

7 sites were destroyed.

8 (7) In 1959, 1960, 1964, and 1997 the Inter9 national Commission of Jurists examined Chinese

10 policy in Tibet, violations of human rights in Tibet,

11 and the position of Tibet in international law.

12 (8) The International Commission of Jurists

13 found that the People’s Republic of China had com14 mitted ‘‘acts of genocide . . . in Tibet in an attempt

15 to destroy the Tibetans as a religious group’’ and

16 that Tibet was at least ‘‘a de facto state’’ prior to

17 1951.

18 (9) The United Nations General Assembly

19 adopted resolutions in 1959, 1961, and 1965 calling

20 on the People’s Republic of China to ensure respect

21 for fundamental human rights of the Tibetan people

22 and for their distinctive cultural and religious life,

23 and to cease practices which deprive the Tibetan

24 people of their fundamental rights and freedoms, in25 cluding the right to self-determination.
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1 (10) The 2000 Department of State Country

2 Report on Human Rights Practices finds that ‘‘Chi3 nese government authorities continued to commit

4 numerous serious human rights abuses in Tibet, in5 cluding instances of torture, arbitrary arrest, deten6 tion without public trial, and lengthy detention of

7 Tibetan nationalists for peacefully expressing their

8 political or religious views, and tight controls on reli9 gion and on other fundamental freedoms continued

10 and intensified during the year’’.

11 (11) Human rights, religious freedom, and the

12 preservation of Tibet’s distinct religious, cultural,

13 and linguistic identity are legitimate interests of the

14 international community.

15 (12) It is the policy of the United States to pro16 mote the elimination of all forms of racial, religious,

17 and linguistic discrimination against the Tibetan

18 people.

19 (13) Voice of America and Radio Free Asia Ti20 betan language broadcast programs provide informa21 tion to the Tibetan people withheld from them by

22 the Government of the People’s Republic of China

23 and, thus, a critical service in protecting the distinct

24 Tibetan identity and promoting freedoms in Tibet.
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1 (14) The Government of the People’s Republic

2 of China, through direct and indirect incentives, has

3 encouraged an overwhelming number of Chinese to

4 resettle in Tibet.

5 (15) The Government of the People’s Republic

6 of China has excluded Tibetans from participation in

7 important policy decisions and meaningful participa8 tion in the governance of Tibet, and has failed to

9 abide by its guarantees of autonomy for Tibet.

10 (16) The Guidelines for International Develop11 ment Projects and Sustainable Investment in Tibet

12 issued by the Central Tibetan Administration of His

13 Holiness the Dalai Lama establish a sound basis for

14 fostering responsible development and economic ac15 tivity in Tibet.

16 (17) As a result of the failure of the Govern17 ment of the People’s Republic of China to grant gen18 uine autonomy for Tibetans and the preference it

19 has shown in its economic and human infrastructure

20 development efforts for Chinese in Tibet, Tibetans

21 continue to remain plagued by poverty, illiteracy,

22 poor nutrition, and their prosperity is further hin23 dered by a limited infrastructure and communica24 tions network that provides them only a marginal

25 benefit.
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1 (18) The People’s Republic of China has rati2 fied the International Covenant on Economic, Social,

3 and Cultural Rights and is thereby bound by its pro4 visions and to international monitoring of its human

5 rights practices, and China has signed the Inter6 national Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and

7 Article One of both covenants state that all peoples

8 have the right of self-determination.

9 (19) President Jiang Zemin, in a press con10 ference with President Clinton on June 27, 1997,

11 and similarly on other occasions, has stated that if

12 the Dalai Lama ‘‘recognizes that Tibet is an insepa13 rable part of China, then the door to negotiations is

14 open’’.

15 (20) The Dalai Lama has specifically stated

16 that he is not seeking independence and is com17 mitted to finding a negotiated solution within the

18 framework enunciated by Deng Xiaoping in 1979,

19 and in his statement on the ‘‘41st Anniversary of

20 the Tibetan National Uprising’’, and similarly on

21 other occasions, has said that ‘‘it has been my con22 sistent endeavor to find a peaceful and mutually ac23 ceptable solution to the Tibetan problem . . . [m]y

24 approach envisages that Tibet enjoy genuine auton25 omy within the framework of the People’s Republic
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1 of China . . . [s]uch a mutually beneficial solution

2 would contribute to the stability and unity of China,

3 their two most important priorities, while at the

4 same time the Tibetans would be ensured of their

5 basic right to preserve their own [c]ivilization and to

6 protect the delicate environment of the Tibetan pla7 teau’’.

8 SEC. 4. DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.

9 Congress—

10 (1) as stated in section 355 of the Foreign Re11 lations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1992 and

12 1993 (Public Law 102–138), reaffirms that Tibet,

13 including those Tibetan areas incorporated into the

14 Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu, and

15 Qinghai, is an occupied country under the estab16 lished principles of international law;

17 (2) commends the Republic of India for pro18 viding asylum and ongoing humanitarian care to the

19 Dalai Lama and Tibetans and exile and assuming

20 the financial burden of such care on the resources

21 of India; and

22 (3)(A) commends the Kingdom of Nepal for

23 shelter and hospitality provided to Tibetans in exile;

24 (B) expresses concern over incidents of ill treat25 ment of transiting Tibetans in border areas; and
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1 (C) urges continued cooperation with the Office

2 of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refu3 gees in Kathmandu.

4 SEC. 5. TIBET NEGOTIATIONS.

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

7 (1) the President and Secretary of State should

8 initiate steps to encourage the Government of the

9 People’s Republic of China to enter into a dialogue

10 with the Dalai Lama or his representatives leading

11 to a negotiated agreement on Tibet; and

12 (2) after such an agreement is reached, the

13 President and Secretary of State should work to en14 sure compliance with the agreement.

15 (b) PERIODIC REPORT.—Not later than six months

16 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and not later

17 than the end of every six-month period thereafter (until

18 such a time as an agreement described in subsection (a)(1)

19 is reached which is satisfactory to both the Chinese and

20 Tibetan peoples), the President shall transmit to the Com21 mittee on International Relations of the House of Rep22 resentatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of

23 the Senate a report on (1) the steps initiated by the Presi24 dent and Secretary of State in accordance with subsection

25 (a)(1), and (2) the status of any discussions between the
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1 People’s Republic of China and the Dalai Lama or his rep2 resentatives.

3 SEC. 6. REPORTING ON TIBET.

4 In accordance with to section 536(b) of the Foreign

5 Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995

6 (Public Law 103–236), whenever a report is transmitted

7 to the Congress on a country-by-country basis there shall

8 be included in such report, where applicable, a separate

9 section on Tibet. The reports referred to in the preceding

10 sentence include reports transmitted under sections

11 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance Act of

12 1961 (relating to human rights).

13 SEC. 7. UNITED STATES SPECIAL COORDINATOR FOR TI14 BETAN ISSUES.

15 (a) UNITED STATES SPECIAL COORDINATOR FOR TI16 BETAN ISSUES.—There shall be within the Department of

17 State a United States Special Coordinator for Tibetan

18 Issues.

19 (b) CONSULTATION.—The Secretary of State shall

20 consult with the Chairman and Ranking Member of the

21 Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the

22 Committee on International Relations of the House of

23 Representatives prior to the designation of the Special Co24 ordinator.
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1 (c) CENTRAL OBJECTIVE.—The central objective of

2 the Special Coordinator is to promote substantive dialogue

3 between the Government of the People’s Republic of China

4 and the Dalai Lama or his representatives.

5 (d) DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Special

6 Coordinator shall—

7 (1) coordinate United States Government poli8 cies, programs, and projects concerning Tibet;

9 (2) vigorously promote the policy of seeking to

10 protect the distinct historical, religious, cultural, and

11 linguistic identity of Tibet, and seeking improved re12 spect for human rights;

13 (3) maintain close contact with religious, cul14 tural, and political leaders of the Tibetan people, in15 cluding regular travel to Tibetan areas of the Peo16 ple’s Republic of China, and to Tibetan refugee set17 tlements in India and Nepal;

18 (4) consult with Congress on policies relevant to

19 Tibet and the future and welfare of the Tibetan peo20 ple;

21 (5) make efforts to establish contacts in the for22 eign ministries of other countries to pursue a nego23 tiated solution for Tibet; and

24 (6) have adequate resources, staff, and adminis25 trative support for the mission.
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1 SEC. 8. CONGRESSIONAL-EXECUTIVE COMMISSION ON THE

2 PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA.

3 Section 302(h) of the U.S.-China Relations Act of

4 2000 (Public Law 106–286), relating to the Congres5 sional-Executive Commission on the People’s Republic of

6 China, is amended—

7 (1) by striking ‘‘shall include specific informa8 tion’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘shall include—

9 ‘‘(1) specific information’’; and

10 (2) by striking the period at the end and insert11 ing ‘‘; and’’; and

12 (3) by adding at the end the following:

13 ‘‘(2) a description of the status of negotiations

14 between the Government of the People’s Republic of

15 China and the Dalai Lama or his representatives,

16 and measures taken to safeguard Tibet’s distinct

17 historical, religious, cultural, and linguistic identity

18 and the protection of human rights.’’.

19 SEC. 9. TIBETAN REFUGEES.

20 (a) MIGRATION AND REFUGEE ASSISTANCE.—Of the

21 amounts authorized to be appropriated for migration and

22 refugee assistance programs for fiscal years 2002, 2003,

23 and 2004, not less than $2,000,000 for each such fiscal

24 year is authorized to be available only for humanitarian

25 assistance for Tibetan refugees.
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1 (b) EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL EXCHANGE PRO2 GRAMS.—Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated

3 for educational and cultural exchange programs for fiscal

4 years 2002, 2003, and 2004, not less than $500,000 for

5 each such fiscal year is authorized to be available only for

6 the Ngawang Choephel Tibetan scholarship program for

7 Tibetans in exile.

8 (c) HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRACY.—Of the

9 amounts authorized to be appropriated for human rights

10 and democracy programs for fiscal years 2002, 2003, and

11 2004, not less than $250,000 for each such fiscal year

12 is authorized to be available only for assistance to non13 governmental organizations, such as the National Endow14 ment for Democracy, for the purpose of providing training

15 and education in democracy activities for Tibetans and

16 monitoring the human rights situation in Tibet.

17 SEC. 10. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ON THE TIBETAN PLA18 TEAU.

19 (a) DECLARATIONS OF POLICY.—It is the policy of

20 the United States—

21 (1) to encourage and support projects proposed

22 to be funded or otherwise supported by international

23 financial institutions, other international organiza24 tions, and nongovernmental organizations in Tibet

25 that are designed to raise the standard of living for
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1 the Tibetan people and assist Tibetans to become

2 self-sufficient, and that meet the principles con3 tained in subsection (d); and

4 (2) to oppose projects funded or otherwise sup5 ported by international financial institutions, other

6 international organizations, and nongovernmental

7 organizations in Tibet that do not meet the prin8 ciples contained in subsection (d).

9 (b) INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.—

10 The Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United

11 States executive director of each international financial

12 institution—

13 (1) to encourage and support projects proposed

14 to be funded or otherwise supported by such inter15 national financial institutions in Tibet which are

16 consistent with the principles contained in subsection

17 (d); and

18 (2) to use the voice and vote of the United

19 States to oppose those projects which do not meet

20 the principles contained in subsection (d).

21 (c) EXPORT-IMPORT BANK, OPIC, AND TDA.—The

22 President shall direct the Export-Import Bank of the

23 United States, the Overseas Private Investment Corpora24 tion, and the Trade and Development Agency—
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1 (1) to support projects proposed to be funded

2 or otherwise supported by such entities in Tibet that

3 are consistent with the principles contained in sub4 section (d); and

5 (2) to oppose projects proposed to be funded by

6 such entities that do not meet the principles con7 tained in subsection (d).

8 (d) TIBET PRINCIPLES.—Projects in Tibet supported

9 by international financial institutions, other international

10 organizations, nongovernmental organizations, and the

11 United States entities referred to in subsection (c),

12 should—

13 (1) be implemented only after conducting a

14 thorough needs-assessment of the Tibetan people

15 through field visits and interviews;

16 (2) be preceded by cultural and environmental

17 impact assessments;

18 (3) foster self-sufficiency and self-reliance of Ti19 betans;

20 (4) promote accountability of the development

21 agencies to the Tibetan people and active participa22 tion of Tibetans in all project stages;

23 (5) respect Tibetan culture, traditions, and the

24 Tibetan knowledge and wisdom about their land25 scape and survival techniques;
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1 (6) be subject to monitoring by the development

2 agencies at all stages of the project by a local pres3 ence to ensure that the intended target group bene4 fits;

5 (7) be implemented by development agencies

6 prepared to use Tibetan as the working language of

7 the projects;

8 (8) neither provide incentive for, nor facilitate

9 the migration and settlement of, non-Tibetans into

10 Tibet; and

11 (9) neither provide incentive for, nor facilitate

12 the transfer of ownership of, Tibetan land and nat13 ural resources to non-Tibetans.

14 SEC. 11. UNITED STATES-EUROPEAN INTERPARLIAMEN15 TARY GROUP.

16 It is the sense of Congress that the United States

17 and European parliamentarians participating in the

18 United States-European Interparliamentary Group should

19 focus on issues related to advancing the dialogue between

20 the leadership of the People’s Republic of China and the

21 Dalai Lama or his representatives in addition to their nor22 mal responsibilities.
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1 SEC. 12. RELEASE OF PRISONERS AND ACCESS TO PRIS2 ONS.

3 It is the sense of Congress that the President and

4 Secretary of State, in meetings with representatives of the

5 Government of the People’s Republic of China, should—

6 (1) request the immediate and unconditional re7 lease of all prisoners detained for expressing their

8 political or religious beliefs in Tibet;

9 (2) seek access for international humanitarian

10 organizations to prisoners in Tibet to ensure that

11 prisoners are not being mistreated and are receiving

12 necessary medical care;

13 (3) seek the immediate medical parole of

14 Ngawang Choephel and other Tibetan prisoners

15 known to be in serious ill health; and

16 (4) request the immediate and unconditional re17 lease from detention of the 11th Panchen Lama,

18 Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who was taken on May 17,

19 1995, and allow him to pursue his religious studies

20 without interference and according to tradition.

21 SEC. 13. ESTABLISHMENT OF A UNITED STATES BRANCH

22 OFFICE IN LHASA, TIBET.

23 The Secretary of State shall make best efforts to es24 tablish a branch office in Lhasa, Tibet, of the United

25 States Consulate General in Chengdu, People’s Republic
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1 of China, to monitor political, economic, and cultural de2 velopments in Tibet.

3 SEC. 14. REQUIREMENT FOR TIBETAN LANGUAGE TRAIN4 ING.

5 The Secretary of State shall ensure that Tibetan lan6 guage training is available to foreign service officers, and

7 that every effort is made to ensure that a Tibetan-speak8 ing foreign service officer is assigned to the consulate in

9 the People’s Republic of China responsible for tracking de10 velopments in Tibet.

11 SEC. 15. ASSISTANCE FOR TIBET.

12 It is the sense of Congress that the United States

13 Government should seek ways to promote economic devel14 opment, cultural preservation, health care, and education

15 and environmental sustainability for Tibetans inside

16 Tibet.

17 SEC. 16. TIBET CONSIDERATIONS AT THE UNITED NATIONS.

18 It is the sense of Congress that—

19 (1) the United States Government should op20 pose any efforts to prevent consideration of the

21 issues related to Tibet in any body of the United

22 Nations;

23 (2) the United States Government should op24 pose any efforts to prevent the participation of the

25 Dalai Lama or any representative of the Dalai Lama
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1 in nongovernmental fora hosted by or otherwise or2 ganized under the auspices of any body of the

3 United Nations; and

4 (3) the Secretary of State should instruct the

5 United States Permanent Representative to the

6 United Nations to support the appointment of—

7 (A) a representative of the United Nations

8 General Secretary to help promote a negotiated

9 settlement for Tibet; and

10 (B) a special rapporteur or working group

11 for Tibet for the purposes of monitoring human

12 rights violations in Tibet, and for making re13 ports available to the High Commissioner for

14 Refugees, the High Commissioner for Human

15 Rights, the Human Rights Commission, the

16 General Assembly, and other United Nations

17 bodies.

18 SEC. 17. RELIGIOUS PERSECUTION IN TIBET.

19 (a) HIGH-LEVEL CONTACTS.—Pursuant to section

20 105 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998,

21 the United States Ambassador to the People’s Republic

22 of China—

23 (1) shall seek to meet with the 11th Panchen

24 Lama, who was taken from his home on May 17,
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1 1995, and otherwise ascertain information con2 cerning his whereabouts and well-being; and

3 (2) shall request the Government of the Peo4 ple’s Republic of China that the 11th Panchen Lama

5 be released and allowed to pursue his religious stud6 ies without interference and according to tradition.

7 (b) PROMOTION OF INCREASED ADVOCACY.—Pursu8 ant to section 108(a) of the International Religious Free9 dom Act of 1998, it is the sense of Congress that rep10 resentatives of the United States Government in ex11 changes with officials of the Government of the People’s

12 Republic of China should call for and otherwise promote—

13 (1) the immediate and unconditional release of

14 the 11th Panchen Lama by the Chinese Government

15 and that he be allowed to pursue his religious stud16 ies without interference and according to tradition;

17 (2) the return of responsibility of managing Ti18 betan monasteries from the Democratic Management

19 Committees to the abbots or other traditional leader20 ship of Tibetan monasteries;

21 (3) the immediate halt of activities of Com22 munist Party work teams in Tibetan monasteries,

23 including patriotic reeducation which undermines the

24 fundamental characteristics of religion and religious

25 freedom; and
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1 (4) the cessation of all interference by the Reli2 gious Affairs Bureau and other organs of the Gov3 ernment of the People’s Republic of China or Com4 munist Party in the selection of reincarnate Tibetan

5 Lamas.

Æ