II 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 3469 

To reinstate reporting requirements related to United States-Hong Kong 

relations. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 16, 2016 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself and Mr. COTTON) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To reinstate reporting requirements related to United StatesHong Kong relations. 

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 ‘‘Hong Kong Human 

5 Rights and Democracy Act of 2016’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act: 

8 (1) ADMITTED; ALIEN.—The terms ‘‘admitted’’ 

9 and ‘‘alien’’ have the meanings given those terms in 


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1 section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

2 (8 U.S.C. 1101). 

3 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT4 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com5 mittees’’ means— 

6 (A) the Committee on Armed Services, the 

7 Committee on Financial Services, the Com8 mittee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 

9 Homeland Security, and the Committee on the 

10 Judiciary of the House of Representatives; and 

11 (B) the Committee on Armed Services, the 

12 Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

13 Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

14 the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov15 ernmental Affairs, and the Committee on the 

16 Judiciary of the Senate. 

17 (3) FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘fi18 nancial institution’’ has the meaning given that term 

19 in section 5312 of title 31, United States Code. 

20 (4) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

21 ‘‘United States person’’ means— 

22 (A) a United States citizen or an alien law23 fully admitted for permanent residence to the 

24 United States; or 


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1 (B) an entity organized under the laws of 

2 the United States or of any jurisdiction within 

3 the United States, including a foreign branch of 

4 such an entity. 

5 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

6 Congress makes the following findings: 

7 (1) The Joint Declaration of the Government of 

8 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern 

9 Ireland and the Government of the People’s Repub10 lic of China on the Question of Hong Kong, done at 

11 Beijing December 19, 1984 (in this Act referred to 

12 as the ‘‘Joint Declaration’’)— 

13 (A) provided that the People’s Republic of 

14 China resumed sovereignty over Hong Kong on 

15 July 1, 1997; and 

16 (B) established a ‘‘high degree of auton17 omy’’ for Hong Kong except in matters of for18 eign affairs and defense. 

19 (2) The Basic Law of the Hong Kong Special 

20 Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of 

21 China (in this Act referred to as ‘‘Basic Law’’)— 

22 (A) guarantees Hong Kong a ‘‘high degree 

23 of autonomy’’ and separate executive, legisla24 tive, and independent judicial powers; 


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1 (B) generally prohibits the central Govern2 ment of the People’s Republic of China from 

3 interfering in the affairs that Hong Kong ad4 ministers on its own according to the Basic 

5 Law; 

6 (C) protects the rights to free speech, 

7 press, assembly, and religion; 

8 (D) guarantees residents of Hong Kong 

9 ‘‘the freedom of the person’’, meaning ‘‘no 

10 Hong Kong resident shall be subjected to arbi11 trary or unlawful arrest, detention or imprison12 ment’’; 

13 (E) guarantees residents of Hong Kong 

14 ‘‘the right to confidential legal advice, access to 

15 the courts, choice of lawyers for timely protec16 tion of their lawful rights and interests or for 

17 representation in the courts, and to judicial 

18 remedies’’; 

19 (F) provides that the socialist system and 

20 policies shall not be practiced in Hong Kong 

21 and that Hong Kong’s capitalist system and 

22 way of life shall remain unchanged for 50 years 

23 (the principle of ‘‘one country, two systems’’); 


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1 (G) affirms the continuing applicability of 

2 the International Covenant on Civil and Polit3 ical Rights to Hong Kong; 

4 (H) provides that the head of the Hong 

5 Kong Special Administrative Region shall be 

6 the Chief Executive; 

7 (I) provides that ‘‘the ultimate aim is the 

8 selection of the Chief Executive by universal 

9 suffrage upon nomination by a broadly rep10 resentative nominating committee in accordance 

11 with democratic procedures’’; 

12 (J) provides that the legislature of the 

13 Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall 

14 be the Legislative Council; and 

15 (K) provides that ‘‘the ultimate aim is the 

16 election of all the members of the Legislative 

17 Council by universal suffrage’’. 

18 (3) The National People’s Congress Standing 

19 Committee (NPCSC) determined on December 29, 

20 2007, that Hong Kong could elect the Chief Execu21 tive by universal suffrage beginning in 2017, and 

22 that Hong Kong could thereafter elect the Legisla23 tive Council by universal suffrage beginning in 2020. 

24 (4) The Chief Executive is currently selected by 

25 an Election Committee consisting of 1,200 members. 


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1 In order to run, candidates for Chief Executive must 

2 currently receive the support of one-eighth of the 

3 members of the Election Committee, the majority of 

4 whom reportedly support or have ties to the Chinese 

5 Communist Party. 

6 (5) On August 31, 2014, the NPCSC deter7 mined that the 2017 election for the Chief Executive 

8 could be held by universal suffrage but that Hong 

9 Kong voters could only choose from two to three 

10 candidates, each of whom is to be chosen by a ma11 jority of a nominating committee similar to the cur12 rent Election Committee that is heavily controlled by 

13 pro-Beijing members. 

14 (6) International standards for elections, in15 cluding Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of 

16 Human Rights and Article 25 of the International 

17 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, guarantee 

18 citizens the right to vote and to be elected in gen19 uine periodic elections by universal and equal suf20 frage without unreasonable restrictions. 

21 (7) Hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong resi22 dents have consistently and peacefully expressed 

23 their dissatisfaction with the electoral reform plans 

24 of the Hong Kong government and the Government 

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1 gust 2014 NPCSC decision, and have called for a 

2 genuine choice in elections that meet international 

3 standards. Their peaceful and orderly protests have 

4 set an example for other democratic movements 

5 around the world, including those in mainland China 

6 that continue to fight for their fundamental free7 doms. 

8 (8) Media reports and video footage indicate 

9 that Hong Kong police used tear gas and pepper 

10 spray against pro-democracy demonstrators on Sep11 tember 28, 2014. There have also been accusations 

12 of excessive use of force by the Hong Kong police, 

13 but no police officer has yet been convicted. 

14 (9) Protestors and pro-democracy activists re15 ported sustained harassment and intimidation dur16 ing and after the demonstrations, including hacking 

17 of their email accounts or phone, by groups report18 edly connected to the Government of the People’s 

19 Republic of China. 

20 (10) Some protestors and activists have been 

21 unable to travel to mainland China due to their par22 ticipation in the demonstrations, which has a direct 

23 bearing on their future employment prospects. Pro24 democracy advocates claim that the Governments of 

25 the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong have 


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1 assembled ‘‘blacklists’’ of activists banned from en2 tering mainland China. 

3 (11) Several prominent student leaders, includ4 ing Joshua Wong, leader of the now dissolved stu5 dent activist group Scholarism and Secretary-Gen6 eral of the political party Demosisto, Nathan Law, 

7 former General Secretary of the Hong Kong Federa8 tion of Students and now member of the Legislative 

9 Council, and Alex Chow, the former General Sec10 retary of the Hong Kong Federation of Students, 

11 had legal charges levied against them due to their 

12 participation in pro-democracy protest activities in 

13 September 2014. Wong and Chow were convicted of 

14 ‘‘unlawful assembly’’ while Law was convicted of 

15 ‘‘incitement’’, offenses under Hong Kong’s Public 

16 Order Ordinance, which is incompatible with inter17 national standards on the freedom of assembly. 

18 (12) Ahead of the September 2016 Legislative 

19 Council election, the Electoral Affairs Commission in 

20 Hong Kong issued a new ‘‘confirmation form’’ for 

21 Legislative Council candidates to sign confirming 

22 their commitment to uphold the Basic Law, specifi23 cally the provisions holding that the territory is an 

24 inalienable part of China. Six pro-independence can25 didates were disqualified for failing to do so. This 


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1 new requirement has been characterized as unlawful 

2 and political censorship by lawyers, political organi3 zations, and students. 

4 (13) In the September 2016 election, Sixtus 

5 ‘‘Baggio’’ Leung and Yau Wai-ching won seats in 

6 the Legislative Council after running on platforms 

7 supportive of Hong Kong’s democratic self-deter8 mination. When swearing the oath of office in Octo9 ber 2016, both men altered the standard oath of of10 fice, after which the Hong Kong government sued in 

11 an attempt to permanently block them from retaking 

12 the oath. 

13 (14) In November 2016, with the court pro14 ceedings still underway, the Chinese central govern15 ment, on its own initiative, issued an interpretation 

16 of Hong Kong’s Basic Law, thereby preventing these 

17 two democratically elected lawmakers from taking 

18 their seats in the Legislative Council. The Hong 

19 Kong Bar Association warned in advance that an 

20 intervention by the Chinese government would ‘‘deal 

21 a severe blow to the independence of the judiciary 

22 and the power of final adjudication of the Hong 

23 Kong court’’. 

24 (15) Five individuals affiliated with the Mighty 

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1 way Bay Bookstore, both of which are based in 

2 Hong Kong and sell literary works critical of Bei3 jing, disappeared under mysterious circumstances 

4 between October and December 2015, including Gui 

5 Minhai, a naturalized Swedish citizen and co-owner 

6 of Mighty Current; Lee Bo, a British citizen and co7 owner of Mighty Current; Lui Bo; Cheung Chi-ping; 

8 and Lam Wing-kee. 

9 (16) Upon his return to Hong Kong in June 

10 2016, Lam publicly revealed details of his and the 

11 other booksellers’ detentions, including their forced 

12 confessions, and alleged that the abductions and de13 tentions were directed by Chinese central govern14 ment officials. 

15 (17) Despite Lee’s denial that he was abducted 

16 and the televised confessions of the other four, the 

17 five men’s disappearances have been widely con18 demned by human rights organizations and foreign 

19 officials and have resulted in allegations of mainland 

20 China’s law enforcement agencies operating in Hong 

21 Kong, which would be a violation of the Basic Law. 

22 (18) In February 2016, the British Foreign 

23 Secretary said Lee Bo’s involuntary removal to 

24 mainland China ‘‘constitute[d] a serious breach of 

25 the Sino-British Joint Declaration that paved the 


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1 way for Hong Kong’s 1997 return to China. As part 

2 of the treaty, China promised to safeguard Hong 

3 Kong’s freedoms’’. 

4 (19) As China’s use of public ‘‘confessions’’ has 

5 expanded, several Hong Kong media outlets have 

6 been the medium whereby prominent rights defend7 ers and lawyers, including Wang Yu and Zhao Wei, 

8 have ‘‘confessed’’ to their alleged crimes. 

9 (20) The United States enjoys close economic, 

10 social, and cultural ties with Hong Kong. According 

11 to the Department of State, 60,000 United States 

12 citizens live in Hong Kong, and 1,400 United States 

13 businesses have offices there. According to the Office 

14 of the United States Trade Representative, Hong 

15 Kong is the United States 18th largest trade part16 ner and 10th largest export market for United 

17 States goods. 

18 (21) Hong Kong’s unique status as an inter19 national finance center where the rule of law and the 

20 rights and freedoms of its citizens are protected has 

21 served as the foundation for Hong Kong’s stability 

22 and prosperity. 

23 (22) Section 301 of the Hong Kong Policy Act 

24 of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5731) required the Secretary of 

25 State to issue reports on conditions in Hong Kong 


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1 of interest to the United States, including the devel2 opment of democratic institutions in Hong Kong, 

3 and the last report under section 301 was issued on 

4 June 30, 2007. 

5 (23) Failure to establish a genuine democratic 

6 option to nominate and elect the Chief Executive of 

7 Hong Kong by 2017 and to establish open and di8 rect democratic elections for all members of the 

9 Hong Kong Legislative Council by 2020 would re10 duce confidence in the commitment of the Govern11 ment of the People’s Republic of China to uphold its 

12 obligations under international law, and would erode 

13 the ability of Hong Kong to retain a high degree of 

14 autonomy. 

15 (24) During an October 2014 session, the 

16 United Nations Human Rights Committee, con17 sisting of 18 independent experts, reviewed China’s 

18 compliance with the International Covenant on Civil 

19 and Political Rights with respect to Hong Kong. Ac20 cording to the session’s chair, the Committee agreed 

21 on ‘‘the need to ensure universal suffrage, which 

22 means both the right to be elected as well as the 

23 right to vote. The main concerns of Committee 

24 members were focused on the right to stand for elec25 tions without unreasonable restrictions’’. Another 


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1 Committee member said that the ‘‘committee doesn’t 

2 want candidates filtered. The problem is that Beijing 

3 wants to vet candidates’’. 

4 (25) The Congressional-Executive Commission 

5 on China’s 2015 Annual Report ‘‘observed develop6 ments raising concerns that the Chinese and Hong 

7 Kong governments may have infringed on the rights 

8 of the people of Hong Kong, including in the areas 

9 of political participation and democratic reform, 

10 press freedom, and freedom of assembly’’. 

11 (26) The Congressional-Executive Commission 

12 on China’s 2016 Annual Report found that ‘‘the 

13 growing influence of the Chinese central government 

14 and communist party and suspected activity by Chi15 nese authorities in Hong Kong—notably the dis16 appearance, alleged abduction, and detention in 

17 mainland China of five Hong Kong booksellers— 

18 raised fears regarding Hong Kong’s autonomy with19 in China as guaranteed under the ‘one country, two 

20 systems’ policy enshrined in the Basic Law, which 

21 prohibits mainland Chinese authorities from inter22 fering in Hong Kong’’. 

23 (27) A Hong Kong Journalists Association 

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1 cent of journalists believed press freedom had dete2 riorated in 2015. 

3 (28) Hong Kong ranked 69th among 180 coun4 tries in Reporters Without Borders’ 2016 World 

5 Press Freedom Index, down eight places in just two 

6 years and marking a significant decline from 2002, 

7 when Hong Kong ranked 18th. 

8 (29) Freedom House’s 2015 Freedom of the 

9 Press Report found a five-year decline in press free10 dom in Hong Kong marked by an increase in phys11 ical attacks against journalists, cyberattacks crip12 pling widely read news sites at politically sensitive 

13 moments, and businesses withdrawing advertising 

14 from outlets that were critical of Beijing and sup15 portive of prodemocracy protestors. 

16 SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

17 It is the policy of the United States— 

18 (1) to reaffirm the principles and objectives set 

19 forth in the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 

20 1992, namely that— 

21 (A) the United States has ‘‘a strong inter22 est in the continued vitality, prosperity, and 

23 stability of Hong Kong’’; 


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1 (B) ‘‘support for democratization is a fun2 damental principle of United States foreign pol3 icy’’; 

4 (C) ‘‘the human rights of the people of 

5 Hong Kong are of great importance to the 

6 United States and are directly relevant to 

7 United States interests in Hong Kong’’; 

8 (D) human rights ‘‘serve as a basis for 

9 Hong Kong’s continued economic prosperity’’; 

10 and 

11 (E) Hong Kong must remain sufficiently 

12 autonomous from the People’s Republic of 

13 China to justify a different treatment under a 

14 particular law of the United States, or any pro15 vision thereof, from that accorded the People’s 

16 Republic of China; 

17 (2) to support the democratic aspirations of the 

18 people of Hong Kong, as guaranteed to them by the 

19 Joint Declaration, the Basic Law, the International 

20 Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the Uni21 versal Declaration of Human Rights; 

22 (3) to urge the Government of the People’s Re23 public of China to uphold its commitments to Hong 

24 Kong, including allowing the people of Hong Kong 

25 to rule Hong Kong with a high degree of autonomy 


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1 and without undue interference, and ensuring that 

2 Hong Kong voters freely enjoy the right to elect the 

3 Chief Executive and all members of the Hong Kong 

4 Legislative Council by universal suffrage; 

5 (4) to support the establishment by 2017 of a 

6 genuine democratic option to freely and fairly nomi7 nate and elect the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, 

8 and the establishment by 2020 of open and direct 

9 democratic elections for all members of the Hong 

10 Kong Legislative Council; 

11 (5) to support the robust exercise by residents 

12 of Hong Kong of the rights to free speech and the 

13 press as guaranteed to them by the Basic Law and 

14 the Joint Declaration; 

15 (6) to ensure that all residents of Hong Kong 

16 are afforded freedom from arbitrary or unlawful ar17 rest, detention, or imprisonment as guaranteed to 

18 them by the Basic Law and the Joint Declaration; 

19 and 

20 (7) to draw international attention to any viola21 tions by the Government of the People’s Republic of 

22 China of the fundamental rights of residents of 

23 Hong Kong and any encroachment upon the auton24 omy guaranteed to Hong Kong by the Basic Law 

25 and the Joint Declaration. 


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1 SEC. 5. REINSTATEMENT OF REPORTING REQUIREMENTS 

2 RELATED TO UNITED STATES-HONG KONG 

3 RELATIONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 301 of the United States5 Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5731) is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘Not later than’’ and all that 

8 follows through ‘‘the Secretary of State’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘Not later than 90 days after the date of the en10 actment of the Hong Kong Human Rights and De11 mocracy Act of 2016, and annually thereafter 

12 through 2023,’’; 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘Speaker of the House of Rep14 resentatives’’ and inserting ‘‘chairman of the Com15 mittee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Rep16 resentatives’’; 

17 (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

18 inserting a semicolon; 

19 (4) in paragraph (8), by striking the period at 

20 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

21 (5) by adding at the end the following new 

22 paragraph: 

23 ‘‘(1) matters in which Hong Kong is given sep24 arate treatment under the laws of the United States 

25 from that accorded to the People’s Republic of 

26 China and in accordance with this Act.’’. 


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1 (b) FORM.—The report required under section 301 

2 of the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 (22 

3 U.S.C. 5731), as amended by subsection (a), should be 

4 unclassified and made publicly available, including 

5 through the Department of State’s public website. 

6 SEC. 6. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG UNDER UNITED 

7 STATES LAW. 

8 Title II of the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act 

9 of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5721 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

10 after section 202 the following new section: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 202. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG UNDER UNITED 

12 STATES LAW. 

13 ‘‘(a) SECRETARY OF STATE CERTIFICATION RE14 QUIREMENT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days 

16 after the date of the enactment of the Hong Kong 

17 Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2016, and an18 nually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall certify 

19 to Congress whether Hong Kong is sufficiently au20 tonomous to justify separate treatment different 

21 from that accorded the People’s Republic of China 

22 in any new laws, agreements, treaties, or arrange23 ments entered into between the United States and 

24 Hong Kong after the date of the enactment of such 

25 Act. 


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1 ‘‘(2) FACTOR FOR CONSIDERATION.—In making 

2 a certification under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

3 State should consider the terms, obligations, and ex4 pectations expressed in the Joint Declaration with 

5 respect to Hong Kong. 

6 ‘‘(b) WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of State 

7 may waive the application of subsection (a) if the Sec8 retary— 

9 ‘‘(1) determines that such a waiver is in the na10 tional security interests of the United States; and 

11 ‘‘(2) on or before the date on which the waiver 

12 takes effect, submits to the Committee on Foreign 

13 Relations of the Senate and the Committee on For14 eign Affairs of the House of Representatives a notice 

15 of and justification for the waiver.’’. 

16 SEC. 7. IDENTIFICATION OF PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR 

17 THE ABDUCTION OF CERTAIN BOOKSELLERS 

18 AND JOURNALISTS IN HONG KONG AND FOR 

19 OTHER ACTIONS TO SUPPRESS BASIC FREE20 DOMS IN HONG KONG. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall sub23 mit to the appropriate congressional committees a list of 

24 each person that the President determines, based on cred25 ible information— 


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1 (1) is responsible for the surveillance, abduc2 tion, detention, abuse, or forced confession of Gui 

3 Minhai, Lee Bo, Lin Rongji, Lu Bo, or Zhang 

4 Zhiping, all of whom are involved in the operation 

5 of the Mighty Current Publishing House based in 

6 Hong Kong; 

7 (2) is responsible for the surveillance, abduc8 tion, detention, abuse, or forced confession of Guo 

9 Zhongxiao or Wang Jianmin, both of whom are in10 volved in the operation of magazine publications 

11 based in Hong Kong; or 

12 (3) is responsible for the surveillance, abduc13 tion, detention, abuse, or forced confession of any 

14 other journalist, publisher, writer, bookseller, or 

15 other resident in Hong Kong in connection with the 

16 exercise by that individual of the right to freedom of 

17 speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, 

18 freedom of association, and freedom of religion. 

19 (b) UPDATES.—The President shall submit to the ap20 propriate congressional committees an update of the list 

21 required by subsection (a) as new information becomes 

22 available. 

23 (c) FORM.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The list required by sub25 section (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form. 


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1 (2) EXCEPTION.—The name of a person to be 

2 included in the list required by subsection (a) may 

3 be submitted in a classified annex only if the Presi4 dent— 

5 (A) determines that it is vital for the na6 tional security interests of the United States to 

7 do so; 

8 (B) uses the annex in such a manner con9 sistent with congressional intent and the pur10 poses of this Act; and 

11 (C) 15 days before submitting the name in 

12 a classified annex, provides to the appropriate 

13 congressional committees notice of, and a jus14 tification for, including or continuing to include 

15 each person in the classified annex despite any 

16 publicly available credible information indi17 cating that the person engaged in an activity 

18 described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) of sub19 section (a). 

20 (3) CONSIDERATION OF DATA FROM OTHER

21 COUNTRIES AND NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZA22 TIONS.—In preparing the list required by subsection 

23 (a), the President shall consider information pro24 vided by the chairperson and ranking member of 

25 each of the appropriate congressional committees 


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1 and credible data obtained by other countries and 

2 nongovernmental organizations, including organiza3 tions inside the People’s Republic of China or Hong 

4 Kong, that monitor the human rights abuses of the 

5 Government of the People’s Republic of China or its 

6 associates or agents. 

7 (4) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The unclassified 

8 portion of the list required by subsection (a) shall be 

9 made available to the public and published in the 

10 Federal Register. 

11 (d) REMOVAL FROM LIST.—A person may be re12 moved from the list required by subsection (a) if the Presi13 dent determines and reports to the appropriate congres14 sional committees not later than 15 days before the re15 moval of the person from the list that— 

16 (1) credible information exists that the person 

17 did not engage in the activity for which the person 

18 was added to the list; 

19 (2) the person has been prosecuted appro20 priately for the activity in which the person engaged; 

21 or 

22 (3) the person has credibly demonstrated a sig23 nificant change in behavior, has paid an appropriate 

24 consequence for the activities in which the person 

25 engaged, and has credibly committed to not engage 


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1 in the types of activities specified in paragraphs (1) 

2 through (3) of subsection (a). 

3 (e) REQUESTS BY CHAIRPERSON AND RANKING

4 MEMBER OF APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT5 TEES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days 

7 after receiving a written request from the chair8 person or ranking member of one of the appropriate 

9 congressional committees with respect to whether a 

10 person meets the criteria for being added to the list 

11 required by subsection (a), the President shall sub12 mit a response to the chairperson and ranking mem13 ber of the committee which made the request with 

14 respect to the status of the person. 

15 (2) FORM.—The President may submit a re16 sponse required by paragraph (1) in classified form 

17 if the President determines that it is vital for the 

18 national security interests of the United States to do 

19 so. 

20 (3) REMOVAL.—If the President removes from 

21 the list required by subsection (a) a person who has 

22 been placed on the list at the request of the chair23 person and ranking member of one of the appro24 priate congressional committees, the President shall 

25 provide the chairperson and ranking member with 


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1 any information that contributed to the removal de2 cision. The President may submit such information 

3 in classified form if the President determines that it 

4 is vital for the national security interests of the 

5 United States to do so. 

6 (f) NONAPPLICABILITY OF CONFIDENTIALITY RE7 QUIREMENT WITH RESPECT TO VISA RECORDS.—The 

8 President shall publish the list required by subsection (a) 

9 without regard to the requirements of section 222(f) of 

10 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1202(f)) 

11 with respect to confidentiality of records pertaining to the 

12 issuance or refusal of visas or permits to enter the United 

13 States. 

14 SEC. 8. INADMISSIBILITY OF CERTAIN ALIENS AND FAMILY 

15 MEMBERS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(a)(2)(F) of the Im17 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(F)) 

18 is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(F) ABDUCTIONS OF CERTAIN JOURNAL20 ISTS.—Any alien described in section 7(a) of 

21 the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy 

22 Act of 2016 is inadmissible.’’. 

23 (b) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.—The issuing con24 sular officer, the Secretary of State, or the Secretary of 

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1 taries) shall revoke any visa or other entry documentation 

2 issued to any person who is included on the list required 

3 under section 7(a) that is an alien, regardless of when 

4 issued. The revocations shall take effect immediately and 

5 shall automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry 

6 documentation that is in the alien’s possession. 

7 (c) WAIVER FOR NATIONAL SECURITY INTERESTS.— 

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

9 waive application of section 212(a)(2)(F) of the Im10 migration and Nationality Act, as amended by sub11 section (a), or subsection (b) with respect to an 

12 alien, if— 

13 (A) the Secretary determines that such a 

14 waiver— 

15 (i) is necessary to permit the United 

16 States to comply with the Agreement be17 tween the United Nations and the United 

18 States of America regarding the Head19 quarters of the United Nations, signed 

20 June 26, 1947, and entered into force No21 vember 21, 1947, or other applicable inter22 national obligations of the United States; 

23 or 

24 (ii) is vital for the national security 

25 interests of the United States; and 


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1 (B) before granting such a waiver, the Sec2 retary provides to the appropriate congressional 

3 committees notice of, and a justification for, the 

4 waiver. 

5 (2) TIMING FOR CERTAIN WAIVERS.—Notifica6 tion under subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) shall 

7 be made not later than 15 days before granting a 

8 waiver under such paragraph if the Secretary grants 

9 such waiver under subparagraph (A)(ii) of such 

10 paragraph. 

11 (d) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of 

12 State shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary to 

13 carry out this section. 

14 SEC. 9. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG APPLICANTS FOR 

15 VISAS TO STUDY OR WORK IN THE UNITED 

16 STATES. 

17 Title II of the United States-Hong Kong Policy Act 

18 of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5721 et seq.) is amended by inserting 

19 after section 202 the following new section: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 202a. TREATMENT OF HONG KONG APPLICANTS FOR 

21 VISAS TO STUDY OR WORK IN THE UNITED 

22 STATES. 

23 ‘‘(a) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—Notwithstanding all 

24 other provisions of law, applications for visas to enter, 

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1 wise qualified applicants who were resident in Hong Kong 

2 in 2014, shall not be denied on the basis of the applicant’s 

3 arrest, detention, or other adverse government action 

4 taken as a result of the applicant’s participation in non5 violent protest activities related to Hong Kong’s electoral 

6 processes. 

7 ‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary of State 

8 shall take such steps as necessary to ensure that consular 

9 officers shall be aware of this provision of law and shall 

10 receive appropriate training and support in order to en11 sure that it is carried out in such a way that affected indi12 viduals shall not face discrimination or unnecessary delay 

13 in the processing of their visa applications, including— 

14 ‘‘(1) providing specialized training for consular 

15 officers posted to Hong Kong, Beijing, Guangzhou, 

16 and Macau; 

17 ‘‘(2) instructing the United States Consulate in 

18 Hong Kong to maintain an active list of individuals 

19 whom it knows to have been detained, arrested or 

20 otherwise targeted by Hong Kong or People’s Re21 public of China authorities or their intermediaries as 

22 a result of their participation in the 2014 protests, 

23 in order to facilitate the cross-checking of visa appli24 cations for Hong Kong applicants; 


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1 ‘‘(3) amending the physical and on-line versions 

2 of the visa application as necessary in order to en3 sure relevant applicants are able to reference this 

4 provision of law in their explanatory materials; and 

5 ‘‘(4) instructing personnel at the United States 

6 Consulate in Hong Kong to engage with relevant in7 dividuals in the Hong Kong community in order to 

8 proactively inform them that they will not face dis9 crimination in applying for a visa to the United 

10 States due to any adverse action taken against them 

11 by the authorities as a result of their participation 

12 in the 2014 protests. 

13 ‘‘(c) COOPERATION WITH LIKE-MINDED COUN14 TRIES.—The Secretary of State or his or her designee 

15 shall contact appropriate representatives of other demo16 cratic countries, particularly those who receive a large 

17 number of applicants for student and employment visas 

18 from Hong Kong, to— 

19 ‘‘(1) inform them of the United States policy 

20 regarding arrests for participation in nonviolent pro21 tests in Hong Kong; 

22 ‘‘(2) encourage them to take similar steps to 

23 ensure the rights of nonviolent protesters are pro24 tected from discrimination due to the actions of the 


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1 Hong Kong and People’s Republic of China authori2 ties; and 

3 ‘‘(3) offer, as appropriate, to share information 

4 regarding the execution of this policy, including in5 formation regarding persons eligible for relief under 

6 this provision.’’. 

7 SEC. 10. FINANCIAL MEASURES. 

8 (a) FREEZING OF ASSETS.—The President shall ex9 ercise all powers granted by the International Emergency 

10 Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (except 

11 that the requirements of section 202 of such Act (50 

12 U.S.C. 1701) shall not apply) to the extent necessary to 

13 freeze and prohibit all transactions in all property and in14 terests in property of a person who is on the list required 

15 by section 7(a) of this Act if such property and interests 

16 in property are in the United States, come within the 

17 United States, or are or come within the possession or 

18 control of a United States person. 

19 (b) WAIVER FOR NATIONAL SECURITY INTERESTS.— 

20 The Secretary of the Treasury may waive the application 

21 of subsection (a) if the Secretary determines that such a 

22 waiver is vital for the national security interests of the 

23 United States. Not later than 15 days before granting 

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1 priate congressional committees notice of, and a justifica2 tion for, the waiver. 

3 (c) ENFORCEMENT.— 

4 (1) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, at5 tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 

6 violation of this section or any regulation, license, or 

7 order issued to carry out this section shall be subject 

8 to the penalties set forth in subsections (b) and (c) 

9 of section 206 of the International Emergency Eco10 nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the same ex11 tent as a person that commits an unlawful act de12 scribed in subsection (a) of such section. 

13 (2) REQUIREMENTS FOR FINANCIAL INSTITU14 TIONS.—Not later than 120 days after the date of 

15 the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 

16 Treasury shall prescribe or amend regulations as 

17 needed to require each financial institution that is a 

18 United States person and has within its possession 

19 or control assets that are property or interests in 

20 property of a person that is on the list required by 

21 section 7(a) if such property and interests in prop22 erty are in the United States to certify to the Sec23 retary that, to the best of the knowledge of the fi24 nancial institution, the financial institution has fro25 zen all assets within the possession or control of the 


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1 financial institution that are required to be frozen 

2 pursuant to subsection (a). 

3 (3) NOTIFICATION TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

4 than 10 days before the promulgation of regulations 

5 under paragraph (2), the President shall notify the 

6 appropriate congressional committees of the pro7 posed regulations and the provisions of this Act and 

8 the amendments made by this Act that the regula9 tions are implementing. 

10 (d) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of the 

11 Treasury shall issue such regulations, licenses, and orders 

12 as are necessary to carry out this section. 

13 SEC. 11. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 

14 Not later than one year after the date of the enact15 ment of this Act, and not less frequently than annually 

16 thereafter, the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the 

17 Treasury shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

18 committees a report on— 

19 (1) the actions taken to carry out this Act, in20 cluding— 

21 (A) the number of persons added to or re22 moved from the list required by section 7(a) 

23 during the year preceding the report, the dates 

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1 moved, and the reasons for adding or removing 

2 such persons; and 

3 (B) if few or no such persons have been 

4 added to that list during that year, the reasons 

5 for not adding more such persons to the list; 

6 and 

7 (2) efforts by the executive branch to encourage 

8 the governments of other countries to impose sanc9 tions that are similar to the sanctions imposed under 

10 this Act. 

Æ 


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