Title: Expressing the sense of Congress with respect to United States policy toward Tibet and that the treatment of the Tibetan people should be an important factor in the conduct of United States relations with the People's Republic of China.
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Expresses the sense of Congress that it should be U.S. policy to:

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 89 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 89

 Expressing the sense of Congress with respect to United States policy 
toward Tibet and that the treatment of the Tibetan people should be an 
  important factor in the conduct of United States relations with the 
                      People's Republic of China.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            November 1, 2017

 Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mr. Engel, Mr. Yoho, and Mr. Sherman) 
 submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to 
 the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on 
   the Judiciary, 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

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of Congress with respect to United States policy 
toward Tibet and that the treatment of the Tibetan people should be an 
  important factor in the conduct of United States relations with the 
                      People's Republic of China.

Whereas, on October 17, 2007, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama (in this 
        resolution referred to as the ``Dalai Lama'') was awarded the 
        Congressional Gold Medal in recognition of his many enduring and 
        outstanding contributions to peace, nonviolence, human rights, and 
        religious understanding;
Whereas during his Congressional Gold Medal acceptance speech, Dalai Lama 
        stated, ``The time has come for our dialogue with the Chinese leadership 
        to progress towards the successful implementation of a meaningful 
        autonomy for Tibet, as guaranteed in the Chinese constitution and 
        detailed in the Chinese State Council `White Paper on Regional Ethnic 
        Autonomy of Tibet''';
Whereas the Dalai Lama continues to advance the goal of greater understanding, 
        tolerance, harmony, and respect among the different religious faiths of 
        the world through interfaith dialogue and outreach to other religious 
        leaders;
Whereas the Dalai Lama continues to use his moral authority to promote the 
        concept of universal responsibility as a guiding tenet for how human 
        beings should treat one another and the planet we share;
Whereas in the ten years since the Dalai Lama accepted the Congressional Gold 
        Medal, China has implemented increasingly repressive policies in Tibet, 
        including--

    (1) travel restrictions against Tibetans and United States citizens;

    (2) restrictive regulations on religious affairs;

    (3) censorship of Buddhist literature and information;

    (4) demolition of Tibetan Buddhist sites;

    (5) imprisonment of Tibetan prisoners of conscience; and

    (6) declarations that ``Decision-making power over the reincarnation of 
the Dalai Lama and over the end of survival of his lineage resides with the 
central government of China'';

Whereas, on April 15, 2015, the Chinese State Council released a white paper 
        entitled ``Tibet's Path of Development Is Driven by an Irresistible 
        Historical Tide'', which stated that ``there is no prospect of [a high 
        degree of autonomy for Tibet] ever coming to pass'' and furthermore 
        stated that Tibet had been part of China ``since ancient times'';
Whereas in recent years, Tibetan nomads, who have lived as nomadic herders on 
        the Tibetan Plateau for centuries, have been banned from grazing in 
        certain areas of the Tibetan Plateau and hundreds of Tibetan herders 
        have been forcibly relocated by Chinese government officials into 
        ``socialist villages'';
Whereas in September 2017, the Government of China adopted additional 
        restrictive regulations on governmental control over the practice of 
        religion and expressed an intention that the government should 
        ``actively guide religion to fit within socialist society'';
Whereas these 2017 regulations state that ``religious groups, religious schools, 
        religious activity sites and religious citizens shall abide by the 
        Constitution, laws, regulations and rules; practice the core socialist 
        values; [and] preserve the unification of the country, ethnic unity and 
        religious harmony and social stability'';
Whereas these 2017 regulations, scheduled for implementation by the Chinese 
        government beginning February 2018, would explicitly ban unregistered 
        religious groups from teaching about religion, establishing religious 
        colleges, going abroad to take part in religious training or gatherings, 
        or otherwise engage in activities that ``endanger national security'';
Whereas the Department of State stated in the 2016 Report on Tibet Negotiations 
        that ``[t]he Dalai Lama's representatives and Chinese officials from the 
        United Front Work Department have not met directly since the ninth round 
        of dialogue in January 2010'';
Whereas 2016 International Religious Freedom Report for China published by the 
        Department of State stated, ``In the [Tibet Autonomous Region] and other 
        Tibetan areas, authorities engaged in widespread interference in 
        religious practices, especially in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and 
        nunneries'';
Whereas the 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for China published 
        by the Department of State stated, ``Under the professed objectives of 
        controlling border areas, maintaining social stability, combating 
        separatism, and extracting natural resources, the government engaged in 
        the severe repression of Tibet's unique religious, cultural, and 
        linguistic heritage by, among other means, strictly curtailing the civil 
        rights of the Tibetan population, including the freedoms of speech, 
        religion, association, assembly, and movement'';
Whereas since 2009, 150 Tibetans have self-immolated to protest against China's 
        rule in Tibet and most Tibetans publicly call for the return of the 
        Dalai Lama to Tibet;
Whereas the Chinese government has refused to allow an independent investigation 
        into the causes of the self-immolations and has instead criminalized 
        them, by imprisoning the survivors and collectively punishing the 
        relatives, friends and villagers of the self-immolators, as documented 
        by the International Campaign for Tibet;
Whereas Congress has a long history of support for Tibet, including--

    (1) declaring that the United States should make Tibet issue a higher 
policy priority;

    (2) declaring that the United States should urge China to establish a 
constructive dialogue with the Dalai Lama;

    (3) requiring Voice of America and Radio Free Asia to begin broadcasts 
in the Tibetan language;

    (4) mandating that Tibet be listed separately in the annual Country 
Reports on Human Rights published by the Department of State;

    (5) requiring a report from the Department of State on the state of 
negotiations between the representatives of the Tibetan people and the 
Chinese government;

    (6) establishing educational and cultural exchange programs with Tibet;

    (7) providing humanitarian, food, medical, vocational training, primary 
and secondary education, and other assistance to Tibetan refugees;

    (8) funding programs to promote and preserve Tibetan culture and the 
resilience of Tibetan communities in India and Nepal;

    (9) funding a scholarship program for Tibetan refugees to study in the 
United States;

    (10) providing assistance to nongovernmental organizations working to 
preserve the Tibetan environment and cultural traditions; and

    (11) appropriating funds for National Endowment for Democracy programs 
related to Tibet;

Whereas section 901(b)(6) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal 
        Years 1990 and 1991 (Public Law 101-246; 22 U.S.C. 2651 note) stated 
        that United States policy toward China should be explicitly linked with 
        the situation in Tibet, specifically including--

    (1) lifting martial law in Lhasa and other parts of Tibet;

    (2) opening Tibet to foreigners, including the press and international 
human rights organizations;

    (3) releasing Tibetan political prisoners; and

    (4) conducting negotiations between representatives of His Holiness the 
Dalai Lama and the Chinese government;

Whereas the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6901 note), signed into law on 
        September 30, 2002--

    (1) established United States principles with respect to human rights, 
religious freedom, political prisoners, and economic development projects 
in Tibet;

    (2) established in statute the position of the Special Coordinator for 
Tibetan Issues in the Department of State;

    (3) established annual reporting requirements on Sino-Tibetan 
negotiations and safeguarding Tibet's distinct cultural identity, both by 
the Secretary of State and by the congressionally established 
Congressional-Executive Commission on China;

    (4) mandated the provision of Tibetan language training to interested 
foreign service officers;

    (5) required Federal officials to raise issues of religious freedom and 
political prisoners; and

    (6) urged the Secretary of State to seek establishment of an office in 
Lhasa;

Whereas the President will visit China on November 8, 2017, for a series of 
        bilateral, commercial, and cultural events including meetings with 
        President Xi Jinping, who has been reappointed as the Chinese Communist 
        Party Leader by the 19th Congress held from October 18 through 24, 2017; 
        and
Whereas it is in line with United States national security interests and values 
        to oppose China's increasingly repressive policies toward Tibet and work 
        towards a negotiated solution: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That it is the sense of Congress that it should be the policy of the 
United States to--
            (1) make the treatment of the Tibetan people an important 
        factor in the conduct of United States relations with the 
        People's Republic of China;
            (2) consistent with the Tibetan Policy Act of 2002 (22 
        U.S.C. 6901 note)--
                    (A) encourage the Government of the People's 
                Republic of China to enter into a dialogue with the 
                Dalai Lama or his representatives leading to a 
                negotiated agreement with respect to Tibet;
                    (B) publicly call for the immediate and 
                unconditional release of all those held prisoner for 
                expressing their political or religious views in the 
                Tibet Autonomous Region and other Tibetan areas; and
                    (C) establish an office in Lhasa, Tibet, to assist 
                visiting United States citizens and to monitor 
                political, economic, and cultural developments in 
                Tibet;
            (3) appoint the Special Coordinator for Tibetan Issues at 
        the highest levels of government;
            (4) revoke appropriate privileges of any Chinese official 
        found to be responsible for impeding access of United States 
        citizens, including Tibetan-Americans, to Tibet and ensure that 
        reciprocal visa processing measures are occurring in accordance 
        with the rules and regulations of the Department of State;
            (5) continue to designate China as a country of particular 
        concern pursuant to section 402 of the International Religious 
        Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6442(b));
            (6) engage with appropriate officials of the Chinese 
        government to--
                    (A) stop the demolition of Tibetan Buddhist 
                religious institutions;
                    (B) revise religious and travel regulations to 
                conform with international human rights standards; and
                    (C) ensure that Tibetan nomads are allowed to 
                continue their way of life on the Tibetan Plateau, 
                which they have helped to preserve for centuries, and 
                are not forcibly relocated into ``socialist villages''.
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