US lawmakers consider Olympic rights message to China
A resolution has been introduced in the US House of Representatives asking China to end human rights abuses.
By Agencies |
WASHINGTON: A resolution has been introduced in the US House of Representatives asking China to end human rights abuses and its support for tainted governments in Sudan and Myanmar in line with "Olympic traditions of freedom and openness."
The resolution, proposed by the Democratic head of the House of Representatives foreign affairs committee, Howard Berman, is to be discussed and possibly voted today before it is sent to the House floor.
It called on Beijing "to immediately end abuses of the human rights of its citizens, to cease repression of Tibetan and Uighur citizens, and to end its support for the governments of Sudan and Burma (Myanmar)."
This, it added, was "to ensure that the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games take place in an atmosphere that honours the Olympic traditions of freedom and openness."
The 12-point resolution also called on President George W Bush, who is to attend the games opening ceremony, to make a "strong public statement" in Beijing on China's human rights situation and meet with families of jailed "prisoners of conscience."
The resolution also sought direct talks between Beijing and the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader.
Hopes that Beijing would polish up its human rights record in the run up to the games have been "short-lived," Berman said during a House hearing yesterday entitled "China on the Eve of the Olympics."
The resolution, proposed by the Democratic head of the House of Representatives foreign affairs committee, Howard Berman, is to be discussed and possibly voted today before it is sent to the House floor.
It called on Beijing "to immediately end abuses of the human rights of its citizens, to cease repression of Tibetan and Uighur citizens, and to end its support for the governments of Sudan and Burma (Myanmar)."
This, it added, was "to ensure that the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games take place in an atmosphere that honours the Olympic traditions of freedom and openness."
The 12-point resolution also called on President George W Bush, who is to attend the games opening ceremony, to make a "strong public statement" in Beijing on China's human rights situation and meet with families of jailed "prisoners of conscience."
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Bush was also asked to seek to visit the troubled Tibet and Xinjiang regions while in China to attend the games. The resolution also sought direct talks between Beijing and the Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader.
Hopes that Beijing would polish up its human rights record in the run up to the games have been "short-lived," Berman said during a House hearing yesterday entitled "China on the Eve of the Olympics."
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