Pelosi Statement on Legislative Package to Hold Beijing Accountable for Human Rights Abuses

Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued this statement as the House prepares tomorrow to take up and pass three additional pieces of legislation to address human rights abuses committed by the People’s Republic of China.  The legislation includes H.R. 1155, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act; H. Res. 837, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the International Olympic Committee failed to adhere to its own human rights commitments; and H. Res. 317, condemning the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity being committed against Uyghurs and members of other religious and ethnic minority groups by the People’s Republic of China.

“Tomorrow, with the legislation on the Floor, the House is sending a clear and direct message: the People’s Republic of China’s crimes against the Uyghur people constitute genocide and must end now.  As we mark 73 years since the signing of the UN Convention on Genocide and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, twenty years since China’s accession to the WTO and the launch of the inaugural Summit for Democracy under President Biden this week, Congress has the responsibility and opportunity to take action to stand up for human dignity and freedom in the region and around the world.

“The United States Congress, on a bipartisan and bicameral basis, stands united in demanding that the People’s Republic of China be held accountable and immediately cease its human rights abuses: from its genocide against the Uyghurs, to its long campaign of repression against the Tibetan people and to its assault on basic freedoms in Hong Kong and on the mainland.  As House Speaker, I applaud the President’s leadership with the White House announcement that there will be no official U.S. diplomatic presence at the 2022 Winter Olympics. 

“The House will continue to demand that Beijing be held accountable for its abuses and repression, building on our legislative action including passage of the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020, the Tibetan Policy and Support Act and the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019.  If America does not speak out for human rights in China because of commercial interests, we lose all moral authority to speak out for human rights any place in the world.”