Sen. Rick Scott, Sen. Jeff Merkley Introduce Tibet Atrocities Determination Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Senator Rick Scott and Senator Jeff Merkley introduced the Tibet Atrocities Determination Act. April 29^th is observed by the Tibetan Youth Congress as Martyr's Day to commemorate and honor the lives of Tibetans who have sacrificed their lives for the freedom of Tibet. This legislation requires the Secretary of State make a formal determination on whether China is committing a genocide or crimes of humanity against the Tibetan people.

Senator Rick Scott said, "Communist China is committing genocide in Tibet. There is no way around it. The regime in Beijing has engaged in systematic killings, torture, forced sterilization, forced displacement, government sanctioned kidnapping, and a myriad of other crimes against humanity in its oppression of the Tibetan people. This is par for the course for an evil regime that is simultaneously waging a genocide against the Uyghurs, suppressing Christianity, and locking up political prisoners like my friend Jimmy Lai. The bloodshed needs to end, and China needs to be held accountable for all of it.

I am glad to be partnering with Sen. Merkley on this effort to hold the Chinese government accountable."

Senator Jeff Merkley said, "In the face of China's continued assault on Tibetans-escalating cultural erasure, child separation, surveillance, imprisonment, and torture-America can't stand silent As the Chinese government continues to ignore the rights of the Tibetan people under international law, we must be clear that these crimes will not be ignored."

BACKGROUND:

After the 1949 revolution in China, the CCP moved to take control of Tibet, sending the PLA into the region in 1950 and cementing its authority through the 1951 Seventeen Point Agreement, which in practice ended Tibetan self-rule. Tensions continued to rise and came to a breaking point during the 1959 Lhasa uprising, which resulted in mass arrests and heavy loss of life. The Dalai Lama fled to India, along with many Tibetans who formed a lasting exile community that continues to document abuses. In the decades since, Chinese authorities have imposed tight restrictions on Tibetan religion and culture - closing or tightly regulating monasteries, imprisoning monks and nuns, punishing expressions of support for the Dalai Lama, and advancing "Sinicization" policies that place Tibetan Buddhism, language, and education firmly under state control.

Reports from the U.S. State Department and human rights organizations also describe ongoing enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, torture, and targeted repression of Tibetans, including the still-unresolved 1995 disappearance of the boy recognized by the Dalai Lama as the 11th Panchen Lama. There have also been reports of a widespread boarding school system that separates Tibetan children from their families, limits Tibetan language and cultural education, and subjects students to political indoctrination and surveillance. Given the growing body of evidence, there is a compelling interest in examining whether the CCP's state-directed policies meet the legal definition of genocide under the 1948 Genocide Convention, or otherwise crimes against humanity.

Full text of the bill can be found HERE.

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