Washington, D.C.— U.S. Representatives James P. McGovern and Young Kim unveiled a novel Congressional resolution on March 11, 2024, championing the protracted plight of the people of Tibet, whose fundamental human rights face incessant jeopardy at the hands of the government of China. The resolution commemorates the 65th anniversary of Uprising Day of Tibet, observed on March 10, 1959, and denounces the egregious human rights violations entwined with a pernicious hydroelectric dam initiative in Dege County, eastern Tibet.
U.S. Representatives James P. McGovern (D-MA) and Young Kim (R-CA) introduced a novel congressional resolution titled "Recognizing the 65th Anniversary of Tibetan Uprising Day, March 10, 1959, and Condemning Human Rights Violations Associated with the Hydropower Dam Construction Project in Derge" on March 11, 2024.
"It has been 65 years since His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama was compelled to flee as the People’s Republic of China forcibly seized control of Tibet," remarked Rep. McGovern. "Each passing day underscores the resilient defense of human rights and the steadfast pursuit of self-determination by the Tibetan people. The PRC must adhere to its own statutes and international human rights commitments, ceasing its oppression of Tibetans."
"The Tibetan populace has endured seven decades of oppression and domination by the Chinese Communist Party, which exhibits no indication of relenting until it obliterates Tibetan culture," asserted Rep. Kim. "The liberty-loving Tibetan populace merits our solidarity. I am honored to collaborate with Rep. McGovern in a bipartisan entreaty to stand with the Tibetan people and implore the Biden administration to enforce extant laws to hold the CCP accountable."
The resolution recounts, "On March 10, 1959, Tibetans initiated an uprising against the repressive governance of the People’s Republic of China. Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, fled to India due to apprehension for his safety as the Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army readied to assail his abode."
"In the ensuing decades, the PRC has persistently endeavored to efface the religious, cultural, linguistic, and historical identity of the Tibetan people. In a recent manifestation of Chinese repression of Tibetan rights, the PRC is embarking on a hydropower dam construction endeavor in the eastern Tibetan precinct of Derge (Gege) that could precipitate the displacement of approximately 2,000 Tibetans from their dwellings and obliterate six historic monasteries. When demonstrations emerged against the dam in February, Chinese authorities forcibly apprehended over 1,000 Tibetans," appended the resolution.
"The newfound resolution commemorates the 65th anniversary of the Dalai Lama’s exodus from Tibet; reaffirms enduring congressional advocacy for the human rights, inclusive of the right to self-determination, of the Tibetan people; mandates the release of all prisoners of conscience in China by the PRC, encompassing those detained in the February demonstrations against the hydropower dam project in Derge; and beseeches the Biden Administration to exhort PRC authorities to suspend the dam project until the perspectives of local Tibetan inhabitants are duly considered in accordance with the provisions of autonomy afforded to Tibetans under PRC law," the proclamation elucidated.
