This upcoming Sunday, the people of Venezuela will hold an election that, if legitimate, would put an end to years of the oppressive Maduro narco-regime. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) issued a statement in support of the Venezuelan people: “The...
News
Latest News
Rubio: “La Tenacidad y Valentía del Pueblo venezolano Estarán a la Vista”
Este próximo domingo, el pueblo venezolano tendrá una elección que, de ser legítima, pondría fin a años de opresión por parte del narco-régimen de Maduro. El senador estadounidense Marco Rubio (R-FL) grabó un mensaje de video en español y emitió una declaración en...
Rubio, Scott, Colleagues to Biden Admin: No Privileges Should Be Given to 9/11 Terrorist
Twenty-three years ago, the United States was attacked by Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001. Now, Zacarias Moussaoui, the only person convicted in a U.S. court for his role in the attack, has requested the U.S. Department of Justice to allow a prisoner transfer...
Next Week: Rubio Staff Hosts Mobile Office Hours
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) office will host virtual Mobile Office Hours next week to assist constituents with federal casework issues in their respective local communities. These office hours offer constituents who do not live close to one of Senator Rubio’s...
Rubio, Colleagues Introduce Ensuring Continuity in Veterans’ Health Act
As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) opens up new facilities, many veterans are losing access to the VA’s Community Care Program and, consequently, their long-term healthcare providers. Veterans throughout the country have reported a loss of care, including...
Rubio Introduces Bill to Strengthen U.S.-India Security Partnership
The U.S.-India partnership is vital to countering influences from Communist China. In order to strengthen this partnership, it is essential to enhance our strategic diplomatic, economic, and military relationship with New Delhi. U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL)...
Rubio, Leahy Commend State Department Tibet Language in the 2020 Human Rights Report
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), author of the Tibetan Policy and Support Act of 2019 and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken applauding the removal of gratuitous language regarding U.S. policy on Tibet’s relationship to the People’s Republic of China from the annual Human Rights Report.
“We should not allow the CCP to define the terms of our interactions with them, or with the people living in the PRC, nor should we uncritically accept how the CCP characterizes the facts on the ground, past or present,” the senators wrote. “The CCP distorts history, and in some cases, rewrites it entirely, to suit its political goals. Experience has taught us that the “correct” understandings of history that the CCP insists others must accept are incomplete or incorrect in important ways.”
“The promotion of human rights and democracy must remain a core element of our foreign policy, and we are prepared to work with you to ensure those issues do not get sidelined in pursuit of other interests with the PRC government,” the senators concluded.
Rubio is a member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
Leahy is Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee and President Pro Tempore of the U.S. Senate.
The full text of the letter is below.
Dear Secretary Blinken:
We write to commend you for the recent release of the 2020 Human Rights Report. In particular, we were delighted that the U.S. State Department removed gratuitous language in the Tibet section of the China report that in prior years had opened the section. The language to which we refer includes: “The Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) and Tibetan autonomous prefectures (TAPs) and counties in Sichuan, Qinghai, Yunnan, and Gansu are part of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).”
Legal scholars have noted that for decades Beijing’s top strategic priority for Tibet has been to minimize the legitimacy deficit of its territorial claims. Past U.S. statements recognizing Tibet as “part of the PRC” have unintentionally undermined Tibetan efforts to negotiate with Beijing. While these statements were meant to reassure Beijing, they, in effect, compromised the U.S. policy of supporting meaningful autonomy for Tibetans. Prior administrations gave the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) what it desired – a fig leaf of legitimacy for its rule in Tibet – virtually eliminating any incentive the CCP might have had to seek true legitimacy by making a deal with the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile.
We should not allow the CCP to define the terms of our interactions with them, or with the people living in the PRC, nor should we uncritically accept how the CCP characterizes the facts on the ground, past or present. The CCP distorts history, and in some cases, rewrites it entirely, to suit its political goals. Experience has taught us that the “correct” understandings of history that the CCP insists others must accept are incomplete or incorrect in important ways.
Thank you again for removing this problematic language regarding Tibet. We trust that the same will be done for the Report on Tibet Negotiations, the International Religious Freedom Report, and all other U.S. government reports on Tibet. Beijing has undoubtedly protested the change, but reversing course would be a mistake. We urge you to stand firm, as you have done on other important issues, such as the genocide of Uyghurs and other Turkic and Muslim communities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
The promotion of human rights and democracy must remain a core element of our foreign policy, and we are prepared to work with you to ensure those issues do not get sidelined in pursuit of other interests with the PRC government. We look forward to working with you on this and other important issues.
Sincerely,