[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 1016 Introduced in House (IH)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. RES. 1016
Recognizing the 3rd anniversary of the passing of Otto Frederick
Warmbier and condemning the North Korean regime for their continued
human rights abuses.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 22, 2020
Mr. Wenstrup (for himself and Mr. Chabot) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and
in addition to the Committee on Financial Services, for a period to be
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration
of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee
concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the 3rd anniversary of the passing of Otto Frederick
Warmbier and condemning the North Korean regime for their continued
human rights abuses.
Whereas Otto Frederick Warmbier was born on December 12, 1994, in Cincinnati,
Ohio, to parents Fred and Cindy Warmbier;
Whereas, upon his graduation as Salutatorian from Wyoming High School in 2013,
Otto attended the University of Virginia;
Whereas, on December 29, 2015, Otto flew to North Korea as part of a guided
tour;
Whereas, on January 2, 2016, the Government of the Democratic People's Republic
of Korea arrested Otto Warmbier for false charges of ``subversion'' and
committing a ``hostile act'';
Whereas, on March 16, 2016, Otto Warmbier was convicted and sentenced to 15
years of hard labor;
Whereas, as a result of his mistreatment at the hands of North Korean
authorities, Otto Warmbier suffered a serious medical emergency which
placed him into a comatose state, and the North Korean authorities
failed to report the deterioration of Otto Warmbier's physical condition
to United States authorities;
Whereas, on June 13, 2017, after 17 months in captivity, the United States
Department of State announced that it had secured the release of Otto
Warmbier, whereupon he was medically evacuated from North Korea in a
comatose state to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center;
Whereas, on June 19, 2017, Otto Warmbier died in the hospital as a result of the
mistreatment at the hands of the Government of the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea;
Whereas, on December 24, 2018, the United States District Court for the District
of Columbia concluded that the Government of the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea was responsible for the ``torture, hostage taking, and
extrajudicial killing'' of Otto Warmbier;
Whereas, on December 18, 2019, the United Nations General Assembly condemned
``the long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross
violations of human rights in and by'' North Korea in an annual
resolution; and
Whereas, on December 20, 2019, the Otto Warmbier North Korea Nuclear Sanctions
and Enforcement Act of 2019 (title LXXI of Public Law 116-92), was
enacted: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) recognizes the 3rd anniversary of Otto Warmbier's
passing;
(2) remembers and celebrates the life of Otto Frederick
Warmbier, a young man with great potential;
(3) condemns the Government of the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea, which is responsible for the unjustified
arrest, mistreatment, and death of Otto Warmbier;
(4) calls for the United States Government to continue to
use its voice and vote in the United Nations to condemn
systematic human rights violations in North Korea; and
(5) calls for the sanctions enacted in the Otto Warmbier
North Korea Nuclear Sanctions and Enforcement Act of 2019
(title LXXI of Public Law 116-92) to remain fully implemented
until such time that Government of the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea commits to the verifiable suspension of its
proliferation and testing of weapons of mass destruction and
has agreed to multilateral talks including the United States
Government, with the goal of permanently and verifiably
limiting weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile
programs.
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