[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 288 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 288
To support and promote the human rights of Southern Mongolians in the
People's Republic of China, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 29, 2025
Mr. Merkley (for himself and Mr. Sullivan) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign
Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To support and promote the human rights of Southern Mongolians in the
People's Republic of China, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Southern Mongolian Human Rights
Policy Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) According to the China Statistical Yearbook for 2021,
more than 6,000,000 ethnic Mongolians live in the People's
Republic of China, of which some two-thirds live in the Inner
Mongolia Autonomous Region, and many others in three
prefectures and eight counties designated as autonomous for
Mongolians by the Government of the People's Republic of China.
(2) Over the centuries, successive central Chinese
governments have promoted the migration of Chinese people into
the area currently administered as the Inner Mongolia
Autonomous Region, and today only about 18 percent of the
population of the Region is counted as ethnically Mongolian.
(3) In 2020, officials in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous
Region announced a new policy to effectively replace Mongolian
as the principal language of instruction with Chinese, in the
subjects of history, politics, and literature, and shut down
Bainu, the only Mongolian-language-based social media website
based in the country. Beginning in September 2023, schools
across the region largely removed Mongolian-language
instruction from elementary and secondary schools throughout
the region. Reports indicate that high school and college
entrance exams will be conducted in Chinese exclusively
starting in 2025 and 2028, respectively. The People's Republic
of China authorities have banned Mongolian language books from
bookstores and removed signs in the unique, vertically-written
Mongolian script from schools, buildings, streets, and parks.
(4) The People's Republic of China officials launched
``patriotic education'' campaigns at schools and universities
throughout the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, designed to
suppress manifestations of Mongolian identity in favor of the
common Chinese national identity'' and encourage ``all ethnic
groups to accept the great mother country, Chinese nationality,
Chinese culture, [and the] Chinese Communist Party.'' In
response to the new education policy, tens of thousands of
Southern Mongolians in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
launched protests, in which some 300,000 Southern Mongolian
students boycotted school and teachers went on strike, and some
individuals reportedly committed suicide in protest. Security
authorities responded harshly by arresting, beating, detaining,
jailing, and placing under home confinement some estimated
8,000 to 10,000 Southern Mongolians.
(5) Chinese authorities now fully control all activities of
the Chinggis Khan Mausoleum in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous
Region, including the schedule, scale, and ticketing of ritual
ceremonies and approval and monitoring of gatherings, denying
Southern Mongolians the ability to carry out traditional
rituals and observances free of government interference and
profiteering. This has broken an eight-century-long memorial
tradition at the site, which has served as an historical and
cultural representation of the Mongolian identity.
(6) The People's Republic of China policies have undermined
the religious heritage of Southern Mongolians, many of whom
follow Tibetan Buddhism, including through the destruction of
monasteries and temples during the Cultural Revolution, and
interference in the ability to choose their own religious
leaders. Restrictions on travel and freedom of religion or
belief inhibit the ability of Southern Mongolians to affiliate,
engage, and communicate with Mongol communities around the
world, especially those with cultural, linguistic and religious
links to people in the country of Mongolia and the Buryatia,
Kamykia, and Tuvan regions of the Russian Federation, resulting
in a diminution of their common cultural heritage.
(7) The People's Republic of China policies have
effectively ended the traditional Southern Mongolian economic
livelihood of pastoralism, a key marker of Mongol identity, by
forcibly resettling more than 246,000 nomadic households to
urban and agricultural areas where Mandarin language and
Chinese cultural elements dominate. These policies have cut off
Southern Mongolians from their ancestral lands and increased
their economic dependence on the state, eroding their social
cohesion. This has led to severe social and psychological
impacts, including mental illness and economic deprivation.
(8) The environment of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
has degraded under the People's Republic of China policies that
have removed nomads, ending traditional stewardship of grazing
lands, and exploited natural resources through mining and heavy
industry without sufficient stakeholder input from local
inhabitants, resulting in air and water pollution and severe
health problems among local Southern Mongolians. Bayan Obo, the
largest rare earth mine in the world, is the source of toxic
waste, including radioactive thorium that has been seeping into
groundwater.
(9) Southern Mongolian dissidents, activists, writers,
bloggers, lawyers, and their family members who have attempted
to exercise their freedom of expression and defend their legal
rights have been detained, arrested, imprisoned, and placed
under home confinement by the People's Republic of China
authorities. Activist Yanjindulam remains under home
confinement after being released from prison, artist Ashidaa is
still under home confinement, lawyer Huhbulag has been detained
multiple times, and dissident Almaz has been frequently
harassed and detained by the authorities.
(10) Authorities detained rights activist Hada, who
promoted self-determination and democracy for Southern
Mongolians, in 1995 and sentenced him to 15 years in 1996. He
was held without legal basis for an additional four years
following the expiration of his sentence. Hada was subsequently
placed under home confinement until his disappearance in
September 2020. In 2011, Hada's wife Xinna, an outspoken critic
of human rights violations in Southern Mongolia, was arrested
before being sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for
five years. Their son Uiles was sentenced at the age of 17 to
two years in prison on the basis of multiple fabricated
charges. The family's welfare and whereabouts have been unknown
since September 2020.
(11) Chinese authorities have subjected Southern Mongolians
to transnational repression. Since 2009, at least five Southern
Mongolian dissidents in exile have been forcibly returned to
China, including from Mongolia. On May 3, 2023, Chinese police
officers detained Lhamjab Borjigin, a long-time dissident
writer and historian, in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, and forcibly
returned him to China on the same day. Lhamjab Borjigin had
escaped from home confinement on March 6, 2023, after he was
sentenced to one year in prison, suspended for two years, for
writing a book entitled ``China's Cultural Revolution''.
(12) The Congressional-Executive Commission on China
reported that ``[d]uring the Commission's 2023 reporting year,
Chinese Communist Party and government authorities implemented
policies that limited the freedom of ethnic minority groups to
express their cultural and religious identities in
contravention of the PRC Regional Ethnic Autonomy Law and
international human rights treaties, including the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights''.
(13) The Government of the People's Republic of China's
policies have undermined the ability of Southern Mongolians to
exercise their rights under international law to safeguard and
develop their own language, culture, religion or belief, and
economic livelihoods, as part of a deliberate effort to erase
their distinct Mongolian culture and Sinicize the Southern
Mongolian people.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to support and promote human rights of Southern
Mongolians in the People's Republic of China, including the
fundamental freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and
religion or belief, and rights related to arbitrary detention,
discrimination, and other abuses;
(2) to support the aspirations of the Southern Mongolian
people to safeguard their cultural and linguistic heritage,
including the ability to use and promote their own spoken and
written language, and protect their traditional pastoralist way
of life that they have maintained for thousands of years; and
(3) to press the Government of the People's Republic of
China to allow the Southern Mongolian people the ability to
enjoy autonomy promised them.
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the United States supports the liberty and legitimate
aspirations of the Southern Mongolian people to safeguard their
cultural and linguistic heritage and practice their traditional
way of life without threat of forced assimilation policies of
the Government of the People's Republic of China and the
Chinese Communist Party;
(2) the President should--
(A) condemn human rights abuses against Southern
Mongolians by authorities of the People's Republic of
China; and
(B) call on such authorities to allow Southern
Mongolians the ability to exercise the autonomy
guaranteed by the People's Republic of China, including
to conduct their affairs and receive education in their
own spoken and written language;
(3) the Secretary of State should--
(A) work with United States allies and partners and
through multilateral institutions to advocate for the
human rights of Southern Mongolians;
(B) urge the United Nations Human Rights Council to
prioritize assessment of the human rights of Southern
Mongolians in its reviews of the People's Republic of
China compliance with international human rights law,
including through the Universal Periodic Review
process, and to request travel by United Nations
officials to assess conditions of Southern Mongolians
in the People's Republic of China;
(C) promote the right of Southern Mongolians to
protect their spoken and written language;
(D) promote the freedom of religion or belief of
Southern Mongolians;
(E) work with the United Nations Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to
identify and protect world heritage sites in areas of
traditional Mongolian culture in the People's Republic
of China; and
(F) coordinate closely with the international
community on targeted sanctions and visa restrictions;
(4) the United States companies and individuals operating
in areas designated as autonomous for Mongolians in the
People's Republic of China should take steps to ensure that
their commercial activities do not contribute to human rights
violations, undermine the autonomous rights of Southern
Mongolians, or contribute to the environmental degradation or
resettlement of nomads in those areas; and
(5) the United States Ambassador to the People's Republic
of China should expeditiously seek to meet with Hada and his
family members, as well as other Southern Mongolian dissidents,
activists, writers, and lawyers who are either in prison or
under detention or home confinement.
SEC. 5. DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR MATTERS.
(a) Inner Mongolia Section in United States Embassy in Beijing,
China.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State should consider
establishing an Inner Mongolian team within the United States
Embassy in Beijing, China, to follow political, economic, and
social developments in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and
other areas designated by the People's Republic of China as
autonomous for Mongolians, with due consideration given to
hiring Southern Mongolians as Locally Employed Staff.
(2) Responsibilities.--Responsibilities of a team devoted
to Inner Mongolia should include reporting on human rights
issues and access to areas designated as autonomous for
Mongolians by United States Government officials, journalists,
nongovernmental organizations, and the Southern Mongolian
diaspora.
(3) Language requirements.--The Secretary of State should
ensure that the Department of State has sufficient proficiency
in Mongolian language in order to carry out paragraph (1), and
that the United States Embassy in Beijing, China, has
sufficient resources to hire Local Employed Staff proficient in
the Mongolian language, as appropriate.
(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit to the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a report on the
staffing described in subsection (a).
SEC. 6. RELIGIOUS FREEDOM.
(a) Human Rights Reports.--The Ambassador at Large for
International Religious Freedom shall, consistent with the duties under
sections 101(c) and 102(a) of the International Religious Freedom Act
of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6411(c), 6412(a)), assist the Secretary of State to
assess the impact of the restrictions on Tibetan Buddhism by the
Government of the People's Republic of China on the religious freedom
of--
(1) practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism in the People's
Republic of China who are not Tibetan; and
(2) practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism outside the People's
Republic of China, including their ability to travel to and
share information with practitioners inside the People's
Republic of China.
(b) Annual Report on International Religious Freedom.--The
Secretary of State, with the assistance of the Ambassador at Large for
International Religious Freedom, shall ensure that the report required
under sections 101(c) and 102(b) of the International Religious Freedom
Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6411(c), 6412(b)) assesses, as appropriate, the
impact of the restrictions on Tibetan Buddhism by the Government of the
People's Republic of China on the religious freedom of --
(1) practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism in the People's
Republic of China who are not Tibetan; and
(2) practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism outside the People's
Republic of China, including their ability to travel to and
share information with practitioners inside the People's
Republic of China.
SEC. 7. IDENTIFICATION OF PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES
AGAINST SOUTHERN MONGOLIANS IN THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF
CHINA; IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.
(a) Report Required.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
President shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report that identifies each foreign person,
including any official of the Government of the People's
Republic of China, that the President determines is responsible
for any of the following with respect to Southern Mongolians in
the People's Republic of China:
(A) Torture.
(B) Cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or
punishment.
(C) Prolonged or arbitrary detention without
charges and trial.
(D) Causing the disappearance of persons by the
abduction and clandestine detention of those persons.
(E) Other flagrant denial of the right to life,
liberty, or the security of persons.
(F) Other gross violations of internationally
recognized human rights committed against Southern
Mongolians.
(2) Form.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified
annex.
(b) Imposition of Sanctions.--The President should impose sanctions
pursuant to one or more of the following authorities with respect to
each foreign person identified in the report required by subsection
(a):
(1) The Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act
(22 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.).
(2) Section 7031(c)(1)(A) of the Department of State,
Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act,
2024 (division F of Public Law 118-47; 8 U.S.C. 1182 note).
(3) Section 212(a)(2)(G) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(G)).
(c) Sunset.--This section, and any sanctions imposed under this
section, shall terminate on the date that is 5 years after the date of
the enactment of this Act.
(d) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the
Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives.
(2) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means an
individual or entity that is not a United States person.
(3) United states person.--The term ``United States
person'' means--
(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully
admitted for permanent residence to the United States;
(B) an entity organized under the laws of the
United States or of any jurisdiction within the United
States, including a foreign branch of such an entity;
or
(C) any person in the United States.
SEC. 8. VOICE OF AMERICA BROADCASTS IN THE MONGOLIAN LANGUAGE.
(a) Establishment of Service.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Chief Executive Officer of the
United States Agency for Global Media shall establish, through the
Voice of America, a service to provide Voice of America Mongolian
language programming to Mongolian language speakers in Mongolia, the
People's Republic of China, and the Russian Federation.
(b) Report.--Not later than 270 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Chief Executive Officer of the United States
Agency for Global Media shall submit to the Committee on Foreign
Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
House of Representatives a report detailing the implementation of this
section, including a description of programming and broadcast hours.
(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Voice of America for purposes of carrying out this
section $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 and 2026.
SEC. 9. SUPPORT FOR SOUTHERN MONGOLIAN CULTURE.
(a) Repressed Cultures Preservation.--
(1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Smithsonian Institution should fund activities to help
preserve cultures endangered by the repressive policies of the
People's Republic of China, including those of Southern
Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Hong Kongers, through the
World Cultures Center and other programs designed to promote
preservation efforts, as well as research, exhibitions, and
education programming.
(2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Smithsonian
Institution shall submit to the Committee on Rules and
Administration of the Senate and the Committee on House
Administration of the House of Representatives a report on its
plans to help preserve cultures endangered by the policies of
the People's Republic of China, including those of Southern
Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Hong Kongers.
(b) Assistance for Cultural Organizations, Museums, and
Libraries.--
(1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Director of the Institute for Museum and Library Sciences
should establish a grant program, or make available grants
through an existing program, to support efforts by diaspora
communities in the United States to preserve their cultural
heritage that is threatened by the repressive policies of the
People's Republic of China, including the efforts of Southern
Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghurs, and Hong Kongers.
(2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Institute for Museum
and Library Sciences shall submit to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee
on Education and Workforce of the House of Representatives a
report on the feasibility of establishing a grant program, or
to otherwise make available grants through an existing program,
to support efforts by diaspora communities in the United States
to preserve their cultural heritage that is threatened by the
repressive policies of the People's Republic of China,
including those of Southern Mongolians, Tibetans, Uyghurs, and
Hong Kongers, including efforts to engage with such diaspora
communities.
SEC. 10. SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS IN SOUTHERN MONGOLIA.
(a) Declaration of Policy.--It is the policy of the United States
to support the right of Southern Mongolians to make decisions in
accordance with principles of autonomy regarding their economic
development, including the ability to maintain traditional livelihoods,
such as pastoralism, as well as cultural preservation, environmental
sustainability, and resource extraction, in areas designated as
autonomous for Southern Mongolians in the People's Republic of China.
(b) International Financial Institutions.--The Secretary of the
Treasury should instruct the United States executive director of each
international financial institution to use the voice and vote of the
United States to support financing of projects in areas designated as
autonomous for Southern Mongolians in the People's Republic of China if
such projects do not provide incentives for the migration and
settlement of non-Mongolians into Southern Mongolian areas or
facilitate the transfer of ownership of Southern Mongolian land and
natural resources to non-Mongolians, are based on a thorough needs-
assessment, foster self-sufficiency of the Southern Mongolian people,
respect Mongolian culture, traditions, and traditional livelihoods, and
are subject to effective monitoring.
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