SENATE RESOLUTION 497--COMMEMORATING THE LIFE OF DR. LI WENLIANG AND CALLING FOR TRANSPARENCY AND COOPERATION FROM THE GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA AND THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 28
(Senate - February 11, 2020)
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[Page S994]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE RESOLUTION 497--COMMEMORATING THE LIFE OF DR. LI WENLIANG AND
CALLING FOR TRANSPARENCY AND COOPERATION FROM THE GOVERNMENT OF THE
PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA AND THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF CHINA
Mr. COTTON (for himself, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Markey, and Mr. Gardner)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 497
Whereas Dr. Li Wenliang was a 34-year-old ophthalmologist
working in Wuhan, China;
Whereas research indicates that the first patient infected
with the 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) exhibited
symptoms on December 1, 2019;
Whereas, in December 2019, Dr. Li notified his associates
in the medical community in China about the outbreak of 2019-
nCoV;
Whereas, after raising concerns about the spread of 2019-
nCoV, Dr. Li was summoned by Chinese officials and forced to
sign a statement retracting his warnings about the virus and
confessing that he had spread illegal rumors;
Whereas Chinese government authorities played down dangers
to the public for weeks as 2019-nCoV continued to spread,
with more than 42,000 confirmed cases in China alone and at
least 1,000 deaths reported as of February 11, 2020;
Whereas Dr. Li continued to work as an ophthalmologist at
Wuhan Central Hospital despite his knowledge of the outbreak,
and appears to have been infected himself with 2019-nCoV
after coming in contact with a patient he was treating for
glaucoma;
Whereas, on the morning of February 7, 2020, in the
hospital where he worked, Dr. Li Wenliang died after
contracting 2019-nCoV;
Whereas, before he passed away, Dr. Li stated, ``If the
officials had disclosed information about the epidemic
earlier, I think it would have been a lot better. There
should be more openness and transparency.'';
Whereas the people of China expressed their grief and anger
on social media after the death of Dr. Li, with the phrase
``I want freedom of speech'' emerging as a top trending topic
on the Weibo platform;
Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China
continues to limit free expression, and stepped up censorship
after online criticism and investigative reports by Chinese
journalists suggesting that officials underestimated and
underplayed the threat of 2019-nCoV;
Whereas Freedom House has listed China as the ``worst
abuser of internet freedom'' in the world for the fourth year
in a row, and in the aftermath of the outbreak of 2019-nCoV,
there are numerous and well-documented instances of the
``Great Firewall'' of China suppressing the free flow of
critical and medically important information about the
pandemic;
Whereas the Government of the People's Republic of China
has endangered the people of Taiwan and people around the
world by using its influence to limit Taiwan's access to the
benefits of membership in the World Health Organization and
the International Civil Aviation Organization, particularly
during the current outbreak; and
Whereas the World Health Organization has declared 2019-
nCoV a Public Health Emergency of International Concern: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) honors the life and contributions of Dr. Li Wenliang,
and extends heartfelt sympathy to his family and to the
families of all who have passed during this outbreak;
(2) expresses its support for the people of China as they
face this unprecedented public health challenge;
(3) expresses gratitude to Dr. Li and all Chinese medical
personnel and citizens for their efforts to spread awareness
of 2019-nCoV and treat individuals who have contracted the
disease;
(4) calls on the Government of the People's Republic of
China and the Communist Party of China--
(A) to be open and transparent in investigating and
responding to 2019-nCoV;
(B) to ensure that Chinese citizens and the international
community have free and unfettered access, without censorship
or social media controls, to information about 2019-nCoV;
(C) to cooperate fully with the United States Government,
including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in
providing medical access, sharing information, and developing
treatment to combat 2019-nCoV;
(D) to cooperate fully with other governments, especially
those in Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America, and other
regions whose health systems already face high burdens and
are operating from a lower base of capability, as well as
international health organizations in combating 2019-nCoV;
and
(E) to cease efforts to exclude Taiwan from international
organizations, including the World Health Organization and
the International Civil Aviation Organization;
(5) affirms the vital importance of Dr. Li's belief that
``[t]here should be more openness and transparency'' in
China;
(6) affirms that freedom of expression is a social good
that enables experts to sound public health warnings and
helps citizens ensure that their government addresses
weaknesses in crisis response; and
(7) strongly supports the people of China in their demand
for freedom of speech.
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