Washington, D.C. – House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead Republican Michael McCaul, joined by committee members Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC), Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY), Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN), Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY), Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) are calling for Speaker Nancy Pelosi to bring H.Res. 317, Condemning the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity being committed against Uyghurs and members of other religious and ethnic minority groups by the People’s Republic of China, to the House Floor before the House breaks for seven weeks in August and September. The bipartisan legislation was marked up on April 21, 2021 and passed the committee unanimously.

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“Genocide is wrong. It’s immoral…I’m asking Speaker Pelosi to join the bipartisan efforts of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and bring this resolution to the Floor before we break for August,” HFAC Lead Republican Michael McCaul (R-TX).

“It is critical that the bipartisan legislation recognizing this crisis be brought to the Floor for a vote,” Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC).

“The United States has an obligation to call out acts of oppression and genocide all around the world…Speaker Pelosi needs to bring this resolution to a vote so that Congress, with one voice, can send a clear message to the CCP that its continued genocide and human rights abuses will not be tolerated,” Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY)

“Secretary Blinken has condemned what’s going on, and Congress needs to do the same,” Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN).

“The Chinese Communist Party is committing genocide against Uyghur and other ethnic minorities in China…Three months ago, the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a bipartisan fashion, marked up a resolution condemning the CCP for these actions. And yet Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, has not brought this resolution to the House Floor for a vote,” Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY).

“The Chinese Communist Party is guilty of some of the worst human rights violations in the world…We demand that Speaker Pelosi bring this to the Floor before the August recess,” Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL).

As the Lead Republican of the committee of jurisdiction and the sponsor of the legislation, Rep. McCaul has also sent the following letter to Speaker Pelosi with a formal request to bring this important bill to the Floor. 

The full text of the letter can be found here and below.

Dear Speaker Pelosi:

I urge you to bring H.Res.317, Condemning the ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity being committed against Uyghurs and members of other religious and ethnic minority groups by the People’s Republic of China (PRC), to the House floor for consideration prior to the August district work period.

As you know well, the ongoing genocide against the Uyghurs and other predominantly Muslim religious and ethnic minority groups at the direction and control of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is nothing less than the moral test of our time. Speaking with a united, bipartisan voice on the CCP’s gravest human rights abuse is essential as we reorient the United States’ policy towards the PRC, which represents the greatest national and economic security threat of this generation.

By approving H.Res.317, the House will formally determine that the crimes against the Uyghurs and members of other religious and ethnic minority groups amount to genocide. Doing so will bring the House into consensus with two successive United States administrations, as well as our parliamentary counterparts in the United Kingdom, Belgium, Czechia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Canada.

I was pleased Chairman Meeks joined me in introducing H.Res.317and that it was unanimously approved by the House Foreign Affairs Committee on April 21st, attracting 43 bipartisan cosponsors along the way. However, it is extremely disappointing that the legislation has not been brought to the House floor, despite the fact that the CCP’s genocide of innocent people is ongoing and repeated requests by Members and outside groups. 

I respectfully request that you bring H.Res.317 forward to a vote this week so the U.S. House of Representatives’ voice can be heard on this critical human rights issue, joining their colleagues in other democratic nations in finding that the crimes against Uyghurs truly are genocide.

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