Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced the following upcoming Committee events:

Monday, June 3

Subcommittee Hearing: Tragic Anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square Protests and Massacre

3:00 p.m. on Monday, June 3 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

Mr. Wei Jingsheng
President
Wei Jingsheng Foundation

Ms. Chai Ling
Founder
All Girls Allowed

Yang Jianli, Ph.D.
President
Initiatives for China

David Aikman, Ph.D.
(Former Time magazine Bureau Chief in Beijing)

Sophie Richardson, Ph.D.<br”>China Director
Human Rights Watch

Chairman Smith on the hearing:“On June 4th, 1989, student-led, peaceful protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square were forcibly suppressed by the hardline communist leaders who ordered the military to enforce martial law.  This hearing will recall the unprecedented bloodshed and those who lost their lives advocating for freedom and democracy, review the lessons learned, and highlight the continuing need for public accountability of those officials responsible for the tragedy.”

 

Tuesday, June 4

Subcommittee Hearing: Continuing Repression by the Vietnamese Government

2:30 p.m. on Tuesday, June 4 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

The Honorable Anh “Joseph” Cao
(Former Member of Congress)

Nguyen Dinh Thang, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Boat People SOS

The Venerable Danh Tol
Victim of religious persecution

Ms. Holly Ngo
Victim of property confiscation

Mr. John Sifton
Asia Advocacy Director<br”>Human Rights Watch

Chairman Smith on the hearing: “This hearing will examine the ongoing ethnic and religious persecution in Vietnam, with a particular focus on the government’s confiscation of land as a means to repress fundamental human rights. Land confiscations are an extreme hardship for victims as their livelihoods are destroyed and they are forced to move from their long-established homes and communities with no due process or just recourse.”

Wednesday, June 5

Subcommittee Hearing: A Crisis Mismanaged: Obama’s Failed Syria Policy

10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 5 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa

Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

Mr. Tony Badran
Research Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies

Ms. Danielle Pletka
Vice President
Foreign and Defense Policy Studies
American Enterprise Institute

Chairman Ros-Lehtinen on the hearing: “While I do not support arming the rebel groups in Syria, it is clear that we need to reevaluate our approach to the ongoing crisis. Over the past two years we have seen over 80,000 Syrians killed and millions displaced, and there is a threatening expansion of extremism that can impact our allies in the region such as Israel, UAE and Jordan. Assad is still in power, and now thesecular and moderate parties that sought a democratic replacement have beenmarginalized and the opposition is overrun with opportunistic extremist elements who are fractured and have different agendas for a post-Assad Syria. This crisis has reverberating effects as the Iranian regime sits intently by watching how this Administration handles –or mishandles – the Syrian crisis to calculate its next move to become nuclear capable.”

 

Wednesday, June 5

Subcommittee Hearing: U.S. Relations with Vietnam

2:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 5 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building

Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific

Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH), Chairman

Invited witnesses include:

Mr. Joseph Y. Yun
Acting Assistant Secretary
Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs
U.S. Department of State

Daniel B. Baer, Ph.D.
Deputy Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
U.S. Department of State   

Chairman Chabot on the hearing: “Vietnam’s economic and geopolitical role in Asia has significantly changed over the course of the past two decades.  Due to its growing economy, participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations, and its involvement in the South China Sea disputes, Vietnam’s bilateral relationship with the U.S. is also evolving.  However, Vietnam’s human rights abuses continue and credible reports indicate they are getting worse.  It is as result of this continuing downward trend that the U.S. must do more to encourage Vietnam to make real efforts to stop these widespread and institutional human rights violations, otherwise further progress on trade and security cooperation will not be realized.  This hearing will be a timely opportunity to examine the security, strategic and human rights aspects of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship and hear from the Administration about its strategy for pressuring Vietnam to institutionalize reforms that respect the human rights and rule of law for all its people.” 

 

***See foreignaffairs.house.gov for updates.

***Coverage note:  All Foreign Affairs Committee proceedings are webcast live at foreignaffairs.house.gov/live-video-feed.

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