U.S. Dept. of State - IIP: The United States and China

Text: Lantos News Release on Measure Opposing China's Olympic Bid
(Congressman presses for immediate vote on H. Con. Res. 73)

The Republican leadership of the House should schedule a vote immediately on a resolution expressing strong opposition to Beijing's 2008 Olympic bid due to China's poor human rights record, Representative Tom Lantos (Democrat of California) said in a July 10 press release.

Lantos, the highest-ranking Democrat on the House International Relations Committee and a co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, noted that the resolution, H. Con. Res. 73, received approval from his committee March 27 by a vote of 27-8 but has yet to be scheduled for a vote before the complete House.

The International Olympic Committee is scheduled to select the site for the 2008 Olympics July 13, 2001.

"The House of Representatives must be given an opportunity to express its views on this critical moral issue," Lantos said.

The news release was issued in conjunction with a press conference held on Capitol Hill on China's Olympic bid. Lantos was joined by Senator Paul Wellstone (Democrat from Minnesota), Representative Nancy Pelosi (Democrat from California) and Representative Frank Wolf (Republican from Virginia).

TOM LANTOS CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE HOUSE VOTE ON BEIJING'S OLYMPIC BID

Press Release -- July 10, 2001

Congressman Tom Lantos (D-California), Ranking Democratic Member of the House International Relations Committee, hosted a press conference at the U.S. Capitol today in which he challenged the House leadership to respect the democratic process and schedule an immediate vote on his resolution opposing China's Olympic bid. Lantos reminded House leaders that the International Olympic Committee vote on China's bid for the 2008 Olympics is only 72 hours away and he predicted that the margin of victory for the winning city among the finalists - Toronto, Paris, and Beijing - will be extremely close.

Lantos was joined at the press conference by American Values President, Gary Bauer; Olympic Silver Medalist, Donna Chladek; Senator Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota); and House colleagues Nancy Pelosi (D-California) and Frank Wolf (R-Virginia).

"The Chinese leadership in Beijing has argued strenuously that 'politics' should be kept out of the IOC's decision. They assert that the potential candidates should only be judged by their ability to build a new sports facility, construct a new subway stop or erect more shining hotels. But focusing on bricks and mortar -- and turning a blind eye to the egregious human rights violations taking place everyday in China -- does not remove politics from the Olympics. It simply permits a brutal regime to exploit the Olympics to prop up its faltering legitimacy by basking in the reflected glow of the 2008 Summer Games," Congressman Lantos said.

"Four months ago, I was joined by Representative Chris Cox (D-California), Nancy Pelosi, and Frank Wolf in introducing H.Con.Res. 73, a bi-partisan resolution which expresses strong opposition to Beijing's Olympic bid due to China's horrendous human rights record. This resolution was overwhelmingly approved by the House International Relations Committee on March 27th by a vote of 27-8. Unfortunately, the Republican leadership of the House has failed to schedule a vote on the resolution. Perhaps they are afraid of taking on Beijing and the American corporate interests which have a financial interest in a cozy US-China relationship," he said.

"China should earn the games not because of its size or economic strength but by virtue of its commitment to human rights and the Olympic ideal," he stated.

"The House of Representatives must be given an opportunity to express its views on this critical moral issue."

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)