[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2635 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2635
To support the human rights of Uyghurs and members of other minority
groups residing primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and
safeguard their distinct identity, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 3, 2025
Mrs. Kim (for herself, Mr. Bera, and Mr. Meeks) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To support the human rights of Uyghurs and members of other minority
groups residing primarily in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and
safeguard their distinct identity, 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 ``Uyghur Policy Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The People's Republic of China (PRC) continues to
repress the distinct Islamic, Turkic identity of Uyghurs and
members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in the
Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) in northwestern China
and other areas of their habitual residence.
(2) Uyghurs, and other predominantly Muslim ethnic
minorities historically making up the majority of the XUAR
population, have maintained throughout their history a distinct
religious and cultural identity.
(3) Human rights, including freedom of religion or belief,
and respect for the Uyghurs' unique Muslim identity are
legitimate interests of the international community.
(4) The PRC has ratified the International Covenant on
Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, and is thereby bound by
its provisions. The PRC has also signed the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
(5) An official campaign to encourage Han Chinese migration
into the XUAR has placed immense pressure on those who seek to
preserve the ethnic, cultural, religious, and linguistic
traditions of the Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious
minority groups.
(6) PRC authorities have supported an influx of Han Chinese
economic immigrants into the XUAR, implemented discrimination
against Uyghurs and other minorities in hiring practices, and
provided unequal access to healthcare services.
(7) PRC authorities have manipulated the strategic
objectives of the international war on terror to mask their
increasing cultural and religious oppression of the Muslim
population residing in the XUAR.
(8) Following unrest in the region, in 2014, Chinese
authorities launched their ``Strike Hard against Violent
Extremism'' campaign, in which dubious allegations of
widespread extremist activity were used as justification for
gross human rights violations committed against Uyghurs and
members of other minority communities in the XUAR.
(9) PRC authorities have made use of the legal system as a
tool of repression, including for the imposition of arbitrary
detentions and for torture against members of the Uyghur
community and other minority populations.
(10) Uyghurs and Kazakhs who have secured citizenship or
permanent residency outside of the PRC have attested to
repeated threats, harassment, and surveillance by PRC
officials.
(11) Reporting from international news organizations has
found that over the past decade, family members of Uyghurs and
other minority groups living outside of the PRC have gone
missing or been detained to force Uyghur expatriates to return
to the PRC or silence their dissent.
(12) In 2017, Radio Free Asia's Uyghur Service was the
first media organization to report on the PRC's vast, mass
arbitrary-detention program in the XUAR in 2017.
(13) Credible evidence from human rights organizations,
think tanks, and journalists confirms that more than 1,000,000
Uyghurs and members of other ethnic minority groups have been
imprisoned in extrajudicial ``political reeducation'' centers.
(14) Independent accounts from former detainees of
``political reeducation'' centers describe inhumane conditions
and treatment including forced political indoctrination,
torture, beatings, rape, forced sterilization, and food
deprivation.
(15) Former detainees also confirmed that they were told by
guards that the only way to secure release was to demonstrate
sufficient political loyalty to the PRC Government.
(16) Popular discourse surrounding the ongoing atrocities
in the XUAR and advocacy efforts to assist Uyghurs remains
muted in most Muslim majority nations around the world.
(17) Former Secretary of States Antony Blinken and Michael
Pompeo and Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that the
PRC Government has committed genocide and crimes against
humanity against Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious
minorities in the XUAR.
(18) Government bodies of multiple nations have also
declared that PRC Government's atrocities against such
populations in the XUAR constitute genocide, including the
parliaments of the United Kingdom, Belgium, Czechia, Lithuania,
the Netherlands, and Canada.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the Sense of Congress that--
(1) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
immediately open the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)
to regular, transparent, and unmanipulated visits by members of
the press, international organizations including the Office of
the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, academic
and human rights research institutions, as well as foreign
delegations including from the United States Congress;
(2) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
recognize, and take tangible steps to protect and preserve, the
distinct ethnic, cultural, religious, and linguistic identity
of Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority
groups in the XUAR;
(3) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
cease all government-sponsored crackdowns, imprisonments, and
detentions of people throughout the XUAR aimed at repressing
their ethnic, cultural, political, or religious identities;
(4) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
cease all government-sponsored transnational repression of
Uyghurs, including the detainment, harassment, intimidation,
and surveillance of the family members of exiled Uyghurs and
Uyghur activists;
(5) it is commendable for countries to provide shelter and
hospitality to Uyghurs and other minority group members in
exile, as Turkey, Albania, and Germany have done;
(6) urges all countries, especially fellow democracies and
those with sizeable Muslim populations, to condemn and address
the plight of Uyghurs and other minority communities in the
XUAR;
(7) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
immediately and unconditionally release all prisoners that have
been detained for their ethnic, cultural, religious, and
linguistic identities, for expressing their political or
religious beliefs in the XUAR, or for being related to members
of the Uyghur diaspora or activist community including--
(A) Ekper Asat, who participated in the Department
of State's International Visitors Leadership Program in
2016, was incarcerated after returning to the XUAR, and
is now serving a 15 year prison sentence on charges of
``inciting ethnic hatred and ethnic discrimination'';
(B) Dr. Gulshan Abbas, a retired medical doctor and
Uyghur, who was wrongfully detained in the XUAR on
September 11, 2018, and unjustly sentenced to 20 years
in prison in retaliation for her sister's advocacy for
Uyghur human rights issues; and
(C) Kamile Wayit, a university student and Uyghur,
who was wrongfully detained on December 12, 2022, after
returning to the XUAR while on break from studying
during the winter holiday;
(8) the Government of the People's Republic of China should
facilitate access for international humanitarian organizations,
including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red
Crescent Societies, to the ``political reeducation'' centers in
the XUAR to ensure prisoners are not being mistreated and are
receiving necessary medical care; and
(9) the Department of State should continue to facilitate
the unhindered dissemination of information to the
international community on issues regarding the human rights,
religious freedom, and transnational repression of Uyghurs and
members of other minority groups in the XUAR.
SEC. 4. UNITED STATES STRENGTHENING OF COORDINATION ON UYGHUR ISSUES.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State, as appropriate, shall--
(1) prioritize policies, programs, and projects to support
the Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority
groups in the XUAR;
(2) vigorously promote the policy of seeking to protect the
distinct ethnic, religious, cultural, and linguistic identity
of the Uyghurs and other minority groups and seek improved
protection of human rights in the XUAR;
(3) direct the State Department to maintain close contact
with Uyghur religious, cultural, and political leaders,
including seeking regular travel to the XUAR and to Uyghur
populations in Central Asia, Turkey, Albania, Germany, and
other parts of Europe;
(4) lead coordination efforts for the release of political
prisoners in the XUAR who are being detained for exercising
their human rights or being relatives of exiled Uyghurs;
(5) consult with the United States Congress on policies
relevant to the XUAR and the Uyghurs;
(6) coordinate with relevant Federal agencies to administer
aid to Uyghur rights advocates;
(7) make efforts to establish contacts with foreign
ministries of other countries, especially in Europe, Central
Asia, and members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation,
to pursue a policy of promoting greater respect for human
rights and religious freedom for Uyghurs and other ethnic and
religious minority groups from the XUAR;
(8) utilize the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and
United States Strategic Dialogue to address Uyghur rights,
working with the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation individual
member states to develop and implement joint initiatives and
programs aimed at promoting awareness of Uyghur rights, and
support Uyghur victims of detainment, harassment, and
transnational repression;
(9) support independent media authorized under PL 111/202
22 U.S.C. 6208 of the 111th Congress that conduct reporting and
investigative journalism focused on the XUAR, including in
local languages, to ensure that further PRC human rights abuses
are reported on;
(10) work with international partners to raise awareness
concerning acts of transnational repression against Uyghur
Americans or Uyghurs exiled in the United States;
(11) develop and implement strategies to prevent and
respond to the transnational repression of Uyghur Americans and
Uyghurs exiled in the United States;
(12) establish a reporting mechanism for individuals to
report incidents of transnational repression; and
(13) submit an annual report, including a classified annex
if necessary, to Congress on actions taken by the United States
to address and prevent transnational repression against Uyghurs
in the United States, and recommendations for further
legislative or policy measures.
(b) Support.--The Secretary of State shall ensure the Department of
State has adequate resources, staff, and administrative support to
carry out this section.
(c) Termination.--This section shall terminate on the date that is
5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 5. FUNDING FOR HUMAN RIGHTS ADVOCATES TO CONDUCT PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
IN THE ISLAMIC WORLD ON THE UYGHUR SITUATION.
Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for the United States
Speaker Program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of
the Department of State, $250,000 for each of fiscal years 2025, 2026,
and 2027 is authorized to be made available to support human rights
advocates working on behalf of the Uyghurs and members of other ethnic
and religious minority groups from the XUAR that are persecuted in the
PRC, whose names may be provided by the Department of State in
consultation with representatives of the global Uyghur community, to
speak at global public diplomacy forums, particularly those in which
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation countries and other Muslim-majority
countries are present, on issues regarding the human rights and
religious freedom of Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious
minority groups persecuted in the PRC.
SEC. 6. NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS AUTHORIZED.
No additional funds are authorized to carry out the requirements of
this Act. Such requirements shall be carried out using amounts
otherwise authorized.
SEC. 7. ACCESS TO DETENTION FACILITIES AND PRISONS AND THE RELEASE OF
PRISONERS.
(a) Strategy on Political Reeducation and Detention Facilities.--
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act,
the Secretary of State, in consultation with the heads of other
relevant Federal departments and agencies, develop a strategy to
cooperate with like-minded partners to pressure the People's Republic
of China to--
(1) close all detention facilities and ``political
reeducation'' camps housing Uyghurs and members of other ethnic
minority groups in the XUAR;
(2) allow unhindered access to detention facilities and
``political reeducation'' camps in the XUAR by independent
media, researchers, international organizations and the Office
of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights for a
comprehensive assessment of the human rights situation; and
(3) protect human rights and preserve the distinct
religious and cultural identity of the Uyghurs and the other
religious and ethnic minority communities in the XUAR.
(b) Report on Strategy and Implementation.--Not later than 1 year
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State
shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a
report, including a classified annex if necessary, that includes--
(1) the strategy developed pursuant to subsection (a); and
(2) all the steps taken to implement such strategy pursuant
to the objectives described in subsection (a).
SEC. 8. REQUIREMENT FOR UYGHUR LANGUAGE TRAINING.
(a) Uyghur Language Training and Staffing.--The Secretary of State
shall take such steps as may be necessary to ensure that--
(1) Uyghur language training is available to Foreign
Service officers as appropriate; and
(2) every effort is made to ensure that at least 1 Uyghur-
speaking member of the Foreign Service (as such term is defined
by section 103 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C.
3903)) is assigned to each United States diplomatic or consular
post in China.
(b) Report.--No later than 1 year after the date of the enactment
of this Act, and annually thereafter for 2 years, the Foreign Service
Institute shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate
a report that outlines all the steps taken to implement subsection (a).
SEC. 9. UYGHUR CONSIDERATIONS AT THE UNITED NATIONS.
The President should direct the United States Permanent
Representative to the United Nations to use the voice, vote, and
influence of the United States to--
(1) oppose any efforts to prevent consideration of the
gross violation of internationally recognized human rights in
the XUAR in any body of the United Nations;
(2) oppose any efforts to prevent the participation of any
Uyghur human rights advocates in nongovernmental fora hosted by
or otherwise organized under the auspices of any body of the
United Nations; and
(3) support the appointment of a special rapporteur or
working group for the XUAR for the purposes of monitoring human
rights violations and abuses in the XUAR, and for making
reports available to the High Commissioner for Refugees, the
High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Human Rights
Commission, the General Assembly, and other United Nations
bodies.
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