,i #aaith ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hihb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,may #ba1 #bjbf,mr4 ,mc,govern 7for himself and ,mr4 ,mc,caul7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,state to advocate for the inclusion and recognition of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,assuring the ,future of ,tibet ,act of #bjbf4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the relationship between the ,united ,states ,government and ,tibet began in #aijh1 when ,united ,states diplomat ,william ,rockhill met the #acth ,dalai ,lama to discuss ,tibet's relations with ,china and ,great ,britain and facilitate an exchange of gifts between the ,dalai ,lama and ,united ,states ,president ,theodore ,roosevelt4 7#b7 ,the relationship of the ,united ,states ,government with ,his ,holiness the #adth ,dalai ,lama began in #aidb when ,president ,franklin ,delano ,roosevelt wrote him to state1 ,there are in the ,united ,states of ,america1 many persons1 among them myself1 who are long and greatly interested in your land and people 4 4 44 7#c7 ,the relationship of the ,united ,states ,congress with the #adth ,dalai ,lama began in #aigi when he first visited ,capitol ,hill and strengthened in #aihg when he presented his ,five ,point ,peace ,plan to the ,congressional ,human ,rights ,caucus in the ,united ,states ,capitol building4 7#d7 ,the first face-to-face meeting between ,presidents of the ,united ,states and the ,dalai ,lama began in #aiia when ,president ,george ,h4,w4 ,bush hosted him at the ,white ,house4 7#e7 ,engagement between the ,united ,states ,government and the ,central ,tibetan ,administration and members of ,tibetan communities has grown and deepened in recent decades to include diverse programming to support health1 education1 humanitarian aid1 governance1 people-to-people exchanges1 as authorized in the ,tibetan ,policy and ,support ,act of #bjbj 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #fija note71 and dialogue on global matters of mutual interest4 7#f7 ,the ,dalai ,lama in #aiej assumed the role of head of state of ,tibet4 7#g7 ,the ,dalai ,lama continued to serve as the formal head of the ,tibetan government-in-exile1 later known as the ,central ,tibetan ,administration1 after #aiei4 7#h7 ,in #bjaa1 the ,dalai ,lama transferred his political authority to the ,tibetan government-in-exile1 whose executive and legislative officials are chosen by democratic election1 a decision that was codified by the ,tibetan parliament-in-exile through an amendment to the ,tibetan ,charter vesting executive power of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration in the ,sikyong1 the chief executive4 7#i7 ,in #bjaa1 and reaffirmed in #bjbe1 the ,dalai ,lama announced that the determination of his successor will be made by the ,gaden ,phodrang ,trust1 the ,office of ,his ,holiness the ,dalai ,lama1 which has sole authority to recognize the future reincarnation2 no one else has any such authority to interfere in this matter4 7#aj7 ,the next ,dalai ,lama1 who will be selected according to the process set by the #adth ,dalai ,lama1 will not come of majority age for many years after being selected4 7#aa7 ,it has been the long-standing policy of the ,united ,states to promote the human rights and distinct religious1 cultural1 linguistic1 and historical identity of the ,tibetan people1 as acknowledged and codified by the ,tibetan ,policy and ,support ,act of #bjbj 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #fija note74 7#ab7 ,the ,promoting a ,resolution to the ,tibet-,china ,dispute ,act 7,public ,law #aah-gj7 characterizes the dispute between ,tibet and the ,people's ,republic of ,china as unresolved1 states the sense of ,congress that claims made by the ,people's ,republic of ,china that ,tibet has been a part of ,china since ancient times are historically inaccurate1 and states that it is ,united ,states policy to resolve the dispute in accordance with international law1 including the ,united ,nations ,charter1 by peaceful means1 through dialogue without preconditions4 7#ac7 ,article #a of the ,international ,covenant on ,civil and ,political ,rights and ,article #a of the ,international ,covenant on ,economic1 ,social and ,cultural ,rights provide1 ,all peoples have the right of self-determination4 ,by virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic1 social and cultural development4 7#ad7 ,the ,people's ,republic of ,china's constitution and the ,people's ,republic of ,china's ,regional ,ethnic ,autonomy ,law of #aihd provide for a right of regional autonomy for ,tibetans and other non-,han ,chinese populations1 including the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages and maintain or change their own cultural practices4 7#ae7 ,the ,people's ,republic of ,china's ,law on ,promoting ,ethnic ,unity and ,progress approved by the ,national ,people's ,congress in ,march #bjbf contradicts previous statutory and constitutional guarantees of meaningful autonomy for ,tibetans and other non-,han ,chinese populations by statutorily mandating that education be conducted in ,mandarin1 requiring that written ,chinese be given prominence over alternative scripts in public settings1 and legally prioritizing national identity over distinct ethnic identity4 7#af7 ,the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china has provided no verifiable evidence that the ,tibetan people were consulted1 much less approved1 the diminution of their right to autonomy under the ,people's ,republic of ,china's ,law on ,promoting ,ethnic ,unity and ,progress4 #c4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china has reneged on its legal commitment under the ,constitution of the ,people's ,republic of ,china1 the ,regional ,ethnic ,autonomy ,law1 and relevant international law to provide a high degree of regional autonomy to the ,tibetan people1 including the right to use and develop their own spoken and written languages1 through the enactment in #bjbf of the ,people's ,republic of ,china's ,law on ,promoting ,ethnic ,unity and ,progress1 which instead facilitates the assimilation of ,tibetans and erosion of the right of the ,tibetan people to exercise their own religious1 cultural and language rights2 7#b7 the ,people's ,republic of ,china has denied the ,tibetan people the ability to exercise their right to self-determination as provided by international law2 7#c7 the ,united ,states has expressed support for the ,dalai ,lama's vision of a negotiated agreement through dialogue without preconditions between the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china and the ,dalai ,lama or his representatives or democratically elected leaders of the ,tibetan community as one means of allowing the ,tibetan people to exercise their right to self-determination2 7#d7 the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china has not demonstrated sincerity or seriousness in its approach to engaging in meaningful dialogue with the ,dalai ,lama or his representatives or to reach a negotiated resolution that includes the aspirations of the ,tibetan people2 7#e7 the ,gaden ,phodrang ,trust serves as the legitimate and sole authority to identify and recognize ,dalai ,lamas2 and 7#f7 the ,central ,tibetan ,administration is the legitimate representative of the ,tibetan people4 #d4 ,statement of policy ,it is the policy of the ,united ,states-- 7#a7 to affirm the commitment of the ,united ,states to a resolution of the dispute between ,tibet and the ,people's ,republic of ,china as a matter of strategic interest to the ,united ,states2 7#b7 to support the ,tibetan people's free exercise of their fundamental and universal human rights under international law1 including the right to self-determination as provided by ,article #a of the ,international ,covenant on ,civil and ,political ,rights and ,article #a of the ,international ,covenant on ,economic1 ,social and ,cultural ,rights2 7#c7 to maintain engagement with the ,tibetan people directly and through their democratically elected leadership and through their religious and cultural leaders in order to promote their aspirations with regard to their distinct historical1 cultural1 religious1 and linguistic identity2 7#d7 that the ,central ,tibetan ,administration represents continuity of governance of the ,tibetan people as established by the ,dalai ,lama2 and 7#e7 to support the ,central ,tibetan ,administration in its effort to carry out the responsibilities for which it has been empowered by the ,dalai ,lama and legitimized by the ,tibetan people through their exercise of a genuine democratic process4 #e4 ,advocacy ,in order to carry out the policy under section #d-- 7#a7 the ,president shall direct the ,united ,states ,permanent ,representative to the ,united ,nations to use the voice1 vote1 and influence of the ,united ,states at the ,united ,nations to advocate for the ,central ,tibetan ,administration's observer status within the ,united ,nations ,general ,assembly and relevant agencies of the ,united ,nations2 and 7#b7 the ,secretary of ,state shall-- 7,a7 advocate for the inclusion of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration in relevant international bodies and groupings2 and 7,b7 organize like-minded partners to support greater international recognition of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration within bodies of the ,united ,nations and other multilateral fora4 #f4 ,high-level engagement and diplomatic protocol ,in order to carry out the policy under section #d1 ,secretary of ,state shall-- 7#a7 lead interagency efforts to directly engage at the most senior levels with ,central ,tibetan ,administration officials1 including the ,sikyong and the designated representatives of the ,sikyong2 7#b7 take steps to ensure the ,sikyong of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration is extended appropriate diplomatic courtesies1 including the provision of appropriate security details during visits to the ,united ,states consistent with a head of government2 7#c7 consider the applicability of diplomatic privileges and immunities to officials of the ,central ,tibetan ,administration2 and 7#d7 urge partners and allies of the ,united ,states to engage with and support the ,central ,tibetan ,administration at similarly senior levels4 #g4 ,report ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act and annually thereafter1 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 that describes the status of the implementation of section #e and section #f4