Speech #1050114467

Tight controls on religion and on other fundamental freedoms continued and in some cases intensified." Amnesty International cited "grossly unfair trials. widespread torture and illtreatment in police cells. prisons and labor camps." and concluded that "despite some legal changes. Chinese legislation still allowed more than 200.000 to be detained in 1997 without charge or trial for reeducation through labor." The Chinese governments claims of success in its recent economic development policies in Tibet are also misleading: the favorable economic and tax policies have disproportionately benefitted ethnic Chinese residents rather than native Tibetans. Consequently. these policies "have attracted growing numbers of ethnic Han and Hui immigrants from other parts of China. that are competing withand in some cases displacingTibetan enterprises and labor." according to the U.S. State Department. The United States must not allow China to use Tibets geographic and political isolation to obscure our view of the situation.