Howard Berman: “I rise in support of S. 342. This is an important and necessary piece of legislation introduced with bipartisan support…”

“I rise in support of S. 342. This is an important and necessary piece of legislation introduced with bipartisan support at the behest of the administration to help preserve the special status now enjoyed by the representatives of Hong Kong in the United States after the reversion of Hong Kong to the People's Republic of China on July 1. When the Congress passed the Hong Kong Policy Act in 1992, it was recognized that the reversion of Hong Kong to China under the concept of one country, two systems would require a special effort by the United States to assist in preserving Hong Kong's unique liberties and trading relations with the rest of the world. Most recently, the Congress passed the Hong Kong Reversion Act--H.R. 750--at the instigation of the chairman of the Asia and Pacific Subcommittee, Mr. Bereuter, which I cosponsored. H.R. 750 contained a provision identical to that passed by the Senate in S.R. 342. Unfortunately, the Senate has not yet acted on the other important provisions contained in H.R. 750 which extended the Congress and the administration's responsibilities to act as a 'watch dog' over Hong Kong's liberties. There can be no doubt that this will be an increasing subject of debate after Hong Kong's reversion. I was disappointed by actions already taken by the Hong Kong provisional legislature selected by Chinese authorities to restrict basic freedoms after July 1.”