Katie Porter: “again I come to the floor to debate the issue of trade with China. In no way should the United States' continued…”

“again I come to the floor to debate the issue of trade with China. In no way should the United States' continued engagement with China be seen as a reward for its horrendous human rights violations. As co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, I am all too familiar with the human rights violations which the government of China practices everyday against so many of its own citizens. From the Falun Gong to the Catholic Bishops, to the Tibetan Buddhist and the Uighur Muslims, this past year has seen China's continued persecution of its minorities. I strongly believe that for change to come about and for democracy to take hold in China, the citizens of China must be exposed to democratic ideals and other Western values. Today, these very ideals are taking root throughout China. They are taking place because of our current policy of engagement, one on one, business to business, client to customer. Information is also being spread by important U.S. programs, such as Radio Free Asia and the Voice of America. Slowly, attitudes and actions are changing. The Chinese people want freedoms: freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly. We know these ideals are slowly taking hold. This is evident though radio Free Asia's call- in listen program which is overburdened every day with thousands of citizens risking their lives to express their views, which is currently prohibited by the Chinese government.”