Sec. 3. Statements of policy

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It is the policy of the United States to— use all available diplomatic tools to press for the release of political prisoners, including by submitting prisoner lists at all appropriate bilateral meetings and raising individual cases of concern with foreign officials, because experience shows that consistently raising political prisoner cases can lead to improved treatment in detention, lighter sentences, and, in some cases, release from custody or imprisonment; seek the release of unjustly detained or wrongfully detained Americans detained in the People’s Republic of China; end the use of exit bans by the Government of the People’s Republic of China that are used to pressure United States citizens to get their relatives or associates to return to China to face criminal charges or to settle commercial disputes—such bans violate international norms, including Article 35 of the U.S.–China Consular Convention; and use the voice and vote and influence of the United States at the United Nations and other multilateral organizations to— highlight the cases of political prisoners worldwide; document the human rights violations that lead to the arrest and imprisonment of political prisoners globally; and support investigations by United Nations Human Rights Experts into the case of political prisoners, their treatment in detention, and harassment and surveillance of their family members while they are imprisoned.

It is the policy of the United States to consider individuals who are responsible for, complicit in, or directly engaged in the arbitrary detention or torture of Gao Zhisheng and other political prisoners—or the wrongful detention of United States citizens—as having committed gross violations of human rights. Such individuals may be held accountable through the application of sanctions as described in— the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act ( 22 U.S.C. 10101 et seq. ); the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019 ( Public Law 116–76 ); the Hong Kong Autonomy Act ( Public Law 116–149 ); the Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020 ( Public Law 116–145 );

Executive Order No. 14078 of July 19, 2022, Bolstering Efforts to Bring Hostages and Wrongfully Detained United States Nationals Home; ; and other applicable sanctions authorities of the United States. It is the policy of the United States— to seek the release of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng; and to hold accountable those officials of the People’s Republic of China who are responsible for Gao Zhisheng’s torture and arbitrary detention and seek to reunify him with his family who are United States citizens and residents.

The United States is committed to— vigorously advocating for Gao Zhisheng at the highest levels of government, including through diplomacy conducted by relevant bureaus and offices within the Department of State and other agencies across the United States Government; ensuring sustained advocacy over time across bilateral and multilateral fora to secure Gao’s unconditional release, proof of life and whereabouts, access to legal counsel, communication with family—including relatives in the United States—and, if appropriate, humanitarian parole; working in concert with United States allies and partners, including through mechanisms at the United Nations, to increase international pressure on the People’s Republic of China to release Gao Zhisheng and uphold his human rights; seeking concrete responses from officials of the People’s Republic of China to United States and allied advocacy efforts, especially on matters related to Gao’s health, location, communication, and legal status; employing all appropriate diplomatic, legal, and sanctions tools, including available human rights sanctions authorities, to hold accountable officials of the People’s Republic of China complicit in the human rights violations committed against Gao Zhisheng; and maintaining transparency with Congress regarding past and ongoing advocacy efforts by submitting a timely report, in unclassified form (with a classified annex as needed), detailing such efforts, responses received, coordination with allies, and any use of sanctions authorities to promote justice in this case.

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