Rep. Steel Named to Congressional-Executive Commission on China
Washington, D.C.– Today Rep. Michelle Steel (CA-48) announced she had been appointed by Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy to the Congressional-Executive Commission on China for the 117th Congress. The Commission is a bipartisan, bicameral group that was created by Congress in 2000. Commission members work together to monitor China’s compliance with international human rights standards, encourage the development of the rule of law and to establish and maintain a list of victims of human rights abuses in China.
“The record of human rights abuses by the Chinese Communist Party is as horrific as it is long. This bipartisan, bicameral commission is dedicated to exposing these abuses to the world. I am honored to serve with my bipartisan colleagues and will use this opportunity to be a voice for the suppressed minorities of China in support of freedom and democracy around the world,” Rep. Steel said.
“The United States must continue to condemn and serve as a check on the Chinese Communist Party’s ongoing violations against innocent people, including attacks against the Uighur population. To do that we need Congressional leaders who are going to commit to monitor violations carried out by China’s government, and bring transparency to the CCP’s egregious tactics,” said Leader McCarthy. “That is why I am proud to nominate Michelle Steel to this Congressional commission. As a first-generation Korean American whose family fled North Korea and immigrated to the United States to escape an oppressive regime, Congresswoman Michelle Steel personally understands the brutal truth of human rights abuses. I am confident she will bring her expertise and leadership to bring needed awareness to the abuses carried by the CCP. The world must know the truth about the inherit evil behavior of the CCP, and this commission will play a vital role in making sure that happens.”
The Commission also submits an annual report to the President and Congress. In last year’s report, the commission found that the Chinese government and the Communist Party had “taken unprecedented steps to extend their repressive policies through censorship, intimidation, and the detention of people in China for exercising their fundamental human rights.” They also detailed the crimes against humanity taking place in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), where almost 2 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, Hui, and others have been detained in mass internment camps.
The commission consists of nine Senators, nine Members of the House of Representatives, and five seniors Administration officials appointed by the President.
You can read more about the commission’s legislative mandate here.
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