United States
Congressional Concurrent Resolution (1991) [257
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
MAY 21 (LEGISLATIVE DAY, APRIL 25), 1991
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
To express the sense of the Congress that Tibet, including those areas incorporated into the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu and Qinghai that have historically been a part of Tibet is an occupied country under established principles of international law whose true representatives are the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in exile as recognized by the Tibetan people.
Whereas Tibet has maintained throughout its history a distinctive national, cultural, and religious identity separate from that of China;
Whereas Chinese archival documents and traditional dynastic histories, including those pertaining to periods of Manchu and Mongol rule, never refer to Tibet being made "an integral part" of China;
Whereas several countries, including Mongolia, Bhutan, Nepal, British India, and Czarist Russia recognized Tibet as an independent nation or dealt with Tibet independently of any Chinese Government;
Whereas in 1949-50, China launched an armed invasion of Tibet in contravention of international law;
Whereas at the time of Chinese occupation, Tibet possessed all the attributes of statehood under international law including a defined territory and population, an independent government, and the ability to conduct domestic affairs and independent international relations, as found in 1960 by International Commission of Jurists;
Whereas it is the policy of the United States to oppose aggression and other illegal uses of force by one country against the sovereignty of another as a manner of acquiring territory, and to condemn violation of international law, including the illegal occupation of one country by another;
Whereas in the 1950s and 1960s the United States repeatedly condemned what it characterized at China's aggression against Tibet and actively supported the United Nations in both condemning China and calling for Tibet's right to self determination in General Assembly Resolutions 1353 (1059), 1723 (1961 and 2079 (1965);
Whereas on December 16, 1961, at the United Nations, United States Ambassador Plimpton summarized the official United States' position on Tibet, stating: "The United States believes that our objectives must include the restoration of human rights of the Tibetan people and their natural right of self-determination";
Whereas China's illegal occupation of Tibet continues to this day; and
Whereas the United States should not condone aggression by accepting China's claim to sovereignty over Tibet:
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that Tibet, including those areas incorporated into the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu and Qinghai, is an occupied country under the established principles of international law whose true representatives are the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in exile as recognized by the Tibetan people.