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which may bring mixed results in the protection of ethnic minorities' rights. The Chinese government's 2009-2010 National Human Rights Action Plan issued in April 2009 outlined measures to support ethnic minority populations in China. The Chinese government maintained economic development policies that prioritize state economic goals over the protection of ethnic minorities' rights. Despite bringing some benefits to ethnic minority areas and residents, such policies also have conflicted with ethnic minorities' rights to maintain traditional livelihoods, spurred migration to ethnic minority regions, promoted unequal allocation of resources favoring Han Chinese, intensified linguistic and assimilation pressures on local communities, and resulted in environmental damage. Authorities in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region continued in the past year to restrict independent expressions of ethnic identity among Mongols and to interfere with their preservation of traditional livelihoods, while enforcing campaigns to promote stability and ethnic unity. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Fund rule-of-law programs and exchange programs that raise awareness among Chinese leaders of different models for governance that protect ethnic minorities' rights and allow them to exercise meaningful autonomy over their affairs, in line with both domestic Chinese law and international human rights standards. Fund programs that promote models for sustainable development that draw on participation from ethnic minority communities. Support non-governmental organizations that address human rights conditions for ethnic minorities in China to enable them to continue their research and develop programs to help ethnic minorities increase their capacity to protect their rights. Encourage such organizations to develop training programs to promote sustainable development among ethnic minorities, programs to protect ethnic minority languages and cultures, and programs that research rights abuses in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Encourage broader human rights and rule-of-law programs that operate in China to develop programs to address issues affecting ethnic minorities in China. Call on the Chinese government to release people detained or imprisoned for advocating for the rights of ethnic minority citizens, including Mongol rights advocate Hada (serving a 15-year sentence after pursuing activities to promote Mongols' rights and democracy) and other prisoners mentioned in this report and in the Commission's Political Prisoner Database. Support organizations that can monitor the Chinese government's compliance with stated commitments to protect ethnic minorities' rights, including as articulated in the government's 2009-2010 National Human Rights Action Plan and in international law that the Chinese government is bound to uphold. Provide support for organizations that can provide assistance in implementing programs in a manner that draws on participation from communities involved and ensures the protection of their rights. Population Planning Findings Chinese authorities continued to implement population planning policies that interfere with and control the reproductive lives of women, employing various methods including fines, cancellation of state benefits and permits, forced sterilization, forced abortion, arbitrary detention, and other abuses. Human rights abuses by officials charged with implementing population planning policies continue despite provisions in Chinese law that prohibit such abuses. China's 2002 Population and Family Planning Law (PFPL) states in Article 4 that officials ``shall perform their administrative duties strictly in accordance with the law, and enforce the law in a civil manner, and they may not infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of citizens.'' The PFPL also states in Article 39 that ``any functionary of a State organ who commits one of the following acts in the work of family planning, if the act constitutes a crime, shall be investigated for criminal liability in accordance with the law; if it does not constitute a crime, he shall be given an administrative sanction with law; his unlawful gains, if any, shall be confiscated: (1) infringing on a citizen's personal rights, property rights, or other legitimate rights and interests; (2) abusing his power, neglecting his duty, or engaging in malpractices for personal gain . . . .'' The Commission observed in 2010 a greater number of reports confirming its 2009 finding that some local governments are specifically targeting migrant workers for forced abortions. The Commission noted that increased public awareness of the demographic and social consequences of the Chinese government's population planning policy in the 2010 reporting year led to public debate among Chinese experts and government officials regarding the need for policy reform. However, top Communist Party and government leaders continue to publicly defend the policy and rule out reform in the near term. The Chinese government's population planning policies continue to exacerbate the country's highly skewed sex ratio. Reports in the last year, however, emphasized how population planning policies exacerbate other demographic challenges as well, including a rapidly aging population and a decline in working age population. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Urge the Chinese government to vigorously enforce provisions under Chinese law that provide for punishments of officials and other individuals who violate the rights of citizens when implementing population planning policies. Urge the Chinese government to establish penalties, including specific criminal and financial penalties, for officials and individuals found to commit abuses such as coercive abortion and coercive sterilization, which continue in China despite provisions under existing laws and regulations intended to prohibit them. Urge Chinese officials to cease coercive methods of enforcing birth control quotas. Urge the Chinese government to dismantle coercive population controls and provide greater reproductive freedom and privacy for women. Call on Chinese officials to permit greater public discussion and debate concerning population planning policies and to demonstrate greater responsiveness to public concerns. Support the development of programs and international cooperation on legal aid and training programs that help citizens pursue compensation under China's newly amended State Compensation Law, and other remedies against the state for injury suffered as a result of official abuse related to China's population planning policies. Freedom of Residence and Movement Findings The Chinese government's household registration (hukou) system, first implemented in the 1950s, continues to limit the right of Chinese citizens formally to establish their permanent place of residence. Implementation and enforcement of some hukou measures resulted in discrimination against rural hukou holders who migrate to urban areas. Most frequently, hukou is used to deny social benefits such as education and subsidized healthcare to migrant workers in cities. The discriminatory effects are especially prominent in the area of education. Authorities continued during the Commission's 2010 reporting period to relax some hukou restrictions consistent with earlier reforms. Guangzhou municipality instituted reforms to unify rural and urban hukou into a single residential hukou. Chongqing municipality initiated gradual voluntary hukou reforms aimed at increasing the percentage of urban hukou holders. The effects of these reforms are unclear pending ongoing implementation. The Chinese government and Communist Party exercised strict control over public debate on hukou reforms during the 2010 reporting year. Authorities removed from the Internet a joint editorial published by 13 newspapers that decried the hukou system as corrupt and in need of speedy reform. A coauthor of the piece was forced to resign his position as deputy editor of a major newspaper. The Chinese government continued to impose restrictions on Chinese citizens' right to travel in a manner that is inconsistent with international human rights standards. During the Commission's 2010 reporting year, Chinese government authorities arbitrarily barred rights defenders, advocates, and critics from entering and leaving China. Officials refused to renew passports to rights advocates and subsequently cited invalid passports as grounds to prevent entry. In some instances, no reasons for the travel ban were provided. The Chinese government continued to use coercive measures to restrict Chinese advocates', rights defenders', and dissidents' liberty of movement within China, especially during politically sensitive periods, including the months leading up to the Shanghai 2010 World Expo. Authorities used measures such as surveillance, police presence outside of one's home, ``invitations'' to tea with police, forced trips, detention, removal from one's home, reeducation through labor, and imprisonment. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Support programs, organizations, and exchanges with Chinese policymakers and academic institutions engaged in research and outreach to migrant workers that provide legal assistance to migrant workers and encourage policy debates on the hukou system. Encourage U.S. academic and public policy institutions and experts to consult with the Commission on avenues for outreach to Chinese academic and public policy figures engaged in policy debates on reform of the hukou system. Stress to Chinese government officials that the Chinese government's noncompliance with international standards regarding freedom of movement inside China negatively impacts confidence outside China in the Chinese government's commitment to international standards more generally. Raise specifically Chinese authorities' restriction on the liberty of movement of rights defenders, advocates, and critics including writer Liao Yiwu, advocate Feng Zhenghu, economist Ilham Tohti, professor Cui Weiping, writer Liu Xia (wife of imprisoned intellectual Liu Xiaobo), and democracy advocates Ding Zilin, Qi Zhiyong, and Li Hai. Status of Women Findings Chinese officials continued to promote existing laws that aim to protect women's rights, including the amended Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests and the amended Marriage Law; however, inconsistent interpretation, selective implementation, and selective enforcement of these laws across localities limit progress on concrete protections of women's rights. Recent statistics show increases in women holding positions at the central, provincial, and municipal levels of government. Female political representation at the village level remains low, due in part to the traditional patriarchal system still in play in parts of rural China. Villages typically have a high rate of ``self- governance'' with regard to issues such as land contracts, profit distribution from collectives, and land requisition compensation, and with limited decisionmaking power in village committees, women's interests are less likely to be represented in village rules and regulations, as well as in land disputes. The Chinese government is committed under Article 7 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and Article 11 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women to ensuring gender equality in employment. While China's existing laws such as the Labor Law, amended Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests, and Employment Promotion Law prohibit gender discrimination, they lack clear definitions and enforcement mechanisms, which weakens their effectiveness. Women continue to experience widespread discrimination in areas including recruitment, wages, and retirement. The Shenzhen Municipal Women's Federation announced draft regulations during the Commission's 2010 reporting year to promote gender equality in employment in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone. Sexual harassment remains prevalent in China, and victims of sexual harassment face several legislative, cultural, and social obstacles in protecting their rights. China's amended Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests (LPWRI) prohibits sexual harassment and provides an avenue of recourse for victims through either administrative punishment for offenders or civil action in the people's court system; however, the LPWRI does not provide a clear definition of sexual harassment or specific standards and procedures for prevention and punishment. Domestic violence remains pervasive, affecting nearly one-third of China's 270 million families. Advocates continue to call for comprehensive national- level legislation that clearly defines domestic violence, assigns responsibilities to government and civil society organizations to address it, and outlines punishments for offenders. The All-China Women's Federation proposed draft national legislation this year, but it remains to be seen whether this or other such drafts are entered into the legislative agenda. China's increasingly skewed sex ratio, which some researchers attribute to government-imposed birth limits and a traditional cultural bias for sons, may lead to continued or increased forced prostitution, forced marriages, and human trafficking. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Support programs in China that increase awareness of judicial and law enforcement personnel regarding domestic violence and sexual harassment and increase women's leadership training through U.S.-China exchanges and international conferences. Support legal programs that promote women's land rights, especially in rural areas, and urge higher levels of government to increase supervision over village committees to ensure that village rules and regulations are in accordance with national-level laws and policies and to ensure adequate protection of women's rights and interests. Urge the Chinese government to further revise the Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests or enact new comprehensive national-level legislation to provide a clear definition of sexual harassment and specific standards and procedures for prevention and punishment. Inquire into whether officials in the Shenzhen Special Economic Zone have placed gender equality regulations on the legislative plan, whether they intend to make drafts available for public comment, and if so, how long the public comment period will be and to whom will they make drafts available for comment. Urge the Chinese government to enact comprehensive national-level legislation that clearly defines domestic violence, assigns responsibilities of government and civil society organizations in addressing it, and outlines punishments for offenders. Call for the release of such legislation in draft form for public comment. Urge the Chinese government to establish an enforcement mechanism for implementation of provisions in China's Labor Law, amended Law on the Protection of Women's Rights and Interests, and Employment Promotion Law that prohibit gender discrimination. Urge Chinese officials to specifically address gender discrimination in recruitment, wages, and retirement. Human Trafficking Findings The Chinese government voted to accede to the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (UN TIP Protocol) in December 2009, after several years of stating its intent to do so. The legal definition of trafficking under Chinese law does not conform to international standards. Article 240 of China's Criminal Law defines the trafficking of persons as ``abducting, kidnapping, buying, trafficking in, fetching, sending, or transferring a woman or child, for the purpose of selling the victim.'' Because this definition is narrower in scope than the definition provided in Article 3 of the UN TIP Protocol, it imposes limits on the Chinese government's prosecution of traffickers, protection of victims, and funding of anti-trafficking programs. China remains a country of origin, transit, and destination for human trafficking and abductions. The majority of trafficking cases are domestic and involve trafficking for sexual exploitation, forced labor, and forced marriage. The Chinese government continues to deport North Korean refugees under the classification of ``economic migrants,'' without legal alternatives for victims of trafficking. The Chinese government made some efforts to eliminate trafficking and comply with trafficking- related international human rights standards during the Commission's 2010 reporting period. Authorities investigated, prosecuted, and prevented some trafficking crimes, especially domestic trafficking cases, and those involving the abduction of women for forced marriage or commercial sexual exploitation. In April 2010, the Supreme People's Court, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Public Security jointly issued the Opinion on Lawful Punishment for the Crime of Abducting and Selling Women and Children. The guideline may improve investigation and filing of cases involving the trafficking of women under 18 years of age. Officials continued to take steps to increase collaboration with other countries, regions, and international organizations on victim identification, repatriation, and criminal prosecution. For example, some local governments in Yunnan province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region set up liaison offices with the governments of bordering countries including Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia to cooperate on anti-trafficking efforts. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Urge the Chinese government to abide by its commitment under the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, revise the government's definition of trafficking, and enact comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation to align with international standards. Call on the Chinese government to provide more services for trafficking victims, particularly for Chinese citizens trafficked for labor exploitation and trafficked abroad. Urge the Chinese government to abide by its international obligations with regard to North Korean trafficking victims who are deported without legal alternatives to repatriation. Support international and cross-border mechanisms that can help enhance the Chinese government's collaboration with other countries, regions, and international organizations on victim identification, repatriation, and criminal prosecution. Support legal assistance programs that advocate on behalf of both foreign and Chinese trafficking victims. North Korean Refugees in China Findings During the Commission's 2010 reporting year, central and local authorities sustained efforts to locate and forcibly repatriate North Korean refugees in China. The 1951 Convention and its Protocol obligates the Chinese government to refrain from repatriating North Koreans in China who left the DPRK for fear of persecution, or who fear persecution upon return to the DPRK. North Korean women along the Chinese border continue to be trafficked into forced marriage and the sex industry. The Chinese government's repatriation of trafficked North Korean women contravenes the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (1951 Convention) and its 1967 Protocol (Protocol), as well as Article 7 of the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (UN TIP Protocol). The government's failure to take adequate measures to prevent North Korean women from being trafficked contravenes its obligations under Article 9 of the UN TIP Protocol and Article 6 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Chinese local authorities near the border with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) continued to deny household registration (hukou) to the children of North Korean women married to Chinese citizens. Without household registration, these children live in a stateless limbo and cannot access education and other social benefits. Famine conditions in the DPRK have worsened since late 2009, and food shortages during the Commission's 2010 reporting year have been compared to the food crisis of the 1990s. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Establish a task force to examine and support the efforts of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to gain unfettered access to North Korean refugees in China, beginning with North Korean minors, and to recommend a strategy for creating incentives for China to honor its obligations under the 1951 Convention and its Protocol to immediately cease detaining and repatriating North Koreans in China. Urge central and local Chinese government officials to abide by their obligations under the UN TIP Protocol (Article 9) to prosecute human traffickers in northeastern China and along the border with the DPRK. Urge Chinese officials to grant residency status and related social benefits to North Korean women married to Chinese citizens and their children. In particular, urge local Chinese officials to allow these children to receive an education in accordance with the PRC Nationality Law (Article 4) and the PRC Compulsory Education Law (Article 5). Public Health Findings Authorities are beginning to implement goals outlined in the January 2009 10-year medical reform plan--such as initiating a pilot public hospital reform project in 16 cities and establishing a basic medicine system with an official list of approved pharmaceuticals--however, challenges remain in implementation. Rural areas continue to lack adequate healthcare resources with which to serve local residents. Residents of urban areas tend to have greater access to healthcare benefits; however, the growing population of migrant workers and their families who live in these areas but do not possess an urban hukou (household registration) still face difficulties in accessing basic health services. Some children may go without household registration (hukou) in China because they are born ``out of plan,'' that is, not in compliance with birth limits imposed by population planning policies, and their parents do not pay the required fines. Lack of a valid hukou raises barriers to access to social benefits typically linked to the hukou, including subsidized healthcare and public education. Discrimination and social stigma against people living with medical conditions such as infectious disease, physical disability, and mental illness remain commonplace. Chinese non-governmental organizations and individual advocates continue to play a significant role in raising awareness about health concerns; however, Chinese authorities continue to suppress some forms of public health advocacy. The Chinese government has committed to take steps to prevent, treat, and control infectious disease, but reports indicate that curtailing the spread of infectious diseases, especially in rural areas, has continued to present a significant challenge. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Urge the Chinese central government to work with local governments to ensure effective implementation of the healthcare reform plan. Local government cooperation is critical in achieving the projected goal of healthcare access for the entire population by the year 2020. Urge the Chinese government to encourage local governments to adopt and enforce measures and regulations that prohibit discrimination against migrant workers and provide equal access to social services. Call on the Chinese government to ease repression of public health advocates and provide more support to U.S. organizations that address public health issues in China. Urge Chinese officials to focus attention on effective implementation of China's Employment Promotion Law and related regulations that prohibit discrimination against persons living with HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis B virus, and other illnesses in hiring and in the workplace. Climate Change and the Environment Findings Chinese leaders signed the United Nations Copenhagen Accord, ``with provisions for international consultations and analysis under clearly defined guidelines that will ensure that national sovereignty is respected,'' and then in a separate action, they agreed to voluntarily ``endeavor to lower its carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45 percent by 2020 compared to the 2005 level . . .'' among other actions. China emphasized that its ``autonomous domestic mitigation actions are voluntary in nature.'' However, top Chinese leaders explained that they would include related binding targets in China's 12th Five- Year Plan (2010-2015). Chinese leaders continued to emphasize China's reliance on domestic monitoring, reporting, and verification of its greenhouse gas emissions and reductions; nevertheless, Chinese leaders have signaled a willingness to discuss greater transparency. China has made domestic regulatory and institutional efforts, as well as engaged in bilateral and multilateral cooperative programs to improve the measurement, collection, analysis, and reporting of energy and greenhouse gas data. However, the reliability and transparency of China's energy and greenhouse gas emission data are still in question. Without adequate procedural protections, implementation of climate change mitigation policy may place the rights of vulnerable groups, including the rural poor and ethnic minorities, especially resettled citizens, at risk. Hydroelectric dam construction has been accompanied by lack of attention to environmental impact assessment processes mandated by law, and by reports of the infringement upon the fundamental rights of local populations. Planned rapid acceleration of the pace of development of nuclear and hydroelectric projects heightens these concerns going forward. China incorporated language related to climate change and the environment in its 2009-2010 National Human Rights Action Plan (HRAP), including one overarching principle touching upon the broad themes of sustainable development and guaranteeing the ``public's environmental rights.'' The HRAP does not detail the nature of these rights. In addition, the HRAP contains several specific pollution and climate change action objectives that are similar to some of the goals stipulated in China's previous national economic development, renewable energy, and climate change plans. A report released by the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP) in February 2010 on a national pollution source census conducted in China, which for the first time included data from agricultural and other sources of pollution, revealed some discrepancies with past official figures for several pollutants. The census figure for Chemical Oxygen Demand, for example, was nearly double the amount that was previously reported. Limitations on citizen access to information, including pollution and related data, hinder efforts to raise environmental awareness, promote public participation, and develop incentives for compliance. Limits on access to remedies for environmental harms and selective or arbitrary enforcement weaken environmental compliance efforts. Limited public participation in decisionmaking processes and selective suppression of citizen demands for a cleaner environment also weaken compliance efforts and contribute to citizen dissatisfaction. In several incidents, authorities harassed, detained, or sentenced citizens for their environmental activism, for allegedly organizing antipollution demonstrations, or for ``illegally'' gathering environmental information. In one notable case, officials ordered Jigme Namgyal, a citizen living in the Tibet Autonomous Region, to serve one year and nine months' reeducation through labor for ``harming national security'' by illegally gathering information and video material on the local environment, by collecting ``propaganda'' material ``from the Dalai Clique,'' and for allegedly organizing local residents to conduct ``irregular petitioning'' of authorities, among other charges. Numerous other factors, including the priority attached to economic development, have led to compliance challenges that hinder the realization of some of the government's environmental protection goals. Lack of accountability, corruption, local governmental protectionism, and malfeasance impede implementation and enforcement. During the Commission's 2010 reporting year, a quasi-non-governmental organization overseen by the MEP brought the first environmental administrative public interest lawsuit by such a group to a special environmental court, opening the door to the possibility that other non-governmental groups could bring such lawsuits in an effort to improve compliance with environmental laws. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Support U.S. Government cooperation with the Chinese government and other educational programs geared toward raising awareness among Chinese officials of how to implement climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies and environmental protection policies effectively without transgressing on fundamental rights. Support U.S. Government engagement with relevant ministries in developing China's capacity to reliably measure, report, publicize, and verify emission reduction strategies and techniques. Encourage Chinese officials to make government and expert research reports regarding climate change and its impacts in China public and easily accessible. Call upon the Chinese government to cease punishing citizens, such as Jigme Namgyal, Wu Lihong, and Sun Xiaodi, for their grassroots environmental activism, or for utilizing official and institutionalized channels to voice their environmental grievances or to protect their rights. Support efforts in China by those working to strengthen environmental complaint and dispute resolution mechanisms and support bilateral cooperation in this area. Strengthen cooperation regarding environmental health. Include environmental issues in the Bilateral Human Rights Dialogue and expand cooperation on rule of law education with specific focus on issues pertaining to the environment. Invite U.S. domestic environmental civil society organizations and urge the Chinese government to invite Chinese environmental civil society organizations as participants or observers in bilateral climate change and environmental protection projects and dialogues. Invite Chinese local-level leaders, including those from counties, townships, and villages, to the United States to observe U.S. public policy practices and approaches to problem solving. Engage local leaders in their efforts to reconcile development and environmental protection goals. Call upon U.S. cities with sister-city relationships in China to incorporate environmental awareness and advocacy, environmental protection, and climate change components into their programs. When making arrangements for travel to China, request meetings with officials from central and local levels of the Chinese government to discuss environmental governance and best practices. Support multilateral exchanges regarding environmental enforcement and compliance tools including environmental insurance, market mechanisms, criminal prosecution of serious environmental infringements, and public interest litigation mechanisms. Encourage Chinese leaders to strengthen environmental impact assessment processes and citizen participation in those processes. Engage Chinese officials in devising a realistic and fair compensation system for people harmed by pollution. Establish a Working Group on Climate Change Policy, the Rule of Law and Human Rights in accordance with Section II(B) of the Memorandum of Understanding to Enhance Cooperation on Climate Change, Energy and Environment between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the People's Republic of China (the MOU) signed during the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue held in July 2009. (Section II(B) of the MOU states that, ``[t]he Participants may establish working groups or task forces involving relevant ministries as necessary to support the objectives of the Climate Change Policy Dialogue and Cooperation.'') Civil Society Findings During the Commission's 2010 reporting year, the number of civil society organizations (CSOs)-- including organizational forms that most nearly correspond to the Western concept of non-governmental organizations (NGOs)--participating in legal and policymaking activities in areas that are not politically sensitive continued to increase gradually. At the same time, organizations and individuals who worked on politically sensitive issues continued to face challenges. NGOs continued to face challenges fulfilling complicated and cumbersome registration requirements. In order to operate legally, an organization is required to obtain sponsorship agreement from a public administration department in a relevant ``trade, scientific or other professional area'' at the appropriate level of government before registering with the Ministry of Civil Affairs (MCA). Sponsorship agreements are sometimes difficult to obtain because local sponsors are sometimes reluctant to take on the burdens of supervisory responsibilities. NGOs that do not fulfill these ``dual management'' requirements are not protected under the law and are prohibited from receiving outside donations. In part to circumvent the burdens of fulfilling dual management requirements, some NGOs opt to register as commercial entities, though such actions could also subject them to targeted or selective oversight from the government as well as higher tax rates. Some Chinese citizens who sought to establish and operate NGOs that focus on issues deemed by officials to be sensitive faced intimidation, harassment, and punishment from government authorities. During this reporting year, for example, Chinese officials repeatedly harassed and interfered with the operations of Aizhixing Institute of Health Education, a Beijing-based public health advocacy organization that Wan Yanhai--a public health researcher and advocate--founded in 1994. Authorities reportedly canceled the group's seminar marking the International Sex Worker Rights Day, conducted an unannounced investigation into the group's tax records, and sent fire department officials to carry out random and unannounced safety inspections. Wan ultimately left China for the United States in May 2010, saying that he had concerns for his personal safety. During this reporting year, the Chinese government continued to tighten its control over ``sensitive'' civil society groups through selective enforcement of regulations. In March 2010, China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) put into effect a circular concerning ``foreign exchange donated to or by domestic institutions,'' which made it difficult for some Chinese organizations, including NGOs, to accept overseas donations. The circular required organizations, when applying to receive foreign donations through SAFE, to also submit their business licenses, notarized donation agreements, and certificates of registration of the overseas donating organizations. One member of the Chinese NGO community explained that the problem is not primarily a matter of how social groups actually collect their funding, but rather the authorities' selective enforcement of the rules, depending on what the group does. Despite an overall trend of tighter control, at least one case of limited localized reform took place: In Shenzhen, the MCA signed an agreement with the local government to explore the establishment of a system allowing CSOs to apply and register directly with the MCA. The reforms could potentially lead to a system where the MCA will supervise and regulate organizations alone, without sponsoring organizations, making it possible for future individuals wishing to form organizations, including NGOs, to have a relatively less complicated one-stop shop process rather than the existing ``dual management'' setup. The Chinese government in July 2009 issued ``working guidelines'' for social organizations (shehui tuanti) seeking eligibility to receive tax-deductible donations. Social organizations are one of the three main types of CSOs in China. The other two primary types of CSOs in China are foundations (jijinhui) and private nonenterprise organizations (minban fei qiye danwei). The working guidelines issued last July further clarified the standards for determining the eligibility of social organizations for tax-deductible donations. At the same time, they continued to limit the number of eligible social organizations. The working guidelines also did not alter existing regulations requiring all CSOs to register with the government. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Encourage the Chinese government to broaden the recent reforms relating to registration of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other aspects of civil affairs in Guangdong province and to make them applicable to other parts of the country through national legislation and regulatory development. Ask the Chinese government to refrain from applying uneven or selective enforcement of regulations to intimidate groups that they consider to be handling sensitive work. Request the Chinese government revisit the recently issued State Administration of Foreign Exchange circular concerning overseas donations to Chinese organizations. Emphasize that NGOs are actually a way for citizens to channel their grievances and find redress, and in turn contribute to the maintenance of a stable society. Conversely, stricter controls over civil society organizations could remove a potentially useful social ``safety valve,'' thereby increasing the sources of instability. During discussions with Chinese officials, mention the Tsinghua University report that made the same findings: that even as the government increased spending on public security and tightened its control over civil society, social conflicts are happening with greater regularity. Take measures to facilitate the participation of Chinese citizens who work in the NGO sector in relevant international conferences and forums, and support training opportunities in the United States to build their leadership capacity in nonprofit management, public policy advocacy, strategic planning, and media relations. Institutions of Democratic Governance Findings The Communist Party exercises control over political affairs, government, and society through networks of Party committees or branches that exist at all administrative levels within governmental, legislative, judicial, and security organizations; major social groups (including unions); enterprises (both domestic and foreign-invested); most residential communities; and the People's Liberation Army. During the Commission's 2010 reporting year, Chinese leaders emphasized expanding and strengthening the Party, focusing in part on establishing or strengthening Party branches at the local level and in non-government organizations, the military, and academic institutions. During the 2010 reporting year, isolated experiments with intraparty democracy took place around the country. In some of these experiments, Party officials used the ``open recommendation, direct election'' method, whereby Party officials elicit comments from the public on specific candidates, but only Party members, not the general public, cast ballots for the Party committee, Party branch, and residents' committee members and leaders already approved by Party officials at the next highest administrative level. Party authorities in various locations experimented with election monitoring systems during intraparty elections for residents' committee members and leaders. During this reporting year, Party and central government leaders continued activities to strengthen some controls over society and to ``safeguard stability.'' Local governments charged with the work of ``maintaining social stability'' continued to establish specialized institutions including ``stability preservation offices'' and ``comprehensive governance offices.'' Officials reportedly continued to expand networks of informants to pinpoint potential ``social instability'' and to establish ``stability preservation funds'' (weiwen jijin) from which they make payments to people with grievances ostensibly in order to preempt their escalating disputes. Chinese leaders made public statements emphasizing the leading role of the Party, the need to adhere to China's unique style of ``socialist democracy,'' and the impossibility of implementing ``Western-style'' democracy with a separation of powers and competing political parties. Direct elections for local people's congress representatives are held only at the county level and direct elections for ``village committees'' are held only at the village level, and leaders emphasized that direct elections would not be held at higher administrative levels. Some citizens and social groups demanded that the Party and government undertake democratic reforms and human rights protections. Some of these requests were met with official reprisal, including harassment, detention, and, in some cases, harsh prison sentences. Chinese authorities continued to have no tolerance for, arrested, and imposed sentences on individuals involved in political parties not sanctioned by the Communist Party. For example, a court in Jiangsu province sentenced Guo Quan, formerly a university professor, to 10 years in prison for ``subversion of state power.'' The court found that Guo used the Internet to organize an ``illegal'' political party called the ``China New Democracy Party,'' among other charges. The National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee conducted two reviews of proposed draft revisions to China's Organic Law on Villagers' Committees. Proposed amendments could potentially resolve the difficulties villagers have in removing village committee members, make it easier to convene villager meetings, and strengthen villager oversight of village affairs. In addition, they could also strengthen Party control at the village level. Local areas continued to experiment with village committee election procedures, although implementation problems with village elections persisted. During this reporting year, Chinese authorities developed plans to improve governance in ``difficult villages,'' which are villages where, among other problems, leaders do not support or have delayed holding village committee elections for a long time, where there have been long-standing tensions between leaders and villagers, or where citizens have taken their grievances to higher level officials. The Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee, Wu Bangguo, mentioned that the NPC and NPC Standing Committee would increase supervision over governmental affairs through ``inquiry and question'' procedures, which, though in the past have been used rarely, focused this year on ``issues of broad concern to NPC delegates'' and the oversight of economic policy. The NPC and NPC Standing Committee ``will invite responsible cadres from the State Council and related departments to attend meetings and listen to suggestions, respond to inquiries, and answer questions.'' The NPC Standing Committee passed the revised Electoral Law in March 2010, which now awards the same proportion of NPC deputies per population to both rural and urban areas. In the past, urban residents enjoyed greater representation. One county in Sichuan province piloted experiments with full-time professional local people's congress deputies. Chinese officials describe China's political system as a ``socialist democracy'' with ``multi-party cooperation'' and ``political consultation'' under the leadership of the Communist Party. Consultation reportedly takes place at both the national and the local levels. During this reporting year, authorities in Guangzhou municipality issued new rules that provide for political consultation between the municipal Party committee and members of the local people's political consultative conference and local branches of the eight ``approved'' political parties regarding laws, regulations, and some policies of broad public interest. During this reporting year, authorities pledged in the 2009-2010 National Human Rights Action Plan (HRAP) to more stringently implement anticorruption measures. Central and local Party and government entities also issued new or revised corruption prevention measures, some focusing on strengthening and expanding the system of reporting officials' personal finances. Chinese authorities have taken additional steps to encourage reporting of corruption. Whistleblower protections, however, remain inadequate. Citizens and groups are increasingly able to access various channels such as public hearings, expert meetings, roundtables, and the Internet to express opinions regarding proposed policies and regulatory instruments. Authorities reportedly have made 67 administrative legal measures available for public comment since 2004. However, citizens still have little direct access to political decisionmaking processes above the village level (village elections) and the county level (people's congress representative elections). During this reporting year, at least some cities implemented a national directive issued in 2008 stipulating that cities and counties expand the scope of public hearings to solicit citizen opinions regarding laws, regulations, provisions, and major government administrative policies that are relevant to the interests of citizens. Citizens and the media continue to express concerns regarding the implementation and impact of public hearings. Questions remain regarding the depth and breadth of participation, and the processes for compiling, assessing, and incorporating public suggestions are still not transparent. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Support programs that aim to reduce corruption in people's congress and village committee elections, including expansion of domestic election monitoring systems and training of domestic election monitors. Support exchanges between Members of the U.S. Congress and members of the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, especially in relation to Congressional oversight processes. Support projects that seek to work with local governments in their efforts to improve transparency and accountability, especially efforts to expand and improve China's open government information initiatives. Such projects might include joint efforts to better publicize the Open Government Information (OGI) Regulations at local levels and train citizens and groups in how to submit OGI requests. Support projects that assist local governments, academics, and the nonprofit sector in expanding and making more transparent the use of public hearings and other channels for citizens to incorporate their input in the policymaking process. Such projects might include an exchange program component, whereby Chinese local government officials and non-governmental organization representatives would travel together to the United States to attend town hall or public meetings that address significant issues. Such projects might also include pilot projects in China that make the processes through which citizens submit suggestions to authorities about draft laws, regulations, or policies more transparent, by making the suggestions submitted to authorities available to the public. Call on the Chinese government to release people detained or imprisoned for exercising their right to call for political reform within China, including Liu Xiaobo (signer of Charter 08 who was sentenced to 11 years in prison in December 2009 for ``inciting subversion of state power''), Guo Quan, and other people mentioned in this report and in the Commission's Political Prisoner Database. Commercial Rule of Law Findings The Chinese government has increasingly relied on industrial policies rather than the market to direct economic growth. These industrial policies are comprehensive frameworks for development in key sectors of the Chinese economy, providing for subsidies and other benefits, plans for restructuring the state-owned companies in the relevant sector, and export goals. Benefits outlined under the policies may discriminate against foreign-invested companies to the benefit of China's state-owned enterprises. In some cases, provisions of the policies have been found not to comply with World Trade Organization (WTO) requirements, such as provisions in the auto industrial plan concerning import of auto parts, which a WTO dispute panel found to violate the WTO rules in a case decided in 2008. The Chinese government revised the policy, effective September 2009. China's use of industrial policies has been coupled with increasing protectionism by the Chinese government. The Chinese government has promoted ``indigenous innovation'' as a massive government campaign utilizing industrial policies and government procurement to decrease reliance on foreign technology, and to enhance China's economy and national security, with the stated purpose of enabling China to become a global leader in technology by mid-century. In November 2009, three government departments issued the Circular on Launching 2009 National Indigenous Innovation Accreditation Work. Products that satisfy the standards set forth in the circular may be entitled to certain preferences in government procurement. The initial draft of the circular provided that, in order to qualify for these preferences, products (1) must be produced by an enterprise in China that owns the intellectual property; (2) must be covered by a trademark that was first registered in China by a Chinese company; (3) must be innovative and internationally competitive; and (4) must meet Chinese technical standards. In April 2010, the Ministry of Science and Technology issued a revised version of the circular relaxing the requirements for Chinese ownership of intellectual property rights, and allowing products based on technology and trademarks licensed to a licensee in China to qualify. Questions remain concerning the implementation of the revised circular, however, including the resolution of conflicts between national- and local-level decisions on indigenous innovation. The Chinese government has encouraged indigenous innovation for several years. Indigenous innovation is one of the ``guiding principles'' of China's National Medium- and Long-Term Program for Science and Technology Development (2006-2020), and China explicitly called for indigenous innovation in government procurement in the 2007 Administrative Measures for Government Procurement of Imported Parts, which provide that procurement of imported parts should facilitate indigenous innovation by bringing into China technologies that China then can assimilate. In some cases, industrial policies call for indigenous innovation, such as the 2004 Auto Industrial Policy, which calls for indigenous innovation in the auto sector. Chinese government departments in charge of implementing China's Antimonopoly Law (AML), which took effect in August 2008, have continued to flesh out the regulatory regime. The Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) passed two sets of measures on mergers, which came into effect in January 2010. In May 2010, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC) issued for comment three drafts concerning (1) monopoly agreements, or uncompetitive agreements, (2) abuse of dominance, and (3) administrative monopoly, or anticompetitive behavior by government authorities. The MOFCOM measures cover reporting of proposed concentrations, and investigations. The drafts issued by the SAIC expand on provisions of the AML and provide guidance on the regulators' methodology. Although one of the purposes of the AML is to protect fair competition in the Chinese market, this may conflict with China's industrial policies encouraging the mergers of large state-owned enterprises into larger enterprise groups and the protection of state-owned enterprises in general. For example, the Auto Industrial Policy calls for the development of large auto enterprise groups, and the 2009 Program for the Adjustment and Rejuvenation of the Auto Industry calls for the formation of two to three large auto groups and four to five smaller ones, through a process of takeovers and reorganization. In the period since the AML came into effect in August 2008 to the end of 2009, MOFCOM has completed 60 merger reviews, 6 of which MOFCOM approved with conditions, and 1 of which MOFCOM blocked. MOFCOM only publishes rulings on mergers that it rejects or approves with conditions, so it is difficult to tell whether the parties to unconditionally approved mergers are state-owned enterprises or non-Chinese companies. Of the published cases, however, six involved mergers between non-Chinese parties. During the Commission's last (2009) reporting year, China passed the Food Safety Law and implementing legislation. The law called for the creation of a National Food Safety Commission to coordinate the work of government departments with responsibility for food safety. During this reporting year, in February 2010, the State Council established this commission, with Vice Premier Li Keqiang as chairman and high-level members of relevant departments as commission members. The government also continued to issue regulations on food safety, including regulations on food additives and catering. China passed a Tort Liability Law in December 2009, which came into effect in July 2010. The Tort Liability Law covers product liability and product recalls, and, if implemented faithfully and effectively, may provide tools for victims of food safety violations to seek redress. China's economic development has led to increased need for land, and income from land sales has been an important source of revenue for local governments. In some cases, these factors have been associated with abuse by local governments and property developers, including widespread demolitions and forced evictions. Forced evictions are contrary to Article 11(1) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which covenant China has ratified. Some property owners who refuse to leave their homes have been beaten, harassed, or illegally detained. In some cases, property rights owners receive poor procedural protection and inadequate compensation when their land is expropriated. There is evidence of collusion in some cases between property developers and local governments, which may receive as much as 60 percent of their revenue from land sales, to seize land from its occupants for sale to the developers. Furthermore, though China's 2007 Property Law and China's 2004 Law on Administration of Urban Real Property both provide that local governments should only expropriate land in the ``public interest,'' this term is not defined in law. Currently, the 2001 Regulations on Government Housing Demolition in Urban Areas, which govern land requisitions, do not include any requirement that expropriations of land be in the public interest, and lack sufficient procedural protections for property rights owners. In December 2009, five Peking University law professors sent an open letter to the National People's Congress calling for the repeal or amendment of the 2001 regulations, which the professors said violated China's Constitution and Property Law. In January 2010, the State Council Legal Affairs Office published for public comment draft Regulations for Expropriation and Compensation of Residential Buildings on State-Owned Land, which require that, in most cases, expropriation must be in the public interest, and offer some guidance as to what constitutes ``public interest.'' The draft regulations, which have not yet been finalized, fall short in that they allow some expropriations that are not in the public interest, and do not offer any protection to rural land dwellers. Rural land is owned by collectives, and farmers legally can enter into 30-year contracts with their collectives for use of collectively owned land. However, there is little protection for farmers. In some cases, the collectives take back land and ``re- allocate'' it to others. In other cases, village leaders, developers, and local governments conspire to take the land and change it into what is characterized as ``urban land,'' which the local government can then sell. Although the farmers are legally entitled to compensation, procedures are not clearly spelled out; in some cases, very little of the compensation may reach them and they are left destitute. The draft Regulations for Expropriation and Compensation of Residential Buildings on State-Owned Land do not cover collectively owned land, and at least one of the Peking University professors who called for repeal or amendment of the 2001 regulations has warned that this is a problem. Nonetheless, Chinese authorities have not proposed similar legislation to protect rural land dwellers. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Develop and support a project surveying the role of China's industrial policies in the Chinese economy from the perspective of WTO requirements, including how the development of these policies and the role they play in directing China's economy, impact the development of transparency and rule of law and China's compliance with its international legal commitments. Make a formal request to the Chinese government through bilateral meetings such as the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade or the Strategic and Economic Dialogue, or through the inquiry points of the Chinese government departments responsible for indigenous innovation policy, for details of plans, policies, regulations, measures, and other legislation relating to indigenous innovation, and explanations as to how these have been or will be implemented. This information will facilitate understanding of the full impact of China's indigenous innovation policy on China's legal system and government procurement practices. Request through the Open Government Information office at the Ministry of Commerce, or through bilateral dialogues between the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission and their Chinese counterparts, details on merger applications reviewed since the Antimonopoly Law came into effect, including the number of applications involving non-Chinese companies, the number involving state-owned enterprises, and the results of each of the merger reviews. Arrange meetings under the auspices of legal exchanges such as the U.S. Legal Exchange under the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, or through the American Bar Association, between U.S. tort lawyers and Chinese lawyers on consumer rights and compensation for victims of substandard food products, and the U.S. system of redress through the courts and government departments in cases of food quality problems. Urge the Chinese government in meetings and correspondence to (1) revise the draft Regulations for Expropriation and Compensation of Residential Buildings on State-Owned Land to clarify that expropriation is allowed only in the public interest, (2) issue the final version and put it into effect immediately, and (3) ensure that the draft regulations are amended to provide comparable protection for rural land dwellers, or draft equivalent legislation to protect the rights of rural land dwellers. Property owners whose land was expropriated in the period between the date the draft was published and the effective date of the regulations and any comparable legislation for rural land should be given an opportunity to challenge the expropriation. Arrange and support a program of technical assistance for Chinese government departments responsible for land management, concerning U.S. procedures and standards for taking property by eminent domain. Such assistance would highlight the meaning under U.S. law of takings in the ``public interest,'' and could be organized by U.S. municipal governments working with their sister cities in China. Urge the Chinese government to put in place comprehensive legislation to clarify rural land titles and to provide legal assistance at the grassroots or through pro bono programs at law firms, to rural land dwellers to help them protect their rights to collectively owned land. Working through organizations such as the American Bar Association, encourage the All China Lawyers Association to develop a comprehensive and independent legal aid program to address rural land issues. Help the Chinese government address issues with rural land rights and land transfer by developing and supporting a program under which U.S. local or state governments responsible for land titles participate in face-to-face meetings and exchanges with local authorities in China. This training would cover title registration, transfer, and dispute settlement. Access to Justice Findings Public security officials and those working under their direction used abductions, physical violence, or threats of physical violence to harass and intimidate human rights lawyers during the Commission's 2010 reporting year. Chinese government officials continued to use license suspension and disbarment as a means to control and repress human rights lawyers who work on politically sensitive issues. Amendments to the State Compensation Law, if implemented faithfully, may expand channels whereby individuals who have been subjected to the abuse of administrative authority may obtain compensation. Amendments to the Administrative Supervision Law, if implemented faithfully, may improve protections for whistleblowers. Other proposed administrative law reforms may, if passed and implemented faithfully, provide greater oversight of state agencies, improved protection of citizen interests, and enhanced supervision of government employees. During the 2010 reporting year, large numbers of petitioners, i.e., individuals availing themselves of China's xinfang (``letters and visits'') system--an alternative to courts whereby citizens may seek redress for grievances by submitting petitions to government authorities were harassed, abused, put in illegal ``black jails,'' locked up in psychiatric hospitals, or sent to reeducation through labor centers. Chinese officials limited Chinese citizens' and foreign visitors' lawful access to justice in sensitive cases. In July 2010, a Beijing court sentenced American geologist Xue Feng to eight years in prison for helping the American company he worked for purchase commercial information on oil wells in China. Although the court claimed the information constituted a state secret and endangered national security, officials reportedly did not declare the information a state secret until after the transaction had occurred. During the more than two-year period of Xue's detention, Chinese officials attempted to coerce him into confessing to the crime by allegedly torturing him and committed several violations of China's Criminal Procedure Law. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Object to the continued harassment of human rights lawyers and defenders. Call for the release of lawyers, activists, and others who are incarcerated, subject to unlawful home confinement, or who have disappeared for their activities to defend and promote the rights of Chinese citizens, including Gao Zhisheng, Hu Jia, and Zheng Enchong, as well as other prisoners mentioned in this report and in the Commission's Political Prisoner Database. Support the U.S. State Department's International Visitors Leadership Program and other similar bilateral exchange programs that bring Chinese human rights lawyers, advocates, and scholars to the United States for study and dialogue. Support similar programs in the non-governmental organization (NGO) and academic sectors that partner with China's human rights lawyers and nonprofit legal organizations. Support research and technical exchange programs designed to improve implementation of administrative law reforms, prioritizing those that will provide greater oversight of government agencies and grant more protections to Chinese citizens. Support NGOs with programming to build capacity among petitioners. Support research and exchanges that examine incentive structures that can lead to the punishment of whistleblowers and the stifling of citizen expressions of legitimate grievances. Communicate concerns about possible official political abuse of psychiatric treatment and politically motivated commitment of petitioners to psychiatric hospitals in China to the American Psychiatric Association, the Geneva Initiative on Psychiatry, and the World Medical Association. Urge Chinese officials to adopt a national mental health law that will specifically clarify the process of involuntary commitment and protect individuals from being hospitalized by public security officials. Call on the Chinese government to release Xue Feng and permit him to return to the United States. Call on the Chinese government, in the interim, to ensure that U.S. officials are permitted to meet with him on a regular basis. Xinjiang Findings Human rights conditions in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) worsened during the Commission's 2010 reporting year. Following government suppression of a demonstration by Uyghurs and riots in the XUAR in July 2009, authorities instituted unprecedented levels of control over the free flow of information, denying XUAR residents and the outside world news about conditions in the region and increasing the government's capacity to manipulate information. Amid this information blackout, authorities strengthened security measures and campaigns to promote ``ethnic unity,'' using them to quell free speech, curb independent religious activity, and impose intrusive controls over the lives of XUAR residents. Authorities singled out Uyghurs in particular in security campaigns, and the whereabouts of some Uyghurs detained in the aftermath of the July 2009 demonstrations and riots remain unknown. Trials connected to events in July have been marked by a lack of transparency and violations of due process. Authorities detained, and in some cases, imprisoned, Uyghur Web site workers and a journalist in connection to free speech about the events and about broader conditions in the XUAR. Central government and Communist Party authorities inaugurated a ``central work forum'' on the XUAR in May 2010 that sets central government and Party objectives for the region's economic and political development, intensifying a trend of top-down initiatives that prioritize state economic and political goals over the promotion of regional autonomy and broader protections of XUAR residents' rights. The government enforced other policies and measures that also fueled worsening human rights conditions in the region, including measures aimed at quelling dissent, promoting assimilation, and repressing independent expressions of ethnic and religious identity, especially among the Uyghurs. The XUAR government intensified steps to promote Mandarin Chinese and marginalize the use of the Uyghur language in XUAR schools, in violation of Chinese law. As in past years, some population planning policies in the region singled out non-Han ethnic groups. The government continued work to transfer Uyghur and other non-Han workers to jobs in the interior of China, through programs reportedly marked, in some cases, by coercion and abusive practices. Uyghurs and other groups within the XUAR remained subject to hiring practices that have allowed widespread discrimination against non-Han groups. Ongoing work to ``reconstruct'' the historic Old City section of Kashgar continued to undermine Uyghurs' right to preserve their cultural heritage. Repression of Islam in the XUAR worsened. [For more information on conditions for religious freedom in the XUAR, see Findings and Recommendations on Freedom of Religion in this section.] Uyghurs seeking asylum outside China continued to face barriers to accessing asylum proceedings and risk of refoulement under the sway of China's influence in neighboring countries and its disregard for international law, as illustrated by the Cambodian government's deportation of 20 Uyghur asylum seekers to China in December 2009, following Chinese government intervention. Repressive government controls throughout the region, especially those targeting Uyghurs, illustrated the status of the XUAR as a government-designated ethnic autonomous region that lacks true autonomy, particularly for the group in whose name it was established. Despite guarantees in Chinese law for measures of autonomy in governance and protections for ethnic minority rights, central and local government authorities exert control at a level antithetical to local residents' meaningful control over their own affairs and to the protection of their rights. Chinese government actions violate not only Chinese law but also international human rights law that the Chinese government is bound to uphold. Recommendations Members of the U.S. Congress and Administration officials are encouraged to: Support legislation that expands U.S. Government resources for raising awareness of human rights conditions in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR), for protecting Uyghur culture, and for increasing avenues for Uyghurs to protect their human rights. Raise concern about human rights conditions in the XUAR to Chinese officials and condemn the use of information blackouts and security campaigns to suppress human rights. Call on the Chinese government to release people imprisoned for advocating for their rights or for their personal connection to rights advocates, including Nurmemet Yasin (sentenced in 2005 to 10 years in prison for allegedly ``inciting racial hatred or discrimination'' or ``inciting splittism'' after writing a short story); Alim and Ablikim Abdureyim (adult children of activist Rebiya Kadeer, sentenced in 2006 and 2007 to 7 and 9 years in prison, respectively, for alleged economic and ``splittist'' crimes); and other prisoners mentioned in this report and in the Commission's Political Prisoner Database. Call on the Chinese government to provide details about each person detained, charged, tried, or sentenced in connection with demonstrations and riots in the XUAR in July 2009, including each person's name, the charges (if any) against each person, the name and location of the prosecuting office (i.e., procuratorate), the court handling each case, and the name of each facility where a person is detained or imprisoned. Encourage people who have been wrongfully detained to file for compensation. Call on the Chinese government to ensure people suspected of crimes in connection to events in July 2009 are able to hire a lawyer and exercise their right to employ legal defense in accordance with Articles 33 and 96 of China's Criminal Procedure Law, and to ensure suspects can employ legal defense of their own choosing. Call on the Chinese government to announce the judgments in all trials connected to events in July 2009, as required under Article 163 of China's Criminal Procedure Law. Call on the government to allow independent experts to conduct independent examinations into the demonstrations and riots and to allow them access to the trials connected to these events. Support U.S. government funding for non- governmental organizations that address human rights issues in the XUAR to enable them to continue to gather information on conditions in the region and develop programs to help Uyghurs increase their capacity to preserve their rights and protect their culture, language, and heritage. Support funding for media outlets devoted to broadcasting news to the XUAR and gathering news from the region to expand their capacity to report on the region and provide uncensored information to XUAR residents. Call on the Chinese government to support development policies in the XUAR that promote the broad protection of XUAR residents' rights and allow the XUAR government to exercise its powers of regional autonomy in making development decisions. Call on central and XUAR authorities to ensure equitable development that not only promotes economic growth but also respects the broad civil and political rights of XUAR residents and engages these communities in participatory decisionmaking. Ensure development projects take into account the particular needs and input of non-Han ethnic groups, who have faced unique challenges protecting their rights in the face of top-down development policies and who have not been full beneficiaries of economic growth in the region. Raise the issue of Uyghur refugees with Chinese officials and with officials from international refugee agencies and from transit or destination countries for Uyghur refugees. Call on Chinese officials and officials from transit or destination countries to respect the asylum seeker and refugee designations of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the refugee and citizenship designations of other countries. Call on transit and destination countries to abide by requirements in the