Third District Representative Jim Banks introduced the Breaking Beijing’s Hold on Campus Act.
The bill would tie student visas for certain countries to a pledge not to engage in transnational repression, such as reporting on fellow students to the Chinese Communist Party.
It also conditions diplomatic visas for diplomats to refrain from similar actions, like surveilling and repressing students on campus.
More information about the bill from Rep. Banks’ office:
The Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party member Rep. Jim Banks introduced the Breaking Beijing’s Hold on Campus Act to condition student visas for students of covered nations on those students not engaging in transnational repression, such as reporting on one’s fellow students to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for their exercise of free speech. The legislation would similarly condition diplomatic visas on diplomats of covered nations not engaging in transnational repression and trying to surveil and repress students on campus. You can read the full bill text here.
Said Rep. Jim Banks: “In the freest country on earth, students should not have to worry about their classmates reporting them to the Chinese Communist Party. This bill ensures that acting on behalf of or in coordination with the CCP on American college campuses will get you a one-way ticket home.”
The bill is endorsed by Georgetown law student Jinrui Zhang who testified at the Select Committee on the CCP’s December 13th hearing about the CCP’s efforts to surveil and control Chinese national students on campus.
Said Jinrui Zhang: “I believe this bill will be immensely beneficial to American democracy on university campuses. International students contribute valuable skills and perspectives to their schools, but some students bring with them quasi-legal practices of authoritarian countries, such as the intimidation and repression of dissidents, and the corresponding values, such as the intolerance for different perspectives. These repressive actions should not be welcome on U.S. soil, where true constitutional guarantees exist for free speech. Therefore, I endorse this bill-If intolerance is tolerated, cherished liberties will suffer.”
Read the full bill from Rep. Banks here:
https://banks.house.gov/uploadedfiles/breaking_beijings_hold_on_campus_act_bill_text.pdf
1 comment
When Jim Banks becomes our US Senator, I want an assurance from him he will NOT vote for any more stooge admin officials like the crop we have now. I also want his ASSURANCE he will refuse to vote for the outrageous and out of control spending our present senators vote for.