H.R. 5303 — FREEDOM for Gao Zhisheng and All Political Prisoners Act

This section establishes the short title of the Act as the “Framework for Responding to Enforced Exile and Detentions through Oversight and Mobilizing Diplomatic Support Act” or “FREEDOM for Gao Zhisheng and All Political Prisoners Act”.

This section sets forth 16 congressional findings documenting detentions, torture, and imprisonment in China of individuals including human rights lawyers (e.g., Gao Zhisheng, Ding Jiaxi, Xu Zhiyong), Hong Kong pro-democracy figures (e.g., Jimmy Lai, Chow Hang-tung), Falun Gong practitioners (e.g., Xu Na, Zhou Deyong), internet critics (e.g., Niu Tengyu, Ruan Xiaohuan), Taiwanese national Yang Chih-yuan, Tibetan leaders and writers (e.g., Anya Sengdra, Lobsang Trinle, Thubten Lodroe), U.S. permanent resident artist Gao Zhen, and Uyghurs (e.g., Renagul Gheni, Rahile Dawut, Meryem Emet).

This section states U.S. policy to (1) use all available diplomatic tools to seek the release of political prisoners worldwide—including by submitting prisoner lists at bilateral meetings, raising individual cases, seeking release of unjustly detained Americans in China, ending China's use of exit bans on U.S. citizens, and leveraging U.N. and multilateral forums to highlight cases, document violations, and support investigations; (2) deem PRC officials responsible for the arbitrary detention or torture of Gao Zhisheng and other political prisoners—or wrongful detention of U.S. citizens—as committing gross human rights violations, subject to accountability under the Global Magnitsky Act, Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, Hong Kong Autonomy Act, Uyghur Human Rights Policy Act of 2020, Executive Order No. 14078, and other sanctions authorities; and (3) actively champion the release of human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng—including through high-level and sustained U.S. government advocacy, coordination with allies, demands for proof of life and access, sanctions against complicit officials, and an unclassified report (with classified annex if needed) to Congress on efforts, responses, and sanctions use.

This section directs the Secretary of State, not later than 120 days after enactment, to brief appropriate congressional committees on a strategy to embed political prisoner advocacy into the critical mission plans of all U.S. government agencies, diplomatic posts, and Department of State regional bureaus. The strategy must include (1) cases of individuals arbitrarily detained for exercising human rights, (2) bilateral diplomatic efforts to secure releases including for Gao Zhisheng, (3) multilateral efforts via the United Nations and coordination with allies on advocacy and sanctions, (4) efforts to release Jimmy Lai in Hong Kong, (5) support for human rights defenders, independent media, and families of political prisoners, (6) use of the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act and other accountability tools, (7) public diplomacy to frame advocacy as a U.S. national interest and highlight prisoner stories, (8) progress on a Global Prisoner Registry as required by section 5, and (9) assessments of resource gaps affecting advocacy, including in China. Briefings must be unclassified but may include a classified annex.

This section revises the Prisoner Information Registry for the People’s Republic of China—a State Department database tracking such prisoners—to establish the Global Political Prisoner Registry covering prisoners held by foreign governments worldwide, as follows: (1) updates the section heading and subsection (a) to reflect the global scope and new name; (2) revises subsections (b) and (c) to broaden requirements for maintaining and reporting on such prisoners, including those detained for exercising freedom of religion; and (3) adds subsection (d) requiring public access to registry information, to the extent practicable and consistent with protecting sensitive sources, for diplomatic advocacy by U.S. government officials and Members of Congress; and subsection (e) defining political prisoner as an individual imprisoned or detained by a foreign government primarily for seeking internationally recognized human rights, including due to the individual’s political or religious beliefs, peaceful expression, or opposition to that government.

This section directs the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)—a bipartisan entity that monitors human rights and rule of law in China—to prepare and make available, upon request to Members of Congress, issue briefs on political prisoner cases and unjustly detained Americans to facilitate discussions with People's Republic of China officials, with such briefs also available on the CECC website as appropriate and subject to privacy concerns. It authorizes appropriations of such sums as necessary to carry out this requirement for FY2026 through FY2029. It clarifies that these issue briefs are in addition to, and do not replace, information required under section 108(d) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6417(d)).