U.S. political circles call for the end of the "China Action Plan"
◎Our reporter Feng Weidong
On February 1, the scientists and the Civil Rights Alliance led by Majority Senator Susan Lee of the U.S. Senate of Maryland and Terry Learman of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland wrote to the Chairman of the Committee on Civil Rights and Freedoms of the U.S. House of Representatives Jamie Ruskin asked him to hold a hearing on the US Department of Justice's investigation of Chinese scientists in recent years and called for the end of the "China Action Plan."
The alliance asked the committee to investigate the counterintelligence work of the FBI and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) related actions against Chinese or Asian scientists. These actions resulted in damage to the work, reputation, life and family of these scientists, even if It was later proved innocent.
Susan Lee said: "Although we strongly support the protection of U.S. interests and prosecution of wrongdoing, targeting, labelling, or suspicion of entire ethnic groups would be serious injustices. Many of these scientists have devoted their lives to promoting medical breakthroughs. , Making the United States a leader in global science and technology. They are part of the United States’ solution to global challenges, not threats."
Terry Lierman said: "The xenophobic and toxic political climate has fueled excessive, widespread, and unchecked activities. These not only lead to errors in investigations or prosecutions, but also violate civil rights and weaken the United States’ ability to develop medical innovation. These capabilities can be used to improve the quality of care and save lives, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. We need the committee to clarify all discriminatory policies adopted by these institutions to ensure that these policies are fair, transparent and accountable."
The open letter pointed out that for decades, NIH and other academic institutions have been vigorously encouraging and supporting international scientific cooperation and exchanges between the United States and foreign academic research institutions, but now, many of these actions have been criminalized.
Former White House science adviser Dr. Neil Lane said: “For science to flourish in terms of freedom, openness and inclusiveness, people from China or any other country must be protected from discrimination.”
Dr. Wallace, the former president of the University of Maryland in the Park, said: “The U.S. government’s statement of assuming that all students, scientists, and scholars of Chinese descent have potential intelligence risks is unfair and unwise, and has no foothold in our country. place."
The open letter also pointed out that so far, the U.S. Congress has held countless hearings on the threat of espionage, but it has never violated the rights of wrongly targeted Chinese Americans and the long-term consequences for U.S. research institutions and ethnic minorities. Hearings have been held with damage.
Professor Margaret Lewis of Seton Hall University School of Law said: “The U.S. Department of Justice initiated the China Action Plan to respond to the so-called “national security threat.” But in the past two years, they have overemphasized National security, too much emphasis on prejudice. I join others in calling for the end of the China Action Plan."
“We are deeply concerned about the government’s racial discrimination and unfair prosecution of Asian Americans and immigrants.” said John Young, chairman and executive chairman of the Asian American Association for the Advancement of Justice. “The recent wave of xenophobia is in our communities. Aroused fear, because many Chinese Americans and immigrants have once again been subject to the United States’ long-standing suspicion and racial discrimination against Asian Americans. We urge Congress to pass public hearings on this issue to monitor. Xenophobia and persecution against Chinese Americans Not only will it cause irreparable damage to the affected people and their families, but it will also cause harm to the Asian community. It must stop. Targeting the entire ethnic group in a particular country is completely unjust and unfair."
It is reported that the members of the alliance include the Nobel Prize winner in Physics and the former U.S. Secretary of Energy Professor Zhu Diwen, the former U.S. Ambassador to China and Secretary of Commerce Locke, the U.S. National Award for Science and the U.S. Academy of Sciences Professor Qian Xu, the former White House Science and Technology Policy Director and Director of the Science Foundation Neil Lane, HIV co-discoverer Professor Robert Gallo, 8 state legislators from Maryland, where NIH is located, 10 current and former U.S. university presidents and vice presidents, and two top 100 Dozens of well-known figures and organizations in academia and the United States including the president.