Demanding That the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Communist Party of China Immediately Release Mark Swidan

Floor Speech

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Mr. CLOUD. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his support in getting Mark Swidan back to his home and to his family. I also thank the ranking member for her support, as well.

Mark Swidan is a native Texan from Luling who is currently being detained in China on fabricated drug charges and faces an impending death sentence.

Mark was arrested on November 13, 2012, while on a trip to China to procure furnishings for his home and business. Chinese authorities burst into his hotel room while he was on the phone with his family and, without showing any warrant, arrested him and confiscated his photography equipment, wallet, tablet, passport, and identity card.

They originally told him he was being held as a witness, but that rapidly changed. Mark was accused of being involved in the manufacturing and trafficking of drugs, leading to Chinese officials trying to coerce him into signing a false confession.

Mark maintained his innocence and his integrity and has rejected their attempts to this day. Nonetheless, Mark has been imprisoned in China for over 10 years, despite the fact that no drugs were ever found on Swidan or in his hotel room, and the prosecution did not produce any evidence tying him to the drugs. The 11 other individuals indicted on the same charges could not identify Mark, and records in Mark's passport show that he was not even in China during the time of the alleged offense.

As a result, Mark hasn't slept in the dark for over 10 years and is exposed to extreme heat in the summer and freezing cold in the winter. His hands have been broken a number of times. Mark faces abuse by his captors and has been denied an independent medical examination despite his deteriorating health in the detainment facility.

A few weeks ago, China upheld Mark Swidan's death sentence. It is my hope that this resolution will signal to China that this death sentence should not be enforced, and that Mark should be sent home.

Additionally, this resolution calls on the administration to use all the tools at their disposal to secure Mark Swidan's release.

The People's Republic of China and the Chinese Communist Party have a history of capturing innocent people and using them as political pawns. This needs to stop. Unfortunately for them, though, Mark has defiantly refused to be coerced as he waits on us to secure his release.

Mr. Speaker, I call on all my colleagues in Congress to support this resolution and for our State Department to redouble their efforts and use every means available to bring Mark Swidan home.

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