Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) is continuing his efforts on Capitol Hill to hold China’s ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) accountable for its actions on the world stage, including its censorship of its own citizens that has contributed to the global pandemic of the CCP virus, commonly known as novel coronavirus.
The senator announced a bill for a “Justice for Victims of COVID-19 Act” on Monday, calling for an investigation into the CCP’s handling of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan.
The legislation would create a Justice for Victims of COVID-19 Task Force at the State Department, with the goal of securing restitutions from the Chinese government.
It would allow lawsuits against the CCP by stripping the totalitarian regime’s claim to sovereign immunity. Lawsuits could then be filed against the CCP “for reckless actions,” such as withholding crucial information and silencing whistleblowers.
“There is overwhelming evidence that the Chinese Communist Party’s lies, deceit, and incompetence caused COVID-19 to transform from a local disease outbreak into a global pandemic,” Hawley said in a statement.
“We need an international investigation to learn the full extent of the damage the CCP has inflicted on the world and then we need to empower Americans and other victims around the world to recover damages.
“The CCP unleashed this pandemic. They must be held accountable to their victims.”
If the bill is passed, it will also allow U.S. courts to freeze the CCP’s assets in the United States on behalf of the plaintiffs.
Senator Hawley currently serves on the Senate Committees on the Judiciary; Armed Services; Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; Small Business and Entrepreneurship; and the Special Committee on Aging.
Hawley is often in the headlines on issues involving the Chinese Communist Party.
In mid-March, he closely questioned witnesses during a Senate hearing on the dangers posed to Americans by the nation’s extreme dependence on drugs and medical supplies made in China.
Earlier, Hawley introduced another bill for a “Medical Supply Chain Security Act of 2020” that would authorize the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to require that manufacturers “report imminent or forecasted shortages of life-saving or life-sustaining medical devices to the FDA just as they currently do for pharmaceutical drugs.”
The measure would allow the FDA to “expedite the review” of essential medical devices that require pre-market approval, and give the agency new authority to compile information from manufacturers on their operations.
The information to be compiled includes “sourcing of component parts, sourcing of active pharmaceutical ingredients, use of any scarce raw materials, and any other details the FDA deems relevant to assess the security of the U.S. medical product supply chain,” according to the bill.
Hawley argued that the measure was necessary because the United States has become almost totally dependent upon China for more than 150 drugs, including antibiotics, generics, and branded products.
In October 2019, at the height of massive demonstrations by millions of Hong Kong citizens demanding protection of their civil liberties against abuses by the CCP in mainland China, Hawley expressed his support by flying over there to hear from multiple leaders of the protests. He posted a video on Twitter talking about his support for the movement.
That video resulted in a clash with the pro-CCP Hong Kong Chief Executive, Carrie Lam, who accused Hawley of being “totally irresponsible” and making “unfounded” accusations about Hong Kong being a “police state.”
Mark Tapscott contributed to this report.
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