"... We raised our strong, ongoing concerns with reports of human rights violations in China, including the denial of religious freedom, and the use of coercive abortion as a consequence of the 'one child' policy. When it comes to guaranteeing the freedom and dignity of all her citizens, including and especially the unborn, Chinese leaders have a responsibility to do better, and the United States has a responsibility to hold them to account," Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) said in a statement.
The former House Speaker and Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi, raised the issue of Tibet in a separate statement on 19 January.
"There has been bipartisan concern in the Congress about the human rights situation in China and Tibet," Pelosi said.
Pelosi said "climate change and clean energy has also been a key focus of US' relationship with China"."It is my hope that Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to the United States is marked by candor and progress on these issues," she added.
The former US House Speaker led a Congressional delegation to Dharamsala to express their support and empathy with Tibetans few days after the Chinese government cracked down on peaceful protests across Tibet in March 2008.
Given the prevailing deteriorating situation in Tibet in 2008, Pelosi underlined that the "situation in Tibet is a challenge to the conscience of the world and the world should know what is happening inside Tibet". "If the freedom loving people throughout the world do not speak out against China's oppression in China and Tibet, we have lost all moral authority to speak on behalf of human rights anywhere in the world," she added.
Pelosi has been consistently calling on the Chinese government to negotiate with His Holiness the Dalai Lama to resolve the issue of Tibet.
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