Directs the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate to make appropriate arrangements for the presentation on behalf of the Congress of a gold medal to Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet in recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to democracy and human rights in Cuba.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 5627 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5627
To award the congressional gold medal to Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, in
recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to democracy
and human rights in Cuba.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 13, 2008
Mr. Lincoln Diaz-Balart of Florida (for himself, Mr. Sires, Ms. Ros-
Lehtinen, Mr. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida, Mr. Burton of Indiana, and
Mr. Smith of New Jersey) introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To award the congressional gold medal to Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, in
recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to democracy
and human rights in Cuba.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds as follows:
(1) Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet was born on July 20, 1961 in
Havana, Cuba.
(2) Dr. Biscet is married to fellow pro-democracy leader,
Elsa Morejon Hernandez.
(3) Dr. Biscet is currently serving a 25-year prison
sentence for allegedly committing crimes against the Cuban
regime.
(4) In 1997, Dr. Biscet founded the Lawton Foundation for
Human Rights to promote the study and defense of human rights
and to denounce human rights violations inside Cuba and
wherever else they are violated.
(5) Dr. Biscet denounced the double standards and
discrimination against the Cuban people of the Cuban National
Health Care System, and as a result he was forbidden from
practicing medicine.
(6) On November 3, 1999, Dr. Biscet was imprisoned for 3
years for organizing a peaceful pro-democracy protest.
(7) Once released in 2002, and unable to practice medicine,
Dr. Biscet organized seminars on the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights.
(8) On December 6, 2002, on his way to one such meeting, he
and several of the seminar's participants were beaten and
arrested.
(9) On April 7, 2003, Dr. Biscet was sentenced to 25 years
in prison and sent to the Kilo Cinco y Medio prison, in Pinar
Del Rio province, and he has subsequently been incarcerated in
multiple prisons of the Cuban dictatorship.
(10) Dr. Biscet has declared himself a ``plantado'', a
political prisoner who refuses to undertake ideological
``reeducation'' or wear a common prisoner's uniform, and he
remains in Cuba's political gulag.
(11) On November 5, 2007, President Bush recognized Dr.
Biscet, presenting him (in absentia) with the Presidential
Medal of Freedom, stating that ``Dr. Biscet is a champion in
the fight against tyranny and oppression. Despite being
persecuted and imprisoned for his beliefs, he continues to
advocate for a free Cuba in which the rights of all people are
respected.''.
(12) Dr. Biscet is a follower of the teachings of Mahatma
Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. and continues to work each
day from his jail cell to bring democracy and the rule of law
to Cuba.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of
Representatives and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall make
appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on behalf of the
Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design, to Dr. Oscar Elias
Biscet in recognition of his courageous and unwavering commitment to
democracy and human rights in Cuba.
(b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation referred
to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (hereafter referred
to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a gold medal with
suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions to be determined by the
Secretary.
SEC. 3. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold
medal struck pursuant to section 2 under such regulations as the
Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost
thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and
overhead expenses, and the cost of the gold medal.
SEC. 4. STATUS OF MEDALS.
(a) National Medals.--The medals struck pursuant to this Act are
national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States
Code.
(b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be
considered to be numismatic items.
SEC. 5. AUTHORITY TO USE FUND AMOUNTS; PROCEEDS OF SALE.
(a) Authority To Use Fund Amounts.--There is authorized to be
charged against the United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund such
amounts as may be necessary to pay for the costs of the medals struck
pursuant to this Act.
(b) Proceeds of Sale.--Amounts received from the sale of duplicate
bronze medals authorized under section 3 shall be deposited into the
United States Mint Public Enterprise Fund.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade, and Technology.
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