Lawmakers Urge Supreme Court to Deny Cisco's Request to Delay Human Rights Abuse Case

Strategic Insights -

Representative Chris Smith (R-NJ) and Representative John Moolenaar (R-MI) have written a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice, urging the Solicitor General to allow the case against Cisco Systems, Inc. to proceed. The lawmakers are seeking to determine whether the tech firm custom-designed a tool to aid the Chinese Communist Party in the persecution of Falun Gong religious believers. In their letter, Smith and Moolenaar argue that Cisco's petition for a writ of certiorari in Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe I should be denied, as the case has been delayed for over a decade and the Supreme Court's review would only add to the delay. They also underscored congressional intent and disputed Cisco's claims that Congress authorized the sale of the technology, stating that it is absurd to think that Congress would support the sale of a tool designed to advance religious persecution.

Key Takeaways:

  • The U.S. lawmakers are urging the Supreme Court to deny Cisco's request to delay the case, arguing that it has been delayed for over a decade.
  • Representative Chris Smith and Representative John Moolenaar are Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) and Chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, respectively.
  • The lawmakers argue that Cisco's technology was custom-designed to aid the Chinese Communist Party in the persecution of Falun Gong religious believers.
  • Cisco's petition for a writ of certiorari in Cisco Systems, Inc. v. Doe I has been pending since 2011.
  • The lawmakers note that American companies must not be complicit in furthering the CCP's human rights abuses.
  • The letter supplements Smith's amicus brief, submitted in April, in support of the Plaintiffs and in opposition to Cisco's petition for writ of certiorari.

Statistics:

  • Since 2008, Cisco's products have been able to identify over 90% of Falun Gong material on the web. (Source: Associated Press)
  • Cisco has represented Falun Gong material as a "threat" and built out a national information system to track Falun Gong believers. (Source: Associated Press)
  • The case against Cisco Systems, Inc. has been delayed for over a decade, with the plaintiffs waiting since 2011 for their day in court. (Source: Letter to Solicitor General)
  • The Tiananmen Square Act, which Cisco claims authorized the company's transactions with the CCP, was not intended to support the sale of technology for human rights abuses. (Source: Smith's amicus brief)

Sources:

  • Letter to Solicitor General D. John Sauer from Representative Chris Smith and Representative John Moolenaar, October 29th.
  • Associated Press, "Cisco's products identified over 90% of Falun Gong material on the web since 2008".
  • Smith's amicus brief, submitted in April, in support of the Plaintiffs and in opposition to Cisco's petition for writ of certiorari.
  • Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC)
  • House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party
  • Tiananmen Square Act