SELF-DEFENSE FOR CHINESE AMERICAN SCIENTISTS, ENGINEERS, AND FEDERAL EMPLOYEES

CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE OF NATIONAL SECURITY CONCERNS

CHINESE AMERICANS ARE A GREAT SOURCE OF INNOVATION IN AMERICA

• Over one million Chinese Americans work in the science, technology, engineering, and mathemaGcs fields (STEM) and contribute significantly to the success and strength of the naGon.

• Given the cuOng-edge nature of work performed, many Chinese Americans are involved in handling valuable or sensiGve technical informaGon, both in industry and in government.

THE FEAR OF A CHINESE THREAT

• The U.S. government has exhibited a heightened focus on the naGonal security and economic challenges posed by the People’s Republic of China; U.S. official reports state that the Chinese government and some Chinese companies employ illicit means to access proprietary informaGon.

• Increasingly, ethnic Chinese (regardless of ciGzenship) who are scienGsts, technology professionals, and federal government employees in the United States are being subjected to criminal invesGgaGons and prosecuGons involving naGonal security, intellectual property theX, and corporate espionage in the United States.

• Government reports show high numbers of successful federal prosecuGons of ethnic Chinese working in the U.S., including guilty pleas and convicGons aXer trial.

• In addiGon, there has also been a recent paYern of rushing to prosecute, as a number of Chinese Americans have been arrested and accused of serious crimes of engaging in economic espionage on behalf of China, only to have their cases dismissed aXer closer examinaGon of the facts.

THE HAZARD OF RACIAL PROFILING

• Racial profiling is illegal in the United States. However, there is an unfortunate history of racial bias against Chinese in America and a legacy of being perceived as an inferior or exploiGve group (1882 Chinese Exclusion Act; prevalent fear-mongering of Chinese threat by poliGcians and policy-making groups; Cox Report; Blue Team, etc.).

• These condiGons may cause the U.S. government and some U.S. employers to become skepGcal or even suspicious of ethnic Chinese, creaGng undue hazards of racial profiling, bias, and possible misunderstanding of otherwise innocent conduct.

THE NEED FOR SELF-EDUCATION

• The U.S. legal system is complex and extremely costly. In order to to avoid entanglement, it is imperaGve that Chinese American scienGsts and engineers with relaGonships in China are well informed of i) the laws that regulate their work, ii) their unique legal risks within the larger geo-poliGcal contexts, and iii) the grave consequences of noncompliance.

BE AWARE

UNDERSTAND YOUR EMPLOYER’S TRADE SECRETS

• A trade secret is any valuable commercial informaGon that provides a business with an advantage over compeGtors who do not have that informaGon. Examples include proprietary drawings, soXware, blueprints, formulae, specificaGons, customer or supplier lists, test data, prototypes, etc.

UNDERSTAND ALL APPLICABLE U.S. LAWS & EMPLOYER POLICIES

• Espionage Act of 1916; Economic Espionage Act of 1996; Federal Export Control Laws; Computer Crime &Intellectual Property Laws; Employer or client non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) & IP protecGon policies

• Note that all documentaGon and electronic communicaGon and hardware are potenGal forms of “evidence” and likely to be reviewed by prosecutors (i.e. emails, text messages, faxes, phones, tablets, laptops, flash drives, etc.)

• Normal 4th Amendment protecGon against unreasonable search and seizure does not apply to border searches of luggage or carry-on items (this applies to all in-bound and outbound travelers).

BEWARE FOREIGN SOLICITATION ATTEMPTS AND POTENTIAL OF OVER-ZEALOUS INVESTIGATORS

• You may be a target of Chinese solicitaGon efforts (private or official) to obtain U.S. technology illicitly.

• You may also be dealing with over-zealous U.S. invesGgators with heightened fear and preconceived noGons about the “Chinese threat,” who may thus engage in racial profiling against ethnic Chinese.

EXTREMELY HIGH STAKES FOR NON-COMPLIANCE

• MulG-million dollar fines; imprisonment of 15 years or more; loss of reputaGon and job, including permanent record of previous criminal acGvity; civil liGgaGon and potenGal exposure for further damages; jeopardy to U.S. visa status or ciGzenship process; and collateral damages to colleagues, friends, and family.

• IntenGonal misconduct will likely be invesGgated and prosecuted to the maximum extent of the law.

BE PREPARED

SEEK PERSONAL LEGAL COUNSEL

• Note that company aYorneys protect the business and are not independent or personal counsel.

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

• If you are quesGoned by an FBI or law enforcement agent, you always have the right to remain silent and to ask for an aYorney; this does not make you more suspicious.

• Always tell the truth, or remain silent. Providing inaccurate or false details can incriminate you.

• When in doubt, don’t sign anything without consulGng an aYorney.

BE PART OF THE SOLUTION

EDUCATE OTHERS AND CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION

• Share this with your peers and educate them about the risks; work within the science and technology communiGes to strengthen best pracGces and deepen the conversaGon on the nuanced pursuit of scienGfic and academic advancement and exchanges between the U.S. and China; potenGally issue new or improved guidelines.

CHANGE THE NARRATIVE

• The contribuGons of millions of law-abiding and loyal Chinese Americans to the U.S. are significant and farreaching. However, the loyalty of Chinese Americans is being unfairly quesGoned, and the community is being severely maligned by overreaching prosecuGons and a rush to judgment. • Chinese Americans serve as leading scienGsts, researchers, and entrepreneurs across the naGon. Because of their contribuGons and leadership in these fields, America enjoys the paramount posiGon as an innovator for the world.

LEARN MORE: WWW.COMMITTEE100.ORG

THIS FLYER IS SOLELY FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES TO PROMOTE PUBLIC DISCUSSION AND UNDERSTANDING. IT IS NOT INTENDED TO BE, AND SHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS, LEGAL ADVICE. ANYONE WITH A SPECIFIC LEGAL QUESTION SHOULD RETAIN AND CONSULT QUALIFIED LEGAL COUNSEL.