US Senator introduces 3 bills to punish China over censorship amid pandemic

US Senator Ted Cruz announced that he introduced three bills to counter Chinese propaganda and hold China accountable for what he described as medical and political censorship that helped fuel the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

"Today I introduced three pieces of legislation to directly address Chinese censorship and their responsibility for this pandemic," Cruz said, speaking at the Senate on Thursday "We as a body, as a bipartisan body, need to stand and stand strong protecting US national security, protecting the lives of Americans and ensuring accountability."

One legislation, if adopted, will sanction Chinese officials involved in the suppression of medical experts, journalists, and political dissidents. The second one calls to cut off Hollywood studios from the federal government assistance if they censor films for screening in China. The third bill seeks to prevent the Chinese Communist Party from exploiting loopholes "to propagandize to Americans from radio stations in Mexico or Canada."

The United States accuses China of mishandling and covering up the coronavirus outbreak at its initial stages, allowing it to spread around the world.

Beijing has repeatedly said that it released information in a timely manner and rejects all propaganda accusations. (Sputnik/)

( With inputs from ANI )