A Well-Deserved Tribute to Jerry Cohen who turned 90 this month.

Jerry Cohen turned 90 on July 1st and he is still going strong. In my opinion, Jerry is the most decent, honorable, ethical and effective person involved in US-China relations for the past 50 years. His contributions to Chinese law, mentoring Chinese lawyers and standing up for Human Rights, while never buckling to political pressure, are unsurpassed.

Here is the tribute from Rep. James McGovern, Co-Chair of the Congressional Executive Commission on China and the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission.

 HON. JAMES P. McGOVERN of Massachusetts in the House of

Representatives, Thursday, July 16, 2020

Mr. McGOVERN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to

Professor Jerome Alan Cohen, the Founder and Faculty Director Emeritus

of the U.S.-Asia Law Institute of the New York University School of

Law. 

Professor Jerry Cohen is a true champion of human rights and the rule 

of law in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korea. This month, he is 

celebrating his 90th birthday with his family and friends.

 Professor Cohen--or ``Jerry,'' as he prefers to be called by friends, 

colleagues, and students alike--is one of the foremost experts in 

Chinese law and government in the United States and internationally. He 

has provided sage advice and wise counsel to international leaders, 

U.S. government officials, and Members of Congress throughout his 

illustrious career, including in testimony to the Congressional-

Executive Commission on China of which I currently serve as Chair. Not 

long out of Yale Law School, Jerry was a law clerk to Chief Justice 

Earl Warren and to Justice Felix Frankfurter, of the U.S. Supreme 

Court. Jerry also was an Assistant U.S. Attorney here in Washington, 

D.C.

 Jerry's extraordinary career on China began in the 1960s while he was 

teaching at Boalt School of Law at University of California Berkeley. A 

grant to UC Berkeley from the Rockefeller Foundation allowed him to 

begin his study of Mandarin Chinese. Later, he created the East Asia 

Legal Studies Association at Harvard School of Law, where he would go 

on to teach for 17 years.

 In 2018, Harvard Law alumni established the Jerome A. and Joan L. 

Cohen Professorship of Law at Harvard Law School to honor his 

pioneering work. His students over the years include prominent legal 

scholars, lawyers, law professors, journalists, and diplomats, such as 

former Taiwanese president, Ma Ying-jeou and former U.S. Ambassador

to China Clark Randt, Jr.

 Jerry and a group of colleagues were also early advocates in 

encouraging the United States to engage with the People's Republic of 

China. During his first trip to China in 1972, Jerry met with Chinese 

Premier Zhou Enlai, and, years later accompanied Senator Ted Kennedy

to Beijing to meet with Deng Xiaoping.

 Jerry has been an energetic advocate for human rights in China and 

critic of the Chinese government. At the US-Asia Law Institute, he has 

developed programs on criminal justice reform in China with Chinese 

counterparts. Jerry also has led the way in supporting the release of 

political prisoners in China, including John T. Downey, a former Yale 

College classmate and CIA agent who was released in 1973 after more 

than 20 years' imprisonment in China. He played a crucial role in the 

release of Annette Lu, who would go to be Taiwanese vice president 

under Chen Shui-bian. Jerry also has advocated for and helped secure 

the release of many Chinese political prisoners, including Song Yongyi 

and Chen Guangcheng.

 Professor Jerry Cohen has not only participated in the history of 

U.S.-China relations, he has shaped it. All those who advocate for 

human rights and the rule of law in China owe him a great debt of 

gratitude. I thank Professor Cohen for his exemplary service for 

humanity.