Cambodia Democracy Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 3081 To promote free and fair elections, political freedoms, and human rights in Cambodia, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 18, 2019 Mr. GARDNER (for himself and Mr. MARKEY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To promote free and fair elections, political freedoms, and human rights in Cambodia, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Cambodia Democracy 4 Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 (1) Prime Minister Hun Sen has been in power 8 in Cambodia since 1985 and is the longest-serving 9 leader in Southeast Asia. Despite decades of inter- 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 3081 IS national attention and assistance to promote a plu- 1 ralistic, multi-party democratic system in Cambodia, 2 the Government of Cambodia continues to be 3 undemocratically dominated by the ruling Cambodia 4 People’s Party (CPP), which controls every agency 5 and security apparatus of the state. 6 (2) In 2015, the CPP-controlled parliament 7 passed the ‘‘Law on Associations and Non-Govern- 8 mental Organizations’’, which gave the government 9 sweeping powers to revoke the registration of non- 10 governmental organizations that the government be- 11 lieved to be operating with a political bias in a bla- 12 tant attempt to restrict the legitimate work of civil 13 society. On August 23, 2017, Cambodia’s Ministry 14 of Foreign Affairs ordered the closure of the Na- 15 tional Democratic Institute and the expulsion of its 16 foreign staff. On September 15, 2017, Prime Min- 17 ister Hun Sen called for the withdrawal of all volun- 18 teers from the United States Peace Corps, which has 19 operated in Cambodia since 2006 with approxi- 20 mately 500 United States volunteers providing 21 English language and healthcare training. 22 (3) The Government of Cambodia has taken 23 several measures to restrict its media environment, 24 especially through politicized tax investigations 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 3081 IS against independent media outlets that resulted in 1 the closure of The Cambodian Daily and Radio Free 2 Asia in early September 2017. Additionally, the Gov- 3 ernment of Cambodia has ordered several radio sta- 4 tions to stop the broadcasting of Radio Free Asia 5 and Voice of America programming. 6 (4) On September 3, 2017, Kem Sokha, the 7 President of the Cambodia National Rescue Party 8 (CNRP), was arrested on politically motivated 9 charges, including treason and conspiring to over- 10 throw the Government of Cambodia, and faces up to 11 30 years in prison. The CNRP’s previous leader, 12 Sam Rainsy, remains in exile. On November 16, 13 2017, Cambodia’s Supreme Court dissolved the 14 CNRP, eliminating the primary opposition party. A 15 court in Cambodia announced plans to try Kem 16 Sokha for treason in January 2020. 17 (5) Each of the 6 elections that have taken 18 place in Cambodia since 1991 were conducted in cir- 19 cumstances that were not free and fair, and were 20 marked by fraud, intimidation, violence, and the gov- 21 ernment’s misuse of legal mechanisms to weaken op- 22 position candidates and parties. 23 (6) In the most recent general election in July 24 2018, following the dissolution of the CNRP, the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 3081 IS CPP secured every parliamentary seat, an electoral 1 victory that a statement from the White House 2 Press Secretary stated was ‘‘neither free nor fair 3 and failed to represent the will of the Cambodian 4 people’’. 5 (7) The United States is committed to pro- 6 moting democracy, human rights, and the rule of 7 law in Cambodia. The United States continues to 8 urge the Government of Cambodia to immediately 9 release Mr. Kem Sokha, reinstate the political status 10 of the CNRP and restore its elected seats in the Na- 11 tional Assembly, and support electoral reform efforts 12 in Cambodia with free and fair elections monitored 13 by international observers. 14 (8) In section 401 of the Asia Reassurance Ini- 15 tiative Act of 2018 (Public Law 115–409; 132 Stat. 16 5407), Congress expressed serious concerns with the 17 rule of law and civil liberties in Cambodia and made 18 the finding that the promotion of human rights and 19 respect for democratic values in the Indo-Pacific re- 20 gion is in the United States national security inter- 21 est. 22 (9) Section 7043(b) of the Department of 23 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs 24 Appropriations Act, 2018 (division K of Public Law 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 3081 IS 115–141; 132 Stat. 918) and section 201(f) of the 1 Asia Reassurance Initiative Act of 2018 (Public Law 2 115–409; 132 Stat. 5392) restricted United States 3 assistance to Cambodia unless the Government of 4 Cambodia takes effective steps to respect the rights 5 and responsibilities enshrined in the Constitution of 6 Cambodia, including by releasing all political pris- 7 oners, including journalists, civil society activists, 8 and members of the opposition political party. 9 (10) On December 9, 2019, the Department of 10 the Treasury imposed sanctions under the Global 11 Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (sub- 12 title F of title XII of Public Law 114–328; 22 13 U.S.C. 2656 note) with respect to certain corrupt 14 Cambodian actors and their networks. 15 (11) In February 2019, the European Union 16 began intense scrutiny of Cambodia’s eligibility to 17 for preferential trade access in light of the deteriora- 18 tion of democracy, the rule of law, and the protec- 19 tion of human rights in Cambodia. 20 SEC. 3. SANCTIONS RELATING TO UNDERMINING DEMOC- 21 RACY IN CAMBODIA. 22 (a) IDENTIFICATION OF PERSONS RESPONSIBLE FOR 23 UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY IN CAMBODIA.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 3081 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 1 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 2 President shall submit to the appropriate congres- 3 sional committees a list of— 4 (A) each senior official of the government, 5 military, or security forces of Cambodia who the 6 President determines has, on or after such date 7 of enactment— 8 (i) directly and substantially under- 9 mined democracy in Cambodia; or 10 (ii) committed or directed serious 11 human rights violations associated with 12 undermining democracy in Cambodia; and 13 (B) each foreign person owned or con- 14 trolled by an official described in subparagraph 15 (A). 16 (2) UPDATES.—The President shall submit to 17 the appropriate congressional committees updated 18 lists under paragraph (1) as new information be- 19 comes available. 20 (b) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.—The President shall 21 impose the following sanctions with respect to each foreign 22 person on the list required by subsection (a): 23 (1) ASSET BLOCKING.—The President shall ex- 24 ercise all of the powers granted to the President 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 3081 IS under the International Emergency Economic Pow- 1 ers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (except that the re- 2 quirements of section 202 of such Act (50 U.S.C. 3 1701) shall not apply) to the extent necessary to 4 block and prohibit all transactions in property and 5 interests in property of the person if such property 6 and interests in property are in the United States, 7 come within the United States, or are or come with- 8 in the possession or control of a United States per- 9 son. 10 (2) ALIENS INADMISSIBLE FOR VISAS, ADMIS- 11 SION, OR PAROLE.— 12 (A) VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.—In 13 the case of an individual, that individual is— 14 (i) inadmissible to the United States; 15 (ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other 16 documentation to enter the United States; 17 and 18 (iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted 19 or paroled into the United States or to re- 20 ceive any other benefit under the Immigra- 21 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et 22 seq.). 23 (B) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •S 3081 IS (i) IN GENERAL.—The visa or other 1 entry documentation of the individual shall 2 be revoked, regardless of when such visa or 3 other entry documentation is or was 4 issued. 5 (ii) IMMEDIATE EFFECT.—A revoca- 6 tion under clause (i) shall— 7 (I) take effect immediately; and 8 (II) automatically cancel any 9 other valid visa or entry documenta- 10 tion that is in the individual’s posses- 11 sion. 12 (c) EXCEPTIONS.— 13 (1) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTATION OF 14 GOODS.— 15 (A) IN GENERAL.—The authorities and re- 16 quirements to impose sanctions authorized 17 under subsection (b)(1) shall not include the 18 authority or requirement to impose sanctions on 19 the importation of goods. 20 (B) GOOD DEFINED.—In this paragraph, 21 the term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or 22 manmade substance, material, supply or manu- 23 factured product, including inspection and test 24 equipment, and excluding technical data. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •S 3081 IS (2) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH INTER- 1 NATIONAL OBLIGATIONS.—Sanctions under sub- 2 section (b)(2) shall not apply with respect to a for- 3 eign person if admitting or paroling the person into 4 the United States is necessary to permit the United 5 States to comply with the Agreement regarding the 6 Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake 7 Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force No- 8 vember 21, 1947, between the United Nations and 9 the United States, or other applicable international 10 obligations of the United States. 11 (d) WAIVER.—The President may waive the applica- 12 tion of sanctions under subsection (b) with respect to a 13 foreign person on the list required by subsection (a) if the 14 President determines and certifies to the appropriate con- 15 gressional committees that such a waiver is in the national 16 interest of the United States. 17 (e) SUSPENSION OF SANCTIONS.— 18 (1) SUSPENSION.—The requirement to impose 19 sanctions under this section may be suspended for 20 an initial period of not more than one year if the 21 President determines and certifies to the appropriate 22 congressional committees that Cambodia is making 23 meaningful progress toward the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •S 3081 IS (A) Ending government efforts to under- 1 mine democracy. 2 (B) Ending human rights violations associ- 3 ated with undermining democracy. 4 (C) Conducting free and fair elections that 5 allow for the active participation of credible op- 6 position candidates. 7 (2) RENEWAL OF SUSPENSION.—The suspen- 8 sion under paragraph (1) may be renewed for addi- 9 tional, consecutive one-year periods if the President 10 determines and certifies to the appropriate congres- 11 sional committees that Cambodia continued to make 12 meaningful progress toward satisfying the conditions 13 described in that paragraph during the year pre- 14 ceding the certification. 15 (f) IMPLEMENTATION; PENALTIES.— 16 (1) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may ex- 17 ercise all authorities provided under sections 203 18 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic 19 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out 20 this section. 21 (2) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, at- 22 tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 23 violation of subsection (b)(1) or any regulation, li- 24 cense, or order issued to carry out that subsection 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •S 3081 IS shall be subject to the penalties set forth in sub- 1 sections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the Inter- 2 national Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 3 U.S.C. 1705) to the same extent as a person that 4 commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) 5 of that section. 6 (g) SUNSET.—This section shall terminate on the 7 date that is 5 years after the date of the enactment of 8 this Act. 9 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 10 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 11 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 12 mittees’’ means— 13 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 14 the Committee on Financial Services of the 15 House of Representatives; and 16 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations 17 and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 18 Urban Affairs of the Senate. 19 (2) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per- 20 son’’ means a person that is not a United States 21 person. 22 (3) PERSON.— 23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘person’’ 24 means— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:14 Dec 24, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3081.IS S3081 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •S 3081 IS (i) a natural person; or 1 (ii) a corporation, business associa- 2 tion, partnership, society, trust, financial 3 institution, insurer, underwriter, guar- 4 antor, and any other business organization, 5 any other nongovernmental entity, organi- 6 zation, or group, and any governmental en- 7 tity operating as a business enterprise or 8 any successor to any entity described in 9 this clause. 10 (B) APPLICATION TO GOVERNMENTAL EN- 11 TITIES.—The term ‘‘person’’ does not include a 12 government or governmental entity that is not 13 operating as a business enterprise. 14 (4) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 15 ‘‘United States person’’ means— 16 (A) a United States citizen or an alien law- 17 fully admitted for permanent residence to the 18 United States; or 19 (B) an entity organized under the laws of 20 the United States or of any jurisdiction of the 21 United States, inclu [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]