[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3052 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3052
To promote free and fair elections, democracy, political freedoms, and
human rights in Cambodia, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 21, 2021
Mr. Markey (for himself, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Tillis, Ms. Warren,
and Mrs. Feinstein) introduced the following bill; which was read twice
and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote free and fair elections, democracy, political freedoms, and
human rights in Cambodia, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Cambodia Democracy and Human Rights
Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) On October 23, 1991, Cambodia and 18 other countries
signed the Comprehensive Cambodian Peace Agreement (commonly
referred to as the ``Paris Peace Agreements''), which committed
Cambodia to a democratic system of governance protected by a
constitution and free and fair elections and stated that the
people of Cambodia ``shall enjoy the rights and freedoms
embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other
relevant international human rights instruments''.
(2) Prime Minister Hun Sen has been in power in Cambodia
since 1984 and is the longest-serving leader in Southeast Asia.
Despite decades of international attention and assistance to
promote a pluralistic, multi-party democratic system in
Cambodia, the Government of Cambodia continues to be
undemocratically dominated by the ruling Cambodian People's
Party.
(3) In 2015, the Cambodian People's Party-controlled
National Assembly adopted the Law on Associations and Non-
Governmental Organizations, which gave the Government of
Cambodia sweeping powers to revoke the registration of
nongovernmental organizations in the name of ``national
unity'', and which the government has used to restrict the
legitimate work of civil society.
(4) On August 23, 2017, Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign
Affairs ordered the closure of the National Democratic
Institute office in Cambodia and the expulsion of its foreign
staff. On September 15, 2017, Prime Minister Hun Sen called for
the withdrawal of all volunteers from the United States Peace
Corps, which has operated in Cambodia since 2006 with
approximately 500 United States volunteers providing English
language and healthcare training.
(5) The Government of Cambodia has taken several measures
to restrict its media environment, especially through
politicized tax investigations against independent media
outlets that resulted in the closure of The Cambodia Daily and
Radio Free Asia in early September 2017. Additionally, the
Government of Cambodia has ordered several radio stations to
stop the broadcasting of Radio Free Asia and Voice of America
programming.
(6) Cambodia's small number of independent trade unions and
workers have the right to strike, but many face retribution for
doing so, according to Freedom House.
(7) Each of the 6 elections that have taken place in
Cambodia since 1991 was conducted in circumstances that were
not free and fair, and were marked, to varying degrees, by
fraud, intimidation, violence, and the misuse by the Government
of Cambodia of legal mechanisms to weaken opposition candidates
and parties. The 2017 local elections were marked by fewer
reported irregularities, however, which helped the opposition
Cambodia National Rescue Party (in this section referred to as
the ``CNRP''). Hun Sen responded to those improvements in
elections, resulting in part from international assistance and
observers, by banning the CNRP, the primary opposition party,
on November 16, 2017.
(8) On September 3, 2017, Kem Sokha, the President of the
CNRP, was arrested on politically motivated charges, including
treason and conspiring to overthrow the Government of Cambodia.
While he was released on bail, he faces up to 30 years in
prison. His trial has been delayed due to the coronavirus
disease 2019 (commonly known as ``COVID-19'') pandemic and will
likely not resume in 2021.
(9) In the most recent general election in July 2018,
following the dissolution of the CNRP, the Cambodian People's
Party secured every parliamentary seat, an electoral victory
that the White House Press Secretary stated was ``neither free
nor fair and failed to represent the will of the Cambodian
people''.
(10) The widespread crackdown by the Government of Cambodia
on the political opposition and other independent voices has
caused many CNRP leaders to flee abroad. According to Human
Rights Watch, on March 12, 2019, a court criminally charged and
issued arrest warrants for 8 leading members of the CNRP,
including former CNRP leader Sam Rainsy, who had left Cambodia
ahead of the July 2018 election, as well as Mu Sochua, Ou
Chanrith, Eng Chhai Eang, Men Sothavarin, Long Ry, Tob Van
Chan, and Ho Vann.
(11) The Government of Cambodia has arrested many
opposition party members and democracy activists who remained
in Cambodia. More than 80 opposition party supporters and
activists were arrested in 2019 and were released on bail with
charges still pending and could face re-arrest any time.
(12) In November 2019, Sam Rainsy made a failed attempt to
return to Cambodia to partake in mass pro-democracy protests.
Approximately 150 CNRP activists were put on trial in 2020 and
2021 for treason for calling for his return.
(13) In March 2021, a Cambodian court convicted and
sentenced Sam Rainsy in absentia to 25 years in prison and 8
other opposition figures living in exile, including Rainsy's
wife Tioulong Saumura, as well as Mu Sochua, Eng Chhay Eang,
Men Sothavarin, Ou Chanrith, Ho Vann, Long Ry, and Nuth
Romduol, to between 20 and 22 years.
(14) Prime Minister Hun Sen has used the COVID-19 pandemic
as justification to further consolidate power and the Cambodia
People's Party-controlled National Assembly passed new laws to
further curtail the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful
assembly, and association.
(15) According to Human Rights Watch, under the guise of
the pandemic, authorities--
(A) banned protests organized by youth and
environmental activists;
(B) detained and interrogated at least 30 people
for Facebook posts related to the pandemic; and
(C) charged one journalist for pandemic-related
reporting.
(16) According to Freedom House, Hun Sen uses the police
and armed forces as instruments of repression. The military has
stood firmly behind Hun Sen and his crackdown on opposition
groups and Hun Sen has built a personal bodyguard unit in the
armed forces that he reportedly uses to harass and abuse
Cambodian People's Party opponents.
(17) In August 2020, 14 youth and environmental activists
were detained by Cambodian authorities. In May 2021, 3
environmental activists were convicted on charges of
``incitement to commit a felony or disturb social order'',
related to peaceful protests against authorities. In June 2021,
a Cambodian court charged 3 environmental activists with
``plotting against the government and insulting the king''. The
2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices of the
Department of State reported ``at least 40 political prisoners
or detainees'' in Cambodia.
(18) In 2019, the Wall Street Journal reported that
Cambodia had signed a deal with the Government of the People's
Republic of China to allow that Government access to and use of
the Ream Naval Base on the Gulf of Thailand, which would
violate the Constitution of Cambodia, which prohibits the
establishment of foreign military bases.
(19) In 2019, the New York Times reported that a company
described by the Department of the Treasury as being a state-
owned company of the People's Republic of China had secured a
99-year lease to build an airport capable of supporting
military aircraft at Dara Sakor, raising concerns that Beijing
intends to use this dual-use facility for its military, which
would violate the Constitution of Cambodia.
(20) In section 401 of the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act
of 2018 (Public Law 115-409; 132 Stat. 5407), Congress
expressed serious concerns with the rule of law and civil
liberties in Cambodia and made the finding that the promotion
of human rights and respect for democratic values in the Indo-
Pacific region is in the United States national security
interest.
(21) The 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices of
the Department of State stated, of Cambodia, ``Corruption was
endemic throughout society and government. There were reports
police, prosecutors, investigating judges, and presiding judges
took bribes from owners of both legal and illegal businesses.
Citizens frequently and publicly complained about corruption.
Meager salaries contributed to `survival corruption' among low-
level public servants, while a culture of impunity enabled
corruption to flourish among senior officials.''.
(22) Section 7043(b) of the Department of State, Foreign
Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2018
(division K of Public Law 115-141; 132 Stat. 918) and section
201(f) of the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act of 2018 (Public
Law 115-409; 132 Stat. 5392) restrict assistance to Cambodia
until the Government of Cambodia takes effective steps to--
(A) strengthen regional security and stability,
particularly regarding territorial disputes in the
South China Sea and the enforcement of international
sanctions with respect to North Korea; and
(B) respect the rights and responsibilities
enshrined in the Constitution of the Kingdom of
Cambodia as enacted in 1993, including through the--
(i) restoration of the civil and political
rights of the opposition Cambodia National
Rescue Party, media, and civil society
organizations;
(ii) restoration of all elected officials
to their elected offices; and
(iii) release of all political prisoners,
including journalists, civil society activists,
and members of the opposition political party.
(23) On December 9, 2019, the Department of the Treasury
imposed sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights
Accountability Act (subtitle F of title XII of Public Law 114-
328; 22 U.S.C. 2656 note) with respect to certain corrupt
Cambodian actors and their networks.
(24) In February 2019, the European Union began intense
scrutiny of Cambodia's eligibility to for preferential trade
access in light of the deterioration of democracy, the rule of
law, and the protection of human rights in Cambodia. In
February 2020, the European Union, Cambodia's largest export
market, partially suspended trade preferences for Cambodia
under its ``Everything but Arms'' trade program, in response to
Cambodia's violations of civil and political rights.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the United States is committed to promoting democracy,
human rights, and the rule of law in Cambodia, as laid out in
the 1991 Paris Peace Agreements;
(2) the United States Government, through diplomacy and
assistance, must urge the Government of Cambodia to--
(A) release all political prisoners;
(B) drop all politically motivated charges and
vacate convictions against members of the Cambodia
National Rescue Party, journalists, and civil society
activists; and
(C) restore full political rights to the Cambodia
National Rescue Party and other political parties;
(3) the United States Government should urge the Government
of Cambodia--
(A) to reverse the policies and actions that have
resulted in the dismantling of democracy, the blatant
disregard of fundamental human rights, and the
breakdown of rule of law in Cambodia;
(B) to immediately discontinue the imprisonment and
judicial harassment of journalists, political
dissidents, and activists, and drop politically
motivated charges;
(C) to halt the threat of mass arrests and violence
if and when Cambodia National Rescue Party members
currently overseas return to Cambodia;
(D) to reinstate the political status of the
Cambodia National Rescue Party and other opposition
parties, restore the Cambodia National Rescue Party's
elected seats in the National Assembly, and support
electoral reform efforts in Cambodia with free and fair
elections monitored by international observers;
(E) to ensure that media outlets are able to
operate freely and without interference, including
having the ability to apply for and receive licenses to
operate within Cambodia; and
(F) to consider how allowing the People's
Liberation Army to conduct activities, gain access, or
establish a presence in Cambodia would harm Cambodia's
relationships with its neighbors, partners, and allies,
and violate the Constitution of Cambodia;
(4) Prime Minister Hun Sen is directly responsible, and
should be held accountable, for the safety, health, and welfare
of exiled Cambodia National Rescue Party leaders and their
supporters upon their return to Cambodia;
(5) other governments throughout the Indo-Pacific region
should--
(A) urge the Government of Cambodia to allow the
peaceful return of exiled Cambodia National Rescue
Party leaders and their supporters; and
(B) refrain from illegally restricting the rights
of Cambodia National Rescue Party members to travel to
and through their countries as they return; and
(6) in the absence of systemic democratic reforms on the
part of the Government of Cambodia, there is need for
additional United States Government measures, including through
legislation and executive action.
SEC. 4. SANCTIONS RELATING TO UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY IN CAMBODIA.
(a) Identification of Persons Responsible for Undermining Democracy
in Cambodia.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a list of--
(A) each foreign person, including any senior
official of the Government, military, or security
forces of Cambodia, who the President determines has,
on or after such date of enactment--
(i) directly and substantially undermined
democracy in Cambodia, including through the
use of baseless legal charges, malicious
prosecution, or mass trials;
(ii) committed or directed serious human
rights violations associated with undermining
democracy in Cambodia; or
(iii) engaged in or directed acts of
significant corruption, including the
expropriation of private or public assets for
personal gain, corruption related to government
contracts or the extraction of natural
resources, bribery, or the facilitation or
transfer of the proceeds of corruption to
foreign jurisdictions; and
(B) each foreign person owned or controlled by an
official described in subparagraph (A).
(2) Updates.--The President shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees updated lists under paragraph (1) as
new information becomes available.
(b) Imposition of Sanctions.--The President shall impose the
following sanctions with respect to each foreign person on the list
required by subsection (a):
(1) Asset blocking.--The President shall exercise all of
the powers granted to the President under the International
Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (except
that the requirements of section 202 of such Act (50 U.S.C.
1701) shall not apply) to the extent necessary to block and
prohibit all transactions in property and interests in property
of the person if such property and interests in property are in
the United States, come within the United States, or are or
come within the possession or control of a United States
person.
(2) Aliens inadmissible for visas, admission, or parole.--
(A) Visas, admission, or parole.--In the case of an
individual, that individual is--
(i) inadmissible to the United States;
(ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other
documentation to enter the United States; and
(iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted
or paroled into the United States or to receive
any other benefit under the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(B) Current visas revoked.--
(i) In general.--The visa or other entry
documentation of the individual shall be
revoked, regardless of when such visa or other
entry documentation is or was issued.
(ii) Immediate effect.--A revocation under
clause (i) shall--
(I) take effect immediately; and
(II) automatically cancel any other
valid visa or entry documentation that
is in the individual's possession.
(c) Exceptions.--
(1) Exception relating to importation of goods.--
(A) In general.--The authorities and requirements
to impose sanctions authorized under subsection (b)(1)
shall not include the authority or requirement to
impose sanctions on the importation of goods.
(B) Good defined.--In this paragraph, the term
``good'' means any article, natural or manmade
substance, material, supply or manufactured product,
including inspection and test equipment, and excluding
technical data.
(2) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
Sanctions under subsection (b)(2) shall not apply with respect
to a foreign person if admitting or paroling the person into
the United States is necessary to permit the United States to
comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the
United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and
entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United
Nations and the United States, or other applicable
international obligations of the United States.
(d) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions
under subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person on the list
required by subsection (a) if the President determines and certifies to
the appropriate congressional committees that such a waiver is in the
national interest of the United States.
(e) Suspension of Sanctions.--
(1) Suspension.--The requirement to impose sanctions under
this section may be suspended for an initial period of not more
than one year if the President determines and certifies to the
appropriate congressional committees that Cambodia is making
meaningful progress toward the following:
(A) Ending government efforts to undermine
democracy.
(B) Ending human rights violations associated with
undermining democracy.
(C) Releasing all political prisoners.
(D) Dropping all politically motivated charges and
vacating convictions from any such charges against
members of the Cambodia National Rescue Party,
journalists, and civil society activists.
(E) Conducting free and fair elections that allow
for the active participation of credible opposition
candidates.
(2) Renewal of suspension.--The suspension of sanctions
under paragraph (1) may be renewed for additional, consecutive
one-year periods if the President determines and certifies to
the appropriate congressional committees that Cambodia
continued to make meaningful progress toward satisfying the
conditions described in that paragraph during the year
preceding the certification.
(f) Implementation; Penalties.--
(1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all
authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and
1704) to carry out this section.
(2) Penalties.--A person that violates, attempts to
violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of
subsection (b)(1) or any regulation, license, or order issued
to carry out that subsection shall be subject to the penalties
set forth in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to
the same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act
described in subsection (a) of that section.
(g) Sunset.--This section shall terminate on the date that is 5
years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 5. REPORT ON ACTIVITY OF THE PEOPLE'S LIBERATION ARMY AND
GOVERNMENT OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA IN CAMBODIA.
Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report assessing--
(1) the involvement of the Government of the People's
Republic of China or the People's Liberation Army in upgrading
existing facilities or constructing new facilities at Ream
Naval Base and Dara Sakor Airport in Cambodia;
(2) any actual or projected benefits, including any
enhancement of the power projection capabilities of the
People's Liberation Army, that the Government of the People's
Republic of China or the People's Liberation Army may accrue as
a result of such upgrades or construction;
(3) the impact that the presence of the People's Liberation
Army in Cambodia may have on the interests, allies, and
partners of the United States in the region;
(4) any efforts undertaken by the United States Government
to convey to the Government of Cambodia the concerns relating
to the presence of the People's Liberation Army and the
Government of the People's Republic of China in Cambodia and
the impact that presence could have on adherence to the
Constitution of Cambodia; and
(5) the impact the presence of the People's Liberation Army
in Cambodia, as well as closer government-to-government ties
between Cambodia and the Government of the People's Republic of
China, including through investments under the Belt and Road
Initiative, has had on the deterioration of democracy and human
rights inside Cambodia.
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the
Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives.
(2) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a
person that is not a United States person.
(3) People's liberation army.--The term ``People's
Liberation Army'' means the armed forces of the People's
Republic of China.
(4) Person.--
(A) In general.--The term ``person'' means--
(i) a natural person; or
(ii) a corporation, business association,
partnership, society, trust, financial
institution, insurer, underwriter, guarantor,
and any other business organization, any other
nongovernmental entity, organization, or group,
and any governmental entity operating as a
business enterprise or any successor to any
entity described in this clause.
(B) Application to governmental entities.--The term
``person'' does not include a government or
governmental entity that is not operating as a business
enterprise.
(5) United states person.--The term ``United States
person'' means--
(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully
admitted for permanent residence to the United States;
or
(B) an entity organized under the laws of the
United States or of any jurisdiction of the United
States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.
<all>