[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2331 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2331
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
July 18, 2023
Mr. Markey (for himself, Mr. Rubio, and Mr. Durbin) 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 2023''.
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 1985 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 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,
which was growing in popularity, 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.
He has been tried in a Cambodian court and is facing a 27-year
prison sentence.
(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) In the 2022 local elections, the Candlelight Party,
founded in 1995 as the Khmer Nation Party and renamed the Sam
Rainsy Party in 1997, won 22 percent of seats. The United
Nations Human Rights Office reported pre-election threats,
intimidation, and obstruction, including the imprisonment of
some candidates. In February 2023, the government charged
several Candlelight Party leaders with defamation and writing
bad checks, which some analysts view as politically motivated
in advance of the 2023 national elections.
(11) The widespread crackdown by the Government of Cambodia
on the political opposition and other independent voices has
caused many CNRP leaders to flee abroad.
(12) Since 2021, Cambodian courts have convicted more than
115 former CNRP politicians and opposition activists, including
Sam Rainsy (in absentia) and Cambodian-American lawyer Theary
Seng (jailed in Cambodia), of crimes against the state. Other
convicted opposition figures living in exile include Rainsy's
wife, Tioulong Saumura, Mu Sochua, Eng Chhay Eang, Men
Sothavarin, Ou Chanrith, Ho Vann, Long Ry, and Nuth Romduol.
(13) 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.
(14) Beginning in December 2021, the Government of Cambodia
has restricted the labor rights of workers protesting working
conditions and illegal dismissals at the NagaWorld Casino,
including using the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse to limit the
ability of workers to protest. In February 2022, officials of
the Government of Cambodia arrested 6 workers of the casino
after leaving a COVID-19 testing center, claiming that they had
obstructed testing.
(15) 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, even though the
Constitution of Cambodia prohibits the establishment of foreign
military bases.
(16) 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 facility for its military, despite the
prohibition against the establishment of foreign military bases
set forth in the Constitution of Cambodia.
(17) 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.
(18) The 2022 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.''.
(19) Cambodia currently occupies a Tier 3 ranking on the
Department of State's Annual Trafficking in Persons Report,
indicating that Cambodia does not meet the minimum standards
for preventing trafficking in persons and is not making
significant efforts to do so. Human trafficking is rampant
across a number of industries in Cambodia and is often linked
to Chinese-organized crime networks. For many years, members of
the ruling elite, including personal family members and
advisors of the Prime Minister, have been individually linked
to businesses implicated in trafficking in persons into
Cambodia. Many of the trafficked persons are forced to work in
scamming operations that target United States citizens.
(20) Section 7043(b) of the Department of State, Foreign
Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2023
(division K of Public Law 117-328) restricts assistance to the
Government of Cambodia until ``the Secretary of State certifies
and reports to the Committees on Appropriations that such
Government is taking effective steps to--
``(i) 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;
``(ii) assert its sovereignty against
interference by the People's Republic of China,
including by verifiably maintaining the
neutrality of Ream Naval Base, other military
installations in Cambodia, and dual use
facilities such as the runway at the Dara Sakor
development project;
``(iii) cease violence, threats, and
harassment against civil society and the
political opposition in Cambodia, and dismiss
any politically motivated criminal charges
against critics of the government; and
``(iv) respect the rights, freedoms, and
responsibilities enshrined in the Constitution
of the Kingdom of Cambodia as enacted in
1993.''.
(21) Section 201(f) of the Asia Reassurance Initiative Act
of 2018 (Public Law 115-409; 132 Stat. 5392) restricts
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.
(22) On December 9, 2019, the Department of the Treasury
imposed sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights
Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.) with respect to
certain corrupt Cambodian actors and their networks.
(23) 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.
(24) In 2021, the Joint Vietnamese Friendship building, a
facility built by the Government of Vietnam, was relocated off
the Ream Naval Base, reportedly to avert conflicts with
military personnel of the People's Republic of China.
(25) On June 8, 2022, in the groundbreaking ceremony for
constructing new facilities of the Ream Naval Base, which,
according to the Washington Post, would allow the People's
Liberation Army to have ``exclusive use of the northern portion
of the base'', the Ambassador of the People's Republic of China
to Cambodia, Wang Wentian, declared that the base would be a
monument to ``the ironclad friendship and cooperation between
the two militaries'' of the People's Republic of China and
Cambodia.
(26) In June 2018, the United States sanctioned Hun Sen's
chief bodyguard, Hing Bun Hieng, for ``being the leader of an
entity involved in serious human rights abuse'', according to
the Department of the Treasury. In March 2020, a French court
issued arrest warrants for Hing Bun Hieng and Huy Piseth, the
former deputy chief of Hun Sen's bodyguard unit, for taking
part in a grenade attack against the opposition party in 1997.
(27) In 2015, 2 CNRP lawmakers were viciously attacked
while they were leaving the National Assembly. Three men were
arrested and put on trial for the attack. All 3 men are members
of Hun Sen's personal bodyguard unit.
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, should 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;
(C) restore full political rights to the Cambodia
National Rescue Party and other political parties;
(D) 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;
(E) immediately discontinue the imprisonment and
judicial harassment of journalists, political
dissidents, and activists, drop politically motivated
charges, and unconditionally release all political
prisoners;
(F) stop arrests and intimidation of civil society
members, including human rights activists,
environmental defenders, and labor leaders, and promote
a flourishing civil society that supports the political
and economic development of Cambodia;
(G) halt the threat of mass arrests and violence if
and when Cambodia National Rescue Party members
currently overseas return to Cambodia;
(H) 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;
(I) 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;
(J) 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 could violate the Constitution of Cambodia; and
(K) cease providing support to authoritarian
regimes and undermining democratic activists in the
region, especially through its ties to the Burmese
military that seized power in a coup d'etat on February
1, 2021, and instead play a constructive role in
multilateral organizations like the Association of
Southeast Asian Nations to promote peace and democracy
in the region;
(3) 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;
(4) 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;
(B) refrain from illegally restricting the rights
of Cambodia National Rescue Party members to travel to
and through their countries as they return; and
(C) press the Government of Cambodia not to allow
the People's Liberation Army to use Cambodia's military
facilities or establish a presence within Cambodia;
(5) in the absence of systemic democratic reforms on the
part of the Government of Cambodia, there is need for
additional measures by the United States Government, including
through the enactment of legislation and executive action; and
(6) the presence of the People's Liberation Army will
further enable Prime Minister Hun Sen's authoritarian
crackdown, including oppression of opposition parties,
independent civil society, and free media in Cambodia.
SEC. 4. SANCTIONS RELATING TO SUPPRESSING DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS,
POLITICAL FREEDOMS, AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN CAMBODIA.
(a) Identification of Persons Responsible for Suppressing
Democratic Institutions, Political Freedoms, and Human Rights 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) any current or former officials of the
Government of Cambodia or the military or security
forces of Cambodia, and any other foreign persons, that
the President determines knowingly--
(i) directly and substantially prevent
members of opposition parties and groups, the
media, and civil society organizations from
exercising their civil and political rights;
(ii) engage in or are responsible for any
acts for which sanctions may be imposed under
the Global Magnitsky Human Rights
Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 10101 et seq.);
or
(iii) engage in or support the
establishment of installations or facilities
that the People's Liberation Army or entities
tied to the People's Liberation Army in
Cambodia, which could include persons
identified under paragraph (1) of section 5(a)
in the report required by that section, could
use;
(B) any persons that the President determines are
acting for or on behalf of a person described in
subparagraph (A) related to conduct described in that
subparagraph; and
(C) any persons that the President determines are
owned or controlled by an entity described in
subparagraph (A) and are involved in conduct described
in that subparagraph.
(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 in accordance with section 221(i) of
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1201(i)), 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) 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.
(d) Exceptions.--
(1) Exception for intelligence and law enforcement
activities.--Sanctions under this section shall not apply with
respect to--
(A) any activity subject to the reporting
requirements under title V of the National Security Act
of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.); or
(B) any authorized intelligence or law enforcement
activities of the United States.
(2) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
Sanctions under subsection (b)(2) shall not apply with respect
to the admission or parole of an individual if admitting or
paroling the individual 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.
(3) 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.
(e) 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.
(f) 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 suppress
democratic institutions and political freedoms and
rights.
(B) Ending gross violations of internationally
recognized human rights and acts of significant
corruption.
(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.
(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.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the committees
specified in subsection (c) a report assessing--
(1) the involvement of the Government of the People's
Republic of China, the Chinese Communist Party, 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, the Chinese Communist Party, 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 security in the South
China Sea and the Indo-Pacific region more broadly and on
adherence to the Constitution of Cambodia;
(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;
(6) any party-to-party training, coordination, or other
links between the Chinese Communist Party and the Cambodian
People's Party; and
(7) any other ongoing activities by the People's Liberation
Army or any other security services of the Government of the
People's Republic of China in Cambodia.
(b) Form of Report.--The report required by subsection (a) shall be
submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex.
(c) Committees Specified.--The committees specified in this
subsection are--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on
Armed Services, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the
Senate; and
(2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on
Armed Services, and the Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act may be construed to limit the authority of the
President to designate persons for the imposition of sanctions pursuant
to an Executive order issued under the International Emergency Economic
Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) or otherwise pursuant to that Act.
SEC. 7. 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) Knowingly.--The term ``knowingly'', with respect to
conduct, a circumstance, or a result, means that a person has
actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, the
circumstance, or the result.
(4) People's liberation army.--The term ``People's
Liberation Army'' means the armed forces of the People's
Republic of China, including the People's Liberation Army Navy.
(5) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or
entity.
(6) 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;
(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;
or
(C) any person in the United States.
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