[House Document 106-241]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



106th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 106-241


 
  NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO BURMA: SIX MONTH PERIODIC REPORT

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  FROM

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              TRANSMITTING

A REPORT ON DEVELOPMENTS CONCERNING THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT 
  TO BURMA THAT WAS DECLARED IN EXECUTIVE ORDER 13047 OF MAY 20, 1997, 
  PURSUANT TO 50 U.S.C. 1703(c).




    May 18, 2000.--Message and accompanying papers referred to the 
     Committee on International Relations and ordered to be printed

                               __________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
79-011                     WASHINGTON : 2000

To the Congress of the United States:
    As required by section 401(c) of the National Emergencies 
Act, 50 U.S.C. 1641(c) and section 204(c) of the International 
Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), 50 U.S.C. 1703(c), I 
transmit herewith a 6-month periodic report on the national 
emergency with respect to Burma that was declared in Executive 
Order 13047 of May 20, 1997.
                                                William J. Clinton.
    The White House, May 18, 2000.
 President's Periodic Report on the National Emergency With Respect to 
                                 Burma

    I hereby report to the Congress on developments concerning 
the national emergency with respect to Burma that I declared in 
Executive Order No. 13047 of May 20, 1997, pursuant to section 
570 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related 
Programs Appropriations Act (the ``Act'') and the International 
Emergency Economic Powers Act (``IEEPA''). This report is 
submitted pursuant to section 204(c) of IEEPA, 50 U.S.C. 
1703(c) and section 401(c) of the National Emergencies Act, 50 
U.S.C. 1641(c). This report discusses only matters concerning 
the national emergency with respect to Burma that was declared 
in Executive Order No. 13047.
    1. On May 20, 1997, I issued Executive Order No. 13047 (62 
Fed. Reg. 28301, May 22, 1997), effective on May 21, 1997, to 
declare a national emergency with respect to Burma and to 
prohibit new investment in Burma by U.S. persons, except to the 
extent provided in regulations, orders, directives, or licenses 
that may be issued in conformity with section 570 of the Act. 
The Order also prohibits any approval or other facilitation by 
a U.S. person, wherever located, of a transaction by a foreign 
person where the transaction would constitute new investment in 
Burma prohibited by the Order if engaged in by a U.S. person or 
within the United States. This action was taken in response to 
the large-scale repression of the democratic opposition by the 
Government of Burma since September 30, 1996. A copy of the 
Order was provided to the Congress by message dated May 20, 
1997.
    By its terms, Executive Order No. 13047 does not prohibit 
the entry into, performance of, or financing of a contract to 
sell or purchase goods, services, or technology, except: (1) 
where the entry into such contract on or after May 21, 1997, is 
for the general supervision and guarantee of another person's 
performance of a contract for the economic development of 
resources located in Burma; or (2) where such contract provides 
for payment, in whole or in part, in (i) shares of ownership, 
including an equity interest, in the economic development of 
resources located in Burma; or (ii) participation in royalties, 
earnings, or profits in the economic development of resources 
located in Burma.
    2. On May 21, 1998, the Department of the Treasury's Office 
of Foreign Assets Control (``OFAC'') issued the Burmese 
Sanctions Regulations (the ``Regulations''), 31 C.F.R. Part 
537, to implement the prohibitions of Executive Order 13047 (63 
Fed. Reg. 27846, May 21, 1998). The Regulations apply to U.S. 
persons, defined to include U.S. citizens and permanent 
resident aliens wherever they are located, entities organized 
under U.S. law (including their foreign branches), and entities 
and individuals actually located in the United States. The 
sanctions do not apply directly to foreign subsidiaries of U.S. 
firms, although foreign firms' activities may be affected by 
the restriction on U.S. persons' facilitation of a foreign 
person's investment transactions in Burma.
    The term ``new investment'' means any of the following 
activities, if such an activity is undertaken pursuant to an 
agreement, or pursuant to the exercise of rights under such 
anagreement, that is entered into with the Government of Burma, or a 
non-governmental entity in Burma, on or after May 21, 1997: (a) The 
entry into a contract that includes the economic development of 
resources located in Burma; (b) the entry into a contract providing for 
the general supervision and guarantee of another person's performance 
of a contract that includes the economic development of resources 
located in Burma; (c) the purchase of a share of ownership, including 
an equity interest, in the economic development of resources located in 
Burma; or (d) the entry into a contract providing for the participation 
in royalties, earnings, or profits in the economic development of 
resources located in Burma, without regard to the form of 
participation.
    3. In early July 1997, OFAC sent notification letters to 
approximately 50 U.S. firms with operations in or ties to Burma 
informing them of the restrictions on new investment. The 
letters included copies of Executive Order No. 13047, provided 
clarification of several technical issues, and urged firms to 
contact OFAC if they had specific questions on the application 
of the Executive Order to their particular circumstances.
    OFAC continues to disseminate details of this program to 
the financial, securities, and international trade communities 
by both electronic and conventional media. This includes 
posting the Executive Order, Regulations, and other notices 
about the Burmese sanctions on the Internet, computer bulletin 
boards, and fax-on-demand services, and providing the material 
to the U.S. Embassy in Rangoon for distribution to U.S. 
companies operating in Burma.
    In the six-month period since November 20, 1999, OFAC has 
issued no amendments to the Regulations or specific licenses 
authorizing transactions otherwise prohibited by the 
Regulations, and has neither assessed nor collected any civil 
monetary penalty for a violation of the Regulations.
    4. The expenses incurred by the Federal Government in the 
six-month period from November 20, 1999 through May 19, 2000 
that are directly attributable to the exercise of powers and 
authorities conferred by the declaration of a national 
emergency with respect to Burma are estimated at approximately 
$16,000, most of which represent wage and salary costs for 
Federal personnel. Personnel costs were largely centered in the 
Department of the Treasury (particularly in the Office of 
Foreign Assets Control, the Office of the Under Secretary for 
Enforcement, and the Office of the General Counsel), and the 
Department of State (particularly the Bureau of Economic and 
Business Affairs, the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, 
and the Office of the Legal Adviser).
    5. The situation reviewed above continues to present an 
extraordinary and unusual threat to the national security and 
foreign policy of the United States. The declaration of the 
national emergency with respect to Burma contained in Executive 
Order No. 13047 in response to the large-scale repression of 
the democratic opposition by the Government of Burma since 
September 30, 1996, reflected the belief that it is in the 
national security and foreign policy interests of the United 
States to seek an end to abuses of human rights in Burma, to 
support efforts to achieve democratic reform which would 
promote regional peace and stability, and to urge effective 
counter-narcotics policies.
    In the past six months the State Peace and Development 
Council (``SPDC'') has shown no sign of willingness to cede its 
hold on absolute power. Since refusing to recognize the results 
of the free and fair 1990 elections in which the National 
League for Democracy won a vast majority of both the popular 
vote and the parliamentary seats, the ruling junta has 
continued to refuse to negotiate with pro-democracy forces and 
ethnic groups for a genuine political settlement to allow a 
return to the rule of law and respect for basic human rights. 
Burma has taken limited but insufficient steps to counter 
narcotics production and trafficking.
    The net effect of U.S. and international measures to 
pressure the SPDC to end its repression and move toward 
democratic government has been a further decline in investor 
confidence in Burma and deeper stagnation of the Burmese 
economy. Observers agree that the Burmese economy appears to be 
further weakening and that the government has a serious 
shortage of foreign exchange reserves with which to pay for 
imports. While Burma's economic crisis is largely a result of 
the SPDC's own heavy-handed mismanagement, the SPDC is unlikely 
to find a way out of the crisis unless political developments 
permit an easing of international pressure. I shall continue to 
exercise the powers at my disposal to deal with these problems 
and will report periodically to the Congress on significant 
developments.

                                  
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