Congressional Record, Volume 164 Issue 125 (Wednesday, July 25, 2018)

[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 25, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H7668-H7670]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

CAMBODIA DEMOCRACY ACT OF 2018

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on the Judiciary be
discharged from further consideration of the bill (H.R. 5754) to
promote free and fair elections, political freedoms, and human rights
in Cambodia, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate
consideration in the House.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
The text of the bill is as follows:

H.R. 5754

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 Act of
2018''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) Cambodia's present political system was established in
1991, after decades of internal conflict, by the United
Nations-brokered Paris Peace Accords. The first national
elections under this system were administered by the United
Nations in 1993. Hun Sen, the current Prime Minister of
Cambodia, has been in power in Cambodia since before this
time, serving as premier from 1985 to 1993, and as Prime
Minister thereafter. Hun Sen has used his position to cling
to the pinnacle of power in Cambodia for 32 years, through
tactics including coup d'etat, irregular election procedures,
and the silencing of opposition voices.
(2) In Cambodia's most recent general elections in 2013,
Hun Sen's Cambodian People's Party (CPP) maintained its
parliamentary majority by the smallest margin to date, while
a unified opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP)
made substantial gains. The Department of State's Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2016 described
Cambodia's 2013 elections as ``largely free of intimidation,
in contrast to previous national elections'', yet also
``fraught with irregularities''. Subsequent local elections
marked similar setbacks for the ruling CPP.
(3) Cambodia's next general elections will occur in June
2018. According to the 2017 Freedom in the World Report
issued by Freedom House, in the intervening period Hun Sen
has overseen ``a decisive crackdown on the country's
beleaguered opposition and press corps as his [CPP] prepared
for national elections''. Regional experts have reached a
general consensus that Hun Sen and the CPP have undertaken
this crackdown to consolidate power ahead of an election that
may have ended their grip on power.
(4) Hun Sen's actions in late 2017 pushed Cambodia further
away from democracy. In late August 2017, the regime shut
down the National Democratic Institute and expelled its
entire foreign staff from the country within a week. Less
than a week later, radio stations carrying Radio Free Asia
and Voice of America were also shut down by the regime. On
September 3, 2017, authorities arrested Kem Sokha, the leader
of the CNRP, and charged him with treason, allegedly for
participating in an American plot to undermine Hun Sen's
regime. Kem Sokha remains in detention. On November 16, 2017,
Cambodia's Supreme Court dissolved the CNRP, eliminating the
most popular and viable challenger to Hun Sen's regime.
Subsequent actions by Hun Sen have aimed to ``cement total
control over Cambodian government and business'', according
to Human Rights Watch.
(5) Since the dissolution of the CNRP, both the Department
of State and the White House have issued statements
condemning the Hun Sen regime's actions to undermine
democracy and calling for Kem Sokha's release. On November
16, 2017, the White House announced that the United States
would terminate support for Cambodia's National Election
Committee. On December 6, 2017, the Department of State began
implementing visa restrictions for officials responsible for
undermining Cambodian democracy. On February 27, 2018, the
White House announced further assistance reductions following
Cambodian Senate elections on February 25 which did not
represent the genuine will of the Cambodian people.

SEC. 3. SANCTIONS RELATING TO UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY IN
CAMBODIA.

(a) Designation of Persons Responsible for Undermining
Democracy in Cambodia.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act, the President shall apply the
sanctions described in subsection (b) on--
(1) each senior official of the Government, military, or
security forces of Cambodia that the President determines has
directly and substantially undermined democracy in Cambodia;
and
(2) each senior official of the Government, military, or
security forces of Cambodia that the President determines has
committed or directed serious human rights violations
associated with undermining democracy in Cambodia.
(b) Sanctions Described.--
(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.) to the
extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in
property and interests in property of a person designated
under subsection (a) 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) Visa restrictions.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall continue to
implement the policy announced by the Department of State on
December 6, 2017, to restrict entry into the United States of
person involved in undermining democracy in Cambodia,
including any person designated under subsection (a).
(B) Exception for multilateral activities.--Persons
otherwise restricted from entry into the United States under
this section may be admitted if such admission is necessary
to comply with United States obligations under the Agreement
between the United Nations and the United States of America
regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at
Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November
21, 1947, or under the Convention on Consular Relations, done
at Vienna April 24, 1963, and entered into force March 19,
1967, or other applicable international obligations of the
United States.
(3) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections
(b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person
that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or
causes a violation of paragraph (1) to the same extent that
such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act
described in subsection (a) of such section 206.
(e) List of Designated Persons.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to
the appropriate congressional committees a list of persons
designated under subsection (a).
(2) Updates.--The President shall transmit to the
appropriate congressional committees updated lists under
paragraph (1) as new information becomes available.
(f) 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.
(g) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of
sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to a
person described in subsection (a) if the President
determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional
committees that such waiver is in the national interest of
the United States.

SEC. 4. SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.

(a) Suspension.--The sanctions described in section 3 may
be suspended for up to one year upon certification by the
President to the appropriate congressional committees that
Cambodia is making meaningful progress toward the following:
(1) Ending government efforts to undermine democracy.
(2) Ending human rights violations associated with
undermining democracy.
(3) Conducting free and fair elections which allow for the
active participation of credible opposition candidates.
(b) Renewal of Suspension.--The suspension described in
subsection (a) may be renewed for additional, consecutive
180-day periods if the President certifies to the appropriate
congressional committees that Cambodia is continuing to make
meaningful progress towards satisfying the conditions
described in such subsection during the previous year.

SEC. 5. SUNSET.

This Act shall terminate on the date that is five years
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

[[Page H7669]]

the United States, including a foreign branch of such an
entity.

Amendment Offered by Mr. Royce of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I have an amendment at the
desk.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Cambodia Democracy Act of
2018''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) 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 Cambodia People's
Party (CPP), which controls every agency and security
apparatus of the state.
(2) In 2015, the CPP-controlled parliament passed the ``Law
on Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations'', which
gave the government sweeping powers to revoke the
registration of NGOs that the government believed to be
operating with a political bias in a blatant attempt to
restrict the legitimate work of civil society. On August 23,
2017, Cambodia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs ordered the
closure of the National Democratic Institute 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 500 United States volunteers
providing English language and healthcare training.
(3) 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 Cambodian 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.
(4) Each of the five elections that have taken place in
Cambodia since 1991 were conducted in circumstances that were
not free and fair, and were marked by fraud, intimidation,
violence, and the government's misuse of legal mechanisms to
weaken opposition candidates and parties.
(5) On September 3, 2017, Kem Sokha, the President of the
Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), was arrested on
politically motivated charges, including treason and
conspiring to overthrow the Government of Cambodia, and faces
up to 30 years in prison. The CNRP's previous leader, Sam
Rainsy, remains in exile. On November 16, 2017, Cambodia's
Supreme Court dissolved the CNRP, eliminating the CPP's only
viable challenger.
(6) The United States is committed to promoting democracy,
human rights, and the rule of law in Cambodia. The United
States continues to urge the Government of Cambodia to
immediately release Mr. Kem Sokha, reinstate the political
status of the CNRP and its 55 elected seats in the National
Assembly, and support electoral reform efforts in Cambodia
with free and fair elections in 2018 monitored by
international observers.

SEC. 3. SANCTIONS RELATING TO UNDERMINING DEMOCRACY IN
CAMBODIA.

(a) Designation of Persons Responsible for Undermining
Democracy in Cambodia.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall apply
the sanctions described in subsection (b) on--
(1) each senior official of the Government, military, or
security forces of Cambodia that the President determines has
directly and substantially undermined democracy in Cambodia
(2) each senior official of the Government, military, or
security forces of Cambodia that the President determines has
committed or directed serious human rights violations
associated with undermining democracy in Cambodia; and
(3) entities owned or controlled by senior officials of the
Government, military, or security forces of Cambodia
described in (1) and (2).
(b) Sanctions Described.--
(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.) to the
extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in
property and interests in property of a person designated
under subsection (a) 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) Visa restrictions.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall continue to
implement the policy announced by the Department of State on
December 6, 2017, to restrict entry into the United States of
persons involved in undermining democracy in Cambodia,
including any person designated under subsection (a).
(B) Exception for multilateral activities.--Persons
otherwise restricted from entry into the United States under
this section may be admitted if such admission is necessary
to comply with United States obligations under the Agreement
between the United Nations and the United States of America
regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at
Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November
21, 1947, or under the Convention on Consular Relations, done
at Vienna April 24, 1963, and entered into force March 19,
1967, or other applicable international obligations of the
United States.
(3) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections
(b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person
that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or
causes a violation of paragraph (1) to the same extent that
such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act
described in subsection (a) of such section 206.
(e) List of Designated Persons.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall transmit to
the appropriate congressional committees a list of persons
designated under subsection (a).
(2) Updates.--The President shall transmit to the
appropriate congressional committees updated lists under
paragraph (1) as new information becomes available.
(f) 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.
(g) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of
sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to a
person designated under subsection (a) if the President
determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional
committees that such waiver is in the national interest of
the United States.

SEC. 4. SUSPENSION OF SANCTIONS.

SEC. 5. SUNSET.

This Act shall terminate on the date that is five years
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee
on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Financial Services of
the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Foreign
Relations and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs of the Senate.
(2) 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.
(3) 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.

Mr. ROYCE of California (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask
unanimous consent to dispense with the reading.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
The amendment was agreed to.
The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, was read
the third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the
table.

[[Page H7670]]

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