[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 31 (Monday, August 4, 2003)]
[Pages 993-995]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Letter to Congressional Leaders Reporting on the Burmese Freedom and 
Democracy Act of 2003 and the Accompanying Executive Order

July 28, 2003

Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. President:)

    Consistent with section 204(b) of the International Emergency 
Economic Powers Act, 50 U.S.C. 1703(b) (IEEPA) and section 301 of the 
National Emergencies Act, 50 U.S.C. 1631, I hereby report that I have 
issued an Executive Order (the ``Order'') that expands the sanctions 
against Burma currently in place pursuant to the national emergency with 
respect to Burma declared in Executive Order 13047 of May 20, 1997. 
Further, I hereby provide the notification to the Congress required by 
section 3(b) of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 (the 
``Act'') regarding my exercise of the waiver authorities provided in 
that section.
    In 1997, the United States put in place a prohibition on new 
investment in Burma in response to the Government of Burma's large scale 
repression of the democratic opposition in that country. Since that 
time, the Government of Burma has rejected our efforts and the efforts 
of others in the international community to end its repressive 
activities. In May of this year, that rejection manifested itself in a 
brutal and organized attack on the motorcade of Aung San Suu Kyi, a 
Nobel Peace Prize winner and leader of the peaceful democratic 
opposition party

[[Page 994]]

in Burma, the National League for Democracy. The Government of Burma has 
continued to ignore our requests for her to be released from 
confinement, for the other National League for Democracy leaders who 
were jailed before and after the attack to be released, and for the 
offices of the National League for Democracy to be allowed to reopen.
    I have now determined that this continued and increasing repression 
by the Government of Burma warrants an expansion of the sanctions 
against that government. I applaud the Congress' efforts to address the 
Government of Burma's action. The prohibitions contained in my Order 
implement sections 3 and 4 of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 
2003 and supplement that Act with additional restrictions.
    The Order blocks all property and interests in property of the State 
Peace and Development Council of Burma, the Myanma Foreign Trade Bank, 
the Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank (MICB), and the Myanma 
Economic Bank as well as all property and interests in property of 
persons determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation 
with the Secretary of State, to be senior officials of the Government of 
Burma, the State Peace and Development Council of Burma, the Union 
Solidarity and Development Association of Burma, or any successor entity 
to any of the foregoing; or to be owned or controlled by, or acting or 
purporting to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any of 
the foregoing. The Order also prohibits the exportation or re-
exportation of financial services to Burma either from the United States 
or by any United States person and, 30 days from the effective date of 
the Order, the importation into the United States of any article that is 
a product of Burma.
    The Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Department 
of State, will implement a remittance program authorizing limited 
personal transfers of funds and will authorize most transactions 
relating to humanitarian, educational, and official United States 
Government activities. Additionally, the Order grandfathers any 
activity, or trans-actions incident to any activity, other than the 
import of any products of Burma, undertaken pursuant to any agreement 
that was entered into by a United States person with the Government of 
Burma or a nongovernmental entity in Burma prior to May 21, 1997, the 
effective date of Executive Order 13047.
    I have determined that the waiver of the prohibitions described in 
section 3 of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003 with respect 
to any or all articles that are a product of Burma is in the national 
interest of the United States to the extent that prohibiting the 
importation of such articles would conflict with the international 
obligations of the United States under the Vienna Convention on 
Diplomatic Relations, the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the 
United Nations Headquarters Agreement, and other legal instruments 
providing equivalent privileges and immunities. In addition, in the 
exercise of my constitutional authorities under Article II of the 
Constitution to conduct the foreign relations of the United States, I 
will construe the Act in a manner that will in no way impair the 
existing ability of United States diplomatic and consular officials to 
import articles that are a product of Burma that are necessary to the 
performance of their functions as United States Government officials in 
Burma.
    The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of 
State, is authorized to issue regulations in the exercise of authorities 
under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and sections 3(a) 
and 4 of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003, other than the 
authority to make the determinations and certification to the Congress 
that Burma has met the conditions described in section 3(a)(3), to 
implement the measures provided in the Order. The Secretary of State is 
also authorized to exercise the functions and authorities conferred upon 
the President by section 3(b) of the Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act 
of 2003. All Federal agencies are directed to take actions within their 
authority to carry out the provisions of the Order.

[[Page 995]]

    I have enclosed a copy of the Executive Order I have issued. This 
Order becomes effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on July 29, 
2003.
     Sincerely,
                                                George W. Bush

Note: Identical letters were sent to J. Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the 
House of Representatives, and Richard B. Cheney, President of the 
Senate. H.R. 2330, approved July 28, was assigned Public Law No. 108-61.