I doubt that Bill Browder's visa revocation is an accident.
More likely, it was ordered by someone who is either directly sympathetic to Putin's goals or wants to make the administration look bad.
Regardless, Secretary Tillerson should make a personal apology on behalf of the agency to Mr. Browder, who, instead, should be lauded for his heroic efforts on behalf of human rights and anti-corruption.
Showing posts with label Global Magnitsky Act. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Global Magnitsky Act. Show all posts
Sunday, October 22, 2017
Monday, October 16, 2017
How US Can Prevent Future Unjust Imprisonments and Arbitrary Detentions of Americans by Cuba and Others
In early October, a US citizen and her husband, a former Cuban diplomat, were sentenced to 13 and 17 years respectively on charges of espionage by a military court in Havana. This sentencing follows the expulsion of 15 Cuban diplomats from the United States by the State Department, after Cuba failed to protect US diplomatic personnel from repeated sonic attacks on its territory. This news went largely unnoticed by U.S. media and thus elicited no outrage or condemnation by the international community, nor public expressions of concern by the State Department.
Cuba has a long and sordid history of arresting critics, dissidents, and foreigners on trumped up national security charges. Alan Gross is but the most famous of foreigners who spent years in Cuban prison for humanitarian work and assistance in civil engagement. Cuban government had engaged in a campaign of extortion, and finally released Mr. Gross, after US paid over $3 million in settlement. It seems that the Castro regime was less concerned about the assault on its law than about getting a hefty renumeration for its own pockets. President Trump acted to restrict tourist travel to Cuba for American citizens in June, but that still leaves 12 categories of travel legal and does not address the issue of American citizens who are already in Cuba. In other words, US nationals continue to travel to Cuba for various, entirely valid reasons, and yet are subject to arbitrary detentions, imprisonment on trumped up charges, denial of medical treatment in Cuban jails, and abuse of all kinds.
The Alan Gross case had worked in Cuba's favor and set a precedent of successful use of Americans as hostage, whose release can be negotiated for financial and political boons. President Obama's shift in policy, normalizing the diplomatic relations between the two countries did little to address the Castro regime's illegitimate use of the justice system to secure payments for prisoners, that under normal circumstances would be considered a form of racketeering under US RICO statutes. Two years after normalization, this shift in policy has failed to empower and enrich millions of Cubans unaffiliated with the Castro regime, has not only not fixed the deplorable human rights situation but actually led to a crackdown on human rights activists, caused medical concerns for US diplomats in Cuba, and in general, and with respect to anyone and anything excepting the wealthiest crony investors, has misfired "big league".
The worst of it for the US is that Cuba continues to play it both ways - demands legitimacy accorded to it by the normalized relations, while also continuing to use Americans as pawns against the US government. This latest conviction is not only a perverse tit-for-tat in retaliation for the expulsion of the Cuban diplomats from the United States, but a reminder that Cuba, despite being smaller, weaker, and known for its support of terrorists and rogue regimes from all over the world, still has the upper hand in its relations with the United States. Cuba can detain, convict, and abuse Americans and the US will play right into its hands, because the US values human life and the Castro regime does not. US is willing to go to extreme lengths to secure the release of its unjustly held citizens and permanent residents, whereas for Cuba, a person is only worth as much as the regime can get in payment for his release. And until recently, short of banning all travel to Cuba, we were powerless to do anything about it, because we have no leverage short of going along with the demands of the extortionist regime and exchanging prisoners or paying money. We are not willing to engage in the same terrorist behavior and hold Cuban diplomats or citizens hostages here just to secure the release of American nationals.
But what recourse do we have under such circumstances? It appearance that we do have a path forward that does not include negotiations with an illegitimate revolutionary regime that thinks nothing of extortionist abductions to further its goals. After examining existing human rights laws on the books, I discovered that:
* Currently, there are no laws, nor pending bills that would penalize states or individuals or entities responsible for arbitrary detentions, arrests, denial of medical treatment, or torture against US citizens and permanent residents.
* The only legislative requirements associated with US prisoners in other countries are regular reporting requirements by the President to Congress, which obviously do not do much to assist those in need.
* Currently, there are at least 10 US citizens & permanent residents held captive in Iran, at least 4 in North Korea, at least one in Turkey, and just this weekend, there has been news of conviction of a US citizen on Cuba on espionage charges, resulting in a 13 year sentence.
* In the past, US citizens have been held or convicted on trumped up charges, denied medical treatment, and brutally tortured in a number of countries. Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Turkey have all used the imprisonment of these individuals to extort political and financial concessions from the United States.
* One solution to this legislative gap would be a law incorporating Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act type language, that would would assert visa cancelations and asset freezes for any individuals and entities associated with unjust treatment of US nationals. That would include judges, prison guards, wardens, torturers, and doctors involved in denial of life-saving medical treatment in prisons.
* Such legislation would essentially ostracize anyone involved in such activity on the basis of their unconscionable actions, and not simply for the fact of membership in an organization such as IRGC. Organizations can dissolve or be renamed; many of the people involved in the lawless arrests and imprisonment of Americans are not members of any political organizations, and yet contribute to this gross injustice.
* In addition to making such people unwelcome in the international arena, and denying them the possibility of utilizing the US banking system, as well as providing a bit of justice for the survivors and for the families of people who have gone missing or died as a result of actions by these state enablers (such as Bob Levinson and Otto Warmbier), this legislation would likely positively affect the outcome of hostage negotiations by giving the executive branch additional leverage in conducting these talks. Currently, we have no leverage and as a result have been forced to either admit defeat and retreat or to grant concessions which only encourage what ultimately amounts to terrorist behavior.
* Another positive aspect of this legislation is making these countries safe for travel. Executive actions are currently preventing US citizens from traveling to countries such as North Korea, and strong travel warnings and restrictions have been placed on Cuba and other places. Visas have are not being issues for travel to Turkey. Such actions ultimately only hurt the idea of freedom of travel, which is central to a functioning democracy, and are only necessary because currently there is no other way of providing for the basic security of those traveling to these countries. Such measures are inimical to health people-to-people relations and any possibility of business, cultivating individual relationships, or frankly, even liberalizing such countries through their exposure to Western ideas and private initiatives. A much better way of ensuring security for Westerners is attacking the cause of all problems - extortionist state action, which endangers travelers. Legislation that penalizes those who benefit from such extortion would disincentivize these states from further engaging in such actions, deter abductions, and make US travels restrictions less necessary.
And while the audience considers the upsides of taking legislative action that would empower our negotiators and reduce the power of racketeering regimes over the United States, I hope the White House considers highlighting this case of a gross miscarriage of justice, publicly denounces the Castro regime's extortion, shuts down the US embassy in Cuba until further notice, and expels the remaining diplomats from the United States. There is no reason why the enablers and servants of the Castro regime should continue to be treated as legitimate actors by the international community while continuing to engage in illegitimate actions and unjust convictions of foreigners. Civilians are not, and should never be, fair game during diplomatic tensions, and this instant conviction for "spying" that has come so shortly after the expulsion of Cuban diplomats from the US, should be no exception.
Cuba has a long and sordid history of arresting critics, dissidents, and foreigners on trumped up national security charges. Alan Gross is but the most famous of foreigners who spent years in Cuban prison for humanitarian work and assistance in civil engagement. Cuban government had engaged in a campaign of extortion, and finally released Mr. Gross, after US paid over $3 million in settlement. It seems that the Castro regime was less concerned about the assault on its law than about getting a hefty renumeration for its own pockets. President Trump acted to restrict tourist travel to Cuba for American citizens in June, but that still leaves 12 categories of travel legal and does not address the issue of American citizens who are already in Cuba. In other words, US nationals continue to travel to Cuba for various, entirely valid reasons, and yet are subject to arbitrary detentions, imprisonment on trumped up charges, denial of medical treatment in Cuban jails, and abuse of all kinds.
The Alan Gross case had worked in Cuba's favor and set a precedent of successful use of Americans as hostage, whose release can be negotiated for financial and political boons. President Obama's shift in policy, normalizing the diplomatic relations between the two countries did little to address the Castro regime's illegitimate use of the justice system to secure payments for prisoners, that under normal circumstances would be considered a form of racketeering under US RICO statutes. Two years after normalization, this shift in policy has failed to empower and enrich millions of Cubans unaffiliated with the Castro regime, has not only not fixed the deplorable human rights situation but actually led to a crackdown on human rights activists, caused medical concerns for US diplomats in Cuba, and in general, and with respect to anyone and anything excepting the wealthiest crony investors, has misfired "big league".
The worst of it for the US is that Cuba continues to play it both ways - demands legitimacy accorded to it by the normalized relations, while also continuing to use Americans as pawns against the US government. This latest conviction is not only a perverse tit-for-tat in retaliation for the expulsion of the Cuban diplomats from the United States, but a reminder that Cuba, despite being smaller, weaker, and known for its support of terrorists and rogue regimes from all over the world, still has the upper hand in its relations with the United States. Cuba can detain, convict, and abuse Americans and the US will play right into its hands, because the US values human life and the Castro regime does not. US is willing to go to extreme lengths to secure the release of its unjustly held citizens and permanent residents, whereas for Cuba, a person is only worth as much as the regime can get in payment for his release. And until recently, short of banning all travel to Cuba, we were powerless to do anything about it, because we have no leverage short of going along with the demands of the extortionist regime and exchanging prisoners or paying money. We are not willing to engage in the same terrorist behavior and hold Cuban diplomats or citizens hostages here just to secure the release of American nationals.
But what recourse do we have under such circumstances? It appearance that we do have a path forward that does not include negotiations with an illegitimate revolutionary regime that thinks nothing of extortionist abductions to further its goals. After examining existing human rights laws on the books, I discovered that:
* Currently, there are no laws, nor pending bills that would penalize states or individuals or entities responsible for arbitrary detentions, arrests, denial of medical treatment, or torture against US citizens and permanent residents.
* The only legislative requirements associated with US prisoners in other countries are regular reporting requirements by the President to Congress, which obviously do not do much to assist those in need.
* Currently, there are at least 10 US citizens & permanent residents held captive in Iran, at least 4 in North Korea, at least one in Turkey, and just this weekend, there has been news of conviction of a US citizen on Cuba on espionage charges, resulting in a 13 year sentence.
* In the past, US citizens have been held or convicted on trumped up charges, denied medical treatment, and brutally tortured in a number of countries. Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Turkey have all used the imprisonment of these individuals to extort political and financial concessions from the United States.
* One solution to this legislative gap would be a law incorporating Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act type language, that would would assert visa cancelations and asset freezes for any individuals and entities associated with unjust treatment of US nationals. That would include judges, prison guards, wardens, torturers, and doctors involved in denial of life-saving medical treatment in prisons.
* Such legislation would essentially ostracize anyone involved in such activity on the basis of their unconscionable actions, and not simply for the fact of membership in an organization such as IRGC. Organizations can dissolve or be renamed; many of the people involved in the lawless arrests and imprisonment of Americans are not members of any political organizations, and yet contribute to this gross injustice.
* In addition to making such people unwelcome in the international arena, and denying them the possibility of utilizing the US banking system, as well as providing a bit of justice for the survivors and for the families of people who have gone missing or died as a result of actions by these state enablers (such as Bob Levinson and Otto Warmbier), this legislation would likely positively affect the outcome of hostage negotiations by giving the executive branch additional leverage in conducting these talks. Currently, we have no leverage and as a result have been forced to either admit defeat and retreat or to grant concessions which only encourage what ultimately amounts to terrorist behavior.
* Another positive aspect of this legislation is making these countries safe for travel. Executive actions are currently preventing US citizens from traveling to countries such as North Korea, and strong travel warnings and restrictions have been placed on Cuba and other places. Visas have are not being issues for travel to Turkey. Such actions ultimately only hurt the idea of freedom of travel, which is central to a functioning democracy, and are only necessary because currently there is no other way of providing for the basic security of those traveling to these countries. Such measures are inimical to health people-to-people relations and any possibility of business, cultivating individual relationships, or frankly, even liberalizing such countries through their exposure to Western ideas and private initiatives. A much better way of ensuring security for Westerners is attacking the cause of all problems - extortionist state action, which endangers travelers. Legislation that penalizes those who benefit from such extortion would disincentivize these states from further engaging in such actions, deter abductions, and make US travels restrictions less necessary.
And while the audience considers the upsides of taking legislative action that would empower our negotiators and reduce the power of racketeering regimes over the United States, I hope the White House considers highlighting this case of a gross miscarriage of justice, publicly denounces the Castro regime's extortion, shuts down the US embassy in Cuba until further notice, and expels the remaining diplomats from the United States. There is no reason why the enablers and servants of the Castro regime should continue to be treated as legitimate actors by the international community while continuing to engage in illegitimate actions and unjust convictions of foreigners. Civilians are not, and should never be, fair game during diplomatic tensions, and this instant conviction for "spying" that has come so shortly after the expulsion of Cuban diplomats from the US, should be no exception.
Friday, October 6, 2017
The Limitations of Current Human Rights Legislation in the US
I will be writing on this topic a lot more in the next few days, but for now a few quick thoughts on human rights and counterterrorism laws in the US:
* The Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act is applicable only to human rights defenders, and only when their abusers are foreign nationals. If there is a US-based company or firm that is promoting or is compliant with censorship abroad, it cannot be held accountable under that particular provision in the US.
* The most recent sanctions against Iran, North Korea, and Russia (Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), essentially designates IRGC as a terrorist organization.
The IRGC will be placed on the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists following these procedures becoming law and US President Donald Trump taking the engagements necessary. The following is a list of the actions stated in this House resolution:
All assets and property in the US belonging to IRGC-linked individuals and entities will be frozen.
No American individual or entity has the right to establish financial, business, services or other affiliations with any individuals directly or indirectly associated to the IRGC.
No American individual or entity has the right to violate these sanctions through intermediaries or bypassing these procedures.
All individuals and entities having any relations with the IRGC must be sanctioned. Considering the fact that the IRGC officially enjoy a variety of connections and associations, this will effectively be paralyzing for Iran. One such example is the IRGC Khatam al-Anbiya group that is currently cooperating with more than 2,500 economic firms. All these companies will be sanctioned, rendering any relations with them illegal.
As these measures place the IRGC under secondary banking sanctions, practically no financial institution will be permitted to provide direct and/or indirect banking services to IRGC-linked individuals and entities. No foreign bank will cooperate with any Iranian entity that is in any way related to the IRGC and/or its affiliated entities.
The issue here is not so much undesirable designation as enforcement. The administration needs to consistently place any individuals associated with IRGC on sanctions list and make it into a frequent and very public embarrassment.
Likewise, there are many groups and individuals in Iran, associated with terrorism and human rights abuses who are not IRGC and are not affiliated with it. They, too, should not be overlooked. Quick research will reveal that many such low level individuals are employed in the police, serve as doctors in prison, judges, and others, who facilitate all sorts of horrible activity with no legal repercussions.
Although much of the current human rights legislation aimed at curtailing human rights abuses in Iran is aimed at protecting human rights defenders, the regime does not distinguish between human rights defenders and everyone else. Random people are swept up on trumped up charges, such as "national security" violations and under blasphemy laws. Highlighting and exposing the abuse of blasphemy laws to cover up abuse against human rights defenders should be a top priority for the US and anyone concerned with the horrific abuses in Iran.
Similarly, human rights legislation aimed at other countries, such as Venezuela and North Korea, should be reviewed and updated periodically. One recent piece of legislation aims to blacklist individuals associated with abuse of participants in the massive 2014 anti-government protests, forgetting that much has happened since then, and neither opposition activity nor human rights abuses stopped with that particular episode.
Finally, there is no US legislation penalizing either states or individuals for arbitrary detentions,serious human rights abuses, and extortionism involving the abduction of US nationals. The closest that we have is a serious of reporting requirements by the executive branch to Congress, which does nothing to pressure the culprit states such as Iran, North Korea, or Turkey that extrajudicial torture, arrests on trumped up charges, and disappearances of our citizens and permanent residents will not be tolerated. I would recommend in strongest possible terms legislation holding states and individuals involved accountable for such acts of aggression against the United States.
* The Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act is applicable only to human rights defenders, and only when their abusers are foreign nationals. If there is a US-based company or firm that is promoting or is compliant with censorship abroad, it cannot be held accountable under that particular provision in the US.
* The most recent sanctions against Iran, North Korea, and Russia (Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), essentially designates IRGC as a terrorist organization.
The IRGC will be placed on the list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists following these procedures becoming law and US President Donald Trump taking the engagements necessary. The following is a list of the actions stated in this House resolution:
All assets and property in the US belonging to IRGC-linked individuals and entities will be frozen.
No American individual or entity has the right to establish financial, business, services or other affiliations with any individuals directly or indirectly associated to the IRGC.
No American individual or entity has the right to violate these sanctions through intermediaries or bypassing these procedures.
All individuals and entities having any relations with the IRGC must be sanctioned. Considering the fact that the IRGC officially enjoy a variety of connections and associations, this will effectively be paralyzing for Iran. One such example is the IRGC Khatam al-Anbiya group that is currently cooperating with more than 2,500 economic firms. All these companies will be sanctioned, rendering any relations with them illegal.
As these measures place the IRGC under secondary banking sanctions, practically no financial institution will be permitted to provide direct and/or indirect banking services to IRGC-linked individuals and entities. No foreign bank will cooperate with any Iranian entity that is in any way related to the IRGC and/or its affiliated entities.
The issue here is not so much undesirable designation as enforcement. The administration needs to consistently place any individuals associated with IRGC on sanctions list and make it into a frequent and very public embarrassment.
Likewise, there are many groups and individuals in Iran, associated with terrorism and human rights abuses who are not IRGC and are not affiliated with it. They, too, should not be overlooked. Quick research will reveal that many such low level individuals are employed in the police, serve as doctors in prison, judges, and others, who facilitate all sorts of horrible activity with no legal repercussions.
Although much of the current human rights legislation aimed at curtailing human rights abuses in Iran is aimed at protecting human rights defenders, the regime does not distinguish between human rights defenders and everyone else. Random people are swept up on trumped up charges, such as "national security" violations and under blasphemy laws. Highlighting and exposing the abuse of blasphemy laws to cover up abuse against human rights defenders should be a top priority for the US and anyone concerned with the horrific abuses in Iran.
Similarly, human rights legislation aimed at other countries, such as Venezuela and North Korea, should be reviewed and updated periodically. One recent piece of legislation aims to blacklist individuals associated with abuse of participants in the massive 2014 anti-government protests, forgetting that much has happened since then, and neither opposition activity nor human rights abuses stopped with that particular episode.
Finally, there is no US legislation penalizing either states or individuals for arbitrary detentions,serious human rights abuses, and extortionism involving the abduction of US nationals. The closest that we have is a serious of reporting requirements by the executive branch to Congress, which does nothing to pressure the culprit states such as Iran, North Korea, or Turkey that extrajudicial torture, arrests on trumped up charges, and disappearances of our citizens and permanent residents will not be tolerated. I would recommend in strongest possible terms legislation holding states and individuals involved accountable for such acts of aggression against the United States.
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
NGOs and Human Rights Enforcement
If you are curious how exactly the administration decides how to designate human rights violators for blacklists, the screening process for this dubious honor is split between the Congress and NGOs.
The two NGOs who are taking the lead on profiling and recommending human rights abusers are Human Rights First, and Freedom House.
Recently, HRF called on the administration to utilize the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to designate culprits from 15 different countries.
It took the organization many months to come up with that package. The countries included Azerbaijan, Bahrain, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Liberia, Mexico, Panama, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
You may note that NOT included on the list were individuals from:
Iran, Turkey, Cuba, and Venezuela.
Also did not make it on this blacklist:
Anyone from North Korea.
Interestingly, Mr. Rob Berschinski, who heads the process, was formerly, Obama Administration's Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) , and apparently did a lot of work on Iran.
If you are curious as to how the process of designation works, why it takes so long to put together a package, what factors are taken into consideration, and what happens once HRF decides to make the recommendation.... so am I.
I think all human rights activists and lawyers who are looking to help their clients in the US and abroad should be familiar with the process and best prepared to offer all appropriate cooperation to the NGO and other entities involved in the decisionmaking.
The two NGOs who are taking the lead on profiling and recommending human rights abusers are Human Rights First, and Freedom House.
Recently, HRF called on the administration to utilize the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act to designate culprits from 15 different countries.
It took the organization many months to come up with that package. The countries included Azerbaijan, Bahrain, China, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Liberia, Mexico, Panama, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
You may note that NOT included on the list were individuals from:
Iran, Turkey, Cuba, and Venezuela.
Also did not make it on this blacklist:
Anyone from North Korea.
Interestingly, Mr. Rob Berschinski, who heads the process, was formerly, Obama Administration's Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) , and apparently did a lot of work on Iran.
If you are curious as to how the process of designation works, why it takes so long to put together a package, what factors are taken into consideration, and what happens once HRF decides to make the recommendation.... so am I.
I think all human rights activists and lawyers who are looking to help their clients in the US and abroad should be familiar with the process and best prepared to offer all appropriate cooperation to the NGO and other entities involved in the decisionmaking.
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
North Korea Should Be Punished For Human Rights Violations, Including Otto Warmbier's Murder
Recently, the world's attention has been on North Korea due to its incessant threats to world peace, stability, and freedom.
Largely, the reaction of the international community in the form of new UN and US-led economic sanctions, rearmament, various demonstrations of military force, threats, speeches, and angry tweets were aimed at North Korea's repeated ICBM tests, braggadocio regarding its latest nuclear developments, and escalating apocalyptic rhetoric.
Although the House recently passed a new incarnation of the North Korean Human Rights Act, aimed at providing information from the outside world to the North Koreans, its substance is mostly aimed at empowering the average citizens, rather than at punishing the regime for turning the entire country into a concentration camp, for the mass arrests of its people, and the horrendous tortures of its citizens and the unlucky foreigners captured upon visit. Recently, the United States banned travel of US citizens to North Korea, largely to avoid the likely scenarios of having to negotiate with the totalitarian regime for the release - and tragically failing, as happened most recently in the case of Otto Warmbier, a student who was arrested, sentenced to 15 years of hard labor, but who, after brutal torture, had to be evacuate and died shortly upon his return to the United States.
But again, that is a preventative measure aimed at protecting US citizens, rather than a punitive measure against the regime.
After Warmbier's death, the only US reaction was ramped up rhetoric and a symbolic overflight of military planes in a show of force, which did little to deter the immediate escalation of aggression by North Korea on other fronts. No sanctions were levied against DPRK for that abduction on trumped up charges, and for the brutality resulting in murder. Despite the existing infrastructure of the Global Magnitsky Act, signed into by President Obama in 2016, no individuals or entities associated with this abhorrent series of events, was ever singled out for international shaming, and at the very least, symbolic PNGing from the United States and personal asset freeze. It took more than just the political elites to murder Warmbier, just as it takes more than just the members of the regime giving the orders to arrest, torture, and execute North Korean citizens on a daily basis. The police officers who arrested him, the judge who sentenced him, the wardens and the guards in the prisons where Warmbier spent the last year and a half of his life, the doctors who allegedly provided him with medical care and who lied about the conditions that led to his death, and frankly, even the negotiators who refused to release Mr. Warmbier in a timely manner into US custody, should all be held accountable for their part in this heinous act, and should be denied legitimacy in the eyes of the American people and international community. Publicly and irreversibly.
And sanctions against the regime itself should be levied specifically on the basis of this act of aggression against the United States, and violation of human rights under international law. I advocate for these seemingly unenforceable steps for the following reasons:
First, the Warmbier family deserves justice. Sanctions and punishments against all involved won't bring their son back, but they will know that the US values each individual's life, and will deal swiftly with anyone who deals with its citizens in such an unconscionable manner. Mr. Warmbier's suffering and death will not be for naught.
Second, DPRK and other countries around the world, engage in hostage-taking of foreigners, will get the message - US will not stand by idly, allowing these noxious regime to continue grabbing innocent people on trumped up charges, in violation of all international norms and basic civility. And particularly, further attacks on its own citizens will no longer be tolerated
Third, other US hostages around the world will get a sure morale boost from knowing that their country values them as human beings. It's not just about the US government not looking good as a result of failed negotiations, but rather, US passport has value, and if the US government cannot immediately get them out of their predicaments, it sure will make it hurt until it is no longer profitable to engage in these unjust imprisonments.
Fourth, by levying punishment on the basis of such abductions and other human rights violations, US is insisting on the value it puts on basic norms of civilized behave and reasserts its international leadership in maintaining a secure environment.
And fifth, the worst of human rights violators are also a danger and a threat to their neighbors and other adversaries on other fronts. If human rights violations against foreigners who travel are ignored, and attacks on the national sovereignty against their countries are dismissed, these aggressor are further emboldened to attack on other fronts and by other means. Unjust detention, torture, and murder of anyone US citizens should be considered an act of war on par with a missile thrown in our general direction, and treated with equal harshness.
We, should, at all times, carry ourselves from the position of strength, both military and moral. For we are indeed superior to North Korea's monstrous regime, and while we may choose to respect its sovereignty and not intervene to change the form of government, however awful, there are lines that can never be crossed, and that red line is attacks on and murder of US citizens.
Largely, the reaction of the international community in the form of new UN and US-led economic sanctions, rearmament, various demonstrations of military force, threats, speeches, and angry tweets were aimed at North Korea's repeated ICBM tests, braggadocio regarding its latest nuclear developments, and escalating apocalyptic rhetoric.
Although the House recently passed a new incarnation of the North Korean Human Rights Act, aimed at providing information from the outside world to the North Koreans, its substance is mostly aimed at empowering the average citizens, rather than at punishing the regime for turning the entire country into a concentration camp, for the mass arrests of its people, and the horrendous tortures of its citizens and the unlucky foreigners captured upon visit. Recently, the United States banned travel of US citizens to North Korea, largely to avoid the likely scenarios of having to negotiate with the totalitarian regime for the release - and tragically failing, as happened most recently in the case of Otto Warmbier, a student who was arrested, sentenced to 15 years of hard labor, but who, after brutal torture, had to be evacuate and died shortly upon his return to the United States.
But again, that is a preventative measure aimed at protecting US citizens, rather than a punitive measure against the regime.
After Warmbier's death, the only US reaction was ramped up rhetoric and a symbolic overflight of military planes in a show of force, which did little to deter the immediate escalation of aggression by North Korea on other fronts. No sanctions were levied against DPRK for that abduction on trumped up charges, and for the brutality resulting in murder. Despite the existing infrastructure of the Global Magnitsky Act, signed into by President Obama in 2016, no individuals or entities associated with this abhorrent series of events, was ever singled out for international shaming, and at the very least, symbolic PNGing from the United States and personal asset freeze. It took more than just the political elites to murder Warmbier, just as it takes more than just the members of the regime giving the orders to arrest, torture, and execute North Korean citizens on a daily basis. The police officers who arrested him, the judge who sentenced him, the wardens and the guards in the prisons where Warmbier spent the last year and a half of his life, the doctors who allegedly provided him with medical care and who lied about the conditions that led to his death, and frankly, even the negotiators who refused to release Mr. Warmbier in a timely manner into US custody, should all be held accountable for their part in this heinous act, and should be denied legitimacy in the eyes of the American people and international community. Publicly and irreversibly.
And sanctions against the regime itself should be levied specifically on the basis of this act of aggression against the United States, and violation of human rights under international law. I advocate for these seemingly unenforceable steps for the following reasons:
First, the Warmbier family deserves justice. Sanctions and punishments against all involved won't bring their son back, but they will know that the US values each individual's life, and will deal swiftly with anyone who deals with its citizens in such an unconscionable manner. Mr. Warmbier's suffering and death will not be for naught.
Second, DPRK and other countries around the world, engage in hostage-taking of foreigners, will get the message - US will not stand by idly, allowing these noxious regime to continue grabbing innocent people on trumped up charges, in violation of all international norms and basic civility. And particularly, further attacks on its own citizens will no longer be tolerated
Third, other US hostages around the world will get a sure morale boost from knowing that their country values them as human beings. It's not just about the US government not looking good as a result of failed negotiations, but rather, US passport has value, and if the US government cannot immediately get them out of their predicaments, it sure will make it hurt until it is no longer profitable to engage in these unjust imprisonments.
Fourth, by levying punishment on the basis of such abductions and other human rights violations, US is insisting on the value it puts on basic norms of civilized behave and reasserts its international leadership in maintaining a secure environment.
And fifth, the worst of human rights violators are also a danger and a threat to their neighbors and other adversaries on other fronts. If human rights violations against foreigners who travel are ignored, and attacks on the national sovereignty against their countries are dismissed, these aggressor are further emboldened to attack on other fronts and by other means. Unjust detention, torture, and murder of anyone US citizens should be considered an act of war on par with a missile thrown in our general direction, and treated with equal harshness.
We, should, at all times, carry ourselves from the position of strength, both military and moral. For we are indeed superior to North Korea's monstrous regime, and while we may choose to respect its sovereignty and not intervene to change the form of government, however awful, there are lines that can never be crossed, and that red line is attacks on and murder of US citizens.
Tuesday, September 26, 2017
Global Magnitsky Act, A Valuable Tool, Woefully Underutilized
Question for the masses:
Global Magnitsky Act has been signed into law in 2016, yet is only starting to get implemented now. Despite a potentially infinite number of candidates, it is not being used all that much. Most of the sanctions against truly bad actors is based off of their terrorist activity, illicit military action, or nuclear proliferation.
Why do you suppose we don't utilize available actions for enforcement to the full extent? By the way, if there are any specific entities or individuals from any country you would like to "nominate" for consideration, please feel free to send to me publicly or privately. I'm also posting this on the blog.
Global Magnitsky Act has been signed into law in 2016, yet is only starting to get implemented now. Despite a potentially infinite number of candidates, it is not being used all that much. Most of the sanctions against truly bad actors is based off of their terrorist activity, illicit military action, or nuclear proliferation.
Why do you suppose we don't utilize available actions for enforcement to the full extent? By the way, if there are any specific entities or individuals from any country you would like to "nominate" for consideration, please feel free to send to me publicly or privately. I'm also posting this on the blog.
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