The Myanmar (Sanctions) Regulations 2021
2021 No. 496
Sanctions
The Myanmar (Sanctions) Regulations 2021
Made 26th April 2021
Laid before Parliament 29th April 2021
Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(2) and (3)
The Secretary of State1, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 1(1)(c) and (3)(b), 3(1)(a), (b)(ii) and (iii), and (d)(i), (ii) and (iii), 4, 5, 9(2)(a), 10(2)(a) and (c), (3) and (4), 11, 15(2)(a) and (b), (3), (4)(b), (5) and (6), 16, 17, 19, 20, 21(1), 54(1) and (2) and 62(4) to (6) of, and paragraphs 2(a)(iii) and (b), 4(a)(iii), (b) and (c), 5(a)(ii) and (iii) and (b), 6(a)(ii) and (iii) and (b), 10(b), 11(a)(ii) and (iii), 13(a), (b), (g), (h), (k), (l), (m), (n) and (w), 14(a), (f) and (k), 17, 19 to 23 and 27 of Schedule 1 to, the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 20182, and having decided, upon consideration of the matters set out in section 2(2) of that Act, that it is appropriate to do so, makes the following Regulations:
PART 1
General
Citation and commencement
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Myanmar (Sanctions) Regulations 2021.
(2) The following provisions come into force at 2.00 p.m. on 29th April 2021—
(a)
(a) this regulation;
(b)
(b) regulation 2 (interpretation);
(c)
(c) regulation 4 (purposes);
(d)
(d) regulation 5 (power to designate persons);
(e)
(e) regulation 6 (designation criteria);
(f)
(f) regulation 7 (meaning of “owned or controlled directly or indirectly”);
(g)
(g) regulation 8 (notification and publicity where designation power used);
(h)
(h) Schedule 1 (rules for interpretation of regulation 7(2)).
(3) All other provisions come into force at 5.00 p.m. on 29th April 2021.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations—
“the Act” means the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018;
“arrangement” includes any agreement, understanding, scheme, transaction or series of transactions, whether or not legally enforceable (but see paragraph 12 of Schedule 1 for the meaning of that term in that Schedule);
“CEMA” means the Customs and Excise Management Act 19793;
“the Commissioners” means the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;
“conduct” includes acts and omissions;
“document” includes information recorded in any form and, in relation to information recorded otherwise than in legible form, references to its production include producing a copy of the information in legible form;
“the Dual-Use Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009of 5 May 2009 setting up a Community regime for the control of exports, transfer, brokering and transit of dual-use items;
“humanitarian assistance activity” includes the work of international and non-governmental organisations carrying out relief activities in Myanmar for the benefit of the civilian population there;
“the Myanmar security forces” means the Tatmadaw and the Myanmar Police Force, including the Border Guard Force, and any person acting on their behalf or under their command or control;
“serious human rights violation or abuse” means a serious violation or abuse of any of the human rights specified in regulation 4;
“the Tatmadaw” means the Myanmar Armed Forces;
“trade licence” means a licence under regulation 45;
“Treasury licence” means a licence under regulation 44(1);
“United Kingdom person” has the same meaning as in section 21 of the Act.
Application of prohibitions and requirements outside the United Kingdom
3.—(1) A United Kingdom person may contravene a relevant prohibition by conduct wholly or partly outside the United Kingdom.
(2) Any person may contravene a relevant prohibition by conduct in the territorial sea.
(3) In this regulation, a “relevant prohibition” means any prohibition imposed by—
(a)
(a) regulation 9(2) (confidential information),
(b)
(b) Part 3 (Finance),
(c)
(c) Part 5 (Trade), or
(d)
(d) a condition of a Treasury licence or a trade licence.
(4) A United Kingdom person may comply, or fail to comply, with a relevant requirement by conduct wholly or partly outside the United Kingdom.
(5) Any person may comply, or fail to comply, with a relevant requirement by conduct in the territorial sea.
(6) In this regulation, a “relevant requirement” means any requirement imposed—
(a)
(a) by or under Part 7 (Information and records), or by reason of a request made under a power conferred by that Part, or
(b)
(b) by a condition of a Treasury licence or a trade licence.
(7) Nothing in this regulation is to be taken to prevent a relevant prohibition or a relevant requirement from applying to conduct (by any person) in the United Kingdom.
Purposes
4. The purposes of the regulations contained in this instrument are to—
(a) promote the peace, stability and security of Myanmar;
(b) promote respect for democracy, the rule of law and good governance in Myanmar, including in particular promoting the successful completion of Myanmar’s transition to a democratic country;
(c) discourage actions, policies or activities which repress the civilian population in Myanmar;
(d) promote compliance with international human rights law and respect for human rights in Myanmar, including in particular, respect for—
(i) the right to life of persons in Myanmar;
(ii) the right of persons in Myanmar not to be held in slavery or required to perform forced or compulsory labour;
(iii) the right of persons in Myanmar, including in particular the Rohingya, not to be subjected to forced deportation or forcible transfer from Myanmar;
(iv) the right of persons not to be subject to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in Myanmar, including in the context of—
(aa) violence against persons on the basis of their political opinion, religious belief or ethnicity,
(bb) rape and other forms of sexual and gender-based violence, or
(cc) recruitment or use of, or violence against, children;
(v) the right to liberty and security of persons in Myanmar, including freedom from arbitrary arrest, detention or enforced disappearance;
(vi) the right to a fair trial of persons charged with criminal offences in Myanmar;
(vii) the rights of journalists, human rights defenders, civil society activists, religious leaders, politicians and all other persons in Myanmar to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association with others;
(viii) the enjoyment of rights and freedoms in Myanmar without discrimination, including on the basis of a person’s sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.
PART 2
Designation of persons
Power to designate persons
5.—(1) The Secretary of State may designate persons4by name for the purposes of any of the following—
(a)
(a) regulations 11 to 15 (asset-freeze etc.);
(b)
(b) regulation 17 (immigration).
(2) The Secretary of State may designate different persons for the purposes of different provisions mentioned in paragraph (1).
Designation criteria
6.—(1) The Secretary of State may not designate a person under regulation 5 (power to designate persons) unless the Secretary of State—
(a)
(a) has reasonable grounds to suspect that that person is an involved person, and
(b)
(b) considers that the designation of that person is appropriate, having regard to—
(i) the purposes stated in regulation 4 (purposes), and
(ii) the likely significant effects of the designation on that person (as they appear to the Secretary of State to be on the basis of the information that the Secretary of State has).
(2) In this regulation, an “involved person” means a person who—
(a)
(a) is or has been involved in—
(i) undermining democracy, the rule of law or good governance in Myanmar;
(ii) the repression of the civilian population in Myanmar;
(iii) the commission of, or the obstruction of an independent investigation into, a serious human rights violation or abuse in Myanmar;
(iv) the commission of a violation of international humanitarian law in Myanmar;
(v) the obstruction of a humanitarian assistance activity in Myanmar;
(vi) any other action, policy or activity which threatens the peace, stability or security of Myanmar,
(b)
(b) is owned or controlled directly or indirectly (within the meaning of regulation 7) by a person who is or has been so involved,
(c)
(c) is acting on behalf of or at the direction of a person who is or has been so involved, or
(d)
(d) is a member of, or associated with, a person who is or has been so involved.
(3) Any reference in this regulation to being involved in one or more of the activities set out in paragraph (2)(a) includes being involved in whatever way and wherever any actions constituting the involvement take place, and in particular includes—
(a)
(a) being responsible for, engaging in, providing support for, or promoting such an activity;
(b)
(b) providing financial services, or making available funds or economic resources, that could contribute to such an activity;
(c)
(c) profiting financially, or obtaining any other benefit, from such an activity;
(d)
(d) providing financial services to, or making available funds or economic resources directly or indirectly to or for the benefit of, the Myanmar security forces;
(e)
(e) carrying out activities as a member of, or working for, the State Administration Council;
(f)
(f) working for, or being affiliated to, the Myanmar security forces as—
(i) a member of the Myanmar security forces of the rank of colonel or the equivalent or higher,
(ii) a member of the Border Guard Force,
(iii) a member of a militia,
(iv) a MSF-affiliated business, or
(v) a patron, director, trustee or other manager (whether executive or non-executive) of a MSF-affiliated business;
(g)
(g) being involved in the supply to Myanmar of goods or technology which could contribute to a serious human rights violation or abuse, or in...
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