The United Kingdom will take various punitive measures against individuals involved with human rights abuse in different countries around the world. The measures– imposed under the provision of the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations – include imposing travel bans and freezing assets of the individuals. The new law was implemented for the first time on Monday by imposing sanctions on 49 people and organisations of Russia, Saudi Arabia, Myanmar and North Korea.
Announcing the sanctions at the House of Commons, UK foreign secretary Dominic Raab said the move sent a clear message from the British people. ”Those with blood on their hands, thugs of despots and henchmen of dictators will not be free to waltz into this country to buy up property on the King's Road to do their shopping in Knightsbridge or siphon their dirty money through British banks or other financial institutions."
The law is also known as Magnitsky Act. The law is named after Russian lawyer Magnitsky who died in custody of a Moscow prison in 2009. Magnitsky was detained by Russian forces after he had investigated a $230 million fraud involving Russian tax officials.
Anyone involved in unlawful killings perpetrated against journalists and media workers, or activity motivated on the grounds of religious beliefs, can be brought to book under the law.
The US Congress was first to pass the law in 2012, followed by Canada and some Baltic countries. The call for passing the law in the UK was made back in 2012 and the parliament passed the Magnitsky Act (amendment) in May 2018. The European Union parliament last December adopted a draft of such a law. British foreign secretary Raab on Monday said that Australia also made such law against grave human rights violators.
Raab said the sanctions would be a powerful tool aimed at taking action against human rights violators without affecting general people of any given country. He said this law would enable the UK government to impose sanctions against those involved in the very worst human rights abuses.
Violation of the right to life, right not to be subjected to torture or cruelty, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and right to be free from slavery, not to be held in servitude or required to perform forced or compulsory labour--these three things would be under the purview of human rights violation.
Minister Raab said both state and non-state actors can be held responsible under the law. A spokesperson of the ministry later told LBC Radio that anyone involved in unlawful killings perpetrated against journalists and media workers, or activity motivated on the grounds of religious beliefs, can be brought to book under the law.
Twenty-five Russian nationals who are accused of having connections with Magnitsky’s death including the Investigative Committee of Russia’s chairman Alexander Bastrykin are included on the list. Earlier in 2017, the US also slapped sanctions on Bastrykin.
The new British law and instances of imposing sanction against individuals is a very strong message to the politicians, governments and security officials of countries around the world. The message is, anyone with a sense of impunity in their own country may have to face backlash of their human rights abuse.
A total of 20 Saudi nationals accused of having links with journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s death have been included in the list. Myanmar army’s commander in chief Min Aung Hlaing and his deputy Soe Win were enlisted for brutal persecution against Rohingya and other minority people. Also, two North Korean organisations have been hit with the sanction.
The law has got all party support in the UK, yet the question on effectiveness and transparency of implementation has already arisen. Some lawmakers from both ruling and opposition quarters have asked why no action was so far taken against any Chinese officials for repression of Muslim population of Uighur. Former Tory leader Duncan Smith urged the UK government to take action against Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam for repressing pro-democracy movements in the country.
The Magnitsky act is considered as one of the most befitting measures against human rights abuse. But rights activists think that effectiveness of the act is limited given the prevailing bleak state of human rights around the world. Especially, diplomatic and commercial reasons and security issues with countries often become a roadblock in implementation of the act. The USA so far leads in implementation of the act but the Trump administration’s stance regarding it is unclear. While the USA took measures against politicians and government officials of countries such as Venezuela, Bolivia, Cuba and Nicaragua, they have kept mum in terms of similar offenses in some other countries. The same thing will surely happen in the UK too. This apprehension was voiced by some British MPs in Monday’s parliament session.
Many rights activists contend that leaders themselves in different countries become authoritarian and create an environment favorable to human rights violation. The rights activists think, taking action against those leaders’ subordinates would not yield expected results. Despite all those shortcomings, the new British law and instances of imposing sanction against individuals is a very strong message to the politicians, governments and security officials of countries around the world. The message is, anyone with a sense of impunity in their own country may have to face backlash of their human rights abuse. The law is supposed to have relatively more importance in Commonwealth countries as they have better ties with the UK.
*Kamal Ahmed is a senior journalist. This piece appeared in Prothom Alo online edition and has been rewritten in English by Galib Ashraf.