Legalize / United Kingdom / Statutory-Instrument

The Myanmar (Sanctions) Regulations 2021

Type Statutory-Instrument

Publication 2021-04-26

State In force

Department King's Printer of Acts of Parliament

Source legislation.gov.uk

articles 1

Reform history JSON API PDF

Made: 26th April 2021

Laid before Parliament: at 11.00 a.m. on 29th April 2021

Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(2) and (3)

The Secretary of State , 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 2018 , 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) this regulation;

(b) regulation 2 (interpretation);

(d) regulation 5 (power to designate persons);

(e) regulation 6 (designation criteria);

(f) regulation 7 (meaning of “owned or controlled directly or indirectly”);

(g) regulation 8 (notification and publicity where designation power used);

(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 1979 ;

“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;

“director disqualification licence” means a licence under regulation 44A;

“the Dual-Use Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009 of 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) regulation 9(2) (confidential information),

(b) Part 3 (Finance),

(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) by or under Part 7 (Information and records), or by reason of a request made under a power conferred by that Part, or

(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;

(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 persons by name in accordance with regulation 5A (conditions for the designation of persons by name) for the purposes of any of the following—

(a) regulations 11 to 15 (asset-freeze etc.);

(aa) regulation 16A (director disqualification sanctions);

(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) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(2) For the purposes of regulation 5A (conditions for the designation of persons by name), an “involved person” means a person who—

(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) is owned or controlled directly or indirectly (within the meaning of regulation 7) by a person who is or has been so involved,

(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) being responsible for, engaging in, providing support for, or promoting such an activity;

(b) providing financial services, or making available funds or economic resources, that could contribute to such an activity;

(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) carrying out activities as a member of, or working for, the State Administration Council;

(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) being involved in the supply to Myanmar of goods or technology which could contribute to a serious human rights violation or abuse, or in providing financial services relating to such supply;

(h) being involved in the supply to Myanmar of restricted goods or restricted technology, or of material related to such goods or technology, or in providing financial services relating to such supply;

(i) being involved in the supply to Myanmar of dual-use goods or dual-use technology for military use or the use of the Myanmar security forces, or of material related to such goods or technology, or in providing financial services relating to such supply;

(j) assisting the contravention or circumvention of any relevant Myanmar-related provision.

(4) In this regulation, “relevant Myanmar-related provision” means—

(a) any provision of Part 3 (Finance) or Part 5 (Trade);

(b) any provision of the law of a country other than the United Kingdom made for purposes corresponding to a purpose of any provision of Part 3 or Part 5.

(5) Nothing in any sub-paragraph of paragraph (3) is to be taken to limit the meaning of any of the other sub-paragraphs of that paragraph.

(6) For the purposes of paragraph (3)(f)(iv), a “MSF-affiliated business” includes—

(a) a person who is owned or controlled directly or indirectly (within the meaning of regulation 7) by, or otherwise makes available funds or economic resources directly or indirectly to or for the benefit of, the Myanmar security forces;

(b) a person who is owned or controlled directly or indirectly (within the meaning of regulation 7) by, or otherwise makes available funds or economic resources directly or indirectly to or for the benefit of, any person mentioned in paragraph (3)(f)(i) to (iii);

(c) a person who is not an individual (“C”) where more than one person, each of whom is a current or former member of, a unit of, or an organisation associated with, the Myanmar security forces, together—

(i) hold directly or indirectly more than 50% of the shares in C (within the meaning set out in Schedule 1),

(ii) hold directly or indirectly more than 50% of the voting rights in C (within the meaning set out in Schedule 1), or

(iii) hold the right directly or indirectly to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors of C (within the meaning set out in Schedule 1).

(7) In this regulation—

“dual-use goods” and “dual-use technology” have the meanings given by Part 5;

“militia” means a national, regional or local armed group which supports or receives funding from, but is not part of or integrated into, the Myanmar security forces;

“restricted goods” and “restricted technology” have the meanings given by Part 5;

“the State Administration Council” means the State Administration Council established in Myanmar on 2 February 2021, and includes any successor entity with equivalent functions.

Meaning of “owned or controlled directly or indirectly”

7

(1) A person who is not an individual (“C”) is “owned or controlled directly or indirectly” by another person (“P”) if either of the following two conditions is met (or both are met).

(2) The first condition is that P—

(a) holds directly or indirectly more than 50% of the shares in C,

(b) holds directly or indirectly more than 50% of the voting rights in C, or

(3) Schedule 1 contains provision applying for the purpose of interpreting paragraph (2).

(4) The second condition is that it is reasonable, having regard to all the circumstances, to expect that P would (if P chose to) be able, in most cases or in significant respects, by whatever means and whether directly or indirectly, to achieve the result that affairs of C are conducted in accordance with P's wishes.

Notification and publicity where designation power used

8

(1) Paragraph (2) applies where the Secretary of State—

(a) has made a designation under regulation 5 (power to designate persons), or

(b) has by virtue of section 22 of the Act varied or revoked a designation made under that regulation.

(2) The Secretary of State—

(a) must without delay take such steps as are reasonably practicable to inform the designated person of the designation, variation or revocation, and

(b) must take steps to publicise the designation, variation or revocation.

(3) The information given under paragraph (2)(a)—

(a) where the Secretary of State designates a person under the standard procedure, must include a statement of reasons;

(b) where the Secretary of State designates a person under the urgent procedure, must include a statement—

(i) that the designation is made under the urgent procedure,

(ii) identifying the relevant provision by reference to which the Secretary of State considers that condition B is met in relation to the person, and

(iii) setting out why the Secretary of State considers that condition C is met.

(3A) Where the Secretary of State designates a person under the urgent procedure, the Secretary of State must, after the end of the period mentioned in paragraph (7) of regulation 5A (conditions for the designation of persons by name) or, if the Secretary of State has made a certification under paragraph (7)(b) of that regulation, the period mentioned in paragraph (8) of that regulation, but otherwise without delay—

(a) in a case where the person ceases to be a designated person, take such steps as are reasonably practicable to inform the person that they have ceased to be a designated person, or

(b) in any other case, take such steps as are reasonably practicable to give the person a statement of reasons.

(4) In this regulation, a “statement of reasons” means a brief statement of the matters that the Secretary of State knows, or has reasonable grounds to suspect, in relation to the person—

(a) in the case of a designation under the standard procedure, which have led the Secretary of State to make the designation, and

(b) in the case of a designation under the urgent procedure, as a result of which the person does not cease to be a designated person at the end of the period mentioned in regulation 5A(7) or (8) (as the case may be).

(5) Matters that would otherwise be required by paragraph (4) to be included in a statement of reasons may be excluded from it where the Secretary of State considers that they should be excluded—

(a) in the interests of national security or international relations,

(b) for reasons connected with the prevention or detection of serious crime in the United Kingdom or elsewhere, or

(6) The steps taken under paragraph (2)(b) must—

(a) unless one or more of the restricted publicity conditions is met, be steps to publicise generally—

(i) the designation, variation or revocation, and

(ii) in the case of a designation, the statement of reasons;

(b) if one or more of those conditions is met, be steps to inform only such persons as the Secretary of State considers appropriate of the designation, variation or revocation and (in the case of a designation) of the contents of the statement of reasons.

(7) The “restricted publicity conditions” are as follows—

(a) the designation is of a person believed by the Secretary of State to be an individual under the age of 18;

(b) the Secretary of State considers that disclosure of the designation, variation or revocation should be restricted—

(i) in the interests of national security or international relations,

Reading this document does not replace reading the official text published on legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. We assume no responsibility for any inaccuracies arising from the conversion of the original CLML XML to this format.