[House Document 117-61]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
117th Congress, 1st Session - - - - - - - - - - - - - House Document 117-61
IMPOSING SANCTIONS ON CERTAIN PERSONS WITH RESPECT TO THE HUMANITARIAN
AND HUMAN RIGHTS CRISIS IN ETHIOPIA
__________
COMMUNICATION
from
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
transmitting
AN EXECUTIVE ORDER IMPOSING SANCTIONS ON CERTAIN PERSONS WITH RESPECT
TO THE HUMANITARIAN AND HUMAN RIGHTS CRISIS IN ETHIOPIA, PURSUANT TO 50
U.S.C. 1703(b); PUBLIC LAW 95-223, SEC. 204(b); (91 STAT. 1627) AND 50
U.S.C. 1641(b); PUBLIC LAW 94-412, SEC. 401(b); (90 STAT. 1257)
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
September 20, 2021.--Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and
ordered to be printed
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
19-011 WASHINGTON : 2021
The White House,
Washington, September 17, 2021.
Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Speaker: Pursuant to the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the
National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (NEA),
sections 212 (f) and 215 (a) of the Immigration and Nationality
Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f) and 1185(a)), and section 301 of
title 3, United States Code, I hereby report that I have issued
an Executive Order addressing the situation in and in relation
to northern Ethiopia, which has been marked by activities that
threaten the peace, security, and stability of Ethiopia and the
greater Horn of Africa region. The widespread humanitarian
crisis precipitated by the violent conflict in northern
Ethiopia has left millions of people in need of humanitarian
assistance and has placed an entire region on the brink of
famine.
I have declared a national emergency to deal with the
threat posed by this crisis and authorized the Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, to
impose sanctions on individuals and entities responsible for or
complicit in, or who have directly or indirectly engaged or
attempted to engage in, actions or policies that threaten the
peace, security, or stability of Ethiopia, or that have the
purpose or effect of extending or expanding the crisis in
northern Ethiopia or obstructing a ceasefire or a peace
process; corruption or serious human rights violations;
blocking the delivery or distribution of, or access to,
humanitarian supplies; targeting civilians; planning,
directing, or committing attacks against United Nations,
African Union, or associated personnel; or actions or policies
that undermine democratic processes or institutions in Ethiopia
or its territorial integrity.
I am enclosing a copy of the Executive Order I have issued.
Sincerely,
Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
Executive Order
----------
Imposing Sanctions on Certain Persons With Respect to the Humanitarian
and Human Rights Crisis in Ethiopia
By the authority vested in me as President by Constitution
and the laws of the United States of America, including the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et
seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et
seq.) (NEA), sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act of 1952 (8 U.S.C. 1182(f) and 1185(a)), and
section 301 of title 3, United States Code,
I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of
America, find that the situation in and in relation to northern
Ethiopia, which has been marked by activities that threaten the
peace, security, and stability of Ethiopia and the greater Horn
of Africa region--in particular, widespread violence,
atrocities, and serious human rights abuse, including those
involving ethnic-based violence, rape and other forms of
gender-based violence, and obstruction of humanitarian
operations--constitutes an unusual and extraordinary threat to
the national security and foreign policy of the United States.
I hereby declare a national emergency to deal with that threat.
The widespread humanitarian crisis precipitated by the
violent conflict in northern Ethiopia has left millions of
people in need of humanitarian assistance and has placed an
entire region on the brink of famine. While maintaining
pressure on those persons responsible for the crisis, the
United States will seek to ensure that appropriate personal
remittances to non-blocked persons and humanitarian assistance
to at-risk populations can flow to Ethiopia and the greater
Horn of Africa region through legitimate and transparent
channels, including governments, international organizations,
and non-profit organizations. The United States supports
ongoing international efforts to promote a negotiated ceasefire
and political resolution of this crisis, to ensure the
withdrawal of Eritrean forces from Ethiopia, and to promote the
unity, territorial integrity, and stability of Ethiopia.
Accordingly, I hereby order:
Section 1. The Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to
impose any of the sanctions described in section 2(a) of this
order on any foreign person determined by the Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State:
(a) to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have
directly or indirectly engaged or attempted to engage in, any
of the following:
(i) actions or policies that threaten the peace,
security, or stability of Ethiopia, or that have the
purpose or effect of expanding or extending the crisis
in northern Ethiopia or obstructing a ceasefire or a
peace process;
(ii) corruption or serious human rights abuse in or
with respect to northern Ethiopia;
(iii) the obstruction of the delivery or distribution
of, or access to, humanitarian assistance in or with
respect to northern Ethiopia, including attacks on
humanitarian aid personnel or
(iv) humanitarian projects; the targeting of
civilians through the commission of acts of violence in
or with respect to northern Ethiopia, including
involving abduction, forced displacement, or attacks on
schools, hospitals, religious sites, or locations where
civilians are seeking refuge, or any conduct that would
constitute a violation of international humanitarian
law;
(v) planning, directing, or committing attacks in or
with respect to northern Ethiopia against United
Nations or associated personnel or African Union or
associated personnel;
(vi) actions or policies that undermine democratic
processes or institutions in Ethiopia; or
(vii) actions or policies that undermine the
territorial integrity of Ethiopia;
(b) to be a military or security force that operates or has
operated in northern Ethiopia on or after November 1, 2020;
(c) to be an entity, including any government entity or a
political party, that has engaged in, or whose members have
engaged in, activities that have contributed to the crisis in
northern Ethiopia or have obstructed a ceasefire or peace
process to resolve such crisis;
(d) to be a political subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality of the Government of Ethiopia, the Government
of Eritrea or its ruling People's Front for Democracy and
Justice, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, the Amhara
regional government, or the Amhara regional or irregular
forces;
(e) to be a spouse or adult child of any sanctioned person;
(f) to be or have been a leader, official, senior executive
officer, or member of the board of directors of any of the
following, where the leader, official, senior executive
officer, or director is responsible for or complicit in, or who
has directly or indirectly engaged or attempted to engage in,
any activity contributing to the crisis in northern Ethiopia:
(i) an entity, including a government entity or a
military or security force, operating in northern
Ethiopia during the tenure of the leader, official,
senior executive officer, or director;
(ii) an entity that has, or whose members have,
engaged in any activity contributing to the crisis in
northern Ethiopia or obstructing a ceasefire or a peace
process to resolve such crisis during the tenure of the
leader, official, senior executive officer, or
director; or
(iii) the Government of Ethiopia, the Government of
Eritrea or its ruling People's Front for Democracy and
Justice, the Tigray People's Liberation Front, the
Amhara regional government, or the Amhara regional or
irregular forces, on or after November 1, 2020;
(g) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided
financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or
services to or in support of, any sanctioned person; or
(h) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or
purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly,
any sanctioned person.
Sec. 2. (a) When the Secretary of the Treasury, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, has determined that a
foreign person meets any of the criteria described in section
1(a)-(h) of this order, the Secretary of the Treasury is
authorized to select, in consultation with the Secretary of
State, one or more of the sanctions set forth in subsections
(a)(i)(A)-(E) or (a)(ii)(A)-(B) of this section to impose on
that foreign person:
(i) the Secretary of the Treasury shall take the
following actions as necessary to implement the
selected sanctions:
(A) block all property and interests in
property of the sanctioned person that are in
the United States, that hereafter come within
the United States, or that are or hereafter
come within the possession or control of any
United States person, and provide that such
property and interests in property may not be
transferred, paid, exported, withdrawn, or
otherwise dealt in;
(B) prohibit any United States person from
investing in or purchasing significant amounts
of equity or debt instruments of the sanctioned
person;
(C) prohibit any United States financial
institution from making loans or providing
credit to the sanctioned person;
(D) prohibit any transactions in foreign
exchange that are subject to the jurisdiction
of the United States and in which the
sanctioned person has any interest; or
(E) impose on the leader, official, senior
executive officer, or director of the
sanctioned person, or on persons performing
similar functions and with similar authorities
as such leader, official, senior executive
officer, or director, any of the sanctions
described in subsections (a)(i)(A)-(D) of this
section that are applicable.
(ii) the heads of the relevant executive departments
and agencies, in consultation with the Secretary of the
Treasury, shall take the following actions as necessary
and appropriate to implement the sanctions selected by
the Secretary of the Treasury:
(A) actions required to deny any specific
license, grant, or any other specific
permission or authority under any statute or
regulation that requires the prior review and
approval of the United States Government as a
condition for the export or reexport of goods
or technology to the sanctioned person; or
(B) actions required to deny a visa to and
exclude from the United States any noncitizen
whom the Secretary of the Treasury, in
consultation with the Secretary of State,
determines is a leader, official, senior
executive officer, or director, or a
shareholder with a controlling interest in, the
sanctioned person.
(b) The prohibitions in subsection (a) of this section
apply except to the extent provided by statutes, or in
regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued
pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract
entered into or any license or permit granted before the date
of this order. No entity shall be blocked pursuant to this
order solely because it is owned in whole or in part, directly
or indirectly, by one or more sanctioned persons, unless the
entity is itself a sanctioned person and the sanctions in
section 2(a)(i)(A) of this order are imposed on the entity.
Sec. 3. The prohibitions in section 2(a) of this order
include:
(a) the making of any contribution or provision of funds,
goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any person
whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant
to this order; and
(b) the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds,
goods, or services from any such person.
Sec. 4. (a) The unrestricted immigrant and nonimmigrant
entry into the United States of noncitizens determined to meet
one or more of the criteria in section 1 of this order, and for
whom the sanctions described in section 2(a)(i)(A) or section
2(a)(ii)(B) of this order have been selected, would be
detrimental to the interests of the United States, and the
entry of such persons into the United States, as immigrants or
nonimmigrants, is hereby suspended, except when the Secretary
of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as appropriate,
determines that the person's entry would not be contrary to the
interests of the United States, including when the Secretary of
State or the Secretary of Homeland Security, as appropriate, so
determines, based on a recommendation of the Attorney General,
that the person's entry would further important United States
law enforcement objectives.
(b) The Secretary of State shall implement this order as it
applies to visas pursuant to such procedures as the Secretary
of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Homeland
Security, may establish.
(c) The Secretary of Homeland Security shall implement this
order as it applies to the entry of noncitizens pursuant to
such procedures as the Secretary of Homeland Security, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, may establish.
(d) Such persons shall be treated by this section in the
same manner as persons covered by section 1 of Proclamation
8693 of July 24, 2011 (Suspension of Entry of Aliens Subject to
United Nations Security Council Travel Bans and International
Emergency Economic Powers Act Sanctions).
Sec. 5. (a) Any transaction that evades or avoids, has the
purpose of evading or avoiding, causes a violation of, or
attempts to violate any of the prohibitions set forth in this
order is prohibited.
(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the
prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
Sec. 6. I hereby determine that the making of donations of
the types of articles specified in section 203(b) (2) of IEEPA
(50 U.S.C. 1702(b)(2)) by, to, or for the benefit of any person
whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant
to this order would seriously impair my ability to deal with
the national emergency declared in this order, and I hereby
prohibi1 such donations as provided by section 2 of this order.
Sec. 7. For the purposes of this order:
(a) the term ``entity'' means a partnership, association,
trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other
organization;
(b) the term ``Government of Ethiopia'' means the
Government of Ethiopia, any political subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality thereof, including the National Bank of
Ethiopia, and any person owned, controlled, or directed by, or
acting for or on behalf of, the Government of Ethiopia;
(c) the term ``Government of Eritrea'' means the Government
of Eritrea, any political subdivision, agency, or
instrumentality thereof, including the Bank of Eritrea, and any
person owned, controlled, or directed by, or acting for or on
behalf of, the Government of Eritrea;
(d) the term ``noncitizen'' means any person who is not a
citizen or noncitizen national of the United States;
(e) the term ``person'' means an individual or entity;
(f) the term ``sanctioned person'' means a foreign person
that the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the
Secretary of State, has determined meets any of the criteria
described in section 1 of this order and has selected, in
consultation with the Secretary of State, one or more of the
sanctions set forth in section 2(a) of this order to impose on
that foreign person; and
(g) the term ``United States person'' means any United
States citizen, lawful permanent resident, entity organized
under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within
the United States (including foreign branches), or any person
in the United States.
Sec. 8. For those persons whose property and interests in
property are blocked or affected by this order who might have a
constitutional presence in the United States, I find that
because of the ability to transfer funds and other assets
instantaneously, prior notice to such persons of measures to be
taken pursuant to this order would render those measures
ineffectual. I therefore determine that for these measures to
be effective in addressing the national emergency declared in
this order, there need be no prior notice of a listing or
determination made pursuant to section 1 of this order.
Sec. 9. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with
the Secretary of State, is authorized to take such actions,
including the promulgation of rules and regulations, and to
employ all powers granted to the President by IEEPA as may be
necessary to carry out the purposes of this order. The
Secretary of the Treasury may, consistent with applicable law,
redelegate any of these functions within the Department of the
Treasury. All executive departments and agencies of the United
States shall take all appropriate measures within their
authority to implement this order.
Sec. 10. Nothing in this order shall prohibit transactions
for the conduct of the official business of the Federal
Government by employees, grantees, and contractors thereof.
Sec. 11. The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation
with the Secretary of State, is authorized to submit recurring
and final reports to the Congress on the national emergency
declared in this order, consistent with section 401(c) of the
NEA (50 U.S.C. 1641(c)) and section 204(c) of IEEPA (50 U.S.C.
1703(c)).
Sec. 12. (a) Nothing in this order shall be construed to
impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive
department or agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget relating to budgetary,
administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any
right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law
or in equity by any party against the United States, its
departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or
agents, or any other person.
Joseph R. Biden, Jr.
The White House, September 17, 2021.
[all]