Bill C-339

1st Session, 41st Parliament,

60 Elizabeth II, 2011

house of commons of canada

BILL C-339

An Act to condemn corruption and impunity in Russia in the case and death of Sergei Magnitsky

Whereas human rights and the rule of law are integral to international law and Canada has repeatedly asserted its commitment to promoting international justice and respect for human rights;

Whereas the Russian Federation is a member of the United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Council of Europe and the International Monetary Fund;

Whereas the Russian Federation has ratified the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights and the United Nations Convention against Corruption;

Whereas the Russian Federation is bound by the legal obligations set out in the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms;

Whereas state parties to international human rights agreements have committed themselves to the obligations and responsibilities set out in those agreements;

Whereas, despite the fact that the Russian Federation is a state party to the international agreements referred to above and purports to value and defend human rights, the number of corruption-related crimes in Russia has increased dramatically;

Whereas the Government of the Russian Federation promotes a pervasive culture of corruption, and even the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Medvedev, has acknowledged Russia’s disregard for the rule of law and used the term “legal nihilism” to describe a criminal justice system that continues to imprison innocent people;

Whereas the rampant corruption has had tragic consequences for numerous individuals who were seeking to expose illegal activity carried out by officials of the Government of the Russian Federation or to obtain, exercise, defend or promote internationally-recognized human rights and freedoms, such as the freedoms of religion, expression, association and assembly and the rights to a fair trial and democratic elections;

Whereas one such individual, Sergei Magnitsky, a lawyer pivotal in uncovering the embezzlement of Russian Treasury funds by senior Russian officials, was detained without trial in Matrosskaya Tishina Prison in Moscow, was abused and died there as a result on November 16, 2009;

And whereas no thorough and objective official investigation has been conducted by the Government of the Russian Federation into the detention, abuse and resulting death of Mr. Magnitsky, despite extensive documented evidence that incriminates Russian public officials in abusing their powers and positions to commit serious human rights violations, to embezzle funds from the Russian Treasury and to retaliate against Mr. Magnitsky, nor have the individuals responsible been identified, apprehended and brought to justice in Russia;

Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE

1. This Act may be cited as the Condemnation of Russian Corruption Act.

INTERPRETATION

2. (1) The definitions in this section apply in this Act.

“Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe” means the independent agency of the United States Government, sometimes referred to as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, that is charged with monitoring compliance with the Helsinki Accords and advancing comprehensive security through promotion of human rights, democracy and economic, environmental and military cooperation in 56 countries.

“foreign national” means an individual who is not

(a) a Canadian citizen; or

(b) a permanent resident under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

“immediate family” means, in respect of an individual,

(a) the individual’s spouse or common-law partner;

(b) the individual’s father and mother and the spouse or common-law partner of the father or mother;

(c) the individual’s children and the children of the individual’s spouse or common-law partner;

(d) the individual’s grandchildren;

(e) the individual’s brothers and sisters;

(f) the individual’s grandfather and grandmother;

(g) the father and mother of the individual’s spouse or common-law partner and the spouse or common-law partner of the father or mother; and

(h) any relative of the individual or of the individual’s spouse or common-law partner who resides permanently with the individual or with whom the individual permanently resides.

“Minister” means the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.

(2) In this section, “common-law partner” means a person who has been cohabiting with an individual in a conjugal relationship for at least one year, or who had been so cohabiting with the individual for at least one year immediately before the individual’s death.

LIST OF RESPONSIBLE PERSONS

3. (1) No later than 180 days after the day on which this Act receives royal assent, the Governor in Council must, on the recommendation of the Minister, prepare a list containing the names of each individual that the Minister has reasonable grounds to believe, on the basis of considerations described in subsection (2),

(a) is responsible for the detention, abuse or death of Sergei Magnitsky;

(b) has conspired to defraud the Russian Federation of taxes on corporate profits through fraudulent transactions and lawsuits against the foreign investment company known as Hermitage and to misappropriate property owned or controlled by Hermitage; or

(c) has participated in efforts to conceal the legal responsibility of those individuals involved in the detention, abuse or death of Sergei Magnitsky or the existence of the conspiracy referred to in paragraph (b).

(2) The name of an individual merits being placed on the list referred to in subsection (1), and the Minister must make a recommendation in support of the name being placed on the list, if

(a) the individual has been named on the list entitled Individuals involved in the tax fraud against Hermitage and the torture and death of Sergei Magnitsky, as amended from time to time, that is published by the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe on its website for the purpose of identifying those individuals responsible for the acts described in paragraph (1)(a), (b) or (c); and

(b) taking into consideration the fact that the individual is named on the list referred to in paragraph (a), there are reasonable grounds to believe that the individual committed an act outside Canada that is an offence in the place where it was committed and that, if committed in Canada, would constitute an indictable offence under an Act of Parliament.

(3) On the recommendation of the Minister, the Governor in Council must amend the list of responsible persons referred to in subsection (1) to add, remove or correct the names of any foreign nationals as new information becomes available that, on the basis of considerations described in subsection (2), gives the Minister reasonable grounds to believe that the name of the foreign national should be added to or removed from the list or corrected.

(4) The Minister must, to the fullest extent practicable, provide notice and an opportunity for a hearing to a foreign national before their name is placed on the list referred to in subsection (1).

INADMISSIBILITY

4. (1) A foreign national is inadmissible, within the meaning of that term in the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and for the purposes of that Act, on grounds of being responsible for an act described in paragraph 3(1)(a), (b) or (c) if the foreign national is

(a) an individual whose name appears on the list referred to in section 3; or

(b) a member of the immediate family of an individual referred to in paragraph (a).

(2) Any individual who, before the coming into force of this Act, was a foreign national who obtained temporary resident status or permanent resident status and who, after the coming into force of this Act, would be inadmissible under subsection (1) must be considered inadmissible for the purposes of sections 44 and 45 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

(3) The Minister may waive the application of subsection (1) or (2) in the case of a foreign national if the Minister determines that the waiver is in the national interest of Canada. On granting such a waiver, the Minister must table notice of the waiver and the reasons that justify it in the House of Commons.

REPORT

5. (1) No later than 180 days after the day on which this Act receives royal assent, the Minister must lay before the House of Commons a report on the administration of this Act.

(2) The Minister must lay before the House of Commons a report on the administration of this Act as substantive new information becomes available.

COMING INTO FORCE

6. This Act comes into force 90 days after the day on which it receives royal assent.