,i #aacth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #dbed ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,march #ad1 #bjad ,mr4 ,royce 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,lowenthal1 ,mr4 ,wolf1 and ,ms4 ,loretta ,sanchez of ,california7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs1 and in addition to the ,committees on the ,judiciary1 ,ways and ,means1 and ,financial ,services1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,a ,,bill ,to impose sanctions on individuals who are complicit in human rights abuses committed against nationals of ,vietnam or their family members1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,vietnam ,human ,rights ,sanctions ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,vietnam remains a one-party state1 ruled and controlled by the ,communist ,party of ,vietnam1 which continues to deny the right of citizens to change their government4 7#b7 ,according to the ,department of ,state's #bjab ,country ,reports on ,human ,rights ,practices1 ,vietnam's most significant human rights problems 4 4 4 continued to be severe government restrictions on citizens' political rights1 particularly their right to change their government2 increased measures to limit citizens' civil liberties2 and corruption in the judicial system and police4 7#c7 ,furthermore1 the ,department of ,state documents that arbitrary arrest and detention1 particularly for political activists1 remained a problem1 with the ,government of ,vietnam sentencing at least #ce arrested activists during #bjab to a total of #aca years in jail and #bg years of probation for exercising their rights4 7#d7 ,the ,government of ,vietnam forbids public challenge to the legitimacy of the one-party state1 restricts freedoms of opinion1 the press1 assembly1 and association1 and tightly limits access to the ,internet and telecommunication4 7#e7 ,the ,government of ,vietnam continues to limit freedom of religion1 pressure all religious groups to come under the control of government and party-controlled management boards1 and restrict the operation of independent religious organizations1 including the ,unified ,buddhist ,church of ,vietnam and members of unsanctioned ,mennonite1 ,cao ,dai1 ,theravada ,buddhist1 and ,hoa ,hao ,buddhist religious groups and independent ,protestant house churches1 primarily in the central and northern highlands4 ,religious leaders who do not conform to the ,government's demands are often harassed1 arrested1 imprisoned1 or put under house arrest4 7#f7 ,enhancement of relations between the ,united ,states and ,vietnam has provided an opportunity for a human rights dialogue1 but is unlikely to lead to future progress on human rights issues in ,vietnam unless the ,united ,states makes clear that such progress is an essential prerequisite for further enhancements in the bilateral relationship4 #c4 ,imposition of sanctions on certain individuals who are complicit in human rights abuses committed against nationals of ,vietnam or their family members 7a7 ,in general ,except as provided in subsection 7d71 the ,president shall impose sanctions described in subsection 7c7 with respect to each individual on the list required by subsection 7b74 7b7 ,list of individuals who are complicit in certain human rights abuses 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #ij days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,president shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a list of individuals who are nationals of ,vietnam that the ,president determines are complicit in human rights abuses committed against nationals of ,vietnam or their family members1 regardless of whether such abuses occurred in ,vietnam4 7#b7 ,updates of list ,the ,president shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees an updated list under paragraph 7#a7 as new information becomes available and not less frequently than annually4 7#c7 ,public availability ,the list required by paragraph 7#a7 shall be made available to the public and posted on the ,web sites of the ,department of the ,treasury and the ,department of ,state4 7#d7 ,consideration of data from other countries and nongovernmental organizations ,in preparing the list required by paragraph 7#a71 the ,president shall consider data already obtained by other countries and nongovernmental organizations1 including organizations in ,vietnam1 that monitor the human rights abuses of the ,government of ,vietnam4 7c7 ,sanctions described ,the sanctions described in this subsection are the following3 7#a7 ,prohibition on entry and admission to the ,united ,states ,an individual whose name appears on the list required by subsection 7b77#a7 may not-- 7,a7 be admitted to1 enter1 or transit through the ,united ,states2 7,b7 receive any lawful immigration status in the ,united ,states under the immigration laws1 including any relief under the ,convention ,against ,torture2 or 7,c7 file any application or petition to obtain such admission1 entry1 or status4 7#b7 ,financial sanctions ,the ,president shall impose sanctions authorized pursuant to section #bjc of the ,international ,emergency ,economic ,powers ,act 7#ej ,u4,s4,c4 #agjb7 with respect to an individual whose name appears on the list required by subsection 7b77#a71 including blocking of the property of1 and restricting or prohibiting financial transactions and the exportation and importation of property by1 the individual4 7d7 ,exceptions ,to comply with international agreements ,the ,president may1 by regulation1 authorize exceptions to the imposition of sanctions under this section to permit the ,united ,states to comply with the ,agreement between the ,united ,nations and the ,united ,states of ,america regarding the ,headquarters of the ,united ,nations1 signed ,june #bf1 #aidg1 and entered into force ,november #ba1 #aidg1 and other applicable international agreements4 7e7 ,termination of sanctions ,the provisions of this section shall cease to have force and effect on the date on which the ,president determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that the ,government of ,vietnam has-- 7#a7 unconditionally released all political prisoners2 7#b7 ceased its practices of violence1 unlawful detention1 torture1 and abuse of citizens of ,vietnam while engaging in peaceful political activity2 and 7#c7 conducted a transparent investigation into the killings1 arrest1 and abuse of peaceful political activists in ,vietnam and prosecuted those responsible4 7f7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,appropriate congressional committees ,the term appropriate congressional committees means-- 7,a7 the ,committee on ,finance1 the ,committee on ,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs1 and the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations of the ,senate2 and 7,b7 the ,committee on ,ways and ,means1 the ,committee on ,financial ,services1 and the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs of the ,house of ,representatives4 7#b7 ,convention ,against ,torture ,the term ,convention ,against ,torture means the ,united ,nations ,convention ,against ,torture and ,other ,cruel1 ,inhuman or ,degrading ,treatment or ,punishment1 done at ,new ,york on ,december #aj1 #aihd4 7#c7 ,immigration laws2 national ,the terms immigration laws and national have the meanings given those terms in section #aja of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aaja74