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Showing posts with label Laws. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Laws. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 10, 2021

Govt failed to forfeit 1MDB assets

 


Govt fails in bid to forfeit 1MDB-linked assets from Najib, family and others


KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court today ordered the government to immediately return assets which were seized from former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, his wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor, their three children and several others.

Judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan made the order after dismissing the government's application which sought to forfeit hundreds of items including designer handbags, vehicles and cash in various currencies said to be linked to the 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) scandal.

In his decision, Zaini said the prosecution had failed to prove that the properties seized were connected to unlawful activities.

He said there was no evidence to show that the properties seized from Najib, Rosmah, their children Riza Shahriz Abdul Aziz (Najib's stepson), Nor Ashman and Nooryana Najwa, were bought using money in the former prime minister's bank accounts.


The prosecution, he said, had in fact admitted that some of the seized properties were gifts.

He said the prosecution's argument that the cash and properties in question could have been gained from the monies deposited in Najib's bank accounts was based on presumption.

"The prosecution merely listed down the properties seized and their value, and in turn concluded that these respondents do not have the means to such a huge amount of cash or to purchase these properties based on their income.

"They had surmised that the cash and properties concerned could have only been gained from the monies deposited in the first respondent's (Najib) accounts.

"It is apparent that the applicant had only come to this conclusion based on presumption," he said.

The judge added that there was lack of evidence to prove that there was a direct link between the monies that were alleged to have been illegally gained to the cash found and the properties bought.

He said there was simply no nexus proven in the case.

He also rejected the government's bid to forfeit the monies kept in three Hong Leong bank accounts and the RM15 million bungalow in Penang belonging to Goh Gaik Ewe, the mother of fugitive businessman Low Taek Jho saying that the prosecution had failed to prove that the bank accounts were related to or had been used for the commission of unlawful activities.

He said the relationship between Goh and any of the characters or entities in the 1MDB affairs was also conspicuously missing.

"The applicant did not offer any evidence to show how the monies deposited into these bank accounts were linked to any illegal transactions or that they were proceeds of unlawful activities.

"As for the bungalow, there was simply no averment whatsoever in any of the applicant's affidavits pertaining to it," he said.

The others who get to keep their monies following the government's failure in its bid to forfeit the assets were company Senijauhar Sdn Bhd, Aiman Ruslan, former Goldman Sachs banker Roger Ng and his wife Lim Hwee Bin.

The court however, allowed the government's bid to forfeit the assets from the respondents that did not contest the application namely Mohd Kyizzad Mesran, Yayasan Rakyat 1Malaysia, Yayasan Semesta, Yayasan Mustika Kasih and Rembulan Kembara Sdn Bhd and those who have absconded who were former 1MDB officers Kee Kok Thiam, Tan Vern Tact and Terence Geh Choh Hun.

Deputy public prosecutor Harris Ong Mohd Jeffrey Ong informed the court that the prosecution will be filing an appeal against the decision and asked for a stay of the order to return money to the respondents.

However, Zaini said the court will not make any order for a stay.

"If the forfeiture application is denied, it is a natural progression that the prosecution should return it (properties) back (to the respondents)," the judge said.

On May 8, 2019, the Attorney General's Chambers filed a notice of motion to forfeit hundreds of items, allegedly linked to 1MDB scandal, including handbags of various brands and 27 vehicles seized from Najib, Rosmah, their three children, as well as 13 individuals and companies.

In addition, money amounting to more than RM18 million in several bank accounts at Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd, Al-Rajhi Bank Bhd, Malayan Banking Bhd, CIMB Bank Bhd, RHB Bank Bhd, Public Bank Bhd, AmBank Bhd and Hong Leong Bank Bhd, that was frozen between Aug 16, 2018 and March 11, 2019.

Among the items mentioned in the forfeiture notice are handbags, shoes and watches of various brands, as well as cash in various currencies that were seized by the police on May 17, 2018 and June 11, 2018, as well as 27 Nissan vehicles that were seized on Aug 2, 2018 and a piece of land in Tanjung Bungah, Penang. 

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Sunday, September 26, 2021

Major progress for China’s diplomacy as US heeds call from Chinese request list to release Meng Wanzhou

 https://youtu.be/9B7DybgHA1o 

 China Is Greeting Meng Wanzhou As A National Hero. How About Two Michaels?

 
https://youtu.be/IAwJbyqZ4_Y

 Meng Wanzhou waves to a cheering crowd as she steps out of a charter plane at Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, Sept. 25, 2021.(Photo: Xinhua)

 

Hard-won victory reflects legal, political wrestling; good for ties


When many Chinese woke up Saturday morning surprisingly learning that the return of Huawei's Meng Wanzhou to China became a reality, some said it was the best news in quite a while.

The high-profile case of Meng, which has become a political dilemma significantly affecting the global geopolitical landscape, has been settled through both legal channels and political wrestling, experts said, noting that China, the US and Canada have seen the best scenario with much compromise made by the Biden administration in resolving the matter. It also helped pave the way for the positive interaction between the world's largest economies in the near future amid strained China-US relations.

It was also one mistake of the US administration that has been corrected in line with the request of China, as China put forward two lists to the US during the bilateral talks in Tianjin in July, including the List of US Wrongdoings that Must Stop which urged the US to release Meng, showing that Beijing's US policies began taking effect and remaining mistakes of the US have to be corrected.

Meng Wanzhou speaks to media outside the British Columbia Supreme Court in Canada on Friday. Photo: cnsphoto

Meng Wanzhou speaks to media outside the British Columbia Supreme Court in Canada on Friday. Photo: cnsphoto

After being separated for more than 1,000 days, she finally reunited with her family and such an emotional moment also aroused reactions from ordinary Chinese people who firmly believe that the motherland will always be "on their back" and save them from crisis.

"The color red, symbolizing China, lightens the brightness in my heart," Meng said in a post shared on her WeChat moment on her fight back home, noting that she deeply appreciates the motherland and the leadership of the Communist Party of China, as without them, she would not have been freed.

An official report by the Xinhua News Agency said thanks to sustained efforts by the Chinese government, Meng left Canada on a chartered plane arranged by the Chinese government on Friday local time. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian also welcomed her return in a post on his personal Weibo account.

"Meng's return once again shows China's steadfast position in defending the rights and interests of Chinese citizens in its diplomacy with the US and overall foreign diplomacy," Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations at China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Saturday.

Such firm position is also being taken as the backbone for Chinese citizens and companies overseas, inspiring numerous Huawei staff amid the US-led severe crackdown on its 5G technologies and sanctions over the past three years. On her return, dozens of Huawei employees shared the moment on their personal accounts, saying that with the support of the government, they would never yield to any unilateral foreign sanctions or bullying.

Many ordinary Chinese cheered Meng's return, posting welcome notes on social media. Chinese netizens were also thrilled at the news. Topics related to Meng's return topped the search list of Sina Weibo for almost the whole day, with relevant posts being read more than 100 million times.

The Global Times reporter saw crowds gathering at Shenzhen Baoan Airport with Welcome Home banners, and they cheered on Meng's return. Some were family members and relatives of Huawei staff, and they hailed the senior executive as a role model in facing US hegemony and a national hero, while more than 30 million netizens watched her arrival on livestream.

The Ping'an International Financial Center, a landmark skyscraper in Shenzhen, was lit up on Saturday evening to welcome Meng's return.

Meng waves to the crowd after her arrival at the Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport.(Photo: Xinhua)

Meng waves to the crowd after her arrival at the Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport.(Photo: Xinhua)

Hard-won victory 
 
In a video seen by the Global Times, a GPS tracker ankle bracelet that Meng had worn for over two years was removed on Friday, leaving a bruise on her ankle that some Chinese netizens considered "an impressive memory" about US bullying and political persecution against a Chinese citizen.

It has never been an easy fight for the defense team of Meng over the past two years, who has been battling with the help of the Western legal tools against extradition to the US, and reached a "pretty good" result in the eyes of both Chinese and foreign legal experts after the marathon-like legal proceedings.

Meng appeared virtually in an American federal courtroom in Brooklyn on Friday, and reached a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in a case of federal charges against her for bank and wire fraud. Under the terms of the agreement, Meng will not be prosecuted further in the US and the extradition proceedings in Canada will be terminated, according to a statement of William Taylor, one of the lawyers who represented Meng.

"She has not pleaded guilty and we fully expect the indictment to be dismissed with prejudice after 14 months. Now, she will be free to return home to be with her family," he said.

The senior executive of Huawei was arrested by Canadian authorities in December 2018 at the behest of the US, who remained under detention in Canada pending a Canadian judge's ruling on the US' extradition request for nearly three years. Meng and her defense team made the final push against extradition to the US, and the legal proceedings ended on August 18 without a decision.

A statement from the US Department of Justice (DOJ) said that under the terms of the DPA, Meng acknowledged that she knowingly made false statement to a financial institution in Iran-related transactions, and agreed not to commit other federal, state or local crimes.

"It's a pretty good deal," Gary Botting, a Canadian legal expert and author of several books on extradition, told the Global Times on Saturday, noting that through the case, many believe that the US is in no position to lead the world like a "police," and hopefully, the US judge presiding over the prosecution of Meng will see that.

Some Chinese legal experts said that it's not accurate to  take a DPA as a guilty plea agreement, like some Western media reported, as any arrangement should be accepted by all parties. Without paying a hefty fine or admitting guilt in court is also considered a good arrangement, experts said, noting that the US would make much more compromise to "pull out a nail set by the US" in China-Canada and China-US relations.

Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times early Saturday that there are multiple factors driving the US to resolve this issue, including the consistent attitude of the Chinese government in urging the US and Canada to release Meng, and the mounting pressure that Canada has been facing as it clearly knows that if it insists on the extradition of Meng to the US, it would create irretrievable negative consequences on China-Canada relations, and also the unjustified procedures with the lack of evidence throughout the legal proceedings in Canada would further extend the legal battle many years.

Photo:Cui Meng/GT

Photo:Cui Meng/GT

Political wrestling

The day Meng flew back home, Canadian media reported that two Canadians - Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor - left China on a plane to Canada. Spavor was sentenced in August in China to 11 years in prison after being convicted of spying on China's national secrets. He was ordered deported from China.

Although some Western media outlets and politicians claimed the release of the two Canadians was an example of "hostage diplomacy," experts said Meng was a "political hostage" taken by the US and Canada, noting that mounting evidence throughout the legal proceedings during Meng's fight against extradition showed she was the victim of political prosecution.

"In Spavor's case, imposing the order of deportation means he may not serve his jail time in China but will be deported to Canada. It leaves room for indictment while unleashing a gesture of goodwill," Qin Qianhong, a constitutional law professor at Wuhan University, told the Global Times on Saturday.

Kovrig and Spavor were charged by the Prosecutor General's Office in China for crimes undermining China's national security in June 2020. Spavor was convicted of spying on China's national secrets and was ordered deported from China, a court in Dandong, Northeast China's Liaoning Province, announced on August 11.

Spavor was found to have taken photos and video of Chinese military equipment on multiple occasions and illegally provided some of those photos to people outside China, which have been identified as second-tier state secrets, a source close to the matter told the Global Times on September 1.

Chinese officials and diplomats reiterated that the incident of Meng is different from the cases of the two Canadians in nature.

China's position on Meng's case is consistent and clear, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Saturday. Facts have fully proved that this is an incident of political persecution against Chinese citizen, with the purpose of suppressing China's high-tech enterprises, she noted.

The accusation of Meng's so-called "fraud" is purely fabricated, she said, noting that even HSBC, which the US refers to as a "victim," has issued documents sufficient to prove her innocence. The actions of the US and Canada were typical arbitrary detention, the spokesperson added.

"There are flexibilities in legal proceedings around the world with different factors considered, which is sometimes embedded with the nature of humanity. Releasing the two Canadian citizens unlocks the bottleneck in China-Canada ties, which was expected," Lü said.

For Canada, which made a wrong political choice of being an accomplice of the US, it is still bearing the "bitter fruits." The deal can also help it ease strained ties with China, especially in trade, experts said.

He Weiwen, a former senior Chinese trade official, said Canada should make a further step if it wants to mend ties with China. "For instance, to show a positive attitude in China's participation in the CPTPP."

The deal indicates that the US has started to face up to the bottom lines China has drawn for further cooperation, and Washington is now "correcting mistakes it has made," experts said, noting that "it might be a turning point for China-US relations."

China in July put forward two lists to the US during talks in North China's Tianjin, one of which was the List of US Wrongdoings that Must Stop and the other the List of Key Individual Cases that China Has Concerns with.

China's attitude toward the US and Meng's case has been clear: her release is a must, and it seems bilateral ties are moving forward based on the two lists China put forward, Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times on Saturday.

In the List of US Wrongdoings, China urged the US to revoke the extradition request for Meng among other requests.

In the list, China also urged the US to unconditionally revoke the visa restrictions over CPC members and their families, revoke sanctions on Chinese leaders, officials and government agencies, and remove visa restrictions on Chinese students.

In the other List of Key Individual Cases, China expressed serious concerns to the US on some key individual cases, including some Chinese students' visa applications being rejected, Chinese citizens receiving unfair treatment in the US, Chinese diplomatic and consular missions being harassed and rammed into by perpetrators in the US, growing anti-Asian and anti-China sentiment, and Chinese citizens suffering violent attacks.

Gao said the US' decision was obvious, since many things in the world such as climate change and the pandemic fight require China-US cooperation. And the US has been hurt from the deteriorating ties - inflation and debt - which made it urgent for the US to mend ties with China.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said she would seek to improve US business ties with China. Raimondo said she plans to lead delegations of US chief executives overseas, including to China, to hunt for business and discuss longstanding trade issues, though nothing has yet been put on the calendar.

The US also realizes that measures that aim to suppress and contain China are useless. In the end, the world's two largest economies must return to the right track of cooperation, Gao said.

Landmark buildings in Shenzhen exhibit giant slogans welcoming Meng's return.(Photo: Xinhua)
Landmark buildings in Shenzhen exhibit giant slogans welcoming Meng's return.(Photo: Xinhua)

Not to lose guard

Although the deal with the DOJ ended up with no crime and no punishment as Meng admitted wrongdoing but without a guilty plea, the agreement pertains only on Meng, Reuters said, noting that the DOJ said it is preparing for a trial against Huawei and looks forward to proving its case in court.

Huawei said in a statement on Saturday that the company expected Meng's return and reunion with her family. Meanwhile, the company will safeguard its interests in the lawsuit in the Eastern District of New York.

Some experts also warned that though the landmark progress of the incident created a positive atmosphere for China-US ties to return to the right path, Washington has created too much trouble over the past few years in confronting China, and some severely challenged Beijing's sovereignty. It will unlikely give up its plan of suppressing China's high-tech development.

"It will be difficult to see fundamental changes in the bilateral relationship in the next few years, unless the US takes more brave and active moves in improving ties," Li said.

Meanwhile, China-Canada relations have entered a period of debugging. Obstacles to the smooth development of China-Canada relations have been clearly removed. It also created conditions for Trudeau's China policy afterwards, he noted.

For Huawei, struggling on its track of transforming from a hardware maker to software provider amid the still tight US chip ban is still a long-term work, which has been gradually making progress.

"The transformation process is painful, since it's a transformation of the business model. But the good news is that we have gradually changed," Xu Zhijun, Huawei's rotating chairman, said during a roundtable interview Friday, noting that a frequent reshuffle of its senior executives is a reflection of how hard the transformation process is.

Key events in Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou's case. Graphic: GT

 
 
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 GT Voice: Meng's homecoming a rare chance to reset China-US relations

 

While many observers expect the return of Huawei's Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou to create a relatively favorable atmosphere for US-China relations, some stubborn anti-China forces can't help but flagrantly ...

 
 

Saturday, September 25, 2021

HUAWEI CFO Meng Wanzhou leaves Canada for motherland after sustained efforts by Chinese government

https://youtu.be/NFuqwFcvnco 
 
 

China Is Greeting Meng Wanzhou As A National Hero. How About Two Michaels?

https://youtu.be/9B7DybgHA1o
 
 
Meng Wanzhou Photo:AFP

Meng Wanzhou Photo:AFP


Huawei's Meng Wanzhou reached a landmark deal with the US Justice Department on Friday that allows her to return to China, under which the senior executive of the Chinese company has not pleaded guilty. It marks the end of Meng's nearly three-year detention in Canada, and may help ease the frozen China-Canada tie and frictions between China and the US, experts said.

Meng has been released after reaching the agreement.

Thanks to sustained efforts by the Chinese government, Meng Wanzhou left Canada on a chartered plane by the Chinese government on Friday local time. She will return to the motherland and reunite with her family, according to a report from the Xinhua News Agency.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said he welcomes the return of Meng in a post on his personal Weibo account.

In a video footage seen by the Global Times, a GPS tracker ankle bracelet that Meng had worn for over two years has been removed, and she addressed the public after the hearing, expressing gratitude for the Canadian judge and court upholding the rule of law. She also thanked the Chinese embassy in Canada, her defense team and her colleagues. Although it has been a very difficult time, there's always hope, Meng said.

Meng appeared virtually in an American federal courtroom in Brooklyn on Friday, and reached a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in a case of federal charges against her for bank and wire fraud. Under the terms of this agreement, Meng will not be prosecuted further in the US and the extradition proceedings in Canada will be terminated, according to a statement of William Taylor, one of the lawyers who represent Meng.

"She has not pleaded guilty and we fully expect the indictment will be dismissed with prejudice after fourteen months. Now, she will be free to return home to be with her family," he said.

It's exciting news that the US and Meng have finally reached an agreement, which would also be a landmark deal that may help ease frictions in the China-US relations, Chinese experts said.

At the request of the US government, the Canadian government, based on so-called accusations of fraud levelled by the US, on December 1, 2018 illegally detained Meng, who is also the daughter of Ren Zhengfei, founder of Huawei.

Meng and her defense team made the final push against extradition to the US, and the legal proceedings ended in mid-August without a decision. The judge was supposed to convene a case management conference on October 21. During the conference, she would indicate a date when the decisions will be given, according to a court note the Global Times obtained at the time.

The earlier-than-expected deal with the US made all the following process "unnecessary." On the same day, the Canadian court also signed off on a discharge order for Meng, withdrawing the US extradition order and allowing her to return to China.

Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times early Saturday that there are multiple factors driving the US to resolve this issue, including the consistent attitude of the Chinese government in urging the US and Canada to release Meng, and the mounting pressure that Canada has been facing as it clearly knows that if it insists on the extradition of Meng to the US, it would create irretrievable negative consequences on China-Canada relations.

Over the past years, Chinese diplomats and experts have urged the Trudeau administration many times to correct its mistake of serving as Washington's willing accomplice that has dragged China-Canada relations to freezing point.

The souring bilateral relationship has also disrupted the once stable trade relations between the two countries, and some Chinese businesspeople have been looking for a "plan B" over the past two years to diversify their import sources other than Canada.

"Canada has been persuading the US to drop the case. For the Biden administration, it has been evaluating US-China relations from the position of strength over the past eight months, and it understands that if it drops the charges against Meng, such progress would meet the expectation for improving bilateral ties," Lü said.

On the same day Meng flew back home, Canadian media outlets reported that two Canadians - Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor - left China on a plane back to Canada. Spavor was sentenced in August in China to 11 years in prison after being convicted of spying on China's national secrets. He was ordered to be deported from China.

Although some Western media outlets and politicians claimed the releasing of the two Canadians was an example of "hostage diplomacy," experts said Meng was indeed a "political hostage" taken by the US and Canada, noting that mounting evidence throughout the legal proceedings during Meng's fight against extradition showed she was the victim of political prosecution.

"In Spavor's case, imposing the order of deportation means he may not serve his jailtime in China but will be deported back to Canada. It leaves certain room for indictment while unleashing a gesture of goodwill," Qin Qianhong, a constitutional law professor at Wuhan University, told the Global Times.

Kovrig and Spavor were prosecuted by the Prosecutor General's Office in China for suspected crimes undermining China's national security in June 2020.

Kovrig was accused of using an ordinary passport and business visa to enter China to steal sensitive information and intelligence through contacts in China since 2017, while Spavor was accused of being a key source of intelligence for Kovrig.

Spavor was found to have taken photos and videos of Chinese military equipment on multiple occasions and illegally provided some of those photos to people outside China, which have been identified as second-tier state secrets, a source close to the matter told the Global Times on September 1.

Chinese officials and diplomats reiterated that the incident of Meng is entirely different from the cases of the two Canadians in nature.

Another factor behind the resolution of the matter is that Canada and the US can't ignore the strong public call to release Meng, experts said. Her release has been widely considered as the best scenario among China, Canada and the US, as the incident of Meng has become a dilemma that froze China-Canada relations and dragged China-US ties into a spiraling downturn over the past few years.

Nearly 15 million netizens from over 100 countries and regions including major allies of the US, such as the UK, Australia and Canada, signed a petition launched by the Global Times on August 18, and an open letter was sent to Canadian Ambassador to China Dominic Barton, demanding Meng's immediate and unconditional release, and protesting the ugly acts of the Canadian government.

On her flight back home, Meng said in a public note that she deeply appreciated the motherland and the leadership of the Communist Party of China, as without them, she would not have been freed. "The color red, symbolizing China, lightens the brightness in my heart," she said.

 
 
 

China's national power ensures Meng's different outcome from Alstom executive: Global Times editorial

It is China's national power that shaped this final result. A country will be surrounded with more troubles as it gets stronger, but only a strong country can enable us to deal with those troubles with dignity. Whenever we encounter a challenge, we neither have to risk it all in the fight, nor do we need to compromise our dignity.

 

Image
 
 
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Monday, June 14, 2021

China’s newly passed Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law to bring deterrent effect against Western hegemony

  https://youtu.be/lP-u9Lmubog

China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law will surely become a pointed weapon to counter foreign sanctions

 

美推涉华法案打压中国 中方:不得人心 注定失败!20210609 |《今日关注》 https://youtu.be/VOPFUhKrzfk 

 

https://youtu.be/SLoPPxpOjMM

China's New Law To Counter US, EU Sanctions May Also Block Covid-19 Origin Investigation 

 Deportation, denying entry and freezing assets among countermeasures to stop long-arm jurisdiction 

Photo: Xinhua 

 

Top lawmakers in China on Thursday voted to pass the highly expected Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, providing a comprehensive legal basis for blocking illegal foreign sanctions and preventing Chinese individuals and entities from suffering the damage resulting from such illegal sanctions. The new law will also offer sufficient legal foundation for taking an equal position with the West by imposing necessary countermeasures, Chinese legal experts said.

The Standing Committee of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC) convened its 29th session on Monday in Beijing, which was scheduled to conclude on Thursday, and draft version of the anti-foreign sanctions law was put to review for the second time on Monday. According to the rules and procedures of the legislative body, the draft law in the agenda of the NPC Standing Committee meeting should generally be reviewed three times before being put to a vote. However, if there is consensus on all aspects of the draft law, it can be reviewed twice.

The highly expected law, which is considered an effective and strong legal tool to stop the long-arm jurisdiction of foreign countries, includes 16 articles, stipulating principles of punishment for violating the law, and major authorities in enforcing it. Relevant authorities under the State Council - China's cabinet - can directly or indirectly participate in formulating, deciding and enforcing a countermeasure list targeted at individuals and entities that have taken discriminatory measures against Chinese citizens and organizations under the pretext of their domestic laws.

Targeted groups of the countermeasure list can be expanded to their relatives, spouse, the organizations that are led by these targeting individuals or operated by them, according to the law, which lays out a number of measures, including refusing to issue visas or denying entry, deportation, freezing properties and restricting relevant transactions and cooperation.

If any organization or individual assists foreign countries to take discriminatory measures, Chinese citizens and organizations can file a lawsuit with the people's court in line with the law and to stop infringement as well as seek compensation for losses, according to the law.

China also has set up a working mechanism in responding to foreign sanctions, which also coordinates relevant work, including information sharing. And authorities such as the Chinese Foreign Ministry or the State Council or others are responsible for releasing the list of countermeasures, which could be suspended or changed if necessary.

When the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee gave the example about who would be placed on the target of China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, the spokesperson of the commission said that certain Western countries, under the pretext of Tibet, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the South China Sea, together with the COVID-19 pandemic, interfere in China's internal affairs, which are bullying tactics by imposing the so-called sanctions on Chinese government officials, as well as individuals and entities from those countries with misdeeds, would face countermeasures, which is seen as "having a taste of their own medicine."

"The law precisely and effectively targets those who have taken unilateral sanctions in hurting China's interests, and this targeted group can be expanded to their relatives or organizations, which would have strong deterrent effect," Huo Zhengxin, a law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times on Thursday.

And besides detailed countermeasures, the law grants authorities flexibility to choose which measures to use to hit back, especially when measures fit their needs, Huo said.

Legal experts believed that the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, the first of its kind in China, will provide strong legal support and guarantees for the country against unilateral and discriminatory measures imposed by foreign countries, will also have a deterrent effect in the face of Western-led hegemony and demonstrate the collective determination of Chinese decision-makers in safeguarding China's core interests.

Compared to the previous countermeasures issued by administrative institutions, the law underscores in a more comprehensive and systematic way the Chinese government's attitude on the legal aspect when it confronts US government that has abused sanctions or long-arm jurisdiction to severely damage China's sovereignty, security and development interests, some legal experts who took part in the consultation process for the law told the Global Times. The anti-foreign sanctions law will also enable China to strike a balance between countermeasures and negotiations in fixing divergences. 

China's list of sanctions against Western forces over their meddling in China's domestic affairs related to HK, Taiwan and Xinjiang. Graphic: Xu Zihe and Feng Qingyin/GT

Necessary, timely move

The US government has been imposing sanctions on a growing number of Chinese entities such as high-tech firms Huawei and ZTE over the so-called national security risks, and sanctioned a number of senior Chinese officials under the US' so-called Xinjiang and Hong Kong bills last year. In the eyes of legal experts, these have become regular moves for the US government in implementing illegal sanctions and carrying out long-arm jurisdiction against China. The Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law has also become a timely response to those unilateral moves, which may prompt more countries to follow suit.

The latest legislative progress was also in line with the top legislature's annual work schedule, unveiled in March, which indicated that China will enhance legislation in foreign-related fields, when Li Zhanshu, chairman of the Standing Committee of the NPC, vowed to focus on moves against sanctions and interference and countering long-arm jurisdiction, as well as enriching the legal "toolbox" for coping with foreign-related challenges and preventing risks.

The law could have an influence in two fields - blocking illegal sanctions imposed by other countries and the damage brought about by those sanctions; and taking countermeasures against these sanctions, Tian Feilong, a legal expert at Beihang University in Beijing, told the Global Times on Thursday.

In response to the increasing unilateral moves made by the US government, Chinese authorities have also taken corresponding countermeasures since September 2020. For example, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) unveiled the provisions of China's unreliable entity list, which has been viewed by some as a measure by Beijing to counter the US crackdown on Chinese companies. It also issued a new order on January 9 adopting necessary countermeasures against the unjustified extraterritorial application of foreign legislation.

China's Foreign Ministry also announced 11 rounds of countermeasures over Western countries' interference in China's internal affairs since last December such as Xinjiang and Hong Kong by sanctioning a number of NGOs, anti-China politicians, arms producers and entities, as well as lawmakers who helped spread lies about those matters.

"Previous sanctions are fragmented and without sufficient legal basis, and may incur negative feedback due to lack of sufficient legal basis. Now, we have complete legal basis, offering us the same position as the West in taking countermeasures," Tian said, noting that it will also help integrate previous resources and forms to make China's countermeasures against foreign sanctions more systematic, scientific and powerful.

Common practice

It's also common practice for some Western countries to formulate similar laws in blocking foreign sanctions or opposing foreign interference. For example, the blocking statute, adopted in 1996, is an important achievement of unified EU action to protect EU operators, whether individuals or companies, from the extraterritorial application of third country laws, according to the EU website.

And an updated version of the blocking statute was implemented in 2018 to mitigate their impact on the interests of EU companies doing legitimate business in Iran.

Russia also passed a law in June 2018to counter the unfriendly behavior of the US and other countries to protect the interests, security, sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the rights of its citizens immune to the unfriendly behavior of the US.

When asked whether the law would affect China's relations with foreign countries, Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said at a routine press conference on Thursday that there is no need to worry about that.

"It's necessary for China to formulate the Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law, as the law provides a strong legal basis and support for China to counteract foreign discriminatory measures," Wang said.

The spokesperson of the Legislative Affairs Commission of the NPC Standing Committee also said the law won't have any impact on China's continuous opening-up regarding economic development, as it has come up with a series of measures to facilitate foreign investment.

The main purpose of China's Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law is to authorize Chinese administrative agencies and judicial institutions to implement sanctions, and if there's more demand in the practice, top authorities such as the State Council and the Supreme Court can issue corresponding detailed administrative regulations and judicial interpretations based on the authorization, and gradually refine a more specific legal system, Huo told the Global Times.

Some senior officials, such as Carrie Lam, chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, hailed the law. Lam said the law will give the US and other countries "a taste of their own medicine," because a number of central government and HKSAR government officials have been sanctioned by the US for the national security law for Hong Kong implemented in 2020.

"The HKSAR government lacked the resources to fight those sanctions in the past. With the implementation of the Anti-Foreign Sanctions law, they have the top authority's legal support on their backs," Tian said, noting that whether including the law into Annex III of the Basic Law or enabling the HKSAR government to revise or work on relevant anti-sanction local laws are both part of the consideration. 

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