As a campaigner for stronger sanctions against human rights offenders prepares to address a NZ audience, an American sanctioned by China says we should be “keeping with the democratic global community”
An American foreign policy expert blacklisted by China for supporting Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement has encouraged New Zealand to adopt an autonomous sanctions regime, saying such laws offer a targeted approach to tackle “gross human rights violators”.
Daniel Twining’s comments come as Kiwi politicians prepare to hear from a businessman who has successfully lobbied countries to introduce so-called ‘Magnitsky laws’ to target individuals over human rights abuses and corruption.
Twining, president of the International Republican Institute and a former foreign policy adviser to John McCain, told Newsroom that New Zealand “would be very much in keeping with the democratic global community” if it were to adopt such legislation.
The US, UK and EU already had Magnitsky laws on their books, while Australia and Japan were among the countries considering their own legislation in the area.
Twining, who spoke at last week’s Otago Foreign Policy School, was among the heads of US-based democracy organisations sanctioned by the Chinese government last year for supporting the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement.
He said Magnitsky laws were among the “very large middle ground” of options between inaction and military conflict, and offered a more precise way to punish the officials and other individuals responsible for abuses.
“The old-fashioned sort of sanction didn’t work so well, right, these very blunt instruments that sometimes hit citizens but not leaders. This is a very targeted approach to deal with gross human rights violators, kleptocracy and forms of personalised corruption.”
“To the extent that we can leverage our financial system to make them think twice about, well maybe I won’t be able to get my money out of that Swiss bank, or maybe I won’t be able to send my children to Harvard or Princeton, or the University of Otago, that has some impact at a personal level among abusive leaders.”
Taking such action was particularly important given the West’s financial systems helped to enable some of the abuse, Twining said.
“It’s more true with a Russia in terms of assets in the West, but it’s also true of many Chinese and other autocrats: they send their children to be educated in the West, they put their financial assets in the West, and by the West, I include Australia, New Zealand and Japan.
“So to the extent that we can leverage our financial system to make them think twice about, ‘Well maybe I won’t be able to get my money out of that Swiss bank, or maybe I won’t be able to send my children to Harvard or Princeton, or the University of Otago’, that has some impact at a personal level among abusive leaders.”
The issue of New Zealand’s sanctions regime has reared its head after National MP Gerry Brownlee had his Autonomous Sanctions Bill drawn from the member’s ballot last week.
While the Government dropped its own legislation on the matter late last year, Brownlee’s bill will receive at least a first reading before Parliament. The Labour Party, whose support is essential for the law to progress, has not yet indicated how it will vote.
New Zealand lawmakers will receive further encouragement to strengthen their sanctions system on Wednesday, when American-British businessman Bill Browder speaks at an event hosted by Labour MP Louisa Wall and National MP Simon O’Connor.
Browder is the chief executive and co-founder of Hermitage Capital Management, an investment firm which in 2007 was targeted by Russian authorities over alleged tax irregularities.
Russian auditor Sergei Magnitsky was asked by Browder to look into the matter, and found documents seized by police had been used to ‘hijack’ Hermitage companies and fraudulently claim back hundreds of millions in tax.
Magnitsky himself was then targeted by authorities, dying in prison in 2009 after being beaten and denied medical treatment.
Browder successfully lobbied US officials to pass sanctions legislation in Magnitsky’s name targeting the Russian officials involved in his death, and ‘Magnitsky laws’ have since broadened to become more general laws allowing targeted sanctions against those involved in human rights offences or corruption.
In 2019, Browder criticised New Zealand’s inaction in the area, saying the Government had given a “total non-answer” when asked why it did not have a Magnitsky Act.
“The US, Canada and the UK gave exactly the same non answers before finally passing their own Magnitsky Acts. I’m sure New Zealand will eventually follow in due course,” Browder said.
