Australia’s Magnitsky bill passes Senate hearing

The Australian Senate has passed an amendment to its autonomous sanctions bill (i.e., ‘Magnitsky-type’ sanctions), broadening the sweep of its legislation and bringing it closer to implementation.

Specifically, the changes amend the Autonomous Sanctions Act 2011 to ‘specify thematic categories of conduct to which autonomous sanctions can be applied; clarify that autonomous sanctions regimes established under the regulations can be either country-specific or thematic; and specify decision-making processes for imposing targeted financial sanctions and travel bans on person and entities under thematic sanctions regimes.’

Addressing lawmakers in the Senate, Australia’s Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the legislation ‘will mean Australia can take timely action, including with like-minded partners, where it’s in the national interest, in response to situations of international concern wherever they occur in the world.’

She added that the government, in response to a parliamentary committee report on the bill, had added ‘a new thematic cyber-regime [to] serve alongside other law enforcement and operational mechanisms to enhance Australia’s responses to instances of egregious malicious cyberactivity that impact our interests.’

Payne said, ‘The regulations will provide the specific criteria under which a person or entity could be sanctioned under these new thematic regimes should it be in Australia’s national interests to do so. Embedding the new thematic regimes in our existing autonomous sanctions framework means that established processes and safeguards will continue to apply, not be duplicated across multiple sanctions, acts and frameworks. That’s important to provide certainty and continuity for all of those who engage with our autonomous sanctions framework. This is similar to the approach taken by the United Kingdom, which does not have a standalone act and has a similar framework with regulations under an overarching act.’