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Feature Articles :

History of Cannabis
  and Anti-Marijuana
  Laws in Thailand



Thailand’s Notable
  Criminal Extradition
  Cases


Guide for Tourists
  to Laws in Thailand



Neither Free nor Fair:
  Burma’s Sham Elections



Sex Laws in Thailand:
  Part 1



Renewable Energy
  in Thailand



Transsexuals and
  Thai Law



Foreign Mafia in
  Thailand

Credit :
Chaninat and Leeds, a full practice Thai law firm, provided guidance for the structure and content of this website. At Chaninat and Leeds, US attorneys have years of experience assisting clients with divorcing a Thai national and other aspects of marriage ad family law in Thailand.

Thailand Lawyer Blog:
 Thai Government to
  Review Post-2006
  Prosecutions
 Courts Order Thai
  Military to Cease
  Labeling Transsexuals
  as Mentally Ill
 Work Permit Law
  Changes in Thailand
 Bahamian Supreme Court
  Ruling Backs
  Prenuptial Agreement
 The US FATCA:
  “The Neutron Bomb
  the Global Financial
  System”?
 The Effects of the US
  Government’s Policies
  on Americans Living
  Abroad
 Chinese Assimilation
  in Thailand vs. Malaysia
 Illegal Wildlife
  Trafficking in Asia:
  Thailand as a Hub?
 Rabbi Enforcing
  Jewish Divorce Order
  Arrested by FBI
 U.S. Prenuptial
  Agreements in Thailand:
  Why Thai Law is
  Important
 US Immigration in
  Decline?
 Abortion and Family
  Planning Law in
  the Philippines
 U.S. Courts and the
  Application of Foreign
  Law to International
  Prenuptial Agreements
 Thailand Blasted by 2011
  Human Trafficking Report
 US Expats on Alert:
  New US Tax Law
  Extends IRS’s Reach
  Internationally
 Hangover 2 and
  the Thai Censors
 Thailand’s Film
  Industry Steps Up
 

(2) LIMITATION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided under subparagraph
(B), amounts appropriated pursuant to paragraph
(1) may not be provided to—
(i) SPDC-controlled entities;
(ii) entities run by members of the SPDC or their families; or
(iii) entities providing cash or resources to the SPDC, including organizations affiliated with the United Nations.
(B) WAIVER.—The President may waive the funding restriction described in subparagraph (A) if—
(i) the President determines and certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that such waiver is in the national interests of the United States;
(ii) a description of the national interests need for the waiver is submitted to the appropriate congressional
committees; and
(iii) the description submitted under clause (ii) is posted on a publicly accessible Internet Web site
of the Department of State.

SEC. 10. REPORT ON MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE AID TO BURMA.

(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report containing a list of countries, companies,
and other entities that provide military or intelligence aid to the SPDC and describing such military or intelligence aid provided by each such country, company, and other entity.
(b) MILITARY OR INTELLIGENCE AID DEFINED.—For the purpose of this section, the term ‘‘military or intelligence aid’’ means, with respect to the SPDC—
(1) the provision of weapons, weapons parts, military vehicles, or military aircraft;
(2) the provision of military or intelligence training, including advice and assistance on subject matter expert
exchanges;
(3) the provision of weapons of mass destruction and related materials, capabilities, and technology, including nuclear, chemical, or dual-use capabilities;
(4) conducting joint military exercises;
(5) the provision of naval support, including ship development and naval construction;
(6) the provision of technical support, including computer and software development and installations, networks, and
infrastructure development and construction; or
(7) the construction or expansion of airfields, including radar and anti-aircraft systems.
(c) FORM.—The report required under subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex and the unclassified form shall be placed on the Department of State’s website.

SEC. 11. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON INTERNATIONAL ARMS SALES TO BURMA.
It is the sense of Congress that the United States should lead efforts in the United Nations Security Council to impose a mandatory international arms embargo on Burma, curtailing all sales of weapons, ammunition, military vehicles, and military aircraft to Burma until the SPDC releases all political prisoners, restores constitutional rule, takes steps toward inclusion of ethnic minorities in political reconciliation efforts, and holds free and
fair elections to establish a new government.

SEC. 12. REDUCTION OF SPDC REVENUE FROM TIMBER.
(a) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, and other Federal officials, as appropriate, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on Burma’s timber trade containing
information on the following:

(1) Products entering the United States made in whole or in part of wood grown and harvested in Burma, including
measurements of annual value and volume and considering both legal and illegal timber trade.
(2) Statistics about Burma’s timber trade, including raw wood and wood products, in aggregate and broken down by country and timber species, including measurements of value and volume and considering both legal and illegal timber trade.
(3) A description of the chains of custody of products described in paragraph (1), including direct trade streams from Burma to the United States and via manufacturing or transshipment in third countries.
(4) Illegalities, abuses, or corruption in the Burmese timber sector.
(5) A description of all common consumer and commercial applications unique to Burmese hardwoods, including the furniture and marine manufacturing industries.
(b) RECOMMENDATIONS.—The report required under subsection
(a) shall include recommendations on the following:
(1) Alternatives to Burmese hardwoods for the commercial applications described in paragraph (5) of subsection (a), including alternative species of timber that could provide the same applications.
(2) Strategies for encouraging sustainable management of timber in locations with potential climate, soil, and other conditions to compete with Burmese hardwoods for the consumer and commercial applications described in paragraph (5) of subsection (a).
(3) The appropriate United States and international customs documents and declarations that would need to be kept
and compiled in order to establish the chain of custody concerning products described in paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (a).
(4) Strategies for strengthening the capacity of Burmese civil society, including Burmese society in exile, to monitor
and report on the SPDC’s trade in timber and other extractive industries so that Burmese natural resources can be used to benefit the majority of Burma’s population.

SEC. 13. REPORT ON FINANCIAL ASSETS HELD BY MEMBERS OF THE SPDC.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of the Representatives, the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, and the Committee on Finance of the Senate a report
containing a list of all countries and foreign banking institutions that hold assets on behalf of senior Burmese officials.
(b) DEFINITIONS.—For the purpose of this section:
(1) SENIOR BURMESE OFFICIALS.—The term ‘‘senior Burmese officials’’ shall mean individuals covered under section 5(d)(1) of this Act.
(2) OTHER TERMS.—Other terms shall be defined under the authority of and consistent with section 5(c)(2) of this
Act.
(c) FORM.—The report required under subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex. The report shall also be posted on the Department of Treasury’s website not later than 30 days of the submission to Congress of the report. To the extent possible, the report shall include the names of the senior Burmese officials and the approximate value of their holdings in the respective foreign banking institutions and any other pertinent information.

SEC. 14. UNOCAL PLAINTIFFS.
(a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the Sense of Congress that the United States should work with the Royal Thai Government to ensure the safety in Thailand of the 15 plaintiffs in the Doe v. Unocal case, and should consider granting refugee status or humanitarian parole to these plaintiffs to enter the United States consistent with existing United States law.
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the appropriate Congressional committees a report on the status of the Doe vs. Unocal plaintiffs and whether the plaintiffs have been granted refugee status or humanitarian parole.

SEC. 15. SENSE OF CONGRESS WITH RESPECT TO INVESTMENTS IN BURMA’S OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY.
(a) FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.—Congress finds the following:
(1) Currently United States, French, and Thai investors are engaged in the production and delivery of natural gas
in the pipeline from the Yadana and Sein fields (Yadana pipeline) in the Andaman Sea, an enterprise which falls under the jurisdiction of the Burmese Government, and United States investment by Chevron represents approximately a 28 percent nonoperated, working interest in that pipeline.
(2) The Congressional Research Service estimates that the Yadana pipeline provides at least $500,000,000 in annual revenue for the Burmese Government.
(3) The natural gas that transits the Yadana pipeline is delivered primarily to Thailand, representing about 20 percent
of Thailand’s total gas supply.
(4) The executive branch has in the past exempted investment in the Yadana pipeline from the sanctions regime against the Burmese Government.
(5) Congress believes that United States companies ought to be held to a high standard of conduct overseas and should avoid as much as possible acting in a manner that supports repressive regimes such as the Burmese Government.
(6) Congress recognizes the important symbolic value that divestment of United States holdings in Burma would have
on the international sanctions effort, demonstrating that the United States will continue to lead by example.
(b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—
(1) Congress urges Yadana investors to consider voluntary divestment over time if the Burmese Government fails to take meaningful steps to release political prisoners, restore civilian constitutional rule and promote national reconciliation.
(2) Congress will remain concerned with the matter of continued investment in the Yadana pipeline in the years
ahead.
(3) Congress urges the executive branch to work with all firms invested in Burma’s oil and gas sector to use their influence to promote the peaceful transition to civilian democratic rule in Burma.
(c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress that so long as Yadana investors remain invested in Burma, such investors should—
(1) communicate to the Burmese Government, military and business officials, at the highest levels, concern about the lack of genuine consultation between the Burmese Government and its people, the failure of the Burmese Government to use its natural resources to benefit the Burmese people, and the military’s
use of forced labor;
(2) publicly disclose and deal with in a transparent manner, consistent with legal obligations, its role in any ongoing investment in Burma, including its financial involvement in any joint production agreement or other joint ventures and the amount of their direct or indirect support of the Burmese Government; and
(3) work with project partners to ensure that forced labor is not used to construct, maintain, support, or defend the project facilities, including pipelines, offices, or other facilities.

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