SANCTIONS AGAINST PERSONS CONTRIBUTING TO THE CONFLICT IN ZIMBABWE
This document is explanatory only and does not have the force of law. Executive
Orders 13288, 13391, 13469, applicable laws and the implementing regulations
pertaining to Zimbabwe (31 C.F.R. Part 541) contain the legally binding
provisions governing the
sanctions. This document does not supplement or modify
the Executive orders or the regulations.
I. INTRODUCTION
The Zimbabwe sanctions program implemented by the Office of Foreign Assets
Control (“OFAC”) began on March 7, 2003, when the President issued Executive
Order (“E.O.”) 13288. E.O. 13288 imposed
sanctions against specifically
identified individuals and entities in Zimbabwe, as a result of the actions and
policies of certain members of the Government of Zimbabwe and other persons
undermining democratic institutions or processes in Zimbabwe. Following E.O.
13288, in response to the continued undermining of democratic institutions, the
President issued two subsequent Executive orders that expanded the list of
sanctions targets to include immediate family members of any person whose
property and interests in property are blocked as well as those persons
providing assistance to any such individual.
II. OVERVIEW OF AUTHORITIES
On March 6, 2003, the President signed E.O. E.O. 13288, declaring a national
emergency to deal with the unusual and extraordinary threat to U.S. foreign
policy posed by the situation in or in relation to Zimbabwe, which included
widespread violence that threatened regional stability. E.O. 13288 was issued
pursuant to, inter alia, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50
U.S.C. §§ 1701 et seq.) (“IEEPA”) and the
National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. §§
1601 et seq.) (“NEA”). This E.O. included an annex designating approximately 80
individuals.
On July 29, 2004, OFAC issued the Zimbabwe Sanctions Regulations (the
“Regulations”) to implement E.O. 13288. See 31 C.F.R. Part 541.
On November 22, 2005, the President signed E.O. 13391 pursuant to, inter alia,
IEEPA and the NEA to take additional steps with respect to the continued actions
and policies of certain persons who were undermining democratic processes in
Zimbabwe. E.O. 13391 significantly expanded the designation criteria. It also
replaced and superseded the annex to E.O. 13288 in its entirety and added
approximately 80 new annex names. The new E.O. targets persons undermining
Zimbabwe’s democratic processes or institutions, as well as material supporters
and immediate family members of Special Designated Nationals (“SDNs”) under the
Zimbabwe program.
On July 25, 2008, the President issued E.O. 13469 pursuant to, inter alia, IEEPA
and the NEA, in response to the continued actions and policies by the Government
of Zimbabwe and others to undermine Zimbabwe’s democratic processes or
institutions, as manifested in the fundamentally undemocratic election held on
June 27, 2008, and acts of violence and other human rights abuses against
political opponents. E.O. 13469 added new designation criteria to target senior
officials of the Government of Zimbabwe, entities owned or controlled by the
Government of Zimbabwe, human rights abuses related to political repression and
public corruption by senior officials of the Government.
Current Zimbabwe sanctions block the property and interests in property of
individuals and entities listed in the Annex to E.O. 13391 or that are
determined by the Secretary of the Treasury in consultation with the Secretary
of State to:
•
Be a senior official of the Government of Zimbabwe;
•
Be owned or controlled by, directly or indirectly, the Government of Zimbabwe
or an official or officials of the Government of Zimbabwe;
•
Have engaged in actions or policies to undermine Zimbabwe’s democratic
processes or institutions;
•
Be responsible for, or have participated in, human rights abuses related to
political repression in Zimbabwe;
•
Be engaged in, or have engaged in, activities facilitating public corruption
by senior officials of the Government of Zimbabwe;
•
Be a spouse or dependent child of any person whose property and interests in
property are blocked pursuant to E.O.s 13288, 13391, or 13469, or an immediate
family member of any person whose property and interests in property are blocked
pursuant to E.O. 13391;
•
Have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material,
logistical, or technological support to the Government of Zimbabwe, any senior
official or any person blocked pursuant to E.O.s 13288, 13391, or 13469; or
•
Be owned, controlled, or acting on behalf of any person blocked pursuant to
E.O.s 13288, 13391, or 13469.
The names of those persons and entities listed in the Annexes to, or designated
pursuant to, E.O.s 13288, 13391, and 13469, whose property and interests in
property are therefore blocked, are published in the Federal Register and
incorporated into OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Person List
(“SDN List”) with the OFAC program tag “[ZIMBABWE].” The SDN List is available
on OFAC’s Web site at http://www.treasury.gov/sdn.
Note: Certain persons have been
targeted for sanctions on the basis of their
connection to the Government of Zimbabwe. However, U.S. sanctions do not block
the Government of Zimbabwe as a whole, nor do they prohibit all business with
the country of Zimbabwe or transactions involving that jurisdiction.
This fact sheet is a broad summary of the sanctions currently in place. For an
updated list of authorities and
sanctions please refer to the OFAC’s Web site
at:
http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/pages/zimb.aspx.
III. PROHIBITED TRANSACTIONS
Unless otherwise authorized or exempt, transactions by U.S. persons, or in or
involving the United States are prohibited if they involve transferring, paying,
exporting, withdrawing, or otherwise dealing in the property or interests in
property of an entity or individual listed on the SDN List. The property and
interests in property of an entity that is 50% or more owned, directly or
indirectly, by a person on the SDN List are also blocked, regardless of whether
the entity itself is listed. For details please see:
http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Documents/licensing_guidance.p
df
III. AUTHORIZED AND EXEMPT TRANSACTIONS
EXEMPT TRANSACTIONS
Certain types of activities and transactions may be exempt from the prohibitions
of the Regulations and the Executive orders. For example, personal
communications, information or informational materials and transactions
ordinarily incident to travel to or from any country are exempt. Please see 31
C.F.R. § 541.206 for details.
GENERAL LICENSES
OFAC may authorize certain types or categories of activities and transactions,
which would otherwise be prohibited with respect to Zimbabwe, by issuing a
general license. General licenses may be published in the Regulations, on
OFAC’s website, or both. For example, the provision of certain legal services
to or on behalf of persons whose property and interests in property are blocked
pursuant to 31 C.F.R. § 541.201(a) is authorized, provided that all receipts of
payment of professional fees and reimbursement of incurred expenses must be
specifically licensed. See 31 C.F.R. § 541.507.
Also, on April 24, 2013, OFAC issued a general license authorizing all
transactions involving Agricultural Development Bank of Zimbabwe and
Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe.
For a current list of all general licenses relating to the Zimbabwe sanctions
program, please see 31 C.F.R. Part 541 subpart E or visit:
http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Programs/pages/zimb.aspx.
SPECIFIC LICENSES
On a case-by-case basis
OFAC considers applications for specific licenses to
authorize transactions that are neither exempt nor covered by a general license.
Requests for a specific license must be submitted to OFAC’s Licensing Division.
License requests may be submitted using any of the below methods:
•
Online: http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/Pages/licensing.aspx
•
Fax: (202) 622-1657
•
U.S. mail: Assistant Director for Licensing, Office of Foreign Assets Control,
U.S. Department of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC
20220
V. PENALTIES
Civil monetary penalties of up to the greater of $250,000 or twice the amount of
the underlying transaction may be imposed administratively against any person
who violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation
of E.O.s 13288, 13391, and 13469 or the Regulations. Upon conviction, criminal
penalties of up to $1,000,000, imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both, may be
imposed on any person who willfully commits or attempts to commit, or willfully
conspires to commit, or aids or abets in the commission of a violation of the
E.O.s or the Regulations.
This document is explanatory only and does not have the force of law. Please
see particularly E.O.s 13288, 13391, and 13469, and the implementing regulations
pertaining to Zimbabwe (31 C.F.R. Part 541) among other applicable laws for
legally binding provisions governing the sanctions. This document does not
supplement or modify the Executive orders or the Regulations.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also administers
sanctions programs involving the Balkans, Belarus, Burma (Myanmar), Côte
d’Ivoire, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rough Diamond Trading
(Kimberley Process), Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, North Korea, Somalia,
Sudan, Syria, and Yemen as well as highly enriched uranium, persons who commit,
threaten to commit, or support terrorism, international narcotics traffickers,
Foreign Terrorist Organizations, Terrorism List Governments, transnational
criminal organizations, and weapons of mass destruction and their supporters.
For additional information about these programs or about sanctions involving
Zimbabwe, please contact:
OFFICE OF FOREIGN ASSETS CONTROL
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20220
www.treasury.gov/ofac
202/622-2490
12-18-13
