Ottawa, ON – Yesterday, Conservative Shadow Minister for National Defence James Bezan’s Private Member’s Bill C-219 passed the House of Commons and will now proceed to the Senate.
“I am proud to see the Sergei Magnitsky International Anti-Corruption and Human Rights Act pass at its third reading in the House of Commons,” Bezan said. “This legislation will align Canada with our allies in honouring Sergei Magnitsky’s legacy of standing up for human rights, fighting corruption and holding those responsible to account through sanctions regimes that bear his name.”
The legislation puts definitions into Canadian law for both prisoners of conscience and for transnational repression.
It also establishes important timelines for the forfeiture of frozen assets, which will result in compensation to victims of breaches of international peace, security or stability, gross violations of human rights, or acts of corruption.
“I want to thank my colleagues from all parties for their support, along with Marcus Kolga, Bill Browder and especially Vladimir Kara-Murza for their ideas and input at every stage,” Bezan added. “Together, we can make full use of Canada’s Sergei Magnitsky laws to sanction individuals and entities and hold them accountable for gross human rights violations.”
“Bill C-219 is critical for modernizing our sanctions mechanisms for the future,” Bezan concluded. “I look forward to working with my Senate colleagues to pass this legislation soon.”