Leading U.S. senators said on Thursday they plan to reintroduce legislation that would provide for sanctions to freeze assets of senior Cambodian officials who undermine democracy, engage in corruption, or otherwise violate human rights.
The bipartisan Cambodia Democracy and Human Rights Act planned by Democratic Senators Ed Markey and Dick Durbin and Republican Marco Rubio would also require the U.S. president to submit a report to Congress on China’s activities in Cambodia assessing whether this had caused a deterioration of democracy and human rights.
A statement from Markey’s office said sanctions would include blocking of assets and that the bill – an earlier version of which was introduced in the previous Congress and passed the House – would codify exiting visa restrictions on Cambodian officials.
