AUSTRALIAN IMPLEMENTATION OF TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS

C O N F I D E N T I A L CANBERRA 000337 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR ISN/RA R.MONGIELLO AND R.NEPHEW STATE ALSO FOR NEA AND EAP E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/04/2018 TAGS: MNUC KNNP IR AS SUBJECT: AUSTRALIAN IMPLEMENTATION OF TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS IN UNSCRS 1737, 1747 AND 1803 REF: A. STATE 34974 ¶B. STATE 33674 ¶C. CANBERRA 302 ¶D. CANBERRA 301 ¶E. STATE 29464 ¶F. STATE 29096 Classified By: Political Counselor James F. Cole for reasons 1.4 (b),(d ). ¶1. (C) POLOFF presented Ref A points and a request for the status of Australia's implementation of travel-related provisions of UNSCRs 1737, 1747 and 1803 to Peter Scott, Director for Sanctions and Transnational Crime, International Legal Branch, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, on April 4. Scott's office is responsible for coordinating travel-related bans and restrictions within the GOA, primarily in cooperation with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. ¶2. (C) Scott noted that the Governor-General, acting on the advice of the Cabinet, had issued regulations in June 2007 (Migration (United Nations Security Council Resolutions) Regulations 2007) under the Migration Act of 1958 that apply to prohibit or restrict issuance of visas to persons named in UN Security Council resolutions, including 1737, 1747 and ¶1803. The 2007 regulatory changes updated the meaning of a UNSC-designated person; spelled out special criterion for grant of visas; and prescribed the grounds for cancelling visas. ¶3. (C) Scott explained that Australia's Movement Alert List (MAL) has been updated to include not only those persons banned from entering or transiting Australian territory, but also all persons subject to asset freezing or whose travel is subject to reporting. An application for a visa by any person on the Movement Alert List triggered an alert to DFAT and/or other agencies responsible for taking action on the specific case. The system was as an effective mechanism to screen and prevent travel to Australia by persons of proliferation concern or who were subject to a travel ban, according to Scott. This included refusal of visas to Iranians on a regular basis. ¶4. (C) In addition to the Movement Alert List, Scott continued, Australia also employed another mechanism to prevent or restrict travel of persons covered under UNSCRs 1737, 1747 and 1803: the Public Interest Criterion contained in Schedule 4, 4003 (b) of the 1994 Migration Regulations of the Migration Act of 1958 gives the GOA authority to refuse or cancel visas to persons of WMD proliferation concern. ¶5. (U) Full text of the Migration (United Nations Security Council Resolutions) Regulations 2007 is available online at the Federal Register of Legislative Instruments website: http://frli.law.gov.au. A full description of Australia's sanctions implementation can be found online at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade website at: http://www.dfat.gov.au/un/unsc sanctions/index.html. MCCALLUM