Question Period Note: Canadian Lobbyist working with Myanmar

Canadian lobbyist Ben Menashe and his firm have signed a contract with Myanmar military-appointed Defence Minister listed under Canadian Special Economic Measures (SEMA) Regulations Mya Tun Oo.

• In response to the Myanmar military coup, the Minister of Foreign Affairs announced on February 18, 2021 that Canada was imposing sanctions against 9 Myanmar military officials under the Schedule of the Special Economic Measures (Burma) Regulations (the "Regulations").
• These sanctions are still in place, and were in addition to Canada's existing strong sanctions. The Regulations prohibit any person in Canada or Canadian outside Canada from engaging in any activity related to any property held by or on behalf of a listed person.

• They also prohibit any person in Canada or Canadian outside of Canada from providing financial or related service or entering into or facilitating any transaction in relation to such an activity.
• We are aware of reports concerning a Montreal-based company potentially in contravention of the Regulations. Contravening Canadian sanctions is a criminal offence. All persons in Canada and Canadians abroad must comply with Canada's strict sanctions measures.
• Global Affairs Canada is not an investigative body; the investigation of possible infractions of Canadian law is conducted primarily by the RCMP.

On February 1, 2021, following a crushing election defeat, the Myanmar military initiated a coup d'état against the democratically-elected National League for Democracy (NLD) civilian government, announcing the seizure of governance for one year and arresting senior civilian government leaders. The military has applied deadly force against peaceful protestors and implemented draconian legal measures to restrict mobilization and criminalize dissent. To date over 3000 have been detained and over 700 have been killed.
Canada has issued several high-level statements both bilaterally and in conjunction with our international partners. On February 18th, 2021, Canada announced targeted sanctions against the military leaders of the coup, including Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, his Deputy Soe Win, military-appointed Minister of Defence Mya Tun Oe and 6 others. These listings were in addition to a robust sanctions regime under the Special Economic Measures Act (SEMA) that has been in place since 2007, which currently includes an arms embargo, and a listings ban against 44 listed entities and 54 individuals.
In mid-March media began reporting that Israeli-Canadian lobbyist Ben Menashe and his Montreal-based lobbying firm Dickens and Madson signed a $2 million contract with the Myanmar military on March 4 to advance the latter's public relations agenda internationally. The firm claimed it will lobby the United States, Russia and Middle East nations other countries as well as the United Nations and African Union and other international organisations on behalf of the Myanmar regime.
Based on publically-available information we understand that the Myanmar side of the contract was signed by sanctioned Defence Minister Mya Tun Oo. It is possible that these activities could be in contravention of Canada's SEMA Regulations. Global Affairs Canada is not an investigative body; the investigation of possible infractions of Canadian law is conducted primarily by the RCMP, to which any further questions on this case should be directed.

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