Act No. 4 / 2005 Coll.
Law on certain measures in relation to the Republic of Iraq
Valid
Effective from 06.01.2005
4
THE LAW
of 10 December 2004
concerning certain measures in relation to the Republic of Iraq
Parliament has decided on this law of the Czech Republic:
No one may import, export, purchase, sell, stop, hide or otherwise dispose of objects of Iraqi cultural heritage and other objects of archaeological, historical, cultural, scientific and religious importance which have been stolen or otherwise illegally acquired from the Iraqi National Museum, the National Library and other places in the Republic of Iraq since the adoption of United Nations Security Council Resolution 661 of 6 August 1990, as well as objects of that nature, which are suspected to be objects which are unlawful.
(1) Oil, petroleum products and natural gas of Iraqi origin until the transfer of ownership to the first buyer cannot be seized, secured or subject to execution.
(2) In the sale of oil, petroleum products and natural gas of Iraqi origin to the first buyer, the proceeds or claims on such sale shall be subject to privileges and immunities to the extent granted to the United Nations, (1) except in those cases where it is a judicial proceeding in which the penalty for such revenues or claims is necessary in the context of liability for damage calculated in the context of an environmental accident, including oil spill, which occurred after 22 May 2003.
(1) No one may dispose of the property of the Republic of Iraq, its government, state bodies, corporations or agencies, if they were located in the Czech Republic on 22 May 2003.
(2) No one may dispose of the property of the former President of the Republic of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, or of other senior officials of the former Iraqi regime and their next of kin, including the property of entities directly or indirectly controlled by those persons or persons acting on their behalf or at their direction, where such property is situated in the territory of the Czech Republic.
(3) No one may dispose of property which has been exported from the Republic of Iraq by former President Saddam Hussein or other senior officials of the former Iraqi regime and their closest relatives, including assets of entities which are directly or indirectly controlled by those persons or persons acting on their behalf or at their direction, provided that such property is situated in the territory of the Czech Republic.
(4) The list of natural persons and other entities associated with the regime of the former President of the Republic of Iraq, Saddam Hussein, whose assets are subject to the prohibition referred to in paragraphs 2 and 3, issued by the competent authority of the United Nations, is published on a proposal from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Commercial Journal, held on the Public Administration Portal.
(5) The property referred to in paragraphs 1 to 3 shall be subject to privileges and immunities to the extent accorded to the United Nations, (1) except where such property is subject to an earlier judicial decision or a previously established lien as a result of judicial, administrative or arbitral proceedings.
(1) Property for the purposes of this Act means all tangible assets and all rights and other assets, in particular:
(a) securities, (2) dividends and other income from the assets or gains in value of those assets;
(b) deposits with banks and financial institutions, balances on accounts, interest and cash;
(c) claims on letters of credit received, securities received, claims on contracts for the sale of any assets;
(d) documents confirming the holding of parts of the funds or financial resources and their assimilated financial instruments;
(e) deposits in capital companies entered into companies for the purpose of acquiring or increasing participation in companies, profit and settlement interests of those companies, and balances or parts thereof of the liquidation of companies;
(f) copyright, industrial property rights and intellectual property rights,
(g) cultural goods.
(2) The treatment of property referred to in Article 3 (1) to (3) shall mean any action involving property as defined in paragraph 1 to change its existing size or value, to change ownership and other rights relating to property, to change its location or to any other act involving the use of such property, except where the change in value of the property is due to its increase in interest or income, including any claims due on a given date, or where the acts relating to the protection of such property are related to impairment or destruction.
(1) Where a natural or legal person finds that he or she has the property referred to in § 1 or § 3 (1) to (3), or where he or she has reason to suspect that such property is present, he or she shall be obliged to make a written notification to the Ministry of Finance without undue delay and no later than 3 days after his or her finding; the notification shall contain all the identification details available to it concerning the property and its owner or holder and the entity to which the property was exported from the Republic of Iraq. Similarly, state authorities shall proceed if they come into contact with such property in the exercise of their powers.
(2) The Ministry of Finance, after consulting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, shall inform the notifier in writing, at the latest 14 days after the date of receipt of the notification referred to in paragraph 1, whether the property is subject to the scheme under this Act. If this information is not communicated to the notifier within the prescribed time limit, the property subject to the scheme shall not be considered to be subject to this Law.
(3) Until such time as it is communicated that the property is not subject to the arrangements laid down in this Law or until the period laid down in paragraph 2 has expired, the natural or legal person with the property covered by the notification referred to in paragraph 1 may not dispose of it.
(4) Where a natural or legal person is informed that the property in respect of which he has made a notification pursuant to paragraph 1 is a property subject to the regime under this law, that person shall be obliged to transfer such property to the Ministry of Finance and to proceed with the transfer of such property under its instructions.
(1) The Ministry of Finance, in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, shall ensure the transfer of the assets referred to in § 1 to the competent institutions of the Republic of Iraq and the transfer of the assets referred to in § 3 (1) to the Development Fund for Iraq, unless the property is subject to a prior judicial decision or previously established lien as a result of judicial, administrative or arbitration proceedings.
(2) The Development Fund for Iraq is the fund established pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1483 (2003) at the Central Bank of Iraq.
(3) The Development Fund for Iraq is subject to privileges and immunities to the extent granted to the United Nations (1).
(1) Those who have fulfilled the obligations laid down in this Act shall not be liable for any damage caused by such acts.
(2) The claim for compensation is not due where the acts relating to the property are defined in this Act.
(3) The provisions of the Special Act shall apply mutatis mutandis to damages. (3) The claim for compensation must be applied to the Ministry of Finance.
(4) Compliance with the notification requirement under Paragraph 5 (1) is not a breach of the legal obligation of secrecy imposed under a special law.
(5) This law is without prejudice to the right of natural and legal persons to exercise their rights to the property referred to in § 3 (1) to (3), transferred under § 6 (1) to the Development Fund for Iraq, in respect of the Republic of Iraq.
(1) A natural person commits an offence by violating the prohibition on the disposal of property referred to in § 1, § 3 (1) to (3), § 5 (3), fails to comply with the notification requirement under § 5 (1) or fails to comply with the obligation to transfer property under § 5 (4).
(2) A fine of up to 500 000 CZK may be imposed for the offence referred to in paragraph 1.
(3) A legal person who commits an administrative offence by violating the prohibition on the disposal of property referred to in § 1, § 3 (1) to (3), § 5 (3), fails to comply with the notification requirement under § 5 (1) or fails to comply with the obligation to transfer property under § 5 (4) shall be fined up to a maximum of CZK 5 000 000. The fine may be imposed within 3 years of the date on which the infringement was detected, but no later than 10 years from the date on which the infringement occurred.
(4) The legal person shall not be liable for an administrative offence if he proves that he has made every effort to prevent an infringement.
(5) In determining the scale of the fine, account shall be taken of the gravity of the infringement, in particular the manner in which it was committed and the consequences thereof and the circumstances in which it was committed.
(6) The Ministry of Finance is discussing the transfers and administrative offences under this Act at first instance.
(7) (4) Unless otherwise specified.
(8) The decision referred to in paragraph 6 may be brought by a party to the proceedings. The breakdown must be delivered to the Ministry of Finance within 30 days of receipt of the decision imposing the fine.
(9) The provisions of the Liability and Punishment Act shall apply to the liability for acts which have taken place in the course of or directly related to the business of a natural person (5).
(10) The fines are collected and enforced by the Customs Office Prague 1; the proceeds from the fines are the income of the state budget. The collection and enforcement of fines imposed shall be carried out in accordance with a special legislature.4)
(1) The measures referred to in Article 2 (1) and (2) shall apply until 31 December 2007.
(2) This Act shall take effect on the day of its publication.
Zaoralek v. r.
Klaus v. r.
v z. Jahn v. r.
1) Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations, approved by the United Nations General Assembly on 13 February 1946, published under No 52 / 1956 Coll.
2) Paragraph 1 (1) of Act No. 591 / 1992 Coll., on Securities, as amended.
3) Act No. 82 / 1998 Coll., on liability for damage caused in the exercise of public authority by decision or by incorrect official procedure and amending Act No. 358 / 1992 Coll., on notaries and their activities (notarial order), as amended.
4) Act No. 337 / 1992 Coll., on the Administration of Taxes and Fees, as amended.
5) Paragraph 2 (2) of the Commercial Code.
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Regulation Information
| Citation | Act No. 4 / 2005 Coll., on certain measures in relation to the Republic of Iraq |
|---|---|
| Regulation Type | - |
| Author | - |
| Collection | Code of Laws |
| Date of Promulgation | 06.01.2005 |
|---|---|
| Effective from | 06.01.2005 |
| Effective until | - |
| Status | Valid |
The regulation text is for informational purposes only.
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