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The dreaded UN 'red list': how to get off it?

Sarosh Zaiwalla, Zaiwalla & Co LLP, Founder, London, 23 April 2015

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Few have managed to get off the United Nations sanctions or 'red' list. This article explains the procedure for de-listing and one failed attempt.

The Charter of the United Nations gives the UN Security Council power to call upon its member-states to impose economic sanctions on a country if it considers

that the country has acted in manner which constitutes a threat to peace, breach of peace or an act of aggression. These may include a complete or partial interruption of economic relations and of rail, sea, air, postal, telegraphic, radio, and other means of communication, and the severance of diplomatic relations.

Over the years the Security Council has passed various resolutions by which it has asked the UN's member-states to impose economic sanctions on various countries including Iran and Syria. As part of sanctions against Iran, the Security Council has listed various Iranian people and other entities which the UN believes has contributed to Iran’s Nuclear Programme.

UN-listed people and other entities can make de-listing requests to the UN Sanctioning Committee and can send documents to them through the UN Focal Point. The UN Focal Point does not have powers to annul a UN listing; its role is simply to act as a post box or means of communication between the UN Sanctioning Committee and the listed individual or entity. The United Nations has established procedures which apply to de-listing requests. These procedures have been created to ensure that the de-listing request and evidence is considered in a timely and cost-effective manner.

Even though the office of the UN Focal Point receives representations from those on the UN red list, this does not address the issue that the de-listing request is considered by the same sanctioning committee that originally listed the individual or other entity in the first place and nobody independent is involved.

My firm, Zaiwalla & Co LLP, recently made a request to the UN Focal Point on behalf of Fee Bank in Malaysia, which was on the United Nations' list. Fee Bank is the subsidiary of Bank Mellat - an Iranian Bank whose listing under Iranian sanctions was declared unlawful by both the United Kingdom's Supreme Court and the European Court of Justice. The de-listing request of Fee Bank was procedurally dealt with swiftly and the whole process was smooth and cost-effective. However, to Fee Bank’s disappointment the United Nation’s sanctioned committee refused to de-list our client. This was despite the fact that the de-listing application was based on the finding of facts made by two competent courts, namely the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and the European Court of Justice.

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