H.R. 4140 — Burma GAP Act

This section states 12 congressional findings concerning human rights violations and atrocities by the Burmese military against the Rohingya—including UN reports citing impunity as a root cause, a U.S. House resolution (H. Res. 1091) passed 394-1 recognizing genocide, Secretary Blinken's March 2022 determination of genocide and crimes against humanity, and ongoing post-2021 coup abuses affecting over 600,000 Rohingya in Rakhine State (including 130,000 in IDP camps)—as well as U.S. humanitarian leadership, aid access restrictions, Rohingya malnutrition rates exceeding 15% in Bangladesh camps, and a World Food Program funding gap of $83 million through May 2026.

This section states the policy of the United States (1) to uphold Article I of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide to prevent genocide and punish perpetrators; (2) to prevent and end atrocities against Rohingya by addressing root causes, holding perpetrators accountable, supporting human rights and dignity, and ensuring Rohingya involvement in decision-making; (3) to empower Rohingya civilian leadership in diaspora communities, Bangladesh refugee camps, and Burma through consultation; (4) to provide holistic support to Rohingya overcoming persecution and to promote lasting peace, inclusive federal democracy, and transitional justice in Burma; (5) to collaborate with other countries on coordinated measures to uphold Rohingya dignity and human rights; (6) to coordinate with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, other UN agencies, governments, and intergovernmental entities to address protection concerns and prevent atrocities; and (7) to isolate the Burma military junta diplomatically and economically until civilian rule returns.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that (1) the United States has a moral and legal responsibility to prevent and punish genocide, including against the Rohingya; (2) the Secretary of State's March 2022 determination of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya by the Burma military should lead to U.S. support for the Rohingya to overcome persecution; (3) the Rohingya crisis and broader Burma crisis must be addressed simultaneously; (4) the United States should work with donor nations to ensure Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh receive rations meeting humanitarian minimum standards for food and nutrition; (5) the United States should encourage other countries to contribute to Rohingya protection through humanitarian assistance, empowerment, accountability for Burma military crimes, and support for voluntary resettlement or repatriation when conditions allow; and (6) the United States should continue not recognizing the Burma military junta as the legitimate representative of the Burmese people due to its genocide, crimes against humanity, and coup.

This section authorizes the Secretary of State to appoint a career Foreign Service Officer of Senior Foreign Service rank as United States Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma, in the absence of a U.S. Ambassador to Burma. The Special Representative shall (1) promote international efforts, including sanctions, dialogue, and NGO support, to restore civilian democratic governance and address humanitarian needs in Burma; (2) consult with governments of Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Republic of Korea, Japan, ASEAN members, the EU, and others to coordinate Burma policies; (3) assist the UN Special Envoy in securing political prisoner releases and promoting dialogue; (4) consult with Congress on Burma policies and the welfare of Burmese people, including refugees; (5) coordinate multilateral sanctions against Burma; and (6) support protection, humanitarian assistance, and accountability for Rohingya and other Burmese ethnic minorities. This section terminates 5 years after enactment.

This section directs the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Special Representative designated under section 5(a), to support efforts to protect Rohingya and prevent further atrocities against Rohingya and other Burmese ethnic minorities. In carrying out this directive, the section requires the Secretary to engage in protection efforts by (1) supporting Rohingya refugees' access to international protection mechanisms and preventing indefinite detention and nonrefoulement; (2) facilitating Rohingya access to legal support services for abuse including human trafficking and gender-based violence; (3) supporting monitoring, rapid response, legal assistance, and communication mechanisms for Rohingya in Burma; (4) strengthening regional search-and-rescue and assistance coordination; (5) providing technical assistance to Rohingya host communities; and (6) engaging Bangladesh and the international community to improve Rohingya access to justice, security force coordination and training, and safe houses for activists and witnesses. The section further requires the Secretary to promote durable solutions by (1) supporting Rohingya inclusion across sectors in Burma; (2) facilitating atrocity prevention training for non-military Burmese stakeholders; (3) collaborating with Rohingya representatives and non-military stakeholders on safe voluntary returns, citizenship restoration, official ethnic recognition, power-sharing, trust-building, governance inclusion, and transitional justice; (4) broadening ally resettlement programs for vulnerable Rohingya including justice participants; and (5) supporting repatriation only when conditions ensure safe, voluntary, and sustainable returns with full rights restored.

This section directs the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Special Representative (if designated under section 5(a)) and other relevant U.S. government agencies, to continue providing humanitarian assistance to Rohingya refugees, internally displaced persons, and host communities receiving such refugees and persons. Assistance must include (1) protection programming for Rohingya civil society leaders, human rights activists, and others threatened by armed groups; (2) support for Rohingya civil society and community-based organizations, including diplomatic engagement with Bangladesh to allow Rohingya-led organizations in refugee camps; (3) programs to prevent and respond to gender-based violence, trafficking, and forced marriage, plus specialized training for vulnerable groups; (4) support for education, including higher education, for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh; (5) support for livelihoods access through vocational training and volunteer programs by international organizations and NGOs; (6) support for basic needs such as food, nutrition, health care, protection, shelter, water, sanitation, and hygiene; and (7) support to preserve Rohingya culture, history, and memory in Burma, Bangladesh refugee camps, and the diaspora.

This section directs the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Special Representative for Burma (if designated under section 5(a)) and other relevant U.S. government agencies, to take specified actions to promote accountability for genocide and crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya in Burma. Those actions include the following: (1) supporting comprehensive justice and accountability efforts, including through consultation with and participation by the Rohingya community; (2) supporting entities such as the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar in collecting, preserving, and developing evidence (e.g., via open-source research and witness cultivation) for potential prosecutions in domestic, hybrid, and international courts; (3) providing financial and technical assistance to Rohingya-led efforts to monitor and document evidence for investigative and justice processes; (4) encouraging development of an intergovernmental fund for reparative justice for Rohingya victims and survivors and identifying funding sources from foreign governments and appropriated U.S. funds; (5) engaging Burma’s civilian leadership to acknowledge atrocities by the military, restore Rohingya citizenship and rights, ensure compensation and restitution, and support (including via technical and financial assistance) community-led memorialization efforts; (6) supporting institutional reforms and nonrecurrence guarantees (e.g., in security, legislature, and education) and Rohingya inclusion in governance under a federal democratic system; and (7) convening ethnic groups and stakeholders to promote truth, justice, reconciliation, and atrocity prevention and providing technical and financial support to related civil society efforts.

This section requires the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Special Representative (if designated under section 5(a)), to submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on U.S. government efforts concerning Rohingya and other Burmese ethnic minorities not later than 180 days after enactment and annually thereafter for five years. The report must include (1) a description and assessment of U.S. efforts in the prior year to identify and respond to atrocity risks, deter future atrocities, provide humanitarian assistance and protection, document atrocity crimes and responsibility, and promote justice and accountability; (2) a detailed description of actions taken under sections 6, 7, and 8; (3) an assessment of those actions' effects on the policies in section 3; (4) a list of activities and programs under this Act; (5) the number of Rohingya refugees resettled in the United States in the prior year, by country of origin; (6) the number of Rohingya refugees resettled in other countries in the prior year; (7) a description of new challenges facing Rohingya in Burma or refugee camps, including early warning indicators and atrocity risk factors; and (8) recommendations for legislative, administrative, or resource actions to implement this Act and advance section 3 policies. The report must be submitted in unclassified form, with a possible classified annex, and its unclassified portion must be made publicly available on the Department of State website not later than 45 days after receipt by the committees.

This section authorizes appropriations for each of FY2026 through 2030, from amounts available under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, such sums as necessary to carry out sections 6, 7, and 8 of this Act. It also authorizes specific appropriations for each such fiscal year of (1) $5 million for the Department of State to support atrocity crime investigations, documentation, and casework, transitional justice and accountability mechanisms, witness protection measures, and technical support related to Rohingya and other Burmese ethnic minorities; and (2) $4 million to support programs that capture, analyze, and make widely available evidence of ongoing atrocities against the people of Burma through documentation, verification, and dissemination of open-source evidence.

This section defines four terms for purposes of the Act: (1) appropriate congressional committees as the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; (2) genocide as any offense described in 18 U.S.C. §1091(a); (3) Special Representative as the United States Special Representative and Policy Coordinator for Burma designated by the President under section 5(a); and (4) Burma military junta as the State Administrative Council of Burma or any successor entity.