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Shan Girl At Geneva Human Rights Se



Subject: Shan Girl At Geneva Human Rights Session: 

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8 May 1999<br>
<br>
<b>Shan Girl At Geneva Human Rights Session: <br>
<br>
</b>A Shan girl made her international debut at the 55th Session of the
UN Human Rights Conference last April and was received favorably there
according to SHAN source. <br>
<br>
Charm Tong, 17, from the Shan State of Burma, a member of the newly
formed Shan Women?s Action Network (SWAN) and also of Alternative Asean
Network on Burma, attend the 55th session of the United Nations Human
Rights Commission (UNHCR) which was held last April in Geneva and made
oral interventions on Violence Against Women, Child Rights and the
Trafficking of Children. <br>
<br>
On the question of Women in Burma, she talked about government-sanctioned
policy of sexual violence against non-Burman women. ?I strongly believe
this (that the soldiers appear to have the permission to commit rapes)
because there has been no persecution of the rapist soldiers?, she said.
<br>
<br>
&quot;Actually there are many cases where the people were beaten and
fined for defaming the military when they tried to complain about the
rape&quot;. <br>
<br>
Concerning Child Rights, she said: &quot;(C)hildren in Burma could NOT
experience these rights. This is very strange because I heard the Burmese
government already ratified this Convention&quot;. She added: &quot;(W)e
all have to shut up and do what the military regime says&quot;. <br>
<br>
She reported about thousands of children being forcibly relocated along
with their parents, &quot;no future, no school, no hospital, no
food&quot;, about being forced to become child soldiers and child
trafficking especially of young girls. &quot;(T)he girls are the same age
as me and some are even younger&quot;. <br>
<br>
&quot;Maybe my government won't listen to me, so I ask all the countries
to help me and give the same message to my government&quot;. <br>
<br>
Kham Harnfah, secretary of the Shan Human Rights Foundation, who also
participated in the session, said: &quot;All of us including her mentor,
Debbie Stothard, were proud of her&quot;. <br>
<br>
Shans had joined Burma in 1947 under the treaty called Panglong Agreement
which guaranteed Full Autonomy, Human Rights and Democracy for them. They
have been fighting against successive Rangoon governments since the terms
of agreement were violated. Their main party is the Shan Nationalities
League for Democracy that won the General Elections in the Shan State in
1990 and their central armed movement is the Shan States Army. <br>
<br>
/// END \\\ <br>
<br>
For further information, please contact S.H.A.N. at: <br>
Shan Herald Agency for News. <br>
P.O. Box. 15 <br>
Nonghoi P.O., 50007 <br>
Chiangmai <br>
Thailand <br>
Ph/Fax: (053) 807 121<br>
e-mail: &lt;shan@xxxxxxxxxxxx&gt; 
<BR>
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