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(PT 1) 1999 REPORT TO THE CHR BY TH
- Subject: (PT 1) 1999 REPORT TO THE CHR BY TH
- From: darnott@xxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sat, 30 Oct 1999 05:23:00
--=====================_6862539==_.ALT
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
[NOTE BY DAVID ARNOTT: THIS IS THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR'S REPORT TO THE 1999
SESSION OF THE UN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS. IT COMPLEMENTS HIS REPORT TO THE
1999 SESSION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, WHICH IS POSTED SEPARATELY]
POSTED IN 2 PARTS.
PART 1
*****************
UNITED NATIONS
Economic and Social Council
Distr. GENERAL
E/CN.4/1999/35
22 January 1999
Original: ENGLISH
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Fifty fifth session
Item 9 of the provisional agenda
QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL
FREEDOMS IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD
Situation of human rights in Myanmar
Report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Rajsoomer Lallah, submitted in
accordance with Commission on Human Rights resolution 1998/63
Introduction
1. The present report is submitted pursuant to paragraph 5 of Commission
on Human Rights resolution 1998/63, adopted without vote on 21 April 1998,
in which the Commission on Human Rights requested the Special Rapporteur to
submit a report at its fifty fifth session.
I. ACTIVITIES OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR
2. The Special Rapporteur wishes to recall that, since his appointment in
June 1996, he has yet to be allowed by the Government of Myanmar to see the
situation on the ground, despite the repeated requests of the General
Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights that he have direct access to
the Government and people of Myanmar.
3. In the meantime, the Special Rapporteur, through his missions and
consultations, has received much assistance and information from
governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental sources. He has
further received information from individuals who have personal knowledge
of the situation in Myanmar. He has also received several well-documented
reports describing the situation in Myanmar, particularly in relation to
the matters over which the General Assembly and the Commission on Human
Rights have expressed concern.
4. The Special Rapporteur submitted an interim report (A/53/364, annex)
to the General Assembly at its fifty-third session.
5. While at Headquarters to present his report, the Special Rapporteur
met with several representatives of Governments and non-governmental
organizations and also private individuals who imparted their views and
information on the situation of human rights in Myanmar.
6. In his continuing effort to obtain the most accurate and up-to-date
information on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, the Special
Rapporteur visited Thailand in December 1996 to assess that situation in
the light of information gathered from newly displaced persons from Myanmar
living in refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border. The findings of the
mission are reflected in section III of this report.
7. The present report is based upon information received by the Special
Rapporteur through 31 December 1998. The report is to be read in
conjunction with the Special Rapporteur's report to the General Assembly;
it updates certain matters discussed before the General Assembly while
treating some issues not addressed there.
II. THE EXERCISE OF CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS
A. Measures adversely affecting democratic governance
8. In his report to the fifty-first session of the General Assembly
(A/51/466), the Special Rapporteur stated that the repressive political
climate in Myanmar since 1990 had made it virtually impossible for
opposition parties to function and they had been severely hampered through
constant repression and arrests, with a number of members of Parliament in
prison and others in exile. Two years later, the Special Rapporteur
continues to receive reports indicating that in Myanmar political parties
in opposition continue to be subjected to intense and constant harassment by
the regime with a view to restricting their activities.
9. This harassment and the arrests increased during September 1998 when
200 representatives of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and elected
representatives from various constituencies and more than 650 party members
were arrested by the authorities following NLD's attempts to convene a
parliament comprising representatives of the country's various ethnic
groups in accordance with the results of 1990 general election.
10. On 6 October 1998, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights issued a press release in which she stated the following:
"I have been following with increasing concern the intensification of
repression against Myanmar's political opposition over the last
few weeks. Recently, over 200 members of the National League for
Democracy (NLD) have been arrested or detained, while NLD leader Aung San
Suu Kyi has been subjected to repeated harassment. Further, conditions of
detention in the country fall far short of international standards, and a
number of prisoners are reported to have died while in custody.
"It is clear from the Commission of Inquiry established by the
International Labour Organization that forced labour continues in
Myanmar. Meanwhile, there also appears to be an official policy of forced
displacement of ethnic minorities, which has resulted in large numbers of
internally displaced and refugees in neighbouring countries.
"I raised these issues with the Foreign Minister of Myanmar, U Ohn Gyaw,
during a meeting in New York on 23 September but received no satisfactory
response. I take this opportunity to call on the Government of Myanmar to
guarantee the rights of freedom of movement and association of all citizens
and to accelerate the process of national reconciliation leading to the
enjoyment of all human rights. I hope the people arrested or detained for
political reasons will be released and allowed to express freely their
views and opinion and demonstrate peacefully.
"I urge the Government to establish a constructive dialogue with the
United Nations system, including the human rights mechanisms, in the
effective promotion and protection of human rights in the country.
Regrettably, the authorities have failed to respond to consistent requests
to allow the Special Rapporteur on the situation in Myanmar, Rajsoomer
Lallah, to conduct a field mission. I reiterate my support for Mr.
Lallah's efforts to fulfil his mandate and again request the Government to
cooperate with him and allow him to have direct contacts with the people of
Myanmar."
11. On 7 October 1998, one day following the High Commissioner's
statement, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) continued its
policy of restricting the legitimate activities of members of political
parties by arresting 54 NLD members. According to a statement made the
same day by Myanmar authorities, the 54 persons were distributing leaflets
calling for the convening of the parliament and support for the NLD.
According to the authorities, these groups were also in collusion with
illegal organizations within the country and abroad.
12. On the same day, the High Commissioner for Human Rights issued a
second statement stating the following:
"The latest detentions of opposition activists in Myanmar are very
worrying, indicating that the Government continues to ignore basic human
rights standards and the concern of the international community.
"Yesterday I deplored the intensifying wave of repression against Myanmar's
political opposition. I reiterate in the strongest possible
terms my call to the Government of Myanmar to release all political
prisoners and to guarantee its citizens all fundamental human rights.
I also urge the Government to undertake a process of reconciliation with
the opposition and to cooperate fully with the human rights
mechanisms of the United Nations."
13. On 23 October 1998, the Chairman-Rapporteur of the Working Group on
Arbitrary Detention together with the Special Rapporteur on torture of the
Commission on Human Rights addressed a letter to the Minister for Foreign
Affairs of Myanmar in which they referred to the specific case of Dr. U Saw
Mra Aung. The letter states the following:
"We wish to draw Your Excellency's attention to information we have
received concerning the situation of Dr. U Saw Mra Aung, an 80-year old
medical doctor and an elected member of Parliament, who was allegedly
arrested on 6 September 1998. In view of his old age, the source is
particularly concerned about his health while in detention.
It is also reported that on 7 October 1998, the State Peace and Development
Council announced that 54 people had been arrested in connection with a
conspiracy to 'incite unrest' by members of the National League for
Democracy and students said to be allied with foreign organizations. It is
alleged that some of those detained before the 7 October press conference
were severely beaten during interrogation, and that they may not be
receiving such medical assistance as they might require as a result."
14. On 3 December 1998, the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the
United Nations Office at Geneva responded to the letter by stating the
following:
"I have since been informed by the authorities concerned in Myanmar that
the person under reference in your communication, Dr. Saw Mra Aung, was not
arrested as alleged. He is comfortably accommodated at the government
guest house where he is accorded due courtesy and respect. Dr. Saw Mra
Aung has unlimited access to his family. On 26 October 1998 and again on
10 November 1998 he was chauffeured to his residence for overnight reunions
with his family."
15. Myanmar officials claimed in numerous interviews and press statements
that the elected members of Parliament and other NLD members were not
arrested but were instead called for questioning and were treated as guests
in government gust houses. In a news briefing held in Yangon on 22
November 1998, Lieutenant Colonel Hla Min stated that "arrangements were
made for NLD party members and elected representatives from various
constituencies to take up temporary residence at State guest houses in
their respective areas from 6 September onwards. A total of 200 NLD
representatives and 651 party members were included in these arrangements."
16. According to the same article, 63 NLD representatives and 321 party
members who undertook not to participate in such "illegal activities" were
returned to their homes. However, the Special Rapporteur has no
information on the fate of the remaining over 400 NLD representatives and
party members, their place of custody and health situation.
17. Since November 1995, when the NLD leaders withdrew from the National
Convention, there has been increasing harassment of the party by the
military regime, including arrests of hundreds of party members over the
last six months. In December 1998, almost all of the members of the
organizing committees in the states, divisions, townships, wards and
villages have been taken into custody illegally for no apparent reason and
they are unable to fulfil their obligations and duties. Most of these
elected parliamentarians have added responsibilities as either chairman or
secretary of the organizing committees in the townships. The Special
Rapporteur observes that the SPDC is illegally arresting and detaining
numerous members of the NLD, including elected representatives who have in
no way violated any law. The Special Rapporteur further wishes to note
that keeping people in so-called "guest houses" against their will or under
the threat that their detention will continue unless they desist from
political activities or abandon membership of the party or of their seat in
Parliament is no more than a euphemism for arbitrary imprisonment in
violation of article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as
more fully elaborated in article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights.
18. Aside from the arbitrary arrests, NLD members have been subjected to
intense and systematic harassment. It is reported that over the last six
months, members of the party have been constantly intimidated by local
authorities as well as by armed forces personnel. Their houses are under
constant surveillance. Many members of political parties have reportedly
been evicted from State owned apartments where they had lived for many
years. The harassment of the NLD and the pressure under which its members
are living have led some of them to resign. Such resignations are
publicized in the Government-controlled newspaper, New Light on Myanmar.
As a further form of harassment, a concerted effort was made by local
authorities to remove all signs of an NLD presence on main roads or at any
place where they might be exposed widely to the public. As a result of all
these repressive measures, virtually all the branch offices are closed.
19. The resignations of NLD members and closures of NLD offices are
widely disseminated in the media, in terms that are almost identical in
nature and matter except for the particulars regarding the address,
department, and number of people. The following are some examples:
"It has been learned that the entire township Executive Committee [EC] and
members of the National League for Democracy [NLD] party of Ponnagyun
Township [in Arakan State] have resigned and the township branch of the NLD
was dissolved at their own request on 16 October 1998."
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 11 November 1998.
"It has been learned that the Executive Committee [EC] members and all
members of Minbya Township National League for Democracy [NLD] in Arakan
State have tendered their resignations and dissolved the township NLD out
of their own volition on 11 November 1998."
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 25 November 1998.
"All members of the Executive Committee [EC] of the National League for
Democracy [NLD] in Kyunhla Township, Sagaing Division, have resigned of
their own volition and disbanded the NLD office in Kyunhla on 27 November
[1998]."
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 3 December 1998.
"All Executive Committee [EC] members of Mong Yawng Township National
League for Democracy [NLD] in Eastern Shan State resigned from the party
and the township office of the NLD was dissolved on 30 November."
Source: Rangoon Radio Myanmar in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 9 December 1998.
B. Prison conditions
20. The current Special Rapporteur has not been able to visit Myanmar.
Given the fact that the former Special Rapporteur was denied access to
prison cells and could not meet with any detainee while visiting Myanmar,
and given the fact that the Government of Myanmar rejected the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) standard requirements for
visits to places of detention (i.e. that it meet prisoners in private, have
access to all prisons and be assured of repeat visits), the Special
Rapporteur can only rely on the complaints of former detainees such as
those with whom he met while in Thailand in the course of his recent visit.
The testimonies gathered from three former detainees strongly indicate
that Myanmar authorities are unwilling to open their jails to public
scrutiny and that prison conditions fall far below minimum international
standards established by the United Nations.
21. Prisoners are said to be denied adequate food (in amount and quality)
and health care, to be housed in unsanitary and degrading conditions and
subjected to cruel disciplinary practices or torture.
22. Numerous allegations, often in considerable detail, have been
received alleging that members of the Myanmar military, intelligence and
security services and police continue to torture persons in detention or
otherwise subject them to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and
punishment. Such treatment seems to be routinely employed during the
interrogation of persons who have been arbitrarily arrested. Many former
political detainees testified to having been put into leg irons and beaten
with canes, sometimes to the point of unconsciousness. Testimonies from
reliable sources indicate that detainees are very often forced to sleep on
cold cement, and that many of them suffer from sickness and serious
diseases. Cells are often overcrowded and prisoners are provided with
inadequate hygiene or medical care.
23. Bribery and corruption are said to be a major problem in Myanmar
prisons. Although families can bring food and medicines to their
relatives, such supplies are reportedly often confiscated by the prison
authorities.
24. The Special Rapporteur was told that hundreds of prisoners have been
forced to work under extremely harsh conditions on infrastructure projects
without being released at the completion of their duties. It has also been
alleged that convicts are taken from prison to serve as porters, often
shortly before their sentences are to expire, and then forced to work under
very poor conditions long after they should have been released from prison.
Apparently, prisoners can avoid going to such camps if they pay large
bribes to the prison authorities. Persons released from prison stated that
during their detention they were not allowed to have any reading material,
including the State-run newspaper, or material with which to write, or
non-political literature; they were reportedly also denied access to
radios.
END OF PART 1
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Content-Type: text/html; charset="us-ascii"
<html>
[NOTE BY DAVID ARNOTT: THIS IS THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR'S REPORT TO THE
1999 SESSION OF THE UN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS. IT COMPLEMENTS HIS
REPORT TO THE 1999 SESSION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, WHICH IS POSTED
SEPARATELY]<br>
<br>
POSTED IN 2 PARTS.<br>
<br>
PART 1<br>
<br>
*****************<br>
<br>
<font face="Courier New, Courier">UNITED NATIONS<br>
Economic and Social Council<br>
Distr. GENERAL<br>
E/CN.4/1999/35<br>
22 January 1999<br>
Original: ENGLISH<br>
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS<br>
Fifty fifth session<br>
Item 9 of the provisional agenda<br>
<br>
<br>
QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
AND FUNDAMENTAL <br>
FREEDOMS IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD<br>
<br>
Situation of human rights in Myanmar<br>
<br>
Report of the Special Rapporteur, Mr. Rajsoomer Lallah, submitted
in<br>
accordance with Commission on Human Rights resolution 1998/63
<br>
<br>
<br>
Introduction<br>
<br>
1. The present report is submitted pursuant to paragraph 5 of
Commission<br>
on Human Rights resolution 1998/63, adopted without vote on 21 April
1998,<br>
in which the Commission on Human Rights requested the Special Rapporteur
to<br>
submit a report at its fifty fifth session.<br>
<br>
<br>
I. ACTIVITIES OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR <br>
<br>
2. The Special Rapporteur wishes to recall that, since his
appointment in<br>
June 1996, he has yet to be allowed by the Government of Myanmar to see
the<br>
situation on the ground, despite the repeated requests of the
General<br>
Assembly and the Commission on Human Rights that he have direct access
to<br>
the Government and people of Myanmar.<br>
3. In the meantime, the Special Rapporteur, through his
missions and <br>
consultations, has received much assistance and information from<br>
governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental sources. He
has<br>
further received information from individuals who have personal
knowledge<br>
of the situation in Myanmar. He has also received several
well-documented<br>
reports describing the situation in Myanmar, particularly in
relation to<br>
the matters over which the General Assembly and the Commission on
Human<br>
Rights have expressed concern. <br>
4. The Special Rapporteur submitted an interim report
(A/53/364, annex)<br>
to the General Assembly at its fifty-third session.<br>
5. While at Headquarters to present his report, the Special
Rapporteur<br>
met with several representatives of Governments and
non-governmental<br>
organizations and also private individuals who imparted their views
and<br>
information on the situation of human rights in Myanmar. <br>
6. In his continuing effort to obtain the most accurate and
up-to-date<br>
information on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, the
Special<br>
Rapporteur visited Thailand in December 1996 to assess that situation
in<br>
the light of information gathered from newly displaced persons from
Myanmar<br>
living in refugee camps along the Thai-Myanmar border. The findings
of the<br>
mission are reflected in section III of this report. <br>
7. The present report is based upon information received by
the Special<br>
Rapporteur through 31 December 1998. The report is to be read
in<br>
conjunction with the Special Rapporteur's report to the General
Assembly;<br>
it updates certain matters discussed before the General Assembly
while<br>
treating some issues not addressed there.<br>
<br>
<br>
II. THE EXERCISE OF CIVIL AND POLITICAL RIGHTS<br>
<br>
<br>
A. Measures adversely affecting democratic governance<br>
<br>
<br>
8. In his report to the fifty-first session of the General
Assembly<br>
(A/51/466), the Special Rapporteur stated that the repressive
political<br>
climate in Myanmar since 1990 had made it virtually impossible for<br>
opposition parties to function and they had been severely hampered
through<br>
constant repression and arrests, with a number of members of Parliament
in<br>
prison and others in exile. Two years later, the Special
Rapporteur<br>
continues to receive reports indicating that in Myanmar political
parties<br>
in opposition continue to be subjected to intense and constant harassment
by the regime with a view to restricting their activities. <br>
9. This harassment and the arrests increased during September
1998 when<br>
200 representatives of the National League for Democracy (NLD) and
elected<br>
representatives from various constituencies and more than 650 party
members<br>
were arrested by the authorities following NLD's attempts to convene
a<br>
parliament comprising representatives of the country's various
ethnic<br>
groups in accordance with the results of 1990 general election.<br>
10. On 6 October 1998, the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human<br>
Rights issued a press release in which she stated the
following: <br>
"I have been following with increasing concern the intensification
of<br>
repression against Myanmar's political opposition over the last<br>
few weeks. Recently, over 200 members of the National League
for<br>
Democracy (NLD) have been arrested or detained, while NLD leader
Aung San<br>
Suu Kyi has been subjected to repeated harassment. Further,
conditions of<br>
detention in the country fall far short of international
standards, and a<br>
number of prisoners are reported to have died while in custody. <br>
"It is clear from the Commission of Inquiry established by the<br>
International Labour Organization that forced labour continues in<br>
Myanmar. Meanwhile, there also appears to be an official policy of
forced<br>
displacement of ethnic minorities, which has resulted in large numbers
of<br>
internally displaced and refugees in neighbouring countries.<br>
"I raised these issues with the Foreign Minister of Myanmar, U Ohn
Gyaw,<br>
during a meeting in New York on 23 September but received no
satisfactory<br>
response. I take this opportunity to call on the Government of
Myanmar to<br>
guarantee the rights of freedom of movement and association of all
citizens<br>
and to accelerate the process of national reconciliation leading to
the<br>
enjoyment of all human rights. I hope the people arrested or
detained for<br>
political reasons will be released and allowed to express freely
their<br>
views and opinion and demonstrate peacefully.<br>
"I urge the Government to establish a constructive dialogue
with the<br>
United Nations system, including the human rights mechanisms, in
the<br>
effective promotion and protection of human rights in the country.<br>
Regrettably, the authorities have failed to respond to consistent
requests<br>
to allow the Special Rapporteur on the situation in Myanmar,
Rajsoomer<br>
Lallah, to conduct a field mission. I reiterate my support for
Mr.<br>
Lallah's efforts to fulfil his mandate and again request the Government
to<br>
cooperate with him and allow him to have direct contacts with the people
of<br>
Myanmar."<br>
11. On 7 October 1998, one day following the High
Commissioner's<br>
statement, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) continued
its<br>
policy of restricting the legitimate activities of members of
political<br>
parties by arresting 54 NLD members. According to a statement made
the<br>
same day by Myanmar authorities, the 54 persons were distributing
leaflets<br>
calling for the convening of the parliament and support for the NLD.
<br>
According to the authorities, these groups were also in collusion
with<br>
illegal organizations within the country and abroad. <br>
12. On the same day, the High Commissioner for Human Rights issued
a<br>
second statement stating the following:<br>
"The latest detentions of opposition activists in Myanmar are
very<br>
worrying, indicating that the Government continues to ignore basic
human<br>
rights standards and the concern of the international community.<br>
"Yesterday I deplored the intensifying wave of repression against
Myanmar's<br>
political opposition. I reiterate in the strongest possible<br>
terms my call to the Government of Myanmar to release all political<br>
prisoners and to guarantee its citizens all fundamental human
rights.<br>
I also urge the Government to undertake a process of reconciliation
with<br>
the opposition and to cooperate fully with the human rights<br>
mechanisms of the United Nations."<br>
13. On 23 October 1998, the Chairman-Rapporteur of the Working
Group on<br>
Arbitrary Detention together with the Special Rapporteur on torture of
the<br>
Commission on Human Rights addressed a letter to the Minister for
Foreign<br>
Affairs of Myanmar in which they referred to the specific case of Dr. U
Saw<br>
Mra Aung. The letter states the following:<br>
"We wish to draw Your Excellency's attention to information we
have<br>
received concerning the situation of Dr. U Saw Mra Aung, an 80-year
old<br>
medical doctor and an elected member of Parliament, who was
allegedly<br>
arrested on 6 September 1998. In view of his old age, the source
is<br>
particularly concerned about his health while in detention.<br>
It is also reported that on 7 October 1998, the State Peace and
Development<br>
Council announced that 54 people had been arrested in connection with
a<br>
conspiracy to 'incite unrest' by members of the National League for<br>
Democracy and students said to be allied with foreign
organizations. It is<br>
alleged that some of those detained before the 7 October press
conference<br>
were severely beaten during interrogation, and that they may not be<br>
receiving such medical assistance as they might require as a
result."<br>
14. On 3 December 1998, the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to
the<br>
United Nations Office at Geneva responded to the letter by stating
the<br>
following: <br>
"I have since been informed by the authorities concerned in Myanmar
that<br>
the person under reference in your communication, Dr. Saw Mra Aung, was
not<br>
arrested as alleged. He is comfortably accommodated at the
government<br>
guest house where he is accorded due courtesy and respect. Dr. Saw
Mra<br>
Aung has unlimited access to his family. On 26 October 1998 and
again on<br>
10 November 1998 he was chauffeured to his residence for overnight
reunions<br>
with his family."<br>
15. Myanmar officials claimed in numerous interviews and press
statements<br>
that the elected members of Parliament and other NLD members were
not<br>
arrested but were instead called for questioning and were treated as
guests<br>
in government gust houses. In a news briefing held in Yangon on
22<br>
November 1998, Lieutenant Colonel Hla Min stated that "arrangements
were<br>
made for NLD party members and elected representatives from various<br>
constituencies to take up temporary residence at State guest houses
in<br>
their respective areas from 6 September onwards. A total of 200
NLD<br>
representatives and 651 party members were included in these
arrangements."<br>
<br>
<br>
16. According to the same article, 63 NLD representatives and 321
party<br>
members who undertook not to participate in such "illegal
activities" were<br>
returned to their homes. However, the Special Rapporteur has
no<br>
information on the fate of the remaining over 400 NLD representatives
and<br>
party members, their place of custody and health situation. <br>
17. Since November 1995, when the NLD leaders withdrew from the
National<br>
Convention, there has been increasing harassment of the party by
the<br>
military regime, including arrests of hundreds of party members over
the<br>
last six months. In December 1998, almost all of the members of
the<br>
organizing committees in the states, divisions, townships, wards
and<br>
villages have been taken into custody illegally for no apparent reason
and<br>
they are unable to fulfil their obligations and duties. Most of
these<br>
elected parliamentarians have added responsibilities as either chairman
or<br>
secretary of the organizing committees in the townships. The
Special<br>
Rapporteur observes that the SPDC is illegally arresting and
detaining<br>
numerous members of the NLD, including elected representatives who have
in<br>
no way violated any law. The Special Rapporteur further wishes to
note<br>
that keeping people in so-called "guest houses" against their
will or under<br>
the threat that their detention will continue unless they desist
from<br>
political activities or abandon membership of the party or of their seat
in<br>
Parliament is no more than a euphemism for arbitrary imprisonment
in<br>
violation of article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
as<br>
more fully elaborated in article 9 of the International Covenant on
Civil<br>
and Political Rights. <br>
18. Aside from the arbitrary arrests, NLD members have been
subjected to<br>
intense and systematic harassment. It is reported that over the
last six<br>
months, members of the party have been constantly intimidated by
local<br>
authorities as well as by armed forces personnel. Their houses are
under<br>
constant surveillance. Many members of political parties have
reportedly<br>
been evicted from State owned apartments where they had lived for
many<br>
years. The harassment of the NLD and the pressure under which its
members<br>
are living have led some of them to resign. Such resignations
are<br>
publicized in the Government-controlled newspaper, New Light on Myanmar.
<br>
As a further form of harassment, a concerted effort was made by
local<br>
authorities to remove all signs of an NLD presence on main roads or at
any<br>
place where they might be exposed widely to the public. As a result
of all<br>
these repressive measures, virtually all the branch offices are
closed.<br>
19. The resignations of NLD members and closures of NLD
offices are<br>
widely disseminated in the media, in terms that are almost identical
in<br>
nature and matter except for the particulars regarding the address,<br>
department, and number of people. The following are some
examples:<br>
"It has been learned that the entire township Executive Committee
[EC] and<br>
members of the National League for Democracy [NLD] party of
Ponnagyun<br>
Township [in Arakan State] have resigned and the township branch of the
NLD<br>
was dissolved at their own request on 16 October 1998."<br>
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 11
November 1998.<br>
"It has been learned that the Executive Committee [EC] members and
all<br>
members of Minbya Township National League for Democracy [NLD] in
Arakan<br>
State have tendered their resignations and dissolved the township NLD
out<br>
of their own volition on 11 November 1998."<br>
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 25
November 1998.<br>
"All members of the Executive Committee [EC] of the National League
for<br>
Democracy [NLD] in Kyunhla Township, Sagaing Division, have resigned
of<br>
their own volition and disbanded the NLD office in Kyunhla on 27
November<br>
[1998]."<br>
Source: Rangoon TV Myanmar Network in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 3
December 1998.<br>
"All Executive Committee [EC] members of Mong Yawng Township
National<br>
League for Democracy [NLD] in Eastern Shan State resigned from the
party<br>
and the township office of the NLD was dissolved on 30
November."<br>
Source: Rangoon Radio Myanmar in Burmese, 1330 GMT, 9 December
1998.<br>
<br>
<br>
B. Prison conditions<br>
<br>
<br>
20. The current Special Rapporteur has not been able to visit
Myanmar.<br>
Given the fact that the former Special Rapporteur was denied access
to<br>
prison cells and could not meet with any detainee while visiting
Myanmar,<br>
and given the fact that the Government of Myanmar rejected the<br>
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) standard requirements
for<br>
visits to places of detention (i.e. that it meet prisoners in private,
have<br>
access to all prisons and be assured of repeat visits), the Special<br>
Rapporteur can only rely on the complaints of former detainees such
as<br>
those with whom he met while in Thailand in the course of his recent
visit.<br>
The testimonies gathered from three former detainees strongly
indicate<br>
that Myanmar authorities are unwilling to open their jails to
public<br>
scrutiny and that prison conditions fall far below minimum
international<br>
standards established by the United Nations.<br>
21. Prisoners are said to be denied adequate food (in amount
and quality)<br>
and health care, to be housed in unsanitary and degrading conditions
and<br>
subjected to cruel disciplinary practices or torture.<br>
22. Numerous allegations, often in considerable detail, have
been<br>
received alleging that members of the Myanmar military, intelligence
and<br>
security services and police continue to torture persons in detention
or<br>
otherwise subject them to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and<br>
punishment. Such treatment seems to be routinely employed during
the<br>
interrogation of persons who have been arbitrarily arrested. Many
former<br>
political detainees testified to having been put into leg irons and
beaten<br>
with canes, sometimes to the point of unconsciousness. Testimonies
from<br>
reliable sources indicate that detainees are very often forced to sleep
on<br>
cold cement, and that many of them suffer from sickness and serious<br>
diseases. Cells are often overcrowded and prisoners are provided
with<br>
inadequate hygiene or medical care.<br>
23. Bribery and corruption are said to be a major problem in
Myanmar<br>
prisons. Although families can bring food and medicines to
their<br>
relatives, such supplies are reportedly often confiscated by the
prison<br>
authorities. <br>
24. The Special Rapporteur was told that hundreds of
prisoners have been<br>
forced to work under extremely harsh conditions on infrastructure
projects<br>
without being released at the completion of their duties. It has
also been<br>
alleged that convicts are taken from prison to serve as porters,
often<br>
shortly before their sentences are to expire, and then forced to work
under<br>
very poor conditions long after they should have been released from
prison.<br>
Apparently, prisoners can avoid going to such camps if they pay
large<br>
bribes to the prison authorities. Persons released from prison
stated that<br>
during their detention they were not allowed to have any reading
material,<br>
including the State-run newspaper, or material with which to write,
or<br>
non-political literature; they were reportedly also denied access
to<br>
radios. <br>
<br>
END OF PART 1</font><br>
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