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US Policy toward Burma in the House
- Subject: US Policy toward Burma in the House
- From: MSoe9872@xxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 09 Dec 1999 09:28:00
Subject: US Policy toward Burma in the House of Representatives
Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to increasing
political oppression in Burma.
Mr. ROHRABACHER submitted the following concurrent resolution;
which was referred to the Committee on International Relations
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Congress with respect to increasing
political oppression in Burma.
Whereas since 1962 Burma has been ruled by a military dictatorship;
Whereas as part of a crackdown against the Burmese pro-democracy
movement, the State Law and Order Restoration Council (hereafter in
this resolution referred to as `SLORC') was established by the
military dictatorship in 1988;
Whereas on May 27, 1990, the people of Burma voted overwhelmingly
in a free election for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the National League
for Democracy (hereafter in this resolution referred to as `NLD');
Whereas despite numerous pledges, the SLORC has failed to honor the
results of the 1990 elections;
Whereas the United States has not sent an ambassador to Rangoon in
protest of the failure of the SLORC to honor the 1990 elections and
the continued human rights abuses suffered by the Burmese people;
Whereas in response to the massacre of thousands of Burmese
participating in peaceful democratic demonstrations, the Congress
adopted a provision as part of the Customs and Trade Act of 1990
requiring the President to impose appropriate economic sanctions on
Burma;
Whereas currently the United States has suspended economic aid to
Burma, placed an embargo on arms sales, denied Burma benefits under
the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), and decertified Burma
as a narcotics cooperating country;
Whereas the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994
and 1995 (Public Law 103-236), approved April 30, 1994, placed
Burma on the list of international `outlaw' states that includes
Libya, North Korea, and Iraq and which is set forth in section
307(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2227(a)),
thus mandating that voluntary United States funding for any United
Nations agency will be automatically reduced if the agency conducts
programs in Burma;
Whereas on July 15, 1994, the Senate adopted Senate Resolution 234
calling on the executive branch to encourage members of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to work with the
United States to achieve the transfer of power to the winners of
Burma's 1990 democratic election;
Whereas on July 25, 1994, the House of Representatives adopted
House Resolution 471, which urged the Burmese regime to transfer
power to democratically elected leaders of Burma and to respect
human rights;
Whereas on June 28, 1995, the House of Representatives agreed to an
amendment to H.R. 1868, which prohibited funds for international
narcotics control or crop substitution assistance for the Burmese
regime;
Whereas in early 1995 the SLORC conducted a military campaign
against ethnic minorities, many of whom are Christian, along the
border between Burma and Thailand, including the headquarters of
the Democratic Alliance of Burma at Mannerplaw;
Whereas on July 10, 1995, after six years of unlawful detention,
the SLORC released Nobel Peace Prize winner Daw Aung San Suu Kyi,
the leader of the NLD;
Whereas since the release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the SLORC has
rejected her efforts to establish a timetable for dialogue and
national reconciliation and has denied the NLD a meaningful role in
a credible political process;
Whereas the 1995 Human Rights Watch World Report states that
Muslims in the Arakan State, a province of Burma, are subject to
forced relocations, forced labor, and religious persecution;
Whereas on December 19, 1995, the House of Representatives adopted
House Resolution 274, which calls on the Burmese regime to begin a
political dialogue with democratically elected leaders of Burma,
release political prisoners, guarantee respect for basic human
rights, and restore civilian and democratic rule to the people of
Burma;
Whereas Aung San Suu Kyi has called for a halt to private foreign
investment until progress towards democracy begins in Burma;
Whereas various United States cities have passed resolutions
condemning United States private investment in Burma;
Whereas protests on university campuses against United States
policy in Burma are growing in frequency;
Whereas the SLORC regime has purchased $2,000,000,000 in weapons
over the last 3 years from the People's Republic of China and other
countries;
Whereas on June 7, 1996, SLORC passed Law 5/96, which outlawed the
drawing up, writing, or distribution of the state constitution of
Burma without legal authorization;
Whereas penalties for writing a constitution involve a minimum of 3
years and a maximum of 20 years in prison, in addition to
unspecified fines;
Whereas during the period of May 26th-29th, 1996, 258 delegates to
a conference on democracy in Rangoon were arrested and jailed;
Whereas of the 258 delegates arrested, 238 were elected in 1990 as
members of the parliament;
Whereas the Report of the Special Representative of the United
Nations, published in March, 1996, indicated that forced labor,
forced porterage, torture, and arbitrary killing are still
widespread in Burma;
Whereas SLORC has refused to file any charges against Khun Sa, the
world's most notorious heroin trafficker, and rejected requests by
the United States to have him extradited to the United States;
Whereas the Karenni and the Karen, ethnic groups in Burma, are
strong supporters of democracy and the United States;
Whereas thousands of innocent Karenni civilians have been killed by
unprovoked attacks by SLORC troops in the Karenni state;
Whereas the Karen ethnic group faces constant attacks by SLORC
troops, resulting in many deaths and destruction of villages; and
Whereas in the near future, Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the
democratic movement in Burma may begin to write a legitimate state
constitution for the people of Burma: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That if the SLORC regime arrests Aung San
Suu Kyi, otherwise limits her freedom, or exiles her--
(1) the Congress will adopt legislation to prohibit future
investment in Burma; and
(2) the United States should use all means necessary to bring
Khun Sa to trial in the United States.
Reference:FILE hc188.ih
HCON 188 IH
104th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. CON. RES. 188
Burma Studies Group