Burma Related News - July 28 , 2000.

WIRE:07/20/2000 12:19:00 ET
Britain's Cook says rights pledge paying off

LONDON, July 20 (Reuters) - Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, facing charges of double standards from human rights groups, said on Thursday his pledge to put ethics at the heart of British diplomacy was paying dividends. Launching the Labour government"s third review of international human rights, Cook said British projects to promote civil society and prevent conflict and oppression around the world were "making a difference." But rights group Amnesty International said the British government was still putting commercial considerations before humanitarian ones. "Sometimes the advances we secure may seem modest when set against the global scale of human oppression," Cook wrote in the introduction to the human rights report. "But I know that they do not seem negligible to those who have gained freedom or safety as a result." The report outlined British contributions in areas including stemming the flow of "conflict diamonds," controlling arms exports, offering humanitarian relief and promoting democracy. But Amnesty accused the government of "sacrificing human rights on the altar of commercial experience." "We recognise and welcome some of the advances we have seen in how human rights are tackled by the Foreign Office but we would like to see more consistency," Amnesty Director Kate Allen told BBC radio. Allen said Britain appeared more willing to tackle human rights in countries where few commercial interests were at risk. But in others, such as Russia, China and oil-exporter Saudi Arabia, it took a softer line. Cook has been criticised fiercely by opposition politicians, who say his promise of an ethical foreign policy has been overridden by business imperatives -- including arms exports to countries like Indonesia, Zimbabwe and Sierra Leone. His cautious rapprochement with Iran was criticised last month by MPs. Opposition Conservatives have called for tougher measures against Zimbabwe"s President Robert Mugabe. Cook said isolating offenders was the answer in only a few cases such as Iraq and Myanmar. In others "critical dialogue" would produce better results -- even if it offended purists. "Though following a policy of disengagement wherever we have disagreements would indeed keep our principles pure, it would do little to help...those who most need our help," he said. But critics of Cook"s policies remained unconvinced. "I"ve always thought that constructive engagement really was an excuse for being able to say we could talk to anyone in the hope we may manage to get them to alter their behaviour," said Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesman Menzies Campbell.

WIRE:07/21/2000 01:39:00 ET
China to take missile shield opposition to ASEAN

BEIJING, July 21 (Reuters) - China will use next week"s meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Bangkok to highlight its opposition to a U.S. missile shield plan for northeast Asia, a Chinese official said on Friday. The July 26 meeting of foreign ministers from ASEAN and Japan, South Korea and China and the July 27 meeting of ARF, a regional security consultative grouping, would allow Beijing to "send a message" about the U.S. theatre missile defence (TMD) plan, the official said. "We don"t think it conforms with the general trend of peace and dialogue," said the official, who spoke on condition on anonymity. In addition to the TMD for Northeast Asia, Washington is testing the feasibility of a National Missile Defence (NMD) to protect the United States from missile attacks from hostile states like North Korea, Iran and Iraq. China and Russia joined hands in opposition to NMD in a summit in Beijing this week, saying it would spark a new arms race. Washington has proposed building a TMD system to shield its troops and allies in Asia against missile attacks from "states of concern" such as North Korea. China says the United States exaggerates the potential threat from North Korea, despite Pyongyang"s launch of a rocket over Japan in August 1998 and a U.S. belief North Korean missiles will be able to strike U.S. cities by 2005. Beijing argues that last month"s North-South Korean summit, and an overall easing of tensions reflected in Pyongyang"s decision to join the ARF this year, undercuts American arguments for TMD. Beijing also fears the joint U.S.-Japan TMD system would cover Taiwan, which China regards as a rebel province and has threatened to invade if the island declares independence or delays reunification talks. NO DISCUSSION OF SPRATLYS ARF groups the 10 ASEAN states -- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam -- with other Asian and Pacific Rim states, as well as global military powers. The Chinese official said Beijing expected the July 24-29 series of meetings following the annual ASEAN foreign ministers gathering to build on confidence-building measures in the region. But China expected its Southeast Asian neighbours to abide by previous ARF understandings to keep its South China Sea territorial dispute with many ASEAN states off the multilateral agenda, the official said. "We"ve made it clear that this is an issue to be tackled bilaterally between China and some ASEAN countries," the official said of the disputed Spratlys and other South China Sea isles. The Spratlys are a cluster of potentially oil-rich isles and reefs claimed wholly or in part by China, the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei. China has skirmished over the islands with the Philippines and Vietnam in recent years. China will be represented by Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan, Assistant Foeign Minister Wang Yi and senior Asia experts from the foreign and defence ministries, the official said. High on the ARF agenda will be relations with North Korea, which applied to join the forum last May in a step towards ending decades of Cold War isolation. Completing the week"s activities on July 29 will be a series of ASEAN bilateral meetings with Australia, Canada, the United States, the European Union, China, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Russia and India.

Friday, July 21 6:02 PM SGT
Protesters vow to hound ASEAN meeting in Thailand
BANGKOK, July 21 (AFP) -

Protests organized by non-government groups will hound a Southeast Asian foreign ministers' meeting here next week, organizers said, as security forces in the Thai capital prepared to go on full alert.

The non-government organizations (NGOs) held a meeting of their own at Thailand's prestigious Chulalongkorn University Friday to raise what they said were issues glossed over in ministerial gatherings.

Sources said representatives of the NGOs from several countries are to stage a "caravan" around the embassies of Southeast Asian countries on Monday.

The motorcade will end at the Shangri La hotel in downtown Bangkok where ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nationswill meet next week.

"We will present our alternative vision for ASEAN," one of the organizers said.

ASEAN security officials said they will be on "full alert" from Monday when the conference officially opens.

Apart from the NGO protest planned for Monday they are concerned that thousands of villagers staging a drawn-out demonstration outside Government House might shift to the ASEAN venue.

More than 1,500 poor villagers from Thailand's northeast have travelled to the capital to demand action on a giant dam which they say is ruining their livelihoods.

"Intelligence sources say they move here for the closing ceremony on the 29th but that is not confirmed yet," said ASEAN security official Surapol Maneepong.

The ASEAN ministerial gathering will be followed later in the week by a security forum involving the foreign ministers of ASEAN's dialogue partners such as the United States, Japan, China and Russia.

At a symposium Friday, speakers denounced ASEAN for its policy of non-interfence in each other's internal affairs and for a lack of consultation regarding development policies.

Chaiwat Khamchoo, dean of the faculty of political science at Chulalongkorn University, told the symposium that "common people are often excluded from their governments' development agenda."

He cited the building of hydro-electric dams at the expense of thousands of families whose homes are inundated and the restriction of civil liberties in Myanmar.

Debbie Stothard, coordinator of the human rights group Altsean-Burma, said ASEAN should take on a greater role "to promote conflict resolution instead of exacerbating conflict through inaction and unhealthy alliances."

"ASEAN has set up an intricate network of mechanisms and produced a number of statements, declarations, treaties and other papers, yet it has not been able to effectively address the pressing problems that affect the lives of millions of its people," she said.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

The regional grouping has been criticized for maintaining a see-no-evil, hear-no-evil policy, under a protocol that bans comment on the internal affairs of member nations.

Ananova - July 21, 2000.

UK man in Burma jail plans appeal

A Briton who was jailed for 17 years in Burma for an anti-government protest is to appeal against his sentence.

James Mawdesley's lawyer is to make the application in a Mandalay court. An appeal in a lower court was rejected in June.

The 27-year-old Lancastrian was arrested last August for handing out pro-democracy pamphlets and entering the country illegally. He had been arrested in Burma twice before, and in 1998 served 99 days of a seven year sentence.

Several foreigners have been detained for nonviolent protests against Burma's repressive military regime, but Mawdsley is the only one jailed for an extensive period.

Vicky Billing, a spokeswoman for the British Embassy, said: "He is fine and in good shape."

Embassy officials make monthly visits. The British vice consul last visited him on July 19, she said.

The Independent Bangladesh
Opinion: Stateless Burmese refugees?
by Zakir Hussain

For an accurate understanding of the problem of influx of Burmese refugees into its neighbouring countries, one must look at the root causes of the problem, namely, the status of the minorities in Burma, and the oppressive policies they suffer there.Since independence, Burma has been destabilised by civil wars involving various ethnic groups, a legacy, in part, of the divide-and-rule policies of the British colonial administration. This instability led to a military coup in 1962. Since then, the country has been ruled by a military junta which has implemented ruthless policies to quell any dissent. In the 1990 election, the National League for Democracy (NLD) led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi won an overwhelming victory, but so far the military has refused to hand over power to the elected representatives. As a result of four decades of military rule, Burma has been ravaged by economic mismanagement; insurgency problems remain unsolved, and border areas are left underdeveloped. A wide range of human rights abuses, such as forced labour, arbitrary arrests and summary executions, are prevalent throughout the country. It is unnecessary to recall the appalling human rights record of the military regime. Since 1991 the UN General Assembly, most recently in November 1999, has adopted annual resolutions expressing concern over the deteriorating human rights situation in Burma. The UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, Rajsoomer Lallah, in his reports to the Human Rights Commission and the General Assembly has repeatedly issued strong conclusions and recommendations to the same effect. In June 1999 the ILO decided to exclude Burma from its programmes and activities because of the pervasive use of forced labour.As a consequence of the disastrous economic situation, forced labour and harassment by the military, migration and human trafficking from Burma to neighbouring countries have flourished. In Thailand, in addition to over 120,000 refugees living in camps established along the border, up to one million Burmese migrants, most of them undocumented, are seeking a better means of livelihood. The Rohingyas are a minority group mostly living in the northern part of Arakan State in Burma, bordering Bangladesh. They have generally embraced a conservative form of Islam. Ethnically they are related to Bengalis sharing similar traditions, customs and religion. In Burma, they express a distinct identity, and have resisted assimilation into mainstream Burmese Buddhist culture. The majorities of Rohingya people live in abject poverty, and suffer from severe lack of education and health care. Arakan was an independent kingdom until 1784, encompassing at times the southern part of today's Bangladesh. Rohingya Muslims and Rakhine Buddhists have co-existed in the region for centuries. Until World War II, the two communities did not show any sign of strong animosity. But in 1942 the evacuation of the British created a political vacuum which gave room for accumulated ethnic tensions to explode. Communal riots broke out in Arakan between Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims. After independence, some Rohingya leaders formed a Mujahid movement and demanded autonomy. But the situation of the Rohingya people only started deteriorating seriously at the time of the military take-over in 1962. Since then they have become targets for harsh treatments by the state authorities. The first wave of migration out of Burma to Pakistan started in the years following the military coup. In 1978, the Burmese government launched an operation called "Nagamin" ("Dragon King") aimed at curtailing illegal infiltration into Burma. It degenerated into abusive attacks on Rohingyas both by the army and local Rakhines. This unleashed a mass exodus of Rohingya refugees to Bangladesh. In 1982, following the subsequent repatriation to Burma, the military junta amended the Citizenship Law. This amendment clearly targeted the Rohingyas, making it almost impossible for them to be recognised as citizens. Again in 1991-92, the Rohingya people became the scapegoats of the military regime. A ruthless campaign of gross human rights abuses, and excessive forced labour, forced once again 250,000 people to take shelter in refugee camps in Bangladesh. From 1994 onwards, UNHCR became involved in the camps in Bangladesh and gained access to the Arakan side of the border. As a result, a repatriation programme was initiated by UNHCR, but its involuntary character was denounced by NGOs. The repatriation has not been completed yet, and is presently stalled. Since its implementation, new refugees and many returnees have continued to trickle back into Bangladesh, but these have not been allowed to settle in the camps and have to survive in extreme poverty in jungle areas or in the slums around Cox's Bazar, facing deportation by the Bangladesh authorities. Currently, an outflow -although less significant, of Rohingyas fleeing military harassment and economic oppression in Arakan is still ongoing, and trafficking to Pakistan continues unabated.UNHCR has identified some areas of major concerns that constitute a push-factor for the outflow of Rohingyas to Bangladesh. There is a direct correlation between the lack of citizenship and the root causes for displacement. Lt-Gen. Khin Nyunt, Secretary No. 1 of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), stated that "Suffice it to say that the issue is essentially one of migration, of people seeking greener pastures. These people are not originally from Myanmar but have illegally migrated to Myanmar because of population pressures in their own country. They are racially, ethnically, culturally different from the other national races in our country." However, an historical analysis of the settlement pattern of the Rohingya people in Northern Arakan considers that nationality rights are for most of them a legitimate aspiration. Following amendments in the Citizenship Act in 1982, they found themselves deprived of the rights inherent to citizenship. The analysis concludes that their present legal status amounts, in international law, to de facto statelessness.

The Bussiness Times - 21 Jul 2000
Views & Opinions
Myanmar woes stem from poor governance
By Aung San Suu Kyi

FOREIGN visitors and journalists often ask what the National League for Democracy intends to do about the political "stalemate" in Myanmar today. I sometimes explain that just because the game has not yet reached checkmate, it should not be seen as stalemate: Moves are being made that may not always be discernible to observers.

On reflection, the chess metaphor is not a felicitous one. What we are aiming at is a negotiated settlement acceptable to major political forces in our country. Trying to checkmate a protagonist into immobility -- or non-existence -- will not promote a peaceful settlement. Most likely, the State Peace and Development Council (the erstwhile State Law and Order Restoration Council) does not share our point of view. Public statements made by members of the military regime suggest that the kind of peace they deem perfect would entail the disappearance of the democratic opposition, checkmate in the form of a final, zero-sum solution.

Thesaurus entries under "annihilate", "crush" or "extinguish" best describe the declared intentions of the military regime towards the National League for Democracy. Members and supporters of the league are persecuted with brutal consistency; arbitrary arrests and imprisonment are daily fare; the authorities organise meetings that citizens are forced to attend, where they are forced to denounce elected members of Parliament or call for the dissolution of the National League for Democracy; and the state media make daily announcements of the number of members who have supposedly resigned from our party. (Many have remarked that the seemingly endless resignations must signify an infinitely large membership.)

The obsessive need of the regime to try to destroy the National League for Democracy is evidence of the support we enjoy and only strengthens our resolve. We are committed to non-violent political activities that will lay a foundation for a healthy democratic state, and we take all possible measures to establish the necessity for the rule of law. It is in this spirit that we have notified the State Peace and Development Council and the Multi Party Election Commission of our intention to file suits against them in accordance with the Specific Relief Act, although we are aware of the stranglehold that the military junta has on Myanmar's judicial processes.

The National League for Democracy believes that national problems must and will be resolved through political negotiations, and we are always ready to accept reasonable compromises. Over the past few years, we have agreed to limited forms of dialogue as a prelude to full-fledged political talks, but the military regime did not respond. The appointment of a citizen from a member country of the Association of South-East Asian Nations as the United Nations secretary-general's special envoy has raised hopes that a way might be found to a peaceful transition to democracy in Myanmar. However, the success of the special envoy's mission depends on cooperation from forces within the country as well as committed action on the part of other nations and multilateral organisations. During the 12 years of struggle for democracy, which was in fact promised by the military regime when it seized power in 1988, Myanmar has deteriorated economically and socially.

Although the junta created some openings for private enterprise and foreign investment, administrative and political practices inimical to a healthy society and failure to adopt a viable macroeconomic policy have pushed the country into an economic and social morass. The World Bank report drawn up last year, recent International Labor Organization actions and the latest observations of the World Health Organization provide incontrovertible evidence that lack of good governance is at the root of our country's troubles. This fact must be recognised by those who have concerns about drug production and trafficking, the spread of HIV, political refugees, illegal economic migrants, humanitarian needs and other problems.

Unless determined steps are taken to effect political change that will lead to an accountable and transparent administration -- a basic requirement for good governance -- measures aimed at economic or humanitarian relief will merely be of a stop-gap nature, too easily rendered null and void at the whim of the authorities or swept away by administrative inefficiency and social instability. -- The Washington Post

The writer is general secretary of the National League for Democracy and recipient of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize

The Nation - July 22, 2000.
EU official highlights Burma's isolation

LAOS and Cambodia's signing of the European Union-Asean Agreement should send a "clear signal" to Burma, the only Asean member that has still to sign the document, French ambassador to Thailand Christian Prettre said yesterday.

The EU is hoping to see a positive sign from the Burmese regime in terms of promoting democracy, respect for human rights and the cessation of forced labour, Prettre said at a press briefing.

"I do not think that keeping Myanmar [Burma] in a ghetto is the best solution," Prettre said. The ambassador was speaking to mark France's assumption of the EU presidency. Its term runs from July 1 to December 31.

"At the same time it is obvious that we cannot close our eyes to the situation there, and we have to be very cautious to see how the Myanmar government reacts to the signal that has been sent," the envoy said.

Laos and Cambodia will next week sign an agreement with the EU during the 33rd Asean Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok, enabling the two countries to receive EU economic and humanitarian assistance.

Burma, which has been criticised by the EU and Western countries of being a dictatorship and of violating human rights, will then be the only Asean member not to have signed the agreement. EU countries are strong opponents of the Burmese regime and have imposed a comprehensive visa ban on Burmese government officials.

The ambassador said it was still too early to integrate Burma into the EU, and "consideration will begin only after Myanmar's military junta shows positive developments towards democracy".

A Swedish representative at the briefing said that Laos, although a communist country, was not in the same category as Burma because it has never been accused of engaging in forced labour.

Thierry Rommel, charge d'affairs of the European Commission, said the next move was up to Burma.

"Now the ball is on Myanmar's side. We expect to see a sign of goodwill from the country on various issues such as respect for basic human rights," Rommel said.

The EU's strong opposition to Burma delayed the holding of the Asean-EU ministerial Meeting in 1997, as the EU refused to allow Burma to attend. Asean, however insisted that Burma, as an Asean member, had the right to participate in the forum.

The French ambassador said the EU would take a new stance at the Asean Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok next week by agreeing to include Burma in discussions with Asean countries.

Rommel said the EU would also have a chance to join Asean Regional Forum meetings in which regional and international security issues would be raised.

He said the EU had also agreed to meet Burmese officials during the Asean-EU Ministerial Meeting at the end of the year in Laos.

Rommel added that the EU was willing to extend humanitarian assistance to Burma to help reduce the suffering caused by its economic problems.

The EU plans to send a mission to Burma to ascertain how the EU can assist ordinary Burmese people. A date has not yet been fixed for the visit.

"We will try to identify some scope of assistance … to help the Burmese people out of their terrible economic and social condition," Rommel said.

BY MARISA CHIMPRABHA and NARANART PHUANGKANOK

The Nation - July 22, 2000.
FROM THE EDGE: A major security threat called 'ya baa'

Thailand is suddenly awakening to a nightmare - a real nightmare. Its much acclaimed success in the war against opium and heroin pales when compared with the fight against the new drug threat of ya baa, or methamphetamines.

When the first ya baa laboratory was discovered and raided in 1986 in the Nakhon Pathom-Ratchaburi area, anti-narcotics agencies were alerted to a potential explosion of a new cheap drug in the country.

They were taken aback when the problem became aggravated over the decade as drug pushers began to target non-traditional users and innocent victims. Until then, ya baa pills were traditionally consumed by truck drivers and agricultural and factory workers to help enhance their performance during long hours of work.

The discovery that the pills were being consumed by youths and school children as young as kindergarten kids startled not only the authorities and politicians but also parents who for the first time were alarmed by a potential threat that could hit their families. They also learned another sad reality: that many of those young consumers were out there selling the pills themselves.

The government's serious campaign to close down urban laboratories drove producers to move their bases in 1992-1993 to provinces along the Burmese border.

As Burma's Wa rebel group in the Shan State began to experiment in methamphetamine production in 1995, many of the Thai producers and traffickers found a new powerful ally across the porous frontier, which is inaccessible not only to Thai authorities but also to Burmese officials.

As part of its 1989 cease-fire deal with the Burmese junta, the United Wa State Army (UWSA) was allowed to continue its drug trade to finance over 20,000 combat soldiers under its aegis.

Last November when the UWSA started to resettle its highland population - Wa, Akha, Lahu as well as Chinese - from the Sino-Burmese border down to the southern Shan State next to Thailand, Thai security and drug officers were still very much in the dark about the move and its motives. The international community was alarmed only when foreign journalists were taken to visit resettlement sites which Rangoon claimed were part of a campaign to wipe out opium cultivation in the Wa State by 2005.

As the situation prevails, the impact of the Wa relocation is now beyond Thailand's initial imagination. While the UWSA has introduced cash crop cultivation and engaged in other economic activities such as bus transportation, trading and banking, it has not totally abandoned the drug industry.

On the contrary, the Wa insurgency has intensified methamphetamine production and exploited its other economic networks to support the drug business. In partnership with Thai collaborators, the armed group has been successful in penetrating Thailand, which serves as a source of equipment and chemicals, a consumption base and a transit point to the world market.

Privately, senior policy and drugs officials have admitted that Thailand is losing in its unilateral war against methamphetamine production, trade and abuse. The problems affronting the country are so grave that even US Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey "was shocked" when given a drug briefing while visiting Thailand late last month.

Although methamphetamines, along with other cocktail drugs, abound in the US, they are still less popular when compared with cocaine and heroin. But the new pattern of consumption in Thailand through smoke inhalation has quickened the drug's effect to less than 10 seconds when compared with about half an hour through pill intake. An undisclosed scientific study discovered that methamphetamines destroy brain cells several times faster than other drugs including heroin.

Thai drug agencies are at a dead end on how to combat the inflow of ya baa and how to prevent its abuse among the youth. The frustration and desperation were evident when top Thai army officers came out to openly attack the UWSA and particularly its mentor, the Burmese junta, for overlooking this serious threat to Thai national security.

In recent months, it has become increasingly evident that Rangoon has no desire whatsoever to discourage or stop the Wa leaders from relying on the drug business. Burmese generals' visits to the Wa resettlement area, permission for Wa territorial expansion along the Thai border and new business concessions to Wa ringleaders only confirmed the fear Thailand has had all along that the two are partners in this crime against humanity.

The Wa allegiance has allowed the Burmese regime to exploit its military strength and presence near Thailand as a proxy against other anti-Rangoon ethnic rebel groups and against Thailand in case of border conflicts.

"The Burmese regime has actually exported its own problems [how to handle the Wa force] to Thailand which now has to face a totally new and powerful enemy," noted one frustrated senior official.

For its part, what Thailand can do best for the moment is to intensify the control of production equipment and major chemicals such as caffeine which are crucial ingredients for the methamphetamine pills. But control itself has also proven futile as the measure only drives the trafficking of those substances underground.

Although some Thai agencies support continued dialogue with Rangoon as a measure to help combat ya baa from inside Burma, others are talking of tough measures including such outdated Cold War methods as training and arming border villagers as Thailand's proxy.

"We haven't ruled out any options but they are to be implemented in an incremental manner accordingly to the seriousness of the problems," said one official. "Even hot-pursuit or military strike on those Wa groups has come under consideration. We did it before with [opium warlord] Khun Sa, and we might do it again."

BY YINDEE LERTCHAROENCHOK

BBC - Friday, 21 July, 2000, 12:18 GMT 13:18 UK
Briton appeals Burmese sentence

Lawyers for a British man jailed for 17 years in Burma are taking their appeal against his sentence to a higher court.
James Mawdsley, 27, of Lancashire, was arrested in August last year in the city of Tachilek in north east Burma for entering the country illegally and handing out pro-democracy pamphlets.

He had been arrested and deported from the country twice before.

A local court turned down his appeal last month.

Mr Mawdsley's lawyers are going to a higher court in Mandalay.

But a spokesman for the British Embassy said the appeal on the severity of the sentence had a minimal chance of success.

Mr Mawdsley first travelled to Burma in 1996, and became involved in the country's pro-democracy campaign when government-backed forces burned down the school where he was teaching English.

Solitary confinement

He was deported for the first time in September 1997 after handcuffing himself to railings outside a Rangoon school and chanting anti-government slogans.

In May 1998, he was jailed for five years for illegally entering the country.

But he was released after serving 98 days at Rangoon's notorious Insein Prison, following appeals by embassies and his parents.

Mr Mawdsley is serving his sentence in Keng Tung, about 400 miles north-east of the capital Yangon.

Family concerns

His family in the UK say he is locked up for most of the day and separated from other prisoners.

Mr Mawdsley has twice gone on hunger strike to protest against the treatment of human rights activists.

A spokesman for the British Embassy who visited Mr Mawdsley last week said he was in good spirits and reasonable health.

"He's fine, he's in solitary confinement but he's okay," she said. "He's a big strong lad."

Burma's military government has been widely criticised for human rights abuses since taking power in 1988.