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EU voices serious concern over political persecutions in
Myanmar
Fri Feb 21, 9:40 AM ET
ATHENS,
Greece (AP)- The European Union
asharply criticized Myanmar's military government Friday for the "growing
pattern of harassment" against opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Suu Kyi ? who won the Nobel Peace prize in 1991 ? was sentenced to
a week in jail Friday in a connection with a family dispute but she was released
after a judge suspended her sentence.
Myanmar is also known as
Burma.
"The EU notes with serious concern that reports of
restrictions on freedom of _expression_ and political arrests and detentions in
Burma/Myanmar," a statement said.
"Of particular concern is the
growing pattern of harassment and attempted intimidation of Aung San Suu Kyi by
the Burma/Myanmar authorities."
The statement was issued in Greece
which holds the current presidency of the EU.
"The EU calls on the
Burma/Myanmar authorities to respect their promises to release all political
prisoners and to immediately hold a substantial dialogue with the National
League for Democracy ... with a view to proceeding to the democratic transition
of the country."
Myanmar's junta came to power in 1988 after
crushing pro-democracy protests.
Suu Kyi, who heads the National
League for Democracy, was kept under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 after being
held without trial on national security charges.
A number of
nations, including the European Union and the United States, have placed
sanctions against Myanmar.
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Opposition: court case against Suu Kyi 'politically
influenced'
Sat Feb 22, 00:19 AM ET
YANGON,
Myanmar (AP) _ A court decision
against opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in a family dispute case was
``politically influenced,'' her party says.
The Nobel laureate was
convicted Friday of unlawful restraint for barring her cousin, Soe Aung, from
the family compound in the capital, Yangon. The Bahan court sentenced her to a
week in jail, but suspended the punishment and let her return home.
``Now you know what the Myanmar legal system is like,'' Suu Kyi
told reporters after the six-hour court session.
The offense was
punishable by a US$83 fine or a week in jail. Insisting on her innocence, Suu
Kyi refused to pay the fine, said Aung Shwe, chairman of her National League for
Democracy party.
``The court's decision is politically influenced.
All decisions of courts dealing with cases of the National League for Democracy
are carried out under instructions from the authorities,'' the party said in a
statement.
The government said in a statement that Suu Kyi's
``lenient'' sentence was suspended until a higher court could review the
decision.
The party swept the 1990 general election, but the
ruling military junta would not let it take power. Suu Kyi won the 1991 Nobel
Peace Prize for her nonviolent efforts to promote democracy, and is engaged in a
secret dialogue with the military _ which appears to be bearing little fruit.
Suu Kyi sued her cousin in May for allegedly punching her in the
face during a dispute over changes Soe Aung made to the property while the
opposition leader was serving 19 months of house arrest, party officials said.
The Bahan court on Friday ruled in Suu Kyi's favor in a separate
hearing over the assault dispute, and fined the cousin US$166, the government
statement said.
Suu Kyi was released from house arrest last May.
She had previously been under house arrest from 1989 to 1995 at her family's
lakefront villa in Yangon on national security charges.
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EU urges Myanmar to release political prisoners
ATHENS, Feb 21 (AFP) - The European Union on Friday voiced concern
at Myanmar's deteriorating human rights record, urging the regime to release
political prisoners and stop harassing opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
"The EU notes with serious concern that reports of restriction on
freedom of _expression_ and political arrests and detentions in Burma/Myanmar have
increased... The EU calls on the Burma/Myanmar authorities to respect their
promises to release all political prisoners," the EU's Greek presidency said in
a statement.
"Of particular concern is the growing pattern of
harassment and attempted intimidation of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi," the statement
said, reaffirming the EU's "support for political change" in the southeast Asian
country.
Myanmar's junta has refused to recognise the results of
the 1990 general election, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD)
party of Aung San Suu Kyi won 392 of the 485 contested seats.
On
Wednesday the Nobel Peace Price laureate urged the international community to
maintain pressure on the military regime in Yangon to move towards democracy.
On Friday Aung San Suu Kyi was involved in a half-day standoff
with a Yangon court, which found her guilty of unlawfully preventing her cousin
from entering the lakeside compound where they had been residing separately last
year.
She refused to pay the fine imposed on her or leave the
court until it suspended the verdict.
A US official recently said
he was highly sceptical that Myanmar's military junta was serious about
democratic reform and warned Washington was considering further sanctions
against the country.
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Washington File
21 February 2003
U.S. Official Urges Respect for Human Rights in
Burma
(Craner calls for democracy and rule of law, decries abuses)
(2770)
The United States wants to see Burma's military
rulers "do the right thing" and allow a peaceful transition to democracy in that
country, according to Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy,
Human Rights and Labor Lorne W. Craner.
Speaking at a gathering of
the Free Burma Coalition February 15 in Washington, D.C., Craner said democracy,
national reconciliation, and human rights are the "primary foreign policy goals"
of the United States for Burma.
The State Department official
listed a series of human rights abuses by the Rangoon
regime.
"Thousands of boys, some as young as eleven, have been
forced to fight with the Burmese Army, sometimes under the forced influence of
amphetamines and alcohol, after being kidnapped from bus stations an local
markets," Craner said.
Those boys, he continued, have to fight
using machine guns, grenades and land mines.
Craner also recounted
the military junta's use of boys and girls "as young as seven" as porters for
the Burmese army or as construction workers.
"Villagers of any age
and gender, indeed, any Burmese citizen but particularly ethnic minority
citizens, are vulnerable to forced labor," he said.
Resistance to
being used as forced labor, he said, can lead to torture and
death.
Craner reiterated long-established U.S. support for Burma's
Nobel Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi, and for her efforts on behalf of
democracy and human rights in that country.
The United States, he
said, urges the Burma's military rulers "to move beyond this impasse and to do
the right thing for the people of Burma."
They should fashion a
transition from their autocratic rule to a democratic government that would
truly serve "the desires and rights of all the peoples" of that country, Craner
said.
"In preparation for the democratization of Burma, the United
States and Burma's other friends will continue to ... support the development of
a sound and free government and civil society in Burma," Craner
said.
The United States, he continued, is working toward the goal
of "a free and prosperous Burma where people can work through their differences
through peaceful and democratic means."
Following is the text of
Craner's February 15 remarks, as released by the Department of
State:
(begin text)
Democracy, Human Rights, and the
Rule of Law in Burma
Lorne W. Craner,
Assistant Secretary for
the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
Remarks to the Free Burma
Coalition
Washington, DC
February 15, 2003
Thank you for your
welcome. There is an energy in this room this morning, an energy felt in this
Administration not to mention in Burma, and with the inspiration of Aung San Suu
Kyi, we will continue to work until Burma is free. It is a pleasure for me to be
here thi morning, speaking with so many proven champions of human rights
and
democracy in Burma.
I would like to begin with a story I
think many of you know. Less than two months ago Aung San Suu Kyi traveled to
Rakhine State, her fifth countryside trip since her release from house arrest
last May. A crowd of 25,000 people assembled to greet her, despite attempts from
the authorities to prevent them from coming together. The authorities felt
threatened by the crowd, although the gathering was absolutely peaceful. And so
they summoned police who were carrying batons, and a fire engine to disperse the
crowd with high-pressure water cannons.
Upon seeing the scene, Suu
Kyi climbed up onto the fire engine and managed to stop the police from hosing
the people by pointedly saying, I m here in the name of democracy which puts the
people ahead of everything else. Our first priority is to serve and protect the
people the police as well as other officials have the same responsibility. This
image of one courageous woman heading off an assault by authorities on a
peaceful gathering illustrates the urgent need for democracy and human rights in
Burma.
Last week the Freedom Forum announced that Suu Kyi was
awarded the Al Neuharth Free Spirit of the Year Award and one million dollars.
It is obvious why. Even after years of on-and-off political arrest, harassment
and constant surveillance, Aung San Suu Kyi, through tremendous strength of
character, is still wholly committed to bringing democracy and a humanitarian
rule of law to the Burmese people.
Last May we were all heartened
by the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, and we welcomed the
release of a few hundred political prisoners over the past few months. But
unfortunately these steps have not been matched by any progress toward a
political dialogue on constitutional issues. In fact, the State Peace and
Development Council [SPDC - Burma's ruling military junta] took a serious step
backwards just a few days after the recent visit by Amnesty International with
the arrest of several more political prisoners. As a result, we remain highly
skeptical about the regime's commitment to any political
transition.
The U.S. Government has long respected Aung San Suu
Kyi's leadership in support of democracy and human rights; President Bush
publicly congratulated Aung San Suu Kyi on the anniversary of her Nobel Prize.
Democracy, national reconciliation, and human rights are our primary foreign
policy goals in Burma. We -- and by that I mean we in the Executive Branch, but
also the Congress -- we have been at the forefront of drawing attention in an
official way to Burma's deplorable human rights record.
The
freedom-loving people of Burma have no better friend in the U.S.Congress than
Senator Mitch McConnell. He has been a champion of human rights and democracy
and a protector of the persecuted for nearly two decades. The strength of his
voice is matched by the power of his actions. And he is ably assisted by another
champion of human rights and democracy in Burma, Paul Grove, who will join you
later today.
The SPDC's disregard for human rights and democracy
extends to every conceivable category of violation and we will be cataloguing
these this year. The regime suppresses political dissent by censorship,
persecution, beatings, disappearances and imprisonment. It harasses ethnic
minorities through brutal campaigns against civilians. It
sharply curtails
religious freedom. It subjects its people to forced labor. And in the past year
there have been more reports of increased extra-judicial killings, rapes,
disappearances, forced labor, and forced relocations.
According to
the International Committee of the Red Cross, as of last October 1,448 political
prisoners languish in Burmese jails. This month the Assistance Association for
Political Prisoners updated this figure to 1,453. The SPDC allows the
International Committee of the Red Cross to monitor political prisoners and
prison conditions, and the UN Special Rapporteur, Mr. Pinheiro, reports that
prison conditions for political prisoners have incrementally
improved.
But what does this mean? As he reports, it means that the
beatings and torture of political prisoners have decreased; it means that some
elderly and sick prisoners are now maybe receiving medical attention, although
just in the past six months four more political prisoners who we know of died in
prison due to the withholding of medical treatment. Political prisoners also
continue to be held in solitary confinement for extended periods, and they are
deliberately sent far from their homes, precluding visits and support including
food from family
members. And when family members are able to visit, it is
without any privacy.
We need to keep this most disturbing fact at
the front of our mind: These individuals, mostly students, teachers and lawyers,
were unjustly arrested often arbitrarily and are being held under such abhorrent
conditions for peaceably promoting democracy and freedom; sometimes for
distributing leaflets or just for being involved in the
publication of a
bulletin, or just for being associated with a pro-democracy association, such as
a church. There still is no freedom of association, no freedom of _expression_, no
freedom of the press in Burma.
Last November, the SPDC stated they
would release the largest group of prisoners ever 115 in all but we have not
been able to confirm all of these releases. Even so, the conditions of those
released are unacceptable. Currently, prisoners are released under the pretense
of suspension of their activities. Understandably, many political prisoners
decline to be released under these conditions, which are a violation of their
human rights. Again, we, together with the international community, have pressed
for the immediate and unconditional release of all of these political prisoners,
and we will continue to do so until every individual prisoner is released to
live
a productive life of freedom and peace.
After years of
intense international pressure, the regime finally agreed to allow the
International Labor Organization (ILO) to appoint a liaison officer in Rangoon
and we hope this will develop into a full representation for the ILO. We also
hope that it will allow us to take more actions in response to new, credible
documentation of forced labor, including child
soldiers.
Officially, the government passed a law in October 2000
banning forced labor. However, forced labor continues, particularly in rural
ethnic regions. Human Rights Watch recently reported that thousands of boys,
some as young as eleven, have been forced to fight with the Burmese Army,
sometimes under the forced influence of amphetamines and alcohol, after being
kidnapped from bus stations and local markets. These boys have to fight armed
with machine guns and grenades and land mines. Boys and girls as young as seven
are forced to serve as porters in army camps or as construction workers.
Villagers of any age and gender, indeed, any Burmese citizen but particularly
ethnic minority citizens, are vulnerable to forced labor building roads and
railroads, farming, portering, working as a camp servant, fighting with the
army. Resistance leads to more torture and more death.
Last June,
two nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) the Shan Human Rights Foundation
together with the Shan Women's Action Network published a new report of
violations of human rights in Burma. This report documented Burmese Army
personnel involvement in the rapes of hundreds of women between 1996 and 2001.
The report also said that the Burmese Army was using rape systematically as a
weapon of war in its counter-insurgency operations. Responding to this, the
State Department sent investigators to collect first-hand accounts of rape by
the Burmese military from women in Thailand. Jean Geran from my Bureau will be
discussing these findings later today. But we know this is a very, very grave
situation, as both our report and the earlier report indicated.
In
response to international pressure, the Burma Army conducted an investigation of
these charges, which was widely regarded by many in the international community
as a sham. We are now urging UN Special Rapporteur Pinheiro to move forward with
his effort to fulfill his mandate by conducting an independent investigation
into these reports of widespread rape. Such an investigation has the full
support of the international community, and Pinheiro has presented the regime
with options for implementation. We hope that the regime will break
from
tradition and finally make an intelligent choice.
Rape is
not the only abuse committed by the Burmese army against ethnic minority
populations. We remain deeply troubled by reports of brutal tortures and
murders, forced relocations, forced labor, and suppression of religious freedom.
The basic human rights of these minority peoples are regularly violated, with
repercussions not only for individuals and families, but also at the regional
level and internationally. Refugee flow into Thailand intensified in 2002, and
the number of internally displaced people inside Burma is an estimated one
million.
As you are aware, the ethnic issue has a long history in
Burma and has been a key factor in determining whether Burma enjoys stability or
suffers conflict. If there is to be a successful political transition,
appropriate ethnic representatives must be included in the planning for
transition at an appropriate time. Aung San Suu Kyi's recent trips to Shan State
and Rakhine State illustrate her commitment to the ethnic groups of Burma and
her concern for their participation and welfare.
Are productive
talks in Burma's near future? Clearly, the necessity of resuming dialogue is
urgent and must be supported by the international community. We maintain hope
for directed and unwavering involvement of the UN and the global community in
assisting the NLD and the country of Burma in its democratization, its economic
development, and its incorporation into the global community after decades of
isolation. But also, we recognize that economic development can only be fairly
and effectively managed by a democratic government that is representative,
transparent and accountable. To this end, the United States and many key members
of the international community are resolved to maintain our insistence on
positive change as a precondition for dropping sanctions. Indeed, our patience
for positive change is beginning to run out and we, along with the UK and
others,
are considering all options, including further
sanctions.
The United States already has tough sanctions on Burma
in place. We have imposed an arms embargo and an investment ban, among other
measures. Only our sanctions on Iraq are tougher. If there is significant
progress towards a transition to democratic rule and greater respect for human
rights as a result of dialogue between Aung
San Suu Kyi and the regime, the
United States would look seriously at measures to support this process. But, we
are disappointed and frustrated by the recalcitrance of the SPDC. We hope that
other states that currently do not share our sanctions policy will consider the
impact that their policies have on the human rights and democracy
movement in
Burma. Burmese democrats have made it clear that they do not want any assistance
to Burma that will strengthen the regime's illegitimate grip on
power.
Because of the SPDC's disastrous policies, Burma may be
facing a humanitarian crisis arising from the dreadful nexus of hunger,
malnutrition, lack of education, and HIV/AIDS. We remain convinced that
extensive aid to Burma that passes through the military regime will be
vulnerable to diversion and mismanagement. USAID, with congressional support,
provides one million dollars in HIV/AIDS assistance in Burma and this amount may
well be increased in the future. Our assistance goes through NGOs and does not
benefit the government. It is important to stress again that humanitarian aid
within Burma will be very closely monitored and managed in consultation with the
NLD.
How can we promote democracy and human rights in Burma without
supporting the SPDC? In recognition of the fact that the Burmese people will
require the infrastructure and knowledge to establish a sound, democratic
government, the United States has supported a number of scholarship and training
programs for Burmese students. These programs send students to Thailand or bring
them here to the U.S. to learn good governance and management principles and to
advance their leadership skills.
The United States has also
invested heavily in the promotion of an uncensored, independent press in Burma,
in recognition of the fact that a free press fosters transparent, democratic
government. We are currently supporting independent journals, newspapers and
radio media focused on promoting democracy in Burma. We know that other nations
also support grassroots democracy efforts in Burma, and we are very happy to
join our efforts with theirs. It is inspiring to see many of those who have
received some of this support here today. I am personally humbled by your
courage and perseverance in the face of so many obstacles and such an arduous
journey. But, as elsewhere, it will be worth it one day when we celebrate in a
peaceful and free Burma created with the help of all of you.
We
again urge the SPDC to move beyond this impasse and to do the right thing for
the people of Burma. Only by adhering to their stated commitment, only by
fashioning a transition to a democratic government can they truly serve the
desires and rights of all the peoples of.
In the meantime, in
preparation for the democratization of Burma, the United States and Burma's
other friends will continue to train, educate and support the development of a
sound and free government and civil society in Burma, a transitional process
that again must happen. We continue to work toward that goal a free and
prosperous Burma where people can work through their differences through
peaceful and democratic means. May this year be the year that truth and justice
prevail in Burma, bringing an end to oppression and setting Burma
free.
Thank you.
(end text)
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Bangkok
Post - Saturday 22 February
2003
HUMAN
TRAFFICKING
Most victims `from
Thailand's
neighbours'
Up to 1.2m
children exploited annually
Anjira Assavanonda
Most victims of human
trafficking in
Thailand were
children and women from neighbouring countries, an NGO monitoring the issue has
said.
According to the United
Nations Children's Fund, up to 1.2 million children worldwide become victims
each year.
The extent of the problem was
mapped out by Unicef deputy executive director Kul Gautum at the International
Symposium on Trafficking of Children, organised by Unicef and the Japanese
government. The symposium, which ended yesterday, brought together key players
in anti-trafficking efforts in Southeast Asia, mainly NGO
representatives, to discuss the situation and possible solutions.
Thailand
was very involved, being the country of origin, transit and destination, the
forum said.
Ben Svasti from Trafcord, a
Thai NGO trying to combat trafficking in the northern
provinces, said most trafficking victims in
Thailand were
foreign nationals, including Laotians, Burmese, Chinese and Cambodians. The main
trafficking routes were through Mae Sai district in Chiang Rai, Mae Sot district
in Tak, and Mae Hong Son province, he said.
Bodil Tumir, an adviser to
Norwegian Church Aid, an NGO in
Laos, said the
sex industry in
Thailand was
largely run by small and informal cross-border networks, into which a lot of Lao
women and girls were lured.
It is estimated that
trafficking in children and women for commercial sexual purposes in
Asia and the Pacific alone victimised more than 30
million people in the past 30 years.
And in the age of
computer-driven culture, trafficking had become more high-tech, with child
pornography, sex tourism information, and mail-order brides offered openly on
the internet, he said.
Fighting this problem required
cooperation at national, regional and international levels.
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Asian Tribune
Date : 2003-02-22
Another NLD member arrested in
Burma.
MMyint Ko Oo, a member of the NLD Youth in
Hlaing Thayar township in Rangoon was arrested at 6:30 pm on 13th of
February.
He was accused by authorities to have connection with the
NLD members led by Khin Win (alias) Bodaw who were arrested at the first week of
this month.
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