A/C.3/58/L.68/Rev.1
United Nations
General Assembly
Dist. Limited
18 November 2003
Original: English
Fifty-eighth Session
Third Committee
Agenda item 117 (c)
Human rights questions: human rights situations and reports of special rapporteurs and representatives
Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia,
Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, Republic of
Korea, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland and United States of America:
Situation of human rights in Myanmar
The General Assembly,
Guided by the Charter of the United
Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,1 the International
Covenants on Human Rights2 and other human rights instruments,
Reaffirming that all States Members
of the United Nations have an obligation to promote and protect human rights
and fundamental freedoms and to fulfil the obligations
they have undertaken under the various international instruments in the field,
Aware that Myanmar is a party to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child,3 the Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women,4 the Convention on the Prevention
and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide,5 and the Geneva Conventions of 12
August 1949 for the protection of victims of war,6 as well as the Convention
concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, 1930
(Convention No. 29) and the Convention concerning Freedom of Association and
Protection of the Right to Organize, 1948 (Convention No. 87), of the
International Labour Organization,
Bearing in mind Security Council
resolution 1460 (2003) of 30 January 2003 on children and armed conflict, and
the report of the Secretary-General pursuant thereto,7
Recalling its previous resolutions on
the subject, the most recent of which is resolution 57/231 of 18 December 2002,
those of the Commission on Human Rights, the most recent of which is resolution
2003/12 of 16 April 2003,8 and resolution I adopted by the International Labour Conference at its eighty-eighth session, on 14 June
2000, concerning the practice of forced or compulsory labour
in Myanmar,
Affirming that the will of the people
is the basis of the authority of government and that the will of the people of
Myanmar was clearly expressed in the elections held in 1990,
Affirming also that the establishment
of a genuine democratic government in Myanmar is essential for the realization
of all human rights and fundamental freedoms,
Recognizing that good governance,
democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights are essential to
achieving sustainable development and economic growth,
Noting the increasing awareness of
the Government of Myanmar of the need to comprehensively address the production
of opium in Myanmar,
Taking note of the road map for the
transition to democracy announced by the Prime Minister of Myanmar on 30 August
2003,
1. Welcomes:
(a) The visits to Myanmar by the Special
Envoy of the Secretary-General for Myanmar during the past year, and the visits
by the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human
Rights on the situation of human rights in Myanmar;
(b) The steps undertaken by the
international community, including support from countries in the region, to
encourage the Government of Myanmar to resume its efforts towards
national reconciliation and dialogue, pursuant to acknowledging the importance
of strengthening democracy as a fundamental element of regional security, as
noted in the statement adopted on 18 June 2003 at the Tenth Regional Forum of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations;
(c) The report of the
Secretary-General;9
(d) The interim report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the
situation of human rights in Myanmar;10
(e) The agreement, in Yangon on 27 May
2003, of the Joint Government of the Union of Myanmar-International Labour Organization Plan of Action for the Elimination of
Forced Labour Practices in Myanmar, including the
agreement on the establishment of an independent facilitator to assist possible
victims of forced labour, while noting that the
conditions for the implementation of the Plan of Action do not exist at
present;
(f) The continued cooperation of the
Government of Myanmar with the International Committee of the Red Cross;
2. Expresses
its grave concern at:
(a) The events of 30 May 2003, the
corresponding, subsequent and continuing violations of human rights which
constitute a serious setback for the human rights situation in the country, and
the apparent involvement of the Government-affiliated Union Solidarity and
Development Association in these events;
(b) The detention and the house arrest
of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and the persistent
denial of her human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of
movement, as well as the continued detention of
other senior leaders of the National League for Democracy;
(c) The closure of offices of the National
League for Democracy throughout the country and the increased surveillance and
imprisonment of members and supporters of the League and other political
organizations as well as the continuing detentions, inter alia,
of prisoners whose sentences have expired;
(d) The systematic and consistent
harassment and intimidation of members of the National League for Democracy by
members of the Union Solidarity and Development Association;
(e) The lack of cooperation of the
Government of Myanmar with the Special Rapporteur of
the Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in Myanmar,
particularly as concerns his proposal to visit ethnic nationality areas to
investigate allegations of serious human rights violations;
3. Expresses
once again its grave concern at:
(a) The ongoing systematic violation of
human rights, including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights,
of the people of Myanmar, in particular:
(i) Extrajudicial
killing; continuing use of torture; rape and other forms of sexual violence
persistently carried out by members of the armed forces; unsatisfactory
conditions of detention; forced relocation; wide disrespect for the rule of law
and lack of independence of the judiciary; trafficking in persons; forced labour, including child labour;
destruction of livelihoods and confiscation of land by the armed forces; and
violations of the right to an adequate standard of living, including
food, medical care and education;
(ii) Denial of freedom of expression,
including freedom of the media, of association, of assembly and of movement;
(iii) Discrimination and persecution on the basis of religious or ethnic
background suffered by persons belonging to ethnic minorities, women and
children;
(b) The situation of the large number of
internally displaced persons and the flow of refugees to neighbouring
countries, and recalls in this context the obligations of Myanmar under
international law;
4. Calls
upon the Government of Myanmar:
(a) To initiate a full and independent
inquiry, with international cooperation, into the Depayin
incident of 30 May 2003;
(b) To immediately facilitate and
cooperate fully with the proposed investigation by the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the
situation of human rights in Myanmar into charges of rape and other abuse of
civilians carried out by members of the armed forces in Shan and other States,
including unhindered access to the
region, and to guarantee the safety of those cooperating with and covered by
the investigation;
(c) To immediately secure the safe and
unhindered access to all parts of Myanmar of the United Nations and
international humanitarian organizations so as to ensure the provision of
humanitarian assistance and to guarantee that it reaches the most vulnerable
groups of the population;
(d) To pursue through dialogue and
peaceful means an immediate end to conflict with all the remaining ethnic
groups with which ceasefire agreements have not yet been signed, and to live up
to its obligations to improve the development and human rights situation in
ceasefire areas;
(e) To take all necessary steps to
pursue cooperation with the International Labour
Organization, with a view to implementing fully the recommendations of the
Commission of Enquiry established to examine the observance by Myanmar of the
Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour,
1930 (Convention No. 29) of the International Labour
Organization; and to create an environment in which the Joint Government of the
Union of Myanmar-International Labour Organization
Plan of Action for the Elimination of Forced Labour
Practices in Myanmar, and in particular the facilitator mechanism that it
established, may be implemented in a credible manner;
5. Strongly
urges the Government of Myanmar:
(a) To end the systematic violations of
human rights in Myanmar and to ensure full respect for all human rights and
fundamental freedoms;
(b) To immediately and unconditionally
release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, other leaders of the
National League for Democracy, and members of the League detained on or after
30 May 2003, and to allow them to play a full role in bringing about national
reconciliation and the transition towards democracy;
(c) To immediately and unconditionally
release all other political detainees;
(d) To immediately reverse all the other
"temporary" measures imposed following the 30 May 2003 incident,
inter alia, by the reopening of all the offices of
the National League for Democracy throughout the country;
(e) To immediately lift all restraints
on peaceful political activity, and to fully guarantee freedom of expression,
including freedom of the media, of association and of assembly;
(f) To put an end to impunity by
investigating and bringing to justice any perpetrators of human rights
violations, including members of the military, and the Union Solidarity and
Development Association, and other government agents in all circumstances;
(g) To enhance cooperation with the
Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Myanmar and the Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights on the
situation of human rights in Myanmar in order that the situation after 30 May
2003 may be assessed first-hand, to guide the country towards a transition to
civilian rule, and to ensure that both the Special Envoy and the Special Rapporteur are granted full and free access to Myanmar and
all persons cooperating with them are not subjected to any form of
intimidation, harassment or punishment and that, while in Myanmar, they are
provided with equal access to the leaders and members of all the country's
political parties, including the National League for Democracy;
(h) To restore democracy and respect the
results of the 1990 elections and to enter immediately into substantive and
structured dialogue with Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi and other
leaders of the National League for Democracy directed towards democratization
and national reconciliation and, at an early stage, include other political
leaders in these talks, including representatives of the ethnic groups;
(i) To
elaborate the road map for the transition to democracy, which is still lacking
in such essential elements as concrete timing and an adequate plan for the
involvement of all political groups and ethnic nationalities, in such a way as
to assure that the process is transparent and inclusive;
6. Once
again urges the Government of Myanmar, as its did in its resolution
57/231of 18 December 2002, and as done by the Commission on Human Rights in its
resolution 2003/12 of 16 April 2003:
(a) To ensure the independence of the
judiciary and due process of law;
(b) To consider as a matter of high
priority becoming party to those remaining international human rights
instruments to which it is not already party, and to comply fully with
its obligations under international human rights instruments;
(c) To put an immediate end to the
recruitment and use of child soldiers, inter alia, by
some armed ethnic groups and ensure their disarmament, demobilization and
reintegration, to end systematic enforced displacement and provide protection
and assistance to internally displaced persons, to allow safe and dignified
voluntary return of refugees, and to carry out the action appropriate to
fighting the HIV/AIDS epidemic;
7. Requests
the Secretary-General:
(a) To continue to provide his good
offices and to pursue his discussions on the situation of human rights and the
restoration of democracy with the Government and people of Myanmar including
all relevant parties to the national reconciliation process in
Myanmar;
(b) To report to the General Assembly at
its fifty-ninth session and to the Commission on Human Rights at its sixtieth
session on the progress made in the implementation of the present resolution;
(c) To give all necessary assistance in
enabling his Special Envoy for Myanmar to implement the present resolution and,
in the context of the facilitation role, to explore any and all possibilities
for discharging fully and effectively his mandate;
(d) To continue to give all necessary
assistance to the Special Rapporteur of the
Commission on Human Rights on the situation of human rights in Myanmar so as to
enable him to discharge his mandate fully;
8. Decides to continue the
consideration of this question at its fifty-ninth session.
__________________
1 Resolution 217 A (III).
2 Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex.
3 Resolution 44/25, annex.
4 Resolution 34/180, annex.
5 Resolution 260 A (III).
6 United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 75, Nos. 970-973
7 A/58/546-A/2003/1053.
8 To be issued in Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2003,
Supplement No. 3 (E/2003/23), chap. II, sect. A.
9 A/58/325 and Add.1.
10 See A/58/219.
Adopted by consensus, 1 December 2003.