UNITED NATIONS
Economic and Social Council
Distr. LIMITED
E/CN.4/2004/L.34
[the present version incorporates
amendments dated
Original: ENGLISH
COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
Sixtieth
session
Agenda
item 9
QUESTION OF THE VIOLATION
OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD
Albania*, Andorra*, Australia, Austria, Belgium*,
Bulgaria*, Canada*, Cyprus*, Czech Republic*, Denmark*, Estonia*, Finland*,
France, Germany, Greece*, Hungary, Iceland*, Ireland, Italy, Latvia*,
Liechtenstein*, Lithuania*, Luxembourg*, Malta*, Monaco*, Netherlands, New
Zealand*, Nicaragua*, Norway*, Peru*
Poland*, Portugal*, Republic of Korea, Romania*, Slovakia*,
Slovenia*, Spain*, Sweden, Switzerland*, Turkey* United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America: draft resolution
2004/... Situation of human rights
in Myanmar
The Commission on
Human Rights,
Guided by the Charter of the United Nations,
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Human
Rights and other human rights instruments,
Reaffirming that all Member
States have an obligation to promote and protect human rights and fundamental
freedoms and the duty to fulfil the obligation 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, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of
the Crime of Genocide, the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949 on the protection of
the victims of war, as well as the Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory
Labour, 1930 (No. 29) and the Convention concerning Freedom of Association and
Protection of the Right to Organize, 1948 (No. 87) of the International Labour Organization,
Recalling its previous
resolutions on the subject, the most recent of which is resolution 2003/12 of
16 April 2003, and those of the General Assembly, the most recent of which is
resolution 58/247 of 23 December 2003,
Bearing in mind the report of the
Secretary-General on children and armed conflict (S/2003/1053 and Corr.l),
Recalling resolution I adopted by the
International Labour Organization at its eighty-eighth session, on
Affirming that the will of the
people is the basis of the authority of government and that the will of the people
of
Affirming also that the
establishment of a genuine democratic government in
Recognizing that good governance,
democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights are essential to
achieve sustainable development and economic growth, and that good governance includes
the idea of transparent, responsible, accountable and participatory government at all
levels,
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 reports of both the Special Rapporteur on the
situation of human rights in
(b)
The visits to
(c)
The visits to Myanmar by the Special Rapporteur during
the past year, noting that the Government of Myanmar has communicated to the United
Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights the results of its investigation into the
placing of listening devices during the interviews held by the Special Rapporteur
with prisoners in Insein prison in March 2003, which led to the
curtailment of his fact-finding visit;
(d)
The release from prison of a number of persons detained
for political activities and the continued cooperation with the International
Committee of the Red Cross;
(e)
The agreement reached, in Yangon on 27 May 2003, on 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 second visit by an Amnesty
International delegation to Myanmar, which took place in December 2003, but notes with
concern that it was unable to meet all those it requested to meet;
(g) The continued presence of the liaison
officer of the International Labour Organization and his efforts to fulfil his mandate;
(h) The dissemination of human rights
standards for public officials and some non-governmental organizations and
ethnic groups through a series of human rights workshops, but stresses that
such activities need to lead also to concrete efforts to improve the human
rights situation
on the ground;
(i) The
establishment by the Government of a Committee for Preventing Recruitment of
Child Soldiers, and stresses the need for it to work closely with the United
Nations Children's Fund;
(j) The negotiations to
conclude a ceasefire agreement between the Government and the Karen National
Union, and hopes that this will contribute to the elimination of human rights
abuses in Karen State;
(k) The developments allowing access for the
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to Karen and Mon States in
order to assist in creating conditions conducive to the return of refugees to
these areas;
Takes
note of the efforts of the Government of Myanmar to meet the HIV/AIDS challenge
and calls upon it to enhance its efforts in this regard and to support the
effective implementation of the UN Joint
Plan of Action, in cooperation with the relevant international agencies.
2. Expresses its grave concern at:
(a)
The ongoing systematic violation of human rights,
including civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, of the people
of
(b)
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 Myanmar, and the apparent involvement of the
Government-affiliated Union Solidarity and Development Association, as well as
the ongoing systematic and consistent harassment of members of the National League
for Democracy and other opposition activists;
(c)
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 and association, as well as the continued detention
of other senior leaders of the National League for Democracy and of the
leadership of other political parties or ethnic minorities;
(d)
Extrajudicial killings, rape and other forms of sexual
violence persistently carried out by members of the armed forces, continuing use of
torture, renewed instances of political arrests and continuing detentions, including
of prisoners whose sentences have expired, prisoners held incommunicado
while awaiting trial, forced relocation, destruction of livelihoods and confiscations of land
by the armed forces, forced labour, including child labour, trafficking in persons, denial of freedom of
assembly, association, expression and movement, discrimination and persecution
on the basis of religious or ethnic background, wide disrespect for the rule of
law and
lack of independence of the judiciary, unsatisfactory conditions of detention,
systematic use of child soldiers and violations of the rights to an adequate
standard of living, such as the rights to food, medical care and education;
(e) The violations of human rights suffered in
particular by persons belonging to ethnic minorities, women and children,
especially in non-ceasefire areas;
(f) 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
3. Calls upon the Government of
(a) To fulfil its
obligations to restore the independence of the judiciary and due process of law, and
to take further steps to reform the system of the administration of justice;
(b) To take immediate action to implement
fully concrete legislative, executive and administrative measures to eradicate the
practice of forced labour by all organs of
government, including the armed forces, and to implement fully the
recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry established to examine the observance
by Myanmar of the Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour (No. 29) of
the International Labour Organization;
(c)
To take the action foreseen by the Governing Body of the
International Labour Organization, most recently at its March 2004 session,
which could enable the implementation of the Plan of Action to go ahead, in particular
the functions of the facilitator as envisaged by the high-level team;
(d)
To immediately ensure safe and unhindered access to all
parts of Myanmar for the United Nations and international humanitarian
organizations and to cooperate fully with all sectors of society, especially with
the National League for Democracy and other relevant political, ethnic and
community-based groups through consultation, to ensure the provision of
humanitarian assistance and to guarantee that it actually reaches the most
vulnerable groups of the population;
(e)
To cooperate fully with the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for
Myanmar and the Special Rapporteur in order to bring Myanmar towards a
transition to civilian rule, and to ensure that they are both granted full,
free and unimpeded access to Myanmar and that no person cooperating with the
Special Envoy, the Special Rapporteur and any international organization is subjected to any
form of intimidation, harassment or punishment, and to review as a matter of urgency the cases of
those currently undergoing punishment in this regard;
(f) To consider as a matter of high priority
becoming party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Convention
against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
and its Optional Protocol, the International Convention on the Elimination of All
Forms of Racial Discrimination, the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the
Protocol thereto, the Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the
Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict and on the sale of
children, child prostitution and child pornography, the Convention concerning the
Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child
Labour, 1999 (No. 182) of the International Labour Organization, the Convention
on the Prohibition on the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel
Mines and on Their Destruction, and the Additional Protocols of 8 June
1977 to the Geneva Conventions, of 12 August 1949;
(g) To pursue through
dialogue and peaceful means the immediate suspension and permanent end of
conflict with all ethnic groups in Myanmar;
(h) To follow up the
negotiations to conclude a ceasefire agreement with the Karen National Union with
substantial political dialogue in order to ensure that the rights of ethnic nationalities are
fully respected;
(i) To establish a national human rights
commission in accordance with the Principles relating to the establishment of
national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights
("the Paris Principles");
4. Strongly urges the Government
of Myanmar:
(a)
To end the systematic violations of human rights in
Myanmar, to ensure full respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms, to
end impunity and to investigate and bring to justice any perpetrators of human
rights violations, including members of the military and other government
agents in all circumstances, and to initiate a full and independent inquiry, with international
cooperation, into the Depayin incident of 30 May
2003, as called for by the General Assembly;
(b)
To lift all restraints on peaceful political activity of
all persons, including former political prisoners, by, inter alia,
guaranteeing freedom of association and freedom of expression, including
freedom of the media, and to ensure unhindered access to information for the
people of Myanmar;
(c)
To restore democracy and respect the results of the 1990
elections by, inter alia, releasing immediately and
unconditionally the leadership of the National League for Democracy, including Aung San
Suu Kyi and members of the National League for Democracy 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, and in this regard draws attention to the
recommendation of the Special Rapporteur that a general amnesty would be the best path
for releasing all political prisoners, who then would be able to play a positive role
in the future political process;
(d)
To enter into a substantive and structured dialogue with
Aung San Suu Kyi and other leaders of the National League for Democracy
intended to lead towards democratization and national reconciliation and at an
early stage to include other political leaders in these talks, including
representatives of the ethnic groups;
(e)
To release unconditionally and immediately all political
prisoners with particular emphasis on the elderly and the sick;
(f) To ensure that the National Convention
is fully inclusive of all political parties and representatives elected in the
last election and all major ethnic nationalities not represented by a political party
and is held in a democratic atmosphere that allows for freedom of expression
and guarantees the safety of all participants;
(g) Without further delay to cooperate fully with
the Special Rapporteur to facilitate an independent international investigation
of continuing reports of sexual violence and other abuse of civilians carried
out by members of the armed forces in Shan and other states and further to
ensure the safety and freedom from intimidation of all persons who collaborate
with the
Special Rapporteur;
(h)
To put an immediate end to the recruitment and use of child soldiers and
to extend full
cooperation to relevant international organizations in order to ensure the
demobilization of child soldiers, their return home and their rehabilitation in
accordance with Security Council resolution 1460 (2003) of 30 January 2003;
(i) To end the
systematic enforced displacement of persons and other causes of refugee flows
to neighbouring countries, to provide the necessary
protection and assistance to internally displaced persons, in cooperation with the
international community, and to respect the right of refugees to voluntary, safe and
dignified return monitored by appropriate international agencies;
(j) To elaborate the road map for the
transition to democracy, which is still lacking in essential elements
such as concrete timing and an adequate plan for the involvement of all
political groups and ethnic nationalities, in a way that ensures the process is
transparent and inclusive;
5. Decides:
(a) To extend the mandate
of the Special Rapporteur, as contained in Commission resolution 1992/58 of 3
March 1992, for a further year and requests the Special Rapporteur to submit an
interim report to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session and to report
to the Commission at its sixty-first session and to integrate a gender
perspective throughout his work;
(b)
To request the Secretary-General to continue to give all necessary
assistance to the Special Rapporteur to enable him to discharge his mandate fully;
6.
Decides to continue consideration of this question at
its sixty-first session;
7.
Recommends the following decision to the Economic and
Social Council for adoption:
The Economic and
Social Council, taking note of the Commission on Human Rights resolution 2004/.. of ... April 2004,
endorses the Commission's decision to extend the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, as contained in
Commission resolution 1992/58 of 3 March 1992, for a further year, and to request the Special
Rapporteur to submit an interim report to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session
and to the Commission at its sixty-first session.
_____________________________
* In accordance with rule 69, paragraph 3, of the rules of procedure of the
functional commissions of the Economic and Social Council.
The
resolution was adopted without a vote (by consensus)