Myanmar opposition party to boycott elections
Mon Mar 29, 7:57 am ET
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – The party of Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi decided Monday to boycott the military-ruled country's first election in two decades after the Nobel laureate blasted new electoral rules as "undemocratic."
The main opposition National League for Democracy's refusal to participate would undermine the polls' credibility in the eyes of foreign governments, which have urged the diplomatically isolated junta to ensure all groups take part in the elections.
The military, which has run Myanmar since 1962, has touted this year's elections as part of a "roadmap to democracy," but a number of rules would prevent Suu Kyi herself from participating. The pro-democracy icon has spent 14 of the last 20 years in jail or under house arrest.
Suu Kyi's party won the last election held in Myanmar in 1990 by a landslide but was barred by the military from taking power.
On Monday, her party's spokesman, Nyan Win, announced after a daylong meeting that all 113 delegates present had agreed that the party should not register for the elections.
Cheering could be heard from the delegates as they concluded their meeting.
Nyan Win said the central committee members decided not to register because — as noted in a message sent to them by Suu Kyi — the electoral laws enacted by the junta "are unfair and unjust."
Her message also called stipulations in the law "undemocratic."
Nyan Win did not elaborate, but the party had previously objected to a provision of the party registration law that requires parties to expel members who have criminal convictions, or face deregistration.
Because Suu Kyi was convicted last year of allowing an unregistered guest to stay at her home, the provision would appear not to allow her to be a member of the National League for Democracy, which she helped found.
Suu Kyi is still general-secretary of the party and its most dominant figure.
The new election laws require political parties to register before the first week in May. Parties that do not register will not be able to participate in this year's election and will cease to exist, under rules enacted this month by the military government that also bar Suu Kyi from participating in the polls.
No date has been set for the polls, which critics deride as a sham designed to cement the power of the military.
Even before the official decision, party spokesman Nyan Win indicated the party would decide not to register. Asked if that would marginalize the party, he said, "We will continue to exist politically by not registering. If we register, we will only have a name void of all political essence."
"We will survive as long as we have public support," Nyan Win said.
Security was heightened, with plainclothes police and pro-government security guards stationed around the party's compound as the delegates met Monday in Yangon.
"This meeting is a life-or-death issue. If we don't register, we will not have a party and we will be without legs and limbs," said Win Tin, a veteran party member and one of Myanmar's longest-serving political prisoners, having spent 19 years behind bars before his release in 2008.
He said the journey ahead would be difficult if the party chooses to opt out of elections but that its members could still maintain their democratic principles and spirit.
Last week, Suu Kyi was quoted by her lawyer as saying she opposed registering her party. But she stressed she would let the party decide for itself.
Suu Kyi is under house arrest and the new election laws effectively bar her both from running and voting.
Mon Mar 29, 7:57 am ET
YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – The party of Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi decided Monday to boycott the military-ruled country's first election in two decades after the Nobel laureate blasted new electoral rules as "undemocratic."
The main opposition National League for Democracy's refusal to participate would undermine the polls' credibility in the eyes of foreign governments, which have urged the diplomatically isolated junta to ensure all groups take part in the elections.
The military, which has run Myanmar since 1962, has touted this year's elections as part of a "roadmap to democracy," but a number of rules would prevent Suu Kyi herself from participating. The pro-democracy icon has spent 14 of the last 20 years in jail or under house arrest.
Suu Kyi's party won the last election held in Myanmar in 1990 by a landslide but was barred by the military from taking power.
On Monday, her party's spokesman, Nyan Win, announced after a daylong meeting that all 113 delegates present had agreed that the party should not register for the elections.
Cheering could be heard from the delegates as they concluded their meeting.
Nyan Win said the central committee members decided not to register because — as noted in a message sent to them by Suu Kyi — the electoral laws enacted by the junta "are unfair and unjust."
Her message also called stipulations in the law "undemocratic."
Nyan Win did not elaborate, but the party had previously objected to a provision of the party registration law that requires parties to expel members who have criminal convictions, or face deregistration.
Because Suu Kyi was convicted last year of allowing an unregistered guest to stay at her home, the provision would appear not to allow her to be a member of the National League for Democracy, which she helped found.
Suu Kyi is still general-secretary of the party and its most dominant figure.
The new election laws require political parties to register before the first week in May. Parties that do not register will not be able to participate in this year's election and will cease to exist, under rules enacted this month by the military government that also bar Suu Kyi from participating in the polls.
No date has been set for the polls, which critics deride as a sham designed to cement the power of the military.
Even before the official decision, party spokesman Nyan Win indicated the party would decide not to register. Asked if that would marginalize the party, he said, "We will continue to exist politically by not registering. If we register, we will only have a name void of all political essence."
"We will survive as long as we have public support," Nyan Win said.
Security was heightened, with plainclothes police and pro-government security guards stationed around the party's compound as the delegates met Monday in Yangon.
"This meeting is a life-or-death issue. If we don't register, we will not have a party and we will be without legs and limbs," said Win Tin, a veteran party member and one of Myanmar's longest-serving political prisoners, having spent 19 years behind bars before his release in 2008.
He said the journey ahead would be difficult if the party chooses to opt out of elections but that its members could still maintain their democratic principles and spirit.
Last week, Suu Kyi was quoted by her lawyer as saying she opposed registering her party. But she stressed she would let the party decide for itself.
Suu Kyi is under house arrest and the new election laws effectively bar her both from running and voting.
***********************************************************
Myanmar's military junta orders CNN correspondent deported
On Friday March 26, 2010, 1:30 pm EDT
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar (AP) -- A reporter for the U.S. television network CNN has been ordered deported from Myanmar for the second time in two years.
Dan Rivers, who was in the capital city Naypyitaw to cover Armed Forces Day -- one of the few events which the ruling junta invites foreign journalists to cover -- will be deported because he is on a blacklist for illicitly reporting from the country in May 2008, an Information Ministry official said Friday.
Rivers was one of the few Western journalists to openly report on the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis -- which left 138,000 people dead or missing -- and was kicked out after several days.
The official, who spoke on connection of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said Rivers was accidentally allowed in again this month because of a mistake by Myanmar's embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, where the CNN correspondent is based.
The official said Rivers was sent from Naypyitaw, to Yangon, the country's commercial hub, from where he would be expelled. He was unsure when the deportation would be carried out.
A CNN spokesman in Hong Kong declined to comment.
CNN is a unit of Time Warner Inc.
On Friday March 26, 2010, 1:30 pm EDT
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar (AP) -- A reporter for the U.S. television network CNN has been ordered deported from Myanmar for the second time in two years.
Dan Rivers, who was in the capital city Naypyitaw to cover Armed Forces Day -- one of the few events which the ruling junta invites foreign journalists to cover -- will be deported because he is on a blacklist for illicitly reporting from the country in May 2008, an Information Ministry official said Friday.
Rivers was one of the few Western journalists to openly report on the aftermath of Cyclone Nargis -- which left 138,000 people dead or missing -- and was kicked out after several days.
The official, who spoke on connection of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press, said Rivers was accidentally allowed in again this month because of a mistake by Myanmar's embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, where the CNN correspondent is based.
The official said Rivers was sent from Naypyitaw, to Yangon, the country's commercial hub, from where he would be expelled. He was unsure when the deportation would be carried out.
A CNN spokesman in Hong Kong declined to comment.
CNN is a unit of Time Warner Inc.
***********************************************************
Myanmar junta chief sets ground rules for polls
(AP) – Friday, March 2010.
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar's junta chief warned political parties to behave while campaigning for historic elections later this year, noting Saturday that the armed forces can take part in politics "whenever the need arises."
In his annual national address, Senior Gen. Than Shwe maintained his silence on when Myanmar's first election in two decades will actually take place.
No date has been announced for the upcoming polls, which critics have called a sham designed to keep the military in power with the facade of an elected government.
The reclusive 77-year-old Than Shwe rarely says anything in public except at the annual Armed Forces Day parade, which lavishly showcases the military's might in the remote capital Naypyitaw. His seven-minute speech focused on the elections and the role of the army — known as the Tatmadaw — in politics.
"We, the patriotic Tatmadaw, not only defend and protect the nation and the people with our lives but take part and serve in national politics whenever the need arises," Than Shwe said, after reviewing more than 13,000 troops from inside a slowly moving convertible.
"This year's elections represent only the beginning of the process of fostering democracy," he said. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.
The polls will be the first since 1990, when the opposition party led by Aung San Suu Kyi won a landslide victory. The junta ignored the results of that vote and has kept the Nobel Peace laureate jailed or under detention for 14 of the past 20 years.
The junta recently enacted five electoral laws widely criticized as designed to keep Suu Kyi out of the race. One of the laws prohibits anyone convicted of a crime from being a member of a political party, and instructs parties to expel convicted members or face de-registration.
Speaking through her lawyers, Suu Kyi called the laws "unjust" earlier this week and said she would "not even think" of taking part in elections, but she will let her National League for Democracy party decide for itself.
The NLD plans to meet Monday to decide if it will register for the elections.
Than Shwe warned political parties to be courteous.
"Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided — such as slandering fellow politicians and parties in order to achieve election victory for one's own party," he said.
Than Shwe reiterated concerns that foreign countries might seek to interfere in the elections — usually a reference to Western countries.
"During the transition to an unfamiliar system, countries with greater experience usually interfere and take advantage for their own interests," he said. "For this reason, it is an absolute necessity to avoid relying on external powers."
The United States, the United Nations and international human rights groups have called on Myanmar to free Suu Kyi and to let all political prisoners take part in the elections. The junta is believed to have jailed more than 2,100 political prisoners.
Suu Kyi's house arrest was extended last year after she was convicted of violating the terms of her detention when an American man swam uninvited to her lakeside property. She is serving an additional 18 months of house arrest, which would keep her detained through the elections.
The elections are part of the junta's long-announced "roadmap to democracy." As part of its roadmap, the junta drafted a new constitution that enshrines the military's leading role in politics. It allots 25 percent of parliamentary seats to the military and stipulates that no amendments to the charter can be made without the consent of more than 75 percent of lawmakers.
(AP) – Friday, March 2010.
NAYPYITAW, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar's junta chief warned political parties to behave while campaigning for historic elections later this year, noting Saturday that the armed forces can take part in politics "whenever the need arises."
In his annual national address, Senior Gen. Than Shwe maintained his silence on when Myanmar's first election in two decades will actually take place.
No date has been announced for the upcoming polls, which critics have called a sham designed to keep the military in power with the facade of an elected government.
The reclusive 77-year-old Than Shwe rarely says anything in public except at the annual Armed Forces Day parade, which lavishly showcases the military's might in the remote capital Naypyitaw. His seven-minute speech focused on the elections and the role of the army — known as the Tatmadaw — in politics.
"We, the patriotic Tatmadaw, not only defend and protect the nation and the people with our lives but take part and serve in national politics whenever the need arises," Than Shwe said, after reviewing more than 13,000 troops from inside a slowly moving convertible.
"This year's elections represent only the beginning of the process of fostering democracy," he said. Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962.
The polls will be the first since 1990, when the opposition party led by Aung San Suu Kyi won a landslide victory. The junta ignored the results of that vote and has kept the Nobel Peace laureate jailed or under detention for 14 of the past 20 years.
The junta recently enacted five electoral laws widely criticized as designed to keep Suu Kyi out of the race. One of the laws prohibits anyone convicted of a crime from being a member of a political party, and instructs parties to expel convicted members or face de-registration.
Speaking through her lawyers, Suu Kyi called the laws "unjust" earlier this week and said she would "not even think" of taking part in elections, but she will let her National League for Democracy party decide for itself.
The NLD plans to meet Monday to decide if it will register for the elections.
Than Shwe warned political parties to be courteous.
"Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided — such as slandering fellow politicians and parties in order to achieve election victory for one's own party," he said.
Than Shwe reiterated concerns that foreign countries might seek to interfere in the elections — usually a reference to Western countries.
"During the transition to an unfamiliar system, countries with greater experience usually interfere and take advantage for their own interests," he said. "For this reason, it is an absolute necessity to avoid relying on external powers."
The United States, the United Nations and international human rights groups have called on Myanmar to free Suu Kyi and to let all political prisoners take part in the elections. The junta is believed to have jailed more than 2,100 political prisoners.
Suu Kyi's house arrest was extended last year after she was convicted of violating the terms of her detention when an American man swam uninvited to her lakeside property. She is serving an additional 18 months of house arrest, which would keep her detained through the elections.
The elections are part of the junta's long-announced "roadmap to democracy." As part of its roadmap, the junta drafted a new constitution that enshrines the military's leading role in politics. It allots 25 percent of parliamentary seats to the military and stipulates that no amendments to the charter can be made without the consent of more than 75 percent of lawmakers.
***********************************************************
Myanmar bus company told to 'stop caning' drivers
Mon Mar 29, 2:05 am ET
YANGON (AFP) – A bus company in military-ruled Myanmar has been told to stop caning drivers and conductors for letting too many passengers on buses, a local newspaper reported Monday.
According to the Myanmar Times, Bandoola Transport brought in the punishment on two routes in the commercial hub of Yangon in late February "because fining drivers and conductors was not improving discipline".
But it was told last week to do away with the cane -- an order thought to have come from the Commander of Yangon Division, Brigadier General Win Myint, said the privately-run state-censored newspaper.
It said the caning was administered by inspection teams on the spot "on several occasions" but the exact number of times it had been used was unclear.
"If anyone is caught breaking the rules, the inspection teams will make sure they are punished with fines from now on," Bandoola Transport?s boss who introduced the punishment, retired Colonel Myo Myint, was quoted as saying.
He said the caning was brought in because drivers and conductors were flaunting a rule that bus lines were only to allow the same number of passengers as seats onboard, and this was bad for the company?s image.
Bandoola Transport is owned by the army-run Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd, the paper said. Myanmar has been military-ruled since 1962.
Mon Mar 29, 2:05 am ET
YANGON (AFP) – A bus company in military-ruled Myanmar has been told to stop caning drivers and conductors for letting too many passengers on buses, a local newspaper reported Monday.
According to the Myanmar Times, Bandoola Transport brought in the punishment on two routes in the commercial hub of Yangon in late February "because fining drivers and conductors was not improving discipline".
But it was told last week to do away with the cane -- an order thought to have come from the Commander of Yangon Division, Brigadier General Win Myint, said the privately-run state-censored newspaper.
It said the caning was administered by inspection teams on the spot "on several occasions" but the exact number of times it had been used was unclear.
"If anyone is caught breaking the rules, the inspection teams will make sure they are punished with fines from now on," Bandoola Transport?s boss who introduced the punishment, retired Colonel Myo Myint, was quoted as saying.
He said the caning was brought in because drivers and conductors were flaunting a rule that bus lines were only to allow the same number of passengers as seats onboard, and this was bad for the company?s image.
Bandoola Transport is owned by the army-run Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd, the paper said. Myanmar has been military-ruled since 1962.
***********************************************************
The Christian Science Monitor - With Burma election boycott, Suu Kyi party risks breakup
Aung San Suu Kyi party members announced a boycott on the Burma election Monday to avoid endorsing an ‘unfair’ process. But the largest opposition group in Burma (Myanmar) now risks being broken up under controversial election laws.
By Simon Montlake, Correspondent / March 29, 2010
Bangkok, Thailand
The largest opposition party in Burma (Myanmar) said Monday it won’t contest military-run elections later this year, a move that under controversial election laws could lead to its breakup.
The decision by the National League for Democracy (NLD), whose leader Aung San Suu Kyi is under house arrest, came after a party meeting in Rangoon (Yangon).
Spokesman Nyan Win told reporters that members had voted not to participate because “the election laws are unjust,” Reuters reported.
The NLD has been gripped by divisions over the logic of an election boycott, which is punishable by party dissolution. Some activists argued that staying out of the political process was futile, while others insisted that capitulation to an undemocratic ballot was wrong.
Monday’s decision wasn’t a surprise, as Ms. Suu Kyi was recently quoted as saying she was personally opposed to participation but would allow the party to decide for itself.
The Nobel Peace laureate, who led the NLD to victory in a 1990 poll that was later annulled, is considered untouchable by many party members.
Cramping Western engagement
The Obama administration has sought to engage with Burma’s military rulers while maintaining longstanding sanctions. It has also strongly criticized a 2008 Constitution and the laws governing the election, expected to be held in October or November.
Among the rules laid down by the junta is a ban on prisoners joining political parties, which excludes Suu Kyi and more than 2,100 other political detainees. Monks and civil servants are also banned. Parties have until May 7 to register for the election or face dissolution.
Dozens of new and existing parties are expected to contest elections overseen by a military-appointed commission. But the exclusion of the NLD, even by its own hand, may drive a wedge between Western powers and Asian countries keen to strengthen ties to Burma and willing to give a passing grade to a flawed election.
“It will be difficult for the US and the West to engage with Burma on this issue,” says Aung Naing Oo, an exiled Burmese analyst in Chiang Mai, Thailand, who has urged the NLD to participate in the elections.
A ‘principled stance’
Advocates of an election boycott reject the argument that civilian rule is a first step toward democracy, even if the vote is imperfect. They argue that the NLD and other democrats will be emasculated in a parliament in which military proxies and appointed generals will control the levers.
In a commentary in the Irrawaddy, an exile-run publication, Dr. Zarni, a dissident based in Bangkok, compared participation to the abdication in 1885 of King Thibaw, Burma’s last sovereign, at colonial Britain’s behest.
“The political process ‘on offer’ by Burma's ruling military junta is deeply one-sided, harmful to the country's interests … so much so that anyone who cares about the country's future should stiffen the spine and take a realistic and principled stance against the ‘election,’ ” he wrote.
Even if the NLD stays out, some members may chose to set up alternative parties or lend support to other allied parties. But they could find themselves coming in conflict with other NLD factions that want to enforce the boycott, says Aung Naing Oo.
He warns that other activists frustrated by the junta’s glacial path to democracy may take a more radical approach, despite the odds stacked against them. “My biggest worry is a possible confrontation with the military. That could come soon,” he says.
Aung San Suu Kyi party members announced a boycott on the Burma election Monday to avoid endorsing an ‘unfair’ process. But the largest opposition group in Burma (Myanmar) now risks being broken up under controversial election laws.
By Simon Montlake, Correspondent / March 29, 2010
Bangkok, Thailand
The largest opposition party in Burma (Myanmar) said Monday it won’t contest military-run elections later this year, a move that under controversial election laws could lead to its breakup.
The decision by the National League for Democracy (NLD), whose leader Aung San Suu Kyi is under house arrest, came after a party meeting in Rangoon (Yangon).
Spokesman Nyan Win told reporters that members had voted not to participate because “the election laws are unjust,” Reuters reported.
The NLD has been gripped by divisions over the logic of an election boycott, which is punishable by party dissolution. Some activists argued that staying out of the political process was futile, while others insisted that capitulation to an undemocratic ballot was wrong.
Monday’s decision wasn’t a surprise, as Ms. Suu Kyi was recently quoted as saying she was personally opposed to participation but would allow the party to decide for itself.
The Nobel Peace laureate, who led the NLD to victory in a 1990 poll that was later annulled, is considered untouchable by many party members.
Cramping Western engagement
The Obama administration has sought to engage with Burma’s military rulers while maintaining longstanding sanctions. It has also strongly criticized a 2008 Constitution and the laws governing the election, expected to be held in October or November.
Among the rules laid down by the junta is a ban on prisoners joining political parties, which excludes Suu Kyi and more than 2,100 other political detainees. Monks and civil servants are also banned. Parties have until May 7 to register for the election or face dissolution.
Dozens of new and existing parties are expected to contest elections overseen by a military-appointed commission. But the exclusion of the NLD, even by its own hand, may drive a wedge between Western powers and Asian countries keen to strengthen ties to Burma and willing to give a passing grade to a flawed election.
“It will be difficult for the US and the West to engage with Burma on this issue,” says Aung Naing Oo, an exiled Burmese analyst in Chiang Mai, Thailand, who has urged the NLD to participate in the elections.
A ‘principled stance’
Advocates of an election boycott reject the argument that civilian rule is a first step toward democracy, even if the vote is imperfect. They argue that the NLD and other democrats will be emasculated in a parliament in which military proxies and appointed generals will control the levers.
In a commentary in the Irrawaddy, an exile-run publication, Dr. Zarni, a dissident based in Bangkok, compared participation to the abdication in 1885 of King Thibaw, Burma’s last sovereign, at colonial Britain’s behest.
“The political process ‘on offer’ by Burma's ruling military junta is deeply one-sided, harmful to the country's interests … so much so that anyone who cares about the country's future should stiffen the spine and take a realistic and principled stance against the ‘election,’ ” he wrote.
Even if the NLD stays out, some members may chose to set up alternative parties or lend support to other allied parties. But they could find themselves coming in conflict with other NLD factions that want to enforce the boycott, says Aung Naing Oo.
He warns that other activists frustrated by the junta’s glacial path to democracy may take a more radical approach, despite the odds stacked against them. “My biggest worry is a possible confrontation with the military. That could come soon,” he says.
***********************************************************
Sunday, March 28, 2010
The Japan Times - Okada: Let Suu Kyi run in elections or no aid
Kyodo News
Tokyo will not expand economic aid to Myanmar as earlier proposed unless the junta ensures the participation of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others in the country's general election this year, Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada said.
Okada conveyed the stance to Myanmar Ambassador to Japan U Hla Myint on Friday, and also told reporters he would like to discuss the situation in Myanmar with his counterparts on the sidelines of a Group of Eight foreign ministerial meeting in Canada next week.
Okada said he told the ambassador that Japan is hoping for "an open election" that will allow anyone concerned and willing to participate.
"And I clearly said the current situation will not result in receiving (full-fledged economic assistance from Japan)," he said at a regular press conference.
Myanmar's ruling junta announced earlier in the month a new political party registration law through state-run newspapers, which says members of a political party are not eligible for electoral participation if they have been convicted in court.
Suu Kyi, who has long been under detention, was convicted last year of violating the terms of her house arrest.
The ambassador did not tell Okada whether Suu Kyi will be among those barred from the election, according to Okada.
The Japan Times - Okada: Let Suu Kyi run in elections or no aid
Kyodo News
Tokyo will not expand economic aid to Myanmar as earlier proposed unless the junta ensures the participation of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others in the country's general election this year, Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada said.
Okada conveyed the stance to Myanmar Ambassador to Japan U Hla Myint on Friday, and also told reporters he would like to discuss the situation in Myanmar with his counterparts on the sidelines of a Group of Eight foreign ministerial meeting in Canada next week.
Okada said he told the ambassador that Japan is hoping for "an open election" that will allow anyone concerned and willing to participate.
"And I clearly said the current situation will not result in receiving (full-fledged economic assistance from Japan)," he said at a regular press conference.
Myanmar's ruling junta announced earlier in the month a new political party registration law through state-run newspapers, which says members of a political party are not eligible for electoral participation if they have been convicted in court.
Suu Kyi, who has long been under detention, was convicted last year of violating the terms of her house arrest.
The ambassador did not tell Okada whether Suu Kyi will be among those barred from the election, according to Okada.
***********************************************************
Myanmar military remains defiant over poll
Published: March. 29, 2010 at 6:35 AM
YANGON, Myanmar, March 29 (UPI) -- Myanmar's ruling military celebrated Armed Forces Day as the junta prepares to give up at least partial control of the country through controversial national elections.
It was a rare public appearance for head of state Senior Gen. Than Shwe, 73, as he stood to attention alone on a dais saluting rows of marching soldiers during the parade in Nay Pyi Taw.
Shwe, who has been in power since 1992, showed no signs of ill health, such as intestinal cancer as media have speculated over the past two years.
The military show was the last before the junta hands control to an elected parliament, although one-quarter of the seats in that body will be reserved for appointed military representatives.
While Shwe has yet to set an election date, October is thought to be the month for the vote.
International groups are already calling the elections, the first in two decades, a sham.
The junta refused to recognize the results of the 1990 elections and the landslide victory by Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party.
Despite international pressure, the generals said they won't release political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, a 64-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate under house arrest, before an election. The international community also denounced the junta's recently announced set of laws that disbars people, such as Suu Kyi, with criminal convictions from
standing for election.
Also not allowed to run are members of religious groups including Buddhist monks. They clashed with police and the military during the so-called saffron revolution, several days of peaceful demonstrations by the monks and students in 2008.
The military parade was televised throughout the country as was Shwe's speech warning against foreign interference in the forthcoming elections. Shwe said "external powers" may take advantage of Myanmar as it moves toward an "unfamiliar system," reported a BBC correspondent, one of few foreign journalists to attend the parade and who was give an English translation of the speech.
Shwe warned of "inappropriate" campaigning by opposition groups and said the nation would be strong "only when the armed forces are strong."
The general's statements appear to be a criticism of remarks made last week by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. He called on the generals to free political prisoners as part of measures to ensure credible elections.
Earlier this month a U.N. report suggested that an international tribunal like those for Cambodia, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia might be set up for Burma, the former name of Myanmar.
Tomas Ojea Quintana, an Argentine lawyer and U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, described "gross and systematic" human rights abuses in which the generals may have been involved.
According to a report in The Times of London, the abuses include mass arrests of peaceful dissidents, the torture and killing of prisoners and denial of the right to free assembly, worship and expression. There also appears to have been forced labor by the generals in Myanmar.
"Some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity or war crimes under the terms of the … International Criminal Court," Quintana said in the report to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.
"There is an indication that those human rights violations are the result of a state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels," he said.
The "United Nations institutions may consider the possibility to establish a commission of inquiry with a specific fact-finding mandate to address the question of international crimes."
Published: March. 29, 2010 at 6:35 AM
YANGON, Myanmar, March 29 (UPI) -- Myanmar's ruling military celebrated Armed Forces Day as the junta prepares to give up at least partial control of the country through controversial national elections.
It was a rare public appearance for head of state Senior Gen. Than Shwe, 73, as he stood to attention alone on a dais saluting rows of marching soldiers during the parade in Nay Pyi Taw.
Shwe, who has been in power since 1992, showed no signs of ill health, such as intestinal cancer as media have speculated over the past two years.
The military show was the last before the junta hands control to an elected parliament, although one-quarter of the seats in that body will be reserved for appointed military representatives.
While Shwe has yet to set an election date, October is thought to be the month for the vote.
International groups are already calling the elections, the first in two decades, a sham.
The junta refused to recognize the results of the 1990 elections and the landslide victory by Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy party.
Despite international pressure, the generals said they won't release political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, a 64-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate under house arrest, before an election. The international community also denounced the junta's recently announced set of laws that disbars people, such as Suu Kyi, with criminal convictions from
standing for election.
Also not allowed to run are members of religious groups including Buddhist monks. They clashed with police and the military during the so-called saffron revolution, several days of peaceful demonstrations by the monks and students in 2008.
The military parade was televised throughout the country as was Shwe's speech warning against foreign interference in the forthcoming elections. Shwe said "external powers" may take advantage of Myanmar as it moves toward an "unfamiliar system," reported a BBC correspondent, one of few foreign journalists to attend the parade and who was give an English translation of the speech.
Shwe warned of "inappropriate" campaigning by opposition groups and said the nation would be strong "only when the armed forces are strong."
The general's statements appear to be a criticism of remarks made last week by U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. He called on the generals to free political prisoners as part of measures to ensure credible elections.
Earlier this month a U.N. report suggested that an international tribunal like those for Cambodia, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia might be set up for Burma, the former name of Myanmar.
Tomas Ojea Quintana, an Argentine lawyer and U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, described "gross and systematic" human rights abuses in which the generals may have been involved.
According to a report in The Times of London, the abuses include mass arrests of peaceful dissidents, the torture and killing of prisoners and denial of the right to free assembly, worship and expression. There also appears to have been forced labor by the generals in Myanmar.
"Some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity or war crimes under the terms of the … International Criminal Court," Quintana said in the report to the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva.
"There is an indication that those human rights violations are the result of a state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels," he said.
The "United Nations institutions may consider the possibility to establish a commission of inquiry with a specific fact-finding mandate to address the question of international crimes."
***********************************************************
EarthTimes - Myanmar's junta chief sees political role for the military
Posted : Sat, 27 Mar 2010 06:10:40 GMT
Naypyitaw, Myanmar - Myanmar's junta chief on Saturday suggested that the military will play a pivotal political role after this year's planned election, which most observers believe will be neither free nor fair.
"Our armed forces have had a brilliant history of achievement both in politics and in military affairs," Senior General Than Shwe, 77, told a parade of 13,085 troops marking the 65th Armed Forces Day at Naypyitaw, the country's capital since 2005.
"We, the patriotic military, not only defend and protect the nation and the people with our lives but take part and serve in national politics whenever the need arises," said Than Shwe, the leader of the State Peace and Development Council, the junta's official name.
The military has been monopolizing politics in Myanmar, also called Burma, since General Ne Win toppled the elected government of the first post-independence prime minister, U Nu, in 1962.
Than Shwe has vowed to hold a general election some time this year, although the exact date has not been set, as part of his seven-step "road map" to democracy.
Myanmar-style democracy will involve a heavy dose of military participation, judging by the election laws the junta promulgated earlier this month.
The newly established election comission responsible for managing the polls and assuring fairness is to be appointed by the military.
The Political Party Registration Law bans people currently serving prison terms from being members of political parties, effectively forcing the National League for Democracy (NLD) opposition party to expel its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, so it can contest the election.
Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel peace laureate, is now serving an 18-month sentence under house arrest.
The NLD, which won the last election in 1990 by a landslide, is expected to boycott this year's polls in light of the rules stacked against them, and a conviction that the elections would not bring democracy.
The military has barred the NLD from taking office over the past 20 years, arguing that the country needed a new constitution before the government could be handed over to civilians.
The new charter, drafted by a military-appointed committee, ensures that the military will remain in control even after an election, by allowing it to appoint 25 per cent of the Upper House, with veto power over all legislation passed by the Lower House.
If the NLD refuses to contest the polls, pro-military political parties are expected to dominate the race.
The Union Solidarity and Development Association, a pro-military mass organization that claims 26 million members out of Myanmar's total population of 57 million, is expected to be transformed into a political party soon.
Major General Htay Oo, the secretary-general of the association, is expected to become the first elected prime minister in decades, analysts said.
"I will become a politician," Htay Oo told the German Press Agency
Posted : Sat, 27 Mar 2010 06:10:40 GMT
Naypyitaw, Myanmar - Myanmar's junta chief on Saturday suggested that the military will play a pivotal political role after this year's planned election, which most observers believe will be neither free nor fair.
"Our armed forces have had a brilliant history of achievement both in politics and in military affairs," Senior General Than Shwe, 77, told a parade of 13,085 troops marking the 65th Armed Forces Day at Naypyitaw, the country's capital since 2005.
"We, the patriotic military, not only defend and protect the nation and the people with our lives but take part and serve in national politics whenever the need arises," said Than Shwe, the leader of the State Peace and Development Council, the junta's official name.
The military has been monopolizing politics in Myanmar, also called Burma, since General Ne Win toppled the elected government of the first post-independence prime minister, U Nu, in 1962.
Than Shwe has vowed to hold a general election some time this year, although the exact date has not been set, as part of his seven-step "road map" to democracy.
Myanmar-style democracy will involve a heavy dose of military participation, judging by the election laws the junta promulgated earlier this month.
The newly established election comission responsible for managing the polls and assuring fairness is to be appointed by the military.
The Political Party Registration Law bans people currently serving prison terms from being members of political parties, effectively forcing the National League for Democracy (NLD) opposition party to expel its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, so it can contest the election.
Suu Kyi, the 1991 Nobel peace laureate, is now serving an 18-month sentence under house arrest.
The NLD, which won the last election in 1990 by a landslide, is expected to boycott this year's polls in light of the rules stacked against them, and a conviction that the elections would not bring democracy.
The military has barred the NLD from taking office over the past 20 years, arguing that the country needed a new constitution before the government could be handed over to civilians.
The new charter, drafted by a military-appointed committee, ensures that the military will remain in control even after an election, by allowing it to appoint 25 per cent of the Upper House, with veto power over all legislation passed by the Lower House.
If the NLD refuses to contest the polls, pro-military political parties are expected to dominate the race.
The Union Solidarity and Development Association, a pro-military mass organization that claims 26 million members out of Myanmar's total population of 57 million, is expected to be transformed into a political party soon.
Major General Htay Oo, the secretary-general of the association, is expected to become the first elected prime minister in decades, analysts said.
"I will become a politician," Htay Oo told the German Press Agency
***********************************************************
The News International - Polls to be held by early November Myanmar Junta leader issues election warning
Sunday, March 28, 2010
‘Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided’; critics dismiss polls as sham designed to entrench generals’ power
NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar: Myanmar’s junta chief warned Saturday against “divisive” and “slanderous” election campaigning as a senior official said the controversial polls would be held by early November.
Senior General Than Shwe addressed thousands of soldiers at a parade ground in the remote capital Naypyidaw, as he presided over the country’s final annual military parade ahead of the vote.
“Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided, such as slandering fellow politicians and parties in order to achieve election victory,” Than Shwe said after inspecting the troops from his open-top limousine.
Decked out in his ceremonial uniform, 77-year-old Than Shwe denounced interference by other countries and said campaigns must avoid “engaging in divisive acts that lead to disunity among nationalities and religions”.
Critics have dismissed the polls as a sham designed to entrench the generals’ power. Detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is barred from standing and a quarter of parliamentary seats will be nominated by the junta.
The government has not announced a date for the elections but a senior official told AFP the elections — the first to be held in more than 20 years — would take place by early November.
“The candidates will get about six months for campaigning after they have registered as political parties. The elections will be in the last week of October or early in November,” he told AFP on condition of anonymity. Parliamentary buildings in the new capital are still under construction, but a official involved in the building said they were 70 percent complete and would be ready by the end of the year.
Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won 1990 elections in a landslide but the military, which has ruled Myanmar since 1962, never allowed it to take power and Suu Kyi has been imprisoned for most of the last 20 years.
Under election laws announced this month, the NLD would have to expel Suu Kyi in order to contest the polls, but it has not yet said if it will take part and is expected to make an announcement on Monday.
The United States has led international criticism, saying the election laws make a “mockery” of democracy.
Than Shwe defended the elections plans at Saturday’s parade, saying that many of the military were once politicians, and that the elections would make them civilians once again.
“They will turn back into politicians and engage in national politics when the time comes for political struggle,” he said. “This year’s elections represent only the beginning of the process of fostering democracy.”
The vote is part of the government’s seven-step “Roadmap to Democracy”, including a new constitution enacted after a referendum held days after a cyclone ravaged the country in May 2008.
Foreign journalists have been barred from covering Armed Forces Day for the past two years, but the junta granted visas for this year’s landmark parade, which marks Myanmar’s resistance against Japanese occupation in World War II.
CNN correspondent Daniel Rivers, however, was deported Friday after arriving in Naypyidaw. He had previously been expelled from the country in 2008 over his coverage of the disastrous cyclone.
Suu Kyi is one of more than 2,000 political prisoners held in Myanmar, which remains under US and European sanctions over its human rights record.
Earlier this month, UN rights envoy Tomas Quintana reported that human rights violations in Myanmar may amount to crimes against humanity and could warrant a UN inquiry, a move that was strongly denounced by the junta.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
‘Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided’; critics dismiss polls as sham designed to entrench generals’ power
NAYPYIDAW, Myanmar: Myanmar’s junta chief warned Saturday against “divisive” and “slanderous” election campaigning as a senior official said the controversial polls would be held by early November.
Senior General Than Shwe addressed thousands of soldiers at a parade ground in the remote capital Naypyidaw, as he presided over the country’s final annual military parade ahead of the vote.
“Improper or inappropriate campaigning has to be avoided, such as slandering fellow politicians and parties in order to achieve election victory,” Than Shwe said after inspecting the troops from his open-top limousine.
Decked out in his ceremonial uniform, 77-year-old Than Shwe denounced interference by other countries and said campaigns must avoid “engaging in divisive acts that lead to disunity among nationalities and religions”.
Critics have dismissed the polls as a sham designed to entrench the generals’ power. Detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is barred from standing and a quarter of parliamentary seats will be nominated by the junta.
The government has not announced a date for the elections but a senior official told AFP the elections — the first to be held in more than 20 years — would take place by early November.
“The candidates will get about six months for campaigning after they have registered as political parties. The elections will be in the last week of October or early in November,” he told AFP on condition of anonymity. Parliamentary buildings in the new capital are still under construction, but a official involved in the building said they were 70 percent complete and would be ready by the end of the year.
Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) won 1990 elections in a landslide but the military, which has ruled Myanmar since 1962, never allowed it to take power and Suu Kyi has been imprisoned for most of the last 20 years.
Under election laws announced this month, the NLD would have to expel Suu Kyi in order to contest the polls, but it has not yet said if it will take part and is expected to make an announcement on Monday.
The United States has led international criticism, saying the election laws make a “mockery” of democracy.
Than Shwe defended the elections plans at Saturday’s parade, saying that many of the military were once politicians, and that the elections would make them civilians once again.
“They will turn back into politicians and engage in national politics when the time comes for political struggle,” he said. “This year’s elections represent only the beginning of the process of fostering democracy.”
The vote is part of the government’s seven-step “Roadmap to Democracy”, including a new constitution enacted after a referendum held days after a cyclone ravaged the country in May 2008.
Foreign journalists have been barred from covering Armed Forces Day for the past two years, but the junta granted visas for this year’s landmark parade, which marks Myanmar’s resistance against Japanese occupation in World War II.
CNN correspondent Daniel Rivers, however, was deported Friday after arriving in Naypyidaw. He had previously been expelled from the country in 2008 over his coverage of the disastrous cyclone.
Suu Kyi is one of more than 2,000 political prisoners held in Myanmar, which remains under US and European sanctions over its human rights record.
Earlier this month, UN rights envoy Tomas Quintana reported that human rights violations in Myanmar may amount to crimes against humanity and could warrant a UN inquiry, a move that was strongly denounced by the junta.
***********************************************************
ReliefWeb - Human Rights Council extends mandate of Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, adopts resolutions on Guinea and Democratic Republic of the Congo
Source: United Nations Human Rights Council
Date: 26 Mar 2010
Also Adopts Texts on the Fight against Torture, Sexual Violence against Children, and Protection of Journalists in Situations of Armed Conflict, Among Others
The Human Rights Council this morning adopted seven texts, which included extending the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, and adopting measures on technical assistance and capacity building to Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Other texts concerned torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the rights of the child and the fight against sexual violence against children; enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights; and the protection of journalists in situations of armed conflict. It also adopted a list of candidates for Special Procedure Mandate Holders to be appointed during the session
Under its agenda item on human rights situations that require the Council's attention, the Council adopted a text on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, in which it strongly condemned the ongoing systematic violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Myanmar. It called upon the Government to ensure a free, transparent and fair electoral process. The Council decided to extend for one year the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and urged the Government to continue to respond favourably to the Special Rapporteur's requests to visit the country and that the Government implement the recommendations addressed to the Government contained in his reports and in Council resolutions.
Under its agenda item on technical assistance and capacity building, the Council adopted a text on strengthening of technical cooperation and consultative services in the Republic of Guinea, in which it invited the Guinean authorities to consider implementing the recommendations on, inter alia, combating impunity, protection for and the granting of assistance and appropriate reparation to the victims of acts of violence, and reform of the justice and the security sectors. The Council also strongly appealed to the international community to provide the transitional authorities, as soon as possible, with appropriate assistance as a contribution to a sustainable restoration of peace and the constitutional order and to support the efforts of the Guinean authorities to promote respect for human rights.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the strengthening of technical cooperation and consultative services, in which it requested the Democratic Republic of the Congo to continue to ensure protection of journalists and human rights defenders in the discharge of their duties and to fight against sexual violence and to prosecute the perpetrators of serious human rights violations, in the army and the national police force, within the framework of the policy of zero tolerance. The Council also requested the Government, with the assistance of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the thematic Special Procedure, to develop a plan for prioritization and implementation of recommendations received to date, particularly in the areas of protection of women and children, combating impunity, the rule of law and the administration of justice.
Under its agenda item on the promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, the Council adopted a text on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment: the role and responsibility of judges, prosecutors and lawyers, in which it condemned any action or attempt by States or public officials to legalize, authorize or acquiesce in torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under any circumstances, including on grounds of national security or through judicial decisions. The Council urged all States to consider establishing or to maintain and enhance independent and effective mechanisms with qualified legal and other relevant expertise to undertake effective monitoring visits to places of detention.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on the rights of the child: the fight against sexual violence against children, in which it urged all States, inter alia, to ensure accountability and to seek to end impunity of perpetrators of sexual violence and abuse against children in all settings, including in conflict and emergencies, and to give priority attention to the prevention of all forms of sexual violence and abuse against children by addressing its underlying causes. It called upon all States and relevant United Nations bodies and agencies and regional organizations to address the issue of sexual exploitation and abuse of children by United Nations peacekeeping and humanitarian personnel and urges States to adopt appropriate national legislation and to ensure rigorous investigation and prosecution of such crimes.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on protection of journalists in situations of armed conflict, deciding to convene a panel discussion at its fourteenth session on the issue of protection of journalists in armed conflict.
Under its agenda item on human rights bodies and mechanisms, the Council also adopted a list of candidates for Special Procedure mandate holders to be appointed during the session. These included Jasminka Dzumhur, for the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, Vladimir Tochilovsky for the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and Verene Shepherd for the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent.
Under its agenda item on the annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, in a text on enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights, the Council urged all actors on the international scene to build an international order based on inclusion, justice, equality and equity, human dignity, mutual understanding and promotion of and respect for cultural diversity and universal human rights, and to reject all doctrines of exclusion based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Speaking this morning in introductions of resolutions were Denmark, Uruguay, Nigeria, Egypt on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, and Spain on behalf of the European Union.
Speaking in general comments were Norway, and France on behalf of the European Union.
Speaking in explanations of vote before the vote were the United States, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, Russian Federation, and Cuba
Speaking as concerned countries were Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar.
Speaking in explanations of vote after the vote were Japan, Ghana, China, and Bangladesh.
The next meeting of the Council will be at 3 p.m. this afternoon, when it will continue to take action on pending draft resolutions, following which it will conclude the session.
Action on Resolutions under Agenda Item on the Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development
Source: United Nations Human Rights Council
Date: 26 Mar 2010
Also Adopts Texts on the Fight against Torture, Sexual Violence against Children, and Protection of Journalists in Situations of Armed Conflict, Among Others
The Human Rights Council this morning adopted seven texts, which included extending the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, and adopting measures on technical assistance and capacity building to Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Other texts concerned torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; the rights of the child and the fight against sexual violence against children; enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights; and the protection of journalists in situations of armed conflict. It also adopted a list of candidates for Special Procedure Mandate Holders to be appointed during the session
Under its agenda item on human rights situations that require the Council's attention, the Council adopted a text on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, in which it strongly condemned the ongoing systematic violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of Myanmar. It called upon the Government to ensure a free, transparent and fair electoral process. The Council decided to extend for one year the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar and urged the Government to continue to respond favourably to the Special Rapporteur's requests to visit the country and that the Government implement the recommendations addressed to the Government contained in his reports and in Council resolutions.
Under its agenda item on technical assistance and capacity building, the Council adopted a text on strengthening of technical cooperation and consultative services in the Republic of Guinea, in which it invited the Guinean authorities to consider implementing the recommendations on, inter alia, combating impunity, protection for and the granting of assistance and appropriate reparation to the victims of acts of violence, and reform of the justice and the security sectors. The Council also strongly appealed to the international community to provide the transitional authorities, as soon as possible, with appropriate assistance as a contribution to a sustainable restoration of peace and the constitutional order and to support the efforts of the Guinean authorities to promote respect for human rights.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the strengthening of technical cooperation and consultative services, in which it requested the Democratic Republic of the Congo to continue to ensure protection of journalists and human rights defenders in the discharge of their duties and to fight against sexual violence and to prosecute the perpetrators of serious human rights violations, in the army and the national police force, within the framework of the policy of zero tolerance. The Council also requested the Government, with the assistance of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the thematic Special Procedure, to develop a plan for prioritization and implementation of recommendations received to date, particularly in the areas of protection of women and children, combating impunity, the rule of law and the administration of justice.
Under its agenda item on the promotion and protection of all human rights, civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights, including the right to development, the Council adopted a text on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment: the role and responsibility of judges, prosecutors and lawyers, in which it condemned any action or attempt by States or public officials to legalize, authorize or acquiesce in torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under any circumstances, including on grounds of national security or through judicial decisions. The Council urged all States to consider establishing or to maintain and enhance independent and effective mechanisms with qualified legal and other relevant expertise to undertake effective monitoring visits to places of detention.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on the rights of the child: the fight against sexual violence against children, in which it urged all States, inter alia, to ensure accountability and to seek to end impunity of perpetrators of sexual violence and abuse against children in all settings, including in conflict and emergencies, and to give priority attention to the prevention of all forms of sexual violence and abuse against children by addressing its underlying causes. It called upon all States and relevant United Nations bodies and agencies and regional organizations to address the issue of sexual exploitation and abuse of children by United Nations peacekeeping and humanitarian personnel and urges States to adopt appropriate national legislation and to ensure rigorous investigation and prosecution of such crimes.
Under the same agenda item, the Council adopted a text on protection of journalists in situations of armed conflict, deciding to convene a panel discussion at its fourteenth session on the issue of protection of journalists in armed conflict.
Under its agenda item on human rights bodies and mechanisms, the Council also adopted a list of candidates for Special Procedure mandate holders to be appointed during the session. These included Jasminka Dzumhur, for the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, Vladimir Tochilovsky for the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, and Verene Shepherd for the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent.
Under its agenda item on the annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, in a text on enhancement of international cooperation in the field of human rights, the Council urged all actors on the international scene to build an international order based on inclusion, justice, equality and equity, human dignity, mutual understanding and promotion of and respect for cultural diversity and universal human rights, and to reject all doctrines of exclusion based on racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Speaking this morning in introductions of resolutions were Denmark, Uruguay, Nigeria, Egypt on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement, and Spain on behalf of the European Union.
Speaking in general comments were Norway, and France on behalf of the European Union.
Speaking in explanations of vote before the vote were the United States, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, Russian Federation, and Cuba
Speaking as concerned countries were Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar.
Speaking in explanations of vote after the vote were Japan, Ghana, China, and Bangladesh.
The next meeting of the Council will be at 3 p.m. this afternoon, when it will continue to take action on pending draft resolutions, following which it will conclude the session.
Action on Resolutions under Agenda Item on the Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development
***********************************************************
Mar 29, 2010
Straits Times - 16 migrants escape from centre
KUALA LUMPUR - SIXTEEN migrants were on the run on Monday after cutting their way out of a detention centre at Malaysia's main international airport, immigration officials said.
The group, 12 Afghan and four Myanmar nationals, got through the gate of a facility at Kuala Lumpur airport where officials said they were being held for their own protection.
'The 16 are believed to have cut through the wire mesh of the gate and escaped the centre where they were being protected from human trafficking syndicates,' Selangor state immigration chief Johari Yusof said.
'The Afghans were part of a group of 18 we had rescued in October last year from a ship adrift off our coast as these malnourished victims who were on the verge of death from starvation were being smuggled to a third country,' he added. Mr Johari said police were looking for the group.
Immigration activists say Malaysia is often used as a staging post for trafficking gangs moving people from Afghanistan and Myanmar to Indonesia and Australia. Earlier this month, maritime authorities picked up 93 members of Myanmar's Rohingya Muslim minority who had drifted aboard a boat for 30 days after fleeing their country.
Malaysian police last July arrested five immigration officials for involvement in an international syndicate that smuggled Rohingya refugees into the country. With one of Asia's largest populations of foreign labour, Malaysia relies on its 2.2 million migrants to clean homes, care for children and work in plantations and factories.
Straits Times - 16 migrants escape from centre
KUALA LUMPUR - SIXTEEN migrants were on the run on Monday after cutting their way out of a detention centre at Malaysia's main international airport, immigration officials said.
The group, 12 Afghan and four Myanmar nationals, got through the gate of a facility at Kuala Lumpur airport where officials said they were being held for their own protection.
'The 16 are believed to have cut through the wire mesh of the gate and escaped the centre where they were being protected from human trafficking syndicates,' Selangor state immigration chief Johari Yusof said.
'The Afghans were part of a group of 18 we had rescued in October last year from a ship adrift off our coast as these malnourished victims who were on the verge of death from starvation were being smuggled to a third country,' he added. Mr Johari said police were looking for the group.
Immigration activists say Malaysia is often used as a staging post for trafficking gangs moving people from Afghanistan and Myanmar to Indonesia and Australia. Earlier this month, maritime authorities picked up 93 members of Myanmar's Rohingya Muslim minority who had drifted aboard a boat for 30 days after fleeing their country.
Malaysian police last July arrested five immigration officials for involvement in an international syndicate that smuggled Rohingya refugees into the country. With one of Asia's largest populations of foreign labour, Malaysia relies on its 2.2 million migrants to clean homes, care for children and work in plantations and factories.
***********************************************************
New Straits Times - Vegetable farm worker killed in group fight
2010/03/29
GUA MUSANG: A fight between two groups of vegetable farm workers comprising Myanmar and Indonesian nationals resulted in one Myanmar man getting killed and his body dumped in a ravine at a vegetable plot in Lojing yesterday, police said today.
The body of the 33-year-old man was found by an Orang Asli man, who was installing water pipes in the area, he said, adding that the Orang Asli informed his boss who lodged a report at the Lojing police kiosk at 4pm.
District deputy police chief DSP Aziz Hasan said policemen rushed to the area and recovered the bloodied body of the Myanmar man who was believed to have been murdered in the morning.
There were slash wounds on the head, face, body and thighs, caused by a sharp object, he said.
Aziz said the body had been sent to the Gua Musang Hospital.
2010/03/29
GUA MUSANG: A fight between two groups of vegetable farm workers comprising Myanmar and Indonesian nationals resulted in one Myanmar man getting killed and his body dumped in a ravine at a vegetable plot in Lojing yesterday, police said today.
The body of the 33-year-old man was found by an Orang Asli man, who was installing water pipes in the area, he said, adding that the Orang Asli informed his boss who lodged a report at the Lojing police kiosk at 4pm.
District deputy police chief DSP Aziz Hasan said policemen rushed to the area and recovered the bloodied body of the Myanmar man who was believed to have been murdered in the morning.
There were slash wounds on the head, face, body and thighs, caused by a sharp object, he said.
Aziz said the body had been sent to the Gua Musang Hospital.
***********************************************************
Bangkok Post - Opinion: NLD considers a future without The Lady
Published: 28/03/2010 at 11:38 AM
Writer: Larry Jagan
Online news: Opinion
There is a ferocious debate underway amongst Burma's pro-democracy movement _ inside and outside the country _ on whether the opposition should contest the planned polls later this year. The election laws controlling the process have just been unveiled by the junta, and their provisions have created acrimonious divisions amongst the Burmese pro-democracy movement, especially within the main opposition party _ the National League for Democracy (NLD), which convincingly won the last elections in 1990 but was never allowed to form a government.
The hardline view _ boycott the elections at all costs _ has been given increased weight by the opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. She reportedly supports not registering the NLD, and therefore not contesting the elections.
``Suu Kyi says she will never accept registration under such one-sided, unjust laws, but this is her personal opinion,'' her lawyer and party spokesman, Nyan Win was reported as saying after he met the Nobel laureate earlier last week. ``But she is neither instructing nor ordering the party,'' he said. ``Party members are free to take decisions democratically, she said.'' The party central committee is scheduled to meet this next week to make the painful decision.
More than a hundred members of the NLD central Committee meet tomorrow Monday to decide the party's stance. There are in fact two issues at stake _ one is whether to re-register with the newly created Electoral Commission, which would mean expelling their charismatic leader; the other, whether to contest the elections. Both issues for the NLD leaders are intertwined.
While the NLD deliberates its future, other political activists, including ethnic parties, are beginning to register with an eye to fielding candidates. Outside the NLD, there is a growing groundswell in favour of using the opportunity the elections offer to push for political space and other reforms.
The alternative is to risk being further marginalised and excluded from the future political process. Many inside Burma feel that although flawed, these elections may provide an opening that cannot be ignored.
``We do not have the luxury of missing this chance,'' Dr Nay Win Maung, co-founder of the Rangoon-based NGO, EGRESS and a newspaper proprietor, said on the sidelines of a seminar on Burma at Chulalongkorn University. ``We must accept this opportunity to claw some improvements out of the regime, even if it's only an inch.''
During times of change and uncertainty, the Burmese military regime can be caught off guard and miscalculate, as in 1990. What is clear is that these elections are not about creating a civilian administration, though it will involve a process of civilianisation of government.
``These elections are not about democracy,'' said Dr Nay Win Maung. ``But they may lead to a more liberal authoritarianism _ which is better than what we have now,'' he added.
Most analysts seem to agree. ``The military wants to civilianise itself _ as in 1974 _ through the election process, but hold onto power indefinitely, as has been evident since 1962 when Ne Win seized power,'' Professor David Steinberg, a Burma expert at George Washington University told the Bangkok Post.
So within that context the NLD, whose 1990 victory will be effectively annulled by the forthcoming elections, now faces the tough choice of whether to re-register as a political party and contest the polls or ignore the elections altogether.
Unlike 1990, when the party belatedly entered the fray, this time they would have to do so without their charismatic leader, as under the new political parties' law activists serving ``prison sentences'' are prohibited from being members of any party or running for office.
Last year Mrs Suu Kyi was convicted of violating her house arrest when an American man swam uninvited to her lakeside home. She has spent more than 14 of the past 21 years in detention, and is currently serving 18 months under house arrest.
``The main aim of the junta's election laws is clearly to emasculate the NLD and prevent their leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from taking any part in the forthcoming electoral process,'' said the British Burma expert and biographer of the pro-democracy icon, Justin Wintle.
Of course the government media has been quick to dismiss this suggestion. ``Some say the law is designed to ban a certain person from standing for election,'' said a commentary which ran in all the state-run newspapers last week. ``If it is intended for the said person, an article would have been referred to a specific crime so that the person will be banned from the election forever.''
The regime intends to use all its power to manipulate the election results. ``The junta is trying to win this election in such a way that it doesn't have to resort to crude vote-rigging come polling day,'' warned Mr Wintle.
``Compared to many other international examples, the electoral laws would not be judged as particularly unfair,'' a western diplomat based in Rangoon told the Bangkok Post on condition of anonymity. ``But it's the context that matters _ a heavily controlled constitution-drafting process, a constitution in favour of the military, a sham referendum result, and 20 years of determined deterrence to would-be political actors,'' she said.
The new Election Commission _ all hand-picked by the military regime _ will tightly control all aspects of the election. They will also have the power to vet all prospective candidates.
``They will certainly closely scrutinise anyone that the regime objects to and find ways of disqualifying them,'' said a senior member of the pro-democracy movement in Thailand, Zin Linn.
``General Than Shwe has given the Election Commission extraordinary powers,'' said the Australian MP, Janelle Saffin _ a Burma expert and constitutional lawyer. ``The Election Commission is judge, jury, and final arbiter, in most matters. And it can involve itself in the internal matters of political parties,'' she told the Bangkok Post.
What the electoral laws reveal is that the regime is putting into place systems whereby they can effectively control the results _ even without actually rigging the vote. The Election Commission is going to be the problem _ as it can effectively determine the result and claim to be doing it on quasi-legal grounds.
But that apart, many academics, liberals and political activists are advocating giving the elections a chance. ``If we don't take this opportunity, we are denying the electors a choice,'' said Dr Nay Win Maung. ``And in so doing we are condemning the country to more decades of military rule.''
This is the dilemma that now faces the Burmese opposition, especially the NLD. Is there enough scope for them to be a real political party and not just pawns in the regime's scheme to get international approval for what will not be a credible nor inclusive process?
Published: 28/03/2010 at 11:38 AM
Writer: Larry Jagan
Online news: Opinion
There is a ferocious debate underway amongst Burma's pro-democracy movement _ inside and outside the country _ on whether the opposition should contest the planned polls later this year. The election laws controlling the process have just been unveiled by the junta, and their provisions have created acrimonious divisions amongst the Burmese pro-democracy movement, especially within the main opposition party _ the National League for Democracy (NLD), which convincingly won the last elections in 1990 but was never allowed to form a government.
The hardline view _ boycott the elections at all costs _ has been given increased weight by the opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. She reportedly supports not registering the NLD, and therefore not contesting the elections.
``Suu Kyi says she will never accept registration under such one-sided, unjust laws, but this is her personal opinion,'' her lawyer and party spokesman, Nyan Win was reported as saying after he met the Nobel laureate earlier last week. ``But she is neither instructing nor ordering the party,'' he said. ``Party members are free to take decisions democratically, she said.'' The party central committee is scheduled to meet this next week to make the painful decision.
More than a hundred members of the NLD central Committee meet tomorrow Monday to decide the party's stance. There are in fact two issues at stake _ one is whether to re-register with the newly created Electoral Commission, which would mean expelling their charismatic leader; the other, whether to contest the elections. Both issues for the NLD leaders are intertwined.
While the NLD deliberates its future, other political activists, including ethnic parties, are beginning to register with an eye to fielding candidates. Outside the NLD, there is a growing groundswell in favour of using the opportunity the elections offer to push for political space and other reforms.
The alternative is to risk being further marginalised and excluded from the future political process. Many inside Burma feel that although flawed, these elections may provide an opening that cannot be ignored.
``We do not have the luxury of missing this chance,'' Dr Nay Win Maung, co-founder of the Rangoon-based NGO, EGRESS and a newspaper proprietor, said on the sidelines of a seminar on Burma at Chulalongkorn University. ``We must accept this opportunity to claw some improvements out of the regime, even if it's only an inch.''
During times of change and uncertainty, the Burmese military regime can be caught off guard and miscalculate, as in 1990. What is clear is that these elections are not about creating a civilian administration, though it will involve a process of civilianisation of government.
``These elections are not about democracy,'' said Dr Nay Win Maung. ``But they may lead to a more liberal authoritarianism _ which is better than what we have now,'' he added.
Most analysts seem to agree. ``The military wants to civilianise itself _ as in 1974 _ through the election process, but hold onto power indefinitely, as has been evident since 1962 when Ne Win seized power,'' Professor David Steinberg, a Burma expert at George Washington University told the Bangkok Post.
So within that context the NLD, whose 1990 victory will be effectively annulled by the forthcoming elections, now faces the tough choice of whether to re-register as a political party and contest the polls or ignore the elections altogether.
Unlike 1990, when the party belatedly entered the fray, this time they would have to do so without their charismatic leader, as under the new political parties' law activists serving ``prison sentences'' are prohibited from being members of any party or running for office.
Last year Mrs Suu Kyi was convicted of violating her house arrest when an American man swam uninvited to her lakeside home. She has spent more than 14 of the past 21 years in detention, and is currently serving 18 months under house arrest.
``The main aim of the junta's election laws is clearly to emasculate the NLD and prevent their leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from taking any part in the forthcoming electoral process,'' said the British Burma expert and biographer of the pro-democracy icon, Justin Wintle.
Of course the government media has been quick to dismiss this suggestion. ``Some say the law is designed to ban a certain person from standing for election,'' said a commentary which ran in all the state-run newspapers last week. ``If it is intended for the said person, an article would have been referred to a specific crime so that the person will be banned from the election forever.''
The regime intends to use all its power to manipulate the election results. ``The junta is trying to win this election in such a way that it doesn't have to resort to crude vote-rigging come polling day,'' warned Mr Wintle.
``Compared to many other international examples, the electoral laws would not be judged as particularly unfair,'' a western diplomat based in Rangoon told the Bangkok Post on condition of anonymity. ``But it's the context that matters _ a heavily controlled constitution-drafting process, a constitution in favour of the military, a sham referendum result, and 20 years of determined deterrence to would-be political actors,'' she said.
The new Election Commission _ all hand-picked by the military regime _ will tightly control all aspects of the election. They will also have the power to vet all prospective candidates.
``They will certainly closely scrutinise anyone that the regime objects to and find ways of disqualifying them,'' said a senior member of the pro-democracy movement in Thailand, Zin Linn.
``General Than Shwe has given the Election Commission extraordinary powers,'' said the Australian MP, Janelle Saffin _ a Burma expert and constitutional lawyer. ``The Election Commission is judge, jury, and final arbiter, in most matters. And it can involve itself in the internal matters of political parties,'' she told the Bangkok Post.
What the electoral laws reveal is that the regime is putting into place systems whereby they can effectively control the results _ even without actually rigging the vote. The Election Commission is going to be the problem _ as it can effectively determine the result and claim to be doing it on quasi-legal grounds.
But that apart, many academics, liberals and political activists are advocating giving the elections a chance. ``If we don't take this opportunity, we are denying the electors a choice,'' said Dr Nay Win Maung. ``And in so doing we are condemning the country to more decades of military rule.''
This is the dilemma that now faces the Burmese opposition, especially the NLD. Is there enough scope for them to be a real political party and not just pawns in the regime's scheme to get international approval for what will not be a credible nor inclusive process?
***********************************************************
Bangkok Post - Commission of Inquiry for Burma is long overdue
Published: 28/03/2010 at 12:00 AM
Writer: David Scott Mathieson
Newspaper section: Spectrum
The call by Tomas Quintana, the United Nation's human rights monitor to Burma, to consider the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry into possible crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma is welcome, if long overdue. But just how probable is a high-level UN inquiry into serious international crimes in Burma, an investigation that could potentially result in a recommendation for a Security Council referral to the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor to initiate an investigation?
In terms of political realities, an honest assessment would say it is unlikely because of the unfortunate, yet almost certain opposition by some powerful UN Security Council (UNSC) members such as China and Russia. But with respect to the urgency of the case and need for justice in Burma, there must be an all-out effort to ensure that the proposal for a commission seizes the attention of the UN as a way to bring justice and accountability to Burma. As Mr Quintana noted in his March 8 report to the UN Human Rights Council, the grave crimes perpetrated by the Burmese army, or Tatmadaw, are a "result of state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels". A review of UN human rights reports on Burma since 2002 by Harvard Law School last year concluded that the world body itself has been referring to such crimes as widespread and systematic, thereby reaching a threshold that justifies a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) or a direct referral to the ICC prosecutor by the UN Security Council.
The Harvard report, "Crimes in Burma", looked at four aspects of crimes - forced displacement of civilians, sexual violence, torture and murder.
Commissions of Inquiry are actually not unusual, and have been used to address serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law around the world.
Many originate in Security Council resolutions, although there is a possibility that the Human Rights Council could itself establish a CoI. Such bodies include the Security Council-created CoI on Darfur in 2005 which led to a Security Council referral to the ICC and an ICC investigation, the General Assembly-created Group of Experts that led to the Khmer Rouge tribunal in Cambodia, the recent decision to convene a Panel of Experts to advise Ban Ki-moon on accountability for potential war crimes in Sri Lanka during the final months of the civil war that ended in May 2009, and the the recent CoI ordered by Mr Ban to address the killings in Guinea last year.
Judging from past CoIs and Panels of Experts, such an investigative body for Burma might comprise several eminent people or jurists with expertise in the area of human rights, humanitarian law and international justice, supported by a group of investigators within a secretariat that includes a research team composed of lawyers, investigators, forensic experts, military analysts and gender violence experts. A possible mandate for a Burma commission could be something along the lines of: "To investigate reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Burma by all parties, and to identify the perpetrators of such violations with a view to ensuring that those responsible are held accountable."
Burma has experienced a CoI before. In 1997, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) formed a commission to investigate forced labour in Burma, although the military regime refused to attend hearings and did not permit the commission to visit Burma formally. The subsequent report in 1998 argued that forced labour was widespread and systematic, and fundamentally breached Burma's commitments as a ratifying state of ILO Convention No29 on forced labour. The commission's report increased pressure on the military regime and led to the military dominated State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) passing Law 1/99 to expressly ban forced labour. The practice of forced labour imposed by state officials and the Tatmadaw continues, but through the continuing work and pressure of the ILO, Burma's compliance is subject to regular review and admonishment in Geneva.
The SPDC has also co-operated in a desultory fashion with the UN on children and armed conflict, responding to Security Council Resolution 1612 (2005), which seeks to promote a broad set of protections for children in war. The regime's formal body on the prevention of recruitment of child soldiers, the Committee for Prevention of Recruitment of Minors, created in 2004, is largely a public relations vehicle, and serious concerns continue to be raised about the lack of co-operation with UN agencies and NGOs on the issue of child soldiers. A long-awaited action plan on child soldiers still languishes, waiting for agreement with the authorities. Unlike some recent ICC cases in Africa where child soldier recruitment was the basis for indictments, the SPDC's formal body could help Burma avert any ICC investigation on the grounds that they prosecute the use of child soldiers, but its performance could be assessed by a CoI. The ICC would also assess whether the state is genuinely willing and able to investigate and prosecute the cases it is considering as part of its assessment of whether a case is admissible.
In a sign of modest progress, the SPDC recently sentenced three military officers to prison terms for their role in recruiting and using child soldiers, using information derived from investigations by the ILO. But there may be a limit to how far the SPDC will let such other such prosecutions proceed. In the 2008 constitution, Chapter IV, prosecution of military personnel will remain the sole purview of the Tatmadaw. The relevant passage reads "in the adjudication of Military justice: the decision of the Commander in Chief of the Defence services is final and conclusive" - denying civilian justice mechanisms any role.
Any UN mandated CoI should be empowered to investigate all parties to Burma's conflicts, including investigating crimes in violation of international law perpetrated by non-state armed groups. For years, the vast majority of human rights reporting has centred on abuses by the Tatmadaw. Much less attention has focused on abuses by the more than 30 ethnic militia armies, many of whom have longstanding ceasefire agreements with the SPDC. Allegations of abuses by these groups are widespread, but difficult to verify, and include torture, ill-treatment and summary executions of captured Burmese soldiers and suspected informants. However, recruitment and use of child soldiers by almost all non-state armed groups has been well documented by Human Rights Watch and others. Abuses by these groups against civilians such as forced labour, torture and murder are more difficult to verify, but should also be investigated.
In the most egregious reported case, in the early 1990s, the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) in Kachin State, northern Burma, conducted an internal investigation and subsequently publicly executed a number of suspected Burmese spies in its ranks. More than 100 members of the group were tried and sentenced, with 18 young men and women being publicly tortured and then executed. Many of the perpetrators of this violence are free, living in exile, and have never been held accountable for these crimes.
States that support creating such a UN commission should make clear that investigating international crimes has nothing to do with current day Burmese politics. In establishing a CoI, there should be no reference to the 2010 elections, Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma's 2,100 other incarcerated political dissidents, or sanctions or humanitarian assistance unless it has direct bearing on the whole investigation and its central aims of ensuring justice and accountability for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The next stage will be for states to sponsor the creation of a commission, and prepare to engage in the intensive diplomatic negotiations at the UN and other national capitals to make it happen. A failure by concerned states to support the call for a UN CoI on Burma will embolden the Burmese military to tighten its grip on power. Critics of efforts to seek international justice contend that accountability must take a back seat to peace and reconciliation deals that can potentially end the fighting. Yet in Burma, it is precisely the lack of accountability that has so fuelled a cycle of impunity for rights abuses by all parties to the conflict. Convening a CoI could have a deterrent effect that gives all parties to the conflict reason for pause. Uneasy peace accords signed by the SPDC in the late 1980s and early 1990s with more than 15 ethnic militias are looking shakier now than at any point since they were reached. The reason is the lack of political, economic and legal dividends produced by these ceasefire arrangements. A UN CoI would potentially have a positive effect in bringing various parties to the negotiations, and potentially spur multilateral peace talks in Burma.
All conflicts and their eventual resolutions are unique, and while justice and human rights are universal in their application, local conditions and context affect how a CoI operates. Peace in Burma may well be supported and accelerated by a commission of inquiry if such an investigation is given a broad mandate and the necessary resources and co-operation to look into all serious crimes perpetrated during Burma's complex civil war. The Burmese military and its xenophobic leadership have survived decades of condemnation, sanctions and moderately toned UN mediation. The generals respect strength and fear the possibility of international accountability. It is time they face the prospect of real justice for once in their lives.
David Scott Mathieson is Burma Researcher for Human Rights Watch.
Published: 28/03/2010 at 12:00 AM
Writer: David Scott Mathieson
Newspaper section: Spectrum
The call by Tomas Quintana, the United Nation's human rights monitor to Burma, to consider the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry into possible crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma is welcome, if long overdue. But just how probable is a high-level UN inquiry into serious international crimes in Burma, an investigation that could potentially result in a recommendation for a Security Council referral to the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor to initiate an investigation?
In terms of political realities, an honest assessment would say it is unlikely because of the unfortunate, yet almost certain opposition by some powerful UN Security Council (UNSC) members such as China and Russia. But with respect to the urgency of the case and need for justice in Burma, there must be an all-out effort to ensure that the proposal for a commission seizes the attention of the UN as a way to bring justice and accountability to Burma. As Mr Quintana noted in his March 8 report to the UN Human Rights Council, the grave crimes perpetrated by the Burmese army, or Tatmadaw, are a "result of state policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels". A review of UN human rights reports on Burma since 2002 by Harvard Law School last year concluded that the world body itself has been referring to such crimes as widespread and systematic, thereby reaching a threshold that justifies a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) or a direct referral to the ICC prosecutor by the UN Security Council.
The Harvard report, "Crimes in Burma", looked at four aspects of crimes - forced displacement of civilians, sexual violence, torture and murder.
Commissions of Inquiry are actually not unusual, and have been used to address serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law around the world.
Many originate in Security Council resolutions, although there is a possibility that the Human Rights Council could itself establish a CoI. Such bodies include the Security Council-created CoI on Darfur in 2005 which led to a Security Council referral to the ICC and an ICC investigation, the General Assembly-created Group of Experts that led to the Khmer Rouge tribunal in Cambodia, the recent decision to convene a Panel of Experts to advise Ban Ki-moon on accountability for potential war crimes in Sri Lanka during the final months of the civil war that ended in May 2009, and the the recent CoI ordered by Mr Ban to address the killings in Guinea last year.
Judging from past CoIs and Panels of Experts, such an investigative body for Burma might comprise several eminent people or jurists with expertise in the area of human rights, humanitarian law and international justice, supported by a group of investigators within a secretariat that includes a research team composed of lawyers, investigators, forensic experts, military analysts and gender violence experts. A possible mandate for a Burma commission could be something along the lines of: "To investigate reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in Burma by all parties, and to identify the perpetrators of such violations with a view to ensuring that those responsible are held accountable."
Burma has experienced a CoI before. In 1997, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) formed a commission to investigate forced labour in Burma, although the military regime refused to attend hearings and did not permit the commission to visit Burma formally. The subsequent report in 1998 argued that forced labour was widespread and systematic, and fundamentally breached Burma's commitments as a ratifying state of ILO Convention No29 on forced labour. The commission's report increased pressure on the military regime and led to the military dominated State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) passing Law 1/99 to expressly ban forced labour. The practice of forced labour imposed by state officials and the Tatmadaw continues, but through the continuing work and pressure of the ILO, Burma's compliance is subject to regular review and admonishment in Geneva.
The SPDC has also co-operated in a desultory fashion with the UN on children and armed conflict, responding to Security Council Resolution 1612 (2005), which seeks to promote a broad set of protections for children in war. The regime's formal body on the prevention of recruitment of child soldiers, the Committee for Prevention of Recruitment of Minors, created in 2004, is largely a public relations vehicle, and serious concerns continue to be raised about the lack of co-operation with UN agencies and NGOs on the issue of child soldiers. A long-awaited action plan on child soldiers still languishes, waiting for agreement with the authorities. Unlike some recent ICC cases in Africa where child soldier recruitment was the basis for indictments, the SPDC's formal body could help Burma avert any ICC investigation on the grounds that they prosecute the use of child soldiers, but its performance could be assessed by a CoI. The ICC would also assess whether the state is genuinely willing and able to investigate and prosecute the cases it is considering as part of its assessment of whether a case is admissible.
In a sign of modest progress, the SPDC recently sentenced three military officers to prison terms for their role in recruiting and using child soldiers, using information derived from investigations by the ILO. But there may be a limit to how far the SPDC will let such other such prosecutions proceed. In the 2008 constitution, Chapter IV, prosecution of military personnel will remain the sole purview of the Tatmadaw. The relevant passage reads "in the adjudication of Military justice: the decision of the Commander in Chief of the Defence services is final and conclusive" - denying civilian justice mechanisms any role.
Any UN mandated CoI should be empowered to investigate all parties to Burma's conflicts, including investigating crimes in violation of international law perpetrated by non-state armed groups. For years, the vast majority of human rights reporting has centred on abuses by the Tatmadaw. Much less attention has focused on abuses by the more than 30 ethnic militia armies, many of whom have longstanding ceasefire agreements with the SPDC. Allegations of abuses by these groups are widespread, but difficult to verify, and include torture, ill-treatment and summary executions of captured Burmese soldiers and suspected informants. However, recruitment and use of child soldiers by almost all non-state armed groups has been well documented by Human Rights Watch and others. Abuses by these groups against civilians such as forced labour, torture and murder are more difficult to verify, but should also be investigated.
In the most egregious reported case, in the early 1990s, the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF) in Kachin State, northern Burma, conducted an internal investigation and subsequently publicly executed a number of suspected Burmese spies in its ranks. More than 100 members of the group were tried and sentenced, with 18 young men and women being publicly tortured and then executed. Many of the perpetrators of this violence are free, living in exile, and have never been held accountable for these crimes.
States that support creating such a UN commission should make clear that investigating international crimes has nothing to do with current day Burmese politics. In establishing a CoI, there should be no reference to the 2010 elections, Aung San Suu Kyi and Burma's 2,100 other incarcerated political dissidents, or sanctions or humanitarian assistance unless it has direct bearing on the whole investigation and its central aims of ensuring justice and accountability for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The next stage will be for states to sponsor the creation of a commission, and prepare to engage in the intensive diplomatic negotiations at the UN and other national capitals to make it happen. A failure by concerned states to support the call for a UN CoI on Burma will embolden the Burmese military to tighten its grip on power. Critics of efforts to seek international justice contend that accountability must take a back seat to peace and reconciliation deals that can potentially end the fighting. Yet in Burma, it is precisely the lack of accountability that has so fuelled a cycle of impunity for rights abuses by all parties to the conflict. Convening a CoI could have a deterrent effect that gives all parties to the conflict reason for pause. Uneasy peace accords signed by the SPDC in the late 1980s and early 1990s with more than 15 ethnic militias are looking shakier now than at any point since they were reached. The reason is the lack of political, economic and legal dividends produced by these ceasefire arrangements. A UN CoI would potentially have a positive effect in bringing various parties to the negotiations, and potentially spur multilateral peace talks in Burma.
All conflicts and their eventual resolutions are unique, and while justice and human rights are universal in their application, local conditions and context affect how a CoI operates. Peace in Burma may well be supported and accelerated by a commission of inquiry if such an investigation is given a broad mandate and the necessary resources and co-operation to look into all serious crimes perpetrated during Burma's complex civil war. The Burmese military and its xenophobic leadership have survived decades of condemnation, sanctions and moderately toned UN mediation. The generals respect strength and fear the possibility of international accountability. It is time they face the prospect of real justice for once in their lives.
David Scott Mathieson is Burma Researcher for Human Rights Watch.
***********************************************************
Bangkok Post - Investigative Report: Regime's human rights abuses go unpunished
The military junta is beginning to feel the heat. In what is seen by many as a first step towards putting the regime on trial for human rights abuses, the UN Special Rapporteur, Tomas Quintana, has recommended an investigation into the possibility of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma
Published: 28/03/2010 at 12:00 AM
Writer: Phil Thornton
Newspaper section: Spectrum
During discussions in Geneva by the United Nations Commissioner on Human Rights (UNCHR) in March, Burma's Ambassador to the UN, Wunna Maung Lwin, angrily rejected UN Special Rapporteur Tomas Quintana's report into the "human rights situation in Burma", saying it contained "unfounded allegations" from "unverifiable sources".
The regime's man in Geneva lashed out at Mr Quintana's report, and with the hope of gathering allies, said it "will set a dangerous precedent for all developing countries".
Clues to what infuriated the regime can be found in Mr Quintana's recommendations, for example, No121 states; "The possibility exists that some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity or war crimes under the terms of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."
In spite of Wunna Maung Lwin's heated denials, 2,100 Burmese civilians are still in jail for having, voicing or writing political views opposing the regime, and as many as 500,000 ethnic villagers in eastern Burma have been forcibly displaced and used as slave labour.
The list of international and community-based organisations condemning the Burmese military regime's abuses is long. It includes Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Harvard Law School, the Thai Burma Border Consortium, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), Karen and Shan women's groups - all have detailed the litany of crimes by the regime against the Burmese people.
At about the time Mr Quintana was putting the final touches to his document, the Karen Women's Organisation released a report titled "Walking Amongst Sharp Knives", documenting breaches of international law. The documented crimes include "crucifixion, people burnt alive, gang rape, torture, beheadings, arbitrary executions, beatings and slave labour".
In 2006, Ropran, 24 at the time, was teaching at a school in his home village of Nwa Lay Ko, near Mone Township, when the Burmese army attacked. Ropran hesitates, selecting his words carefully, as he remembers back to the day his village was destroyed.
"They shelled the village. Houses were burning, children were crying, we were scared the soldiers would catch us. All the children ran. We grabbed what we could. I got my father and mother and joined the other villagers."
Later, when the soldiers left, Ropran joined a large, chaotic group of more than 200 people, from six destroyed villages - men, women, children, babies and the old - who decided to walk for 21 days to the safety of the Thai-Burma border. Say it quickly and you miss the hidden landmines, Burmese army patrols, 12 mountains climbed and the 14 river crossings. Ropran says one river, the Pwohoklo, was so deep, bamboo rafts had to be built to ferry the 200 people across.
"We had no choice. We had to leave. We left everything behind. We had established plantations of beetle nut, mango, papaya, durian, guava, jackfruit and banana. We grew more than enough good quality rice to eat."
Ropran says the trip was tough, especially on the young and the old.
"It was freezing cold at night, we had no medicine for people sick with malaria, diarrhoea, fever and dysentery. We couldn't light fires to cook in case the soldiers saw them. When we were close to army camps we had to gag the young children to stop them crying."
Ropran and others had to carry one old woman for the whole 21-day trip, as walking the rough terrain was beyond her.
"We took turns carrying 'Granma'. It wasn't so bad. I was happy to help."
Ropran has no trouble admitting he's scared of the Burmese army's soldiers.
"When they catch us, they torture and beat us, sometimes villagers are killed. It's like they hate us and want to remove us from the land."The military regime argues that it is because of the conflict with the Karen National Liberation Army that civilians are displaced. It is an argument that Professor Desmond Ball, a military expert at the Australian National University Defence and Strategic Studies Centre, disagrees with.
"There is enough evidence these attacks are against civilians, not Karen soldiers. The Burmese military have a total disregard for international law. There's a mountain of credible documentation that shows crimes have been committed against civilians in eastern Burma. There are enough reports of rape that suggest that it is systematic. This is an army out of control. Rank and file soldiers murder officers, and the pattern of desertion suggest many young officers and experienced NCOs are unhappy and are showing it by leaving in droves."
JUST FOLLOWING ORDERS
Myo Zaw was a sergeant in the Burmese army for 23 years until he was court-martialled in August, 2006, for battering his captain with a farm hoe. In spite of breaking his officer's ribs and putting him in hospital, Myo Zaw says he respected the orders he was given by his superiors. Myo Zaw uses both his hands to describe the size of the shells his unit fired into Karen villages.
"We were ordered to attack villages. The way we usually worked was to fire 81mm and 60mm artillery [shells]. We burned the villages and took the captured to tactical command for questioning. If we thought the villagers helped the rebels we'd mine the pathways and riverbanks. We saw the villagers as the enemy."
Myo Zaw says using villagers to work as free labour for the army was common.
''When we wanted to build a camp, we'd pick a site, we'd get the headman to send us 20, 30 or 50 people. We used them to carry heavy ammunition and food.''
Myo Zaw says if supplies did not arrive or officers cut the rations, soldiers would make up the shortage from villagers.
''Some soldiers take everything. Others just rice. But some steal gold, silver, even the pots.''
Myo Zaw talks about rape committed by other units, but denies his battalion did it.
See also:
Commission of Inquiry for Burma is long overdue
''In Shan State, two girls were out collecting firewood, soldiers raped and killed them. Even though we were told we would be given jail sentences, we were never punished for hurting villagers or killing them. We had some crazy soldiers _ there were never enough recruits. The army took anybody. In my 23 years, the quality of soldier went down. People who were not fit to be let loose in their communities became soldiers; crooks, thieves and idiots.''
Myo Zaw says while he was in the army he never worried what villagers thought of him and says he only respected his orders.
''I try to rationalise what I've done in my military career. To ease my conscience, I say I was obeying orders. If an officer tells you to destroy a village, soldiers do it without question. They just get on with it and do it. I feel sad and sorry. I know if my family was among those attacked villagers I would feel terrible.''
Prof Ball agrees, and says what little professionalism the Burmese army had to start with has been deteriorating for years.
''There's enough evidence. I've been documenting the Burmese army's behaviour in eastern Burma for years. Soldiers have been acting with impunity, they know they will not be punished and this 'legitimises' their crimes ... the rapes ... the killing and the torture.''
The Thai Burma Border Consortium (TBBC), in its latest report, ''Protracted Displacement and Militarisation in Eastern Burma'', estimates ''that more than 3,200 settlements were destroyed, forcibly relocated or otherwise abandoned in eastern Burma between 1996 and 2007''.
The TBBC report says that at least 470,000 people were internally displaced in eastern Burma alone, and between 2006 and 2007 the Burmese army burned down villages, laid landmines and drove more than 76,000 villagers from their homes into jungle hideouts. The TBBC findings come from a long-term research project based on ''field surveys about conflict and displacement conducted with over 3,100 households during the past five years in rural eastern Burma''.
The TBBC report found the main threat to human security was related to militarisation _ army patrols and landmines _ and these threats have increased during the last five years.
Saw Steve, the secretary-general of the Committee for Internally Displaced Karen People (CIDKP), a community-based organisation that delivers food, shelter and aid to displaced people, has been documenting Burmese army killings for a number of years.
''Between 1997 and 2009 the Burma Army murdered 612 Karen villagers and shot and wounded another 214. These are only the cases I know about, there may be many more in other states.''
Saw Steve says it is villagers like Naw Win Shwe who are hurting and bearing the brunt of the military madness in eastern Burma.
MILITARY MADNESS
Naw Win Shwe, like Ropran, made the arduous journey in 2006 to a makeshift camp on the edges of the Thai-Burma border. Avoiding soldiers, landmines and crossing rain-swollen rivers she walked for days to get to Ei Tu Hta camp on the Burmese side of the Salween River.
Naw Win Shwe wore her journey on her face. Ravaged with fear and grief, she drew two of her three children closer as she talked. At the time of interview, we were sitting in a flimsy, makeshift bamboo hut, heavy rain beating down on the thatched leaf roof. Naw Win Shwe stared at a point in her distant past.
''I last saw my husband on the morning of April 13 [2006]. When he was on his way home from our rice fields he was taken by the Burmese army as a porter. They used him for a month to carry their supplies.''
Naw Win Shwe stopped, in silence, her two children squeezed closer to her.
''They didn't kill him. The soldiers cut out both his eyes and his nose. They left him in the jungle.''
Her husband, Maung Than Lwin, died alone. When villagers found him his decomposing corpse was photographed and given a quick burial.
''We couldn't bury him according to our beliefs. He should be buried in our land. I dare not complain to the Burmese army. If I do, I will be killed.''
Naw Win Shwe chewed at her lip to hold back her tears. ''If I think about my life I will be sad. I have to encourage myself. I use my children to be happy.''
Her attempt to stop crying failed and her children reached out to her.
''I miss my husband. When does it stop hurting? I will not forget our time together. It will stay with me until I die.''
Naw Win Shwe is a now a refugee in a Thai camp and says one day she hopes to see Maung Than Lwin's killers taken to court.
It is well documented by international human rights groups that the Burmese army routinely use villagers as human mine sweepers, forced labour and use rape as a systematic weapon against ethnic women. The Burmese army uses a ''Four-Cuts'' offensive against the Karen. The aim is to stop community support, food, money, information and recruitment to the Karen resistance. Whole communities are designated ''Black Zones'' and relocated. Villagers caught in ''Black Zones'' are shot on sight and crops, homes, and animals destroyed.
Kyaw Kyaw spent 19 years in the army. As he describes his life as a Burmese army soldier, bursts of laughter from children playing chase break into the hot, concrete storeroom we are talking in. Kyaw Kyaw explains how he was involved in Four-Cut operations.
''I was at the front line with tactical command. We didn't fire at the ethnic armies, we fired at the nearby villages. This turned the villagers against the rebels. If it didn't we sent an envelope with one chilli in it. If the headman didn't respond we'd send a bullet, then a piece of charcoal, and then if they hadn't come to us we'd burn the village down. We'd plant mines and say the rebels had done it.''
Kyaw Kyaw says what they were doing was systematically cutting the roots of the rebels' resistance.
''We relocated villagers, we were ordered to destroy villages, leave no people, no animals. We mined it and abandoned it.''
TERROR CAME AT NIGHT
In 2002, I interviewed survivors of a Burmese army attack that left 12 Karen villagers dead, seven of them children. One of the survivors, Kho Noc, lost three of his five children and his eight-month pregnant wife Naw Dalare in the Burmese army attack at night on their village. He was grief stricken and missed his wife and children.
Kho Noc said his surviving two children, his daughter Kar Kur, 12, and his son Dik Klee, dream about their mother all the time.
''They really miss her. I miss her. I'm so lonely without her.''
Kar Kur had been wounded in the attack by a bullet in her arm and Dik Klee carried horrendous scarring that welded his upper arm to his body from an accident with a boiling pot of rice.
After the story was published in the Bangkok Post, I received an offer of help to pay for an operation to fix Dik Klee's arm from the owners, staff and customers of the Bronte Cafe in Sydney, Australia. Dik Klee underwent successful surgery in Mae Sot. The last I saw of Dik Klee he was gleefully chasing a new football. I didn't see or hear from Dik Klee again, but often wondered how he, Kar Kur and Kho Noc were coping.
In early 2009, I found out. I received a leaflet from Free Burma Rangers (FBR), a humanitarian organisation who work deep inside Burma documenting human rights abuses and delivering emergency aid to displaced people. Inside the leaflet was an item about the killing of two Karen men on Christmas Day, 2007.
The names and accompanying photographs of two partly burned corpses said it was Dik Klee and his uncle, Saw No Maw, who had been caught and tortured by the Burmese army. The FBR team leader who found Dik Klee's small corpse said the child had his tendons in his legs and arms severed, he had been disemboweled and his throat cut. He was barely 13. His small body was still recognisable in spite of the burning.
The FBR relief team leader, who found the bodies, met with Kho Noc and did his best to help. Over the last 12 months I interviewed 12 Burmese army defectors, including three officers, to see if they could shed some light on the mentality behind the killings and displacement in Karen State. Maung Aye (not his real name) had been a Burmese army officer for 25 years, 10 as a trainer, before defecting to Thailand. Of the interviews with the defectors, Maung Aye's best summed up the rational behind how the Burmese army operates against ethnic villagers.
I showed him photographs of Dik Klee alive and happy and his burned, mutilated corpse. He patiently explained why soldiers did what they did to Dik Klee and Naw Win Shwe's husband.
''We indoctrinate our troops, we give them a reason to fight the ethnic people. We tell them we're fighting to stop the country from disintegrating. The Karen are the enemy.
We instil in them fear and hatred. We tell them if a young Karen grows up he will become a soldier and kill you, so better to do it now to him.''
Maung Aye, like most military men I have interviewed, talked about war deaths in a matter-of-fact voice, even managing to sound reasonable.
Maung Aye says there are some troops who he describes as ''no-brain soldiers'' _ who are only too happy to rape, plunder and kill.
''Commanders have to meet their objectives and if they don't they know they will be punished by their superiors. So they will never discipline soldiers for abuses.''
The CIDKP's Saw Steve says Burmese army soldiers act with impunity in Karen State and the shooting of villagers is still going on.
''Naw Win Shwe is now safe in a refugee camp, but many others like her and her children will lose their husbands, wives, fathers and mothers unless the army is made accountable for its actions,'' he said.
Zipporah Sein, general-secretary of the Karen National Union (KNU), says the dis placement in Karen State is not only about the loss of property and possessions.
''Displacement means education is disrupted, communities are fractured and our culture is destroyed.
''If the Burmese army stops its attacks our people can have a good life, they are resourceful and good farmers. If the situation is stable and secure our young people can have an education they deserve.''
The recommendations of Mr Quintana also confirm what Saw Steve and the many international and local human rights groups have been documenting for years.
Mr Quintana's recommendation No120 clearly says that there is a ''pattern of gross and systematic violation of human rights which has been in place for many years and still continues''.
These violations include ''rights to life, to liberty, to freedom of expression, assembly and religion, to judicial remedy, to protection of civilians and internally displaced communities''.
Saw Steve says all it needs now is for the UN and the international community to support Mr Quintana's call for a commission of inquiry into Burma's war crimes.
The military junta is beginning to feel the heat. In what is seen by many as a first step towards putting the regime on trial for human rights abuses, the UN Special Rapporteur, Tomas Quintana, has recommended an investigation into the possibility of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma
Published: 28/03/2010 at 12:00 AM
Writer: Phil Thornton
Newspaper section: Spectrum
During discussions in Geneva by the United Nations Commissioner on Human Rights (UNCHR) in March, Burma's Ambassador to the UN, Wunna Maung Lwin, angrily rejected UN Special Rapporteur Tomas Quintana's report into the "human rights situation in Burma", saying it contained "unfounded allegations" from "unverifiable sources".
The regime's man in Geneva lashed out at Mr Quintana's report, and with the hope of gathering allies, said it "will set a dangerous precedent for all developing countries".
Clues to what infuriated the regime can be found in Mr Quintana's recommendations, for example, No121 states; "The possibility exists that some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity or war crimes under the terms of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court."
In spite of Wunna Maung Lwin's heated denials, 2,100 Burmese civilians are still in jail for having, voicing or writing political views opposing the regime, and as many as 500,000 ethnic villagers in eastern Burma have been forcibly displaced and used as slave labour.
The list of international and community-based organisations condemning the Burmese military regime's abuses is long. It includes Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Harvard Law School, the Thai Burma Border Consortium, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma), Karen and Shan women's groups - all have detailed the litany of crimes by the regime against the Burmese people.
At about the time Mr Quintana was putting the final touches to his document, the Karen Women's Organisation released a report titled "Walking Amongst Sharp Knives", documenting breaches of international law. The documented crimes include "crucifixion, people burnt alive, gang rape, torture, beheadings, arbitrary executions, beatings and slave labour".
In 2006, Ropran, 24 at the time, was teaching at a school in his home village of Nwa Lay Ko, near Mone Township, when the Burmese army attacked. Ropran hesitates, selecting his words carefully, as he remembers back to the day his village was destroyed.
"They shelled the village. Houses were burning, children were crying, we were scared the soldiers would catch us. All the children ran. We grabbed what we could. I got my father and mother and joined the other villagers."
Later, when the soldiers left, Ropran joined a large, chaotic group of more than 200 people, from six destroyed villages - men, women, children, babies and the old - who decided to walk for 21 days to the safety of the Thai-Burma border. Say it quickly and you miss the hidden landmines, Burmese army patrols, 12 mountains climbed and the 14 river crossings. Ropran says one river, the Pwohoklo, was so deep, bamboo rafts had to be built to ferry the 200 people across.
"We had no choice. We had to leave. We left everything behind. We had established plantations of beetle nut, mango, papaya, durian, guava, jackfruit and banana. We grew more than enough good quality rice to eat."
Ropran says the trip was tough, especially on the young and the old.
"It was freezing cold at night, we had no medicine for people sick with malaria, diarrhoea, fever and dysentery. We couldn't light fires to cook in case the soldiers saw them. When we were close to army camps we had to gag the young children to stop them crying."
Ropran and others had to carry one old woman for the whole 21-day trip, as walking the rough terrain was beyond her.
"We took turns carrying 'Granma'. It wasn't so bad. I was happy to help."
Ropran has no trouble admitting he's scared of the Burmese army's soldiers.
"When they catch us, they torture and beat us, sometimes villagers are killed. It's like they hate us and want to remove us from the land."The military regime argues that it is because of the conflict with the Karen National Liberation Army that civilians are displaced. It is an argument that Professor Desmond Ball, a military expert at the Australian National University Defence and Strategic Studies Centre, disagrees with.
"There is enough evidence these attacks are against civilians, not Karen soldiers. The Burmese military have a total disregard for international law. There's a mountain of credible documentation that shows crimes have been committed against civilians in eastern Burma. There are enough reports of rape that suggest that it is systematic. This is an army out of control. Rank and file soldiers murder officers, and the pattern of desertion suggest many young officers and experienced NCOs are unhappy and are showing it by leaving in droves."
JUST FOLLOWING ORDERS
Myo Zaw was a sergeant in the Burmese army for 23 years until he was court-martialled in August, 2006, for battering his captain with a farm hoe. In spite of breaking his officer's ribs and putting him in hospital, Myo Zaw says he respected the orders he was given by his superiors. Myo Zaw uses both his hands to describe the size of the shells his unit fired into Karen villages.
"We were ordered to attack villages. The way we usually worked was to fire 81mm and 60mm artillery [shells]. We burned the villages and took the captured to tactical command for questioning. If we thought the villagers helped the rebels we'd mine the pathways and riverbanks. We saw the villagers as the enemy."
Myo Zaw says using villagers to work as free labour for the army was common.
''When we wanted to build a camp, we'd pick a site, we'd get the headman to send us 20, 30 or 50 people. We used them to carry heavy ammunition and food.''
Myo Zaw says if supplies did not arrive or officers cut the rations, soldiers would make up the shortage from villagers.
''Some soldiers take everything. Others just rice. But some steal gold, silver, even the pots.''
Myo Zaw talks about rape committed by other units, but denies his battalion did it.
See also:
Commission of Inquiry for Burma is long overdue
''In Shan State, two girls were out collecting firewood, soldiers raped and killed them. Even though we were told we would be given jail sentences, we were never punished for hurting villagers or killing them. We had some crazy soldiers _ there were never enough recruits. The army took anybody. In my 23 years, the quality of soldier went down. People who were not fit to be let loose in their communities became soldiers; crooks, thieves and idiots.''
Myo Zaw says while he was in the army he never worried what villagers thought of him and says he only respected his orders.
''I try to rationalise what I've done in my military career. To ease my conscience, I say I was obeying orders. If an officer tells you to destroy a village, soldiers do it without question. They just get on with it and do it. I feel sad and sorry. I know if my family was among those attacked villagers I would feel terrible.''
Prof Ball agrees, and says what little professionalism the Burmese army had to start with has been deteriorating for years.
''There's enough evidence. I've been documenting the Burmese army's behaviour in eastern Burma for years. Soldiers have been acting with impunity, they know they will not be punished and this 'legitimises' their crimes ... the rapes ... the killing and the torture.''
The Thai Burma Border Consortium (TBBC), in its latest report, ''Protracted Displacement and Militarisation in Eastern Burma'', estimates ''that more than 3,200 settlements were destroyed, forcibly relocated or otherwise abandoned in eastern Burma between 1996 and 2007''.
The TBBC report says that at least 470,000 people were internally displaced in eastern Burma alone, and between 2006 and 2007 the Burmese army burned down villages, laid landmines and drove more than 76,000 villagers from their homes into jungle hideouts. The TBBC findings come from a long-term research project based on ''field surveys about conflict and displacement conducted with over 3,100 households during the past five years in rural eastern Burma''.
The TBBC report found the main threat to human security was related to militarisation _ army patrols and landmines _ and these threats have increased during the last five years.
Saw Steve, the secretary-general of the Committee for Internally Displaced Karen People (CIDKP), a community-based organisation that delivers food, shelter and aid to displaced people, has been documenting Burmese army killings for a number of years.
''Between 1997 and 2009 the Burma Army murdered 612 Karen villagers and shot and wounded another 214. These are only the cases I know about, there may be many more in other states.''
Saw Steve says it is villagers like Naw Win Shwe who are hurting and bearing the brunt of the military madness in eastern Burma.
MILITARY MADNESS
Naw Win Shwe, like Ropran, made the arduous journey in 2006 to a makeshift camp on the edges of the Thai-Burma border. Avoiding soldiers, landmines and crossing rain-swollen rivers she walked for days to get to Ei Tu Hta camp on the Burmese side of the Salween River.
Naw Win Shwe wore her journey on her face. Ravaged with fear and grief, she drew two of her three children closer as she talked. At the time of interview, we were sitting in a flimsy, makeshift bamboo hut, heavy rain beating down on the thatched leaf roof. Naw Win Shwe stared at a point in her distant past.
''I last saw my husband on the morning of April 13 [2006]. When he was on his way home from our rice fields he was taken by the Burmese army as a porter. They used him for a month to carry their supplies.''
Naw Win Shwe stopped, in silence, her two children squeezed closer to her.
''They didn't kill him. The soldiers cut out both his eyes and his nose. They left him in the jungle.''
Her husband, Maung Than Lwin, died alone. When villagers found him his decomposing corpse was photographed and given a quick burial.
''We couldn't bury him according to our beliefs. He should be buried in our land. I dare not complain to the Burmese army. If I do, I will be killed.''
Naw Win Shwe chewed at her lip to hold back her tears. ''If I think about my life I will be sad. I have to encourage myself. I use my children to be happy.''
Her attempt to stop crying failed and her children reached out to her.
''I miss my husband. When does it stop hurting? I will not forget our time together. It will stay with me until I die.''
Naw Win Shwe is a now a refugee in a Thai camp and says one day she hopes to see Maung Than Lwin's killers taken to court.
It is well documented by international human rights groups that the Burmese army routinely use villagers as human mine sweepers, forced labour and use rape as a systematic weapon against ethnic women. The Burmese army uses a ''Four-Cuts'' offensive against the Karen. The aim is to stop community support, food, money, information and recruitment to the Karen resistance. Whole communities are designated ''Black Zones'' and relocated. Villagers caught in ''Black Zones'' are shot on sight and crops, homes, and animals destroyed.
Kyaw Kyaw spent 19 years in the army. As he describes his life as a Burmese army soldier, bursts of laughter from children playing chase break into the hot, concrete storeroom we are talking in. Kyaw Kyaw explains how he was involved in Four-Cut operations.
''I was at the front line with tactical command. We didn't fire at the ethnic armies, we fired at the nearby villages. This turned the villagers against the rebels. If it didn't we sent an envelope with one chilli in it. If the headman didn't respond we'd send a bullet, then a piece of charcoal, and then if they hadn't come to us we'd burn the village down. We'd plant mines and say the rebels had done it.''
Kyaw Kyaw says what they were doing was systematically cutting the roots of the rebels' resistance.
''We relocated villagers, we were ordered to destroy villages, leave no people, no animals. We mined it and abandoned it.''
TERROR CAME AT NIGHT
In 2002, I interviewed survivors of a Burmese army attack that left 12 Karen villagers dead, seven of them children. One of the survivors, Kho Noc, lost three of his five children and his eight-month pregnant wife Naw Dalare in the Burmese army attack at night on their village. He was grief stricken and missed his wife and children.
Kho Noc said his surviving two children, his daughter Kar Kur, 12, and his son Dik Klee, dream about their mother all the time.
''They really miss her. I miss her. I'm so lonely without her.''
Kar Kur had been wounded in the attack by a bullet in her arm and Dik Klee carried horrendous scarring that welded his upper arm to his body from an accident with a boiling pot of rice.
After the story was published in the Bangkok Post, I received an offer of help to pay for an operation to fix Dik Klee's arm from the owners, staff and customers of the Bronte Cafe in Sydney, Australia. Dik Klee underwent successful surgery in Mae Sot. The last I saw of Dik Klee he was gleefully chasing a new football. I didn't see or hear from Dik Klee again, but often wondered how he, Kar Kur and Kho Noc were coping.
In early 2009, I found out. I received a leaflet from Free Burma Rangers (FBR), a humanitarian organisation who work deep inside Burma documenting human rights abuses and delivering emergency aid to displaced people. Inside the leaflet was an item about the killing of two Karen men on Christmas Day, 2007.
The names and accompanying photographs of two partly burned corpses said it was Dik Klee and his uncle, Saw No Maw, who had been caught and tortured by the Burmese army. The FBR team leader who found Dik Klee's small corpse said the child had his tendons in his legs and arms severed, he had been disemboweled and his throat cut. He was barely 13. His small body was still recognisable in spite of the burning.
The FBR relief team leader, who found the bodies, met with Kho Noc and did his best to help. Over the last 12 months I interviewed 12 Burmese army defectors, including three officers, to see if they could shed some light on the mentality behind the killings and displacement in Karen State. Maung Aye (not his real name) had been a Burmese army officer for 25 years, 10 as a trainer, before defecting to Thailand. Of the interviews with the defectors, Maung Aye's best summed up the rational behind how the Burmese army operates against ethnic villagers.
I showed him photographs of Dik Klee alive and happy and his burned, mutilated corpse. He patiently explained why soldiers did what they did to Dik Klee and Naw Win Shwe's husband.
''We indoctrinate our troops, we give them a reason to fight the ethnic people. We tell them we're fighting to stop the country from disintegrating. The Karen are the enemy.
We instil in them fear and hatred. We tell them if a young Karen grows up he will become a soldier and kill you, so better to do it now to him.''
Maung Aye, like most military men I have interviewed, talked about war deaths in a matter-of-fact voice, even managing to sound reasonable.
Maung Aye says there are some troops who he describes as ''no-brain soldiers'' _ who are only too happy to rape, plunder and kill.
''Commanders have to meet their objectives and if they don't they know they will be punished by their superiors. So they will never discipline soldiers for abuses.''
The CIDKP's Saw Steve says Burmese army soldiers act with impunity in Karen State and the shooting of villagers is still going on.
''Naw Win Shwe is now safe in a refugee camp, but many others like her and her children will lose their husbands, wives, fathers and mothers unless the army is made accountable for its actions,'' he said.
Zipporah Sein, general-secretary of the Karen National Union (KNU), says the dis placement in Karen State is not only about the loss of property and possessions.
''Displacement means education is disrupted, communities are fractured and our culture is destroyed.
''If the Burmese army stops its attacks our people can have a good life, they are resourceful and good farmers. If the situation is stable and secure our young people can have an education they deserve.''
The recommendations of Mr Quintana also confirm what Saw Steve and the many international and local human rights groups have been documenting for years.
Mr Quintana's recommendation No120 clearly says that there is a ''pattern of gross and systematic violation of human rights which has been in place for many years and still continues''.
These violations include ''rights to life, to liberty, to freedom of expression, assembly and religion, to judicial remedy, to protection of civilians and internally displaced communities''.
Saw Steve says all it needs now is for the UN and the international community to support Mr Quintana's call for a commission of inquiry into Burma's war crimes.
***********************************************************
The Irrawaddy - Thangyat Songs Ridicule Than Shwe's Election
By LAWI WENG - Monday, March 29, 2010
The planned election in Burma is one of the main targets of this year's traditional Thangyat album of satire, poetry and music produced by Burmese activists living in exile in India.
The Burmese regime tried to stamp out the Thangyat tradition in 1988, but it is kept alive by Burmese exiles—most actively in India, where an album of satirical songs, poetry and music has been issued annually for the past 20 years.
This year's album is titled “Gaining Victory for Us and Defeat for Them.” It pillories not only the election, but also the regime's privatization program, its nuclear ambitions and Burma's growing poverty.
Not even the opposition National League for Democracy escapes the satire, which jokes about the party's debate about whether or not to participate in the election.
It's the military regime, however, that's the main target, in songs and verse that attack the junta's mismanagement of the economy, its human rights abuses and maneuvers to avoid relinquishing power.
Tribute is paid to the factory workers who have struck for better pay and working conditions. “They are not demanding labor rights, they are just demanding food to survive,” is a line from one song.
Another calls for solidarity by factory workers, farmers, students and democracy activists in a campaign to break the regime's hold on power.
The Thangyat tradition heralds April's Thingyan festival—Burma's famous New Year water festival.
The water thrown around so liberally during Thingyan is said to wash away the year's sins. But, goes one of the Thangyat songs, there's one big sin the water festival can't wash away—the sin of the military regime. “We all need to clean this sin,” is a line from the song.
Last year, pro-democracy activists produced a Thangyat album titled “Let's go to prison to conquer,” paying tribute to the defiance of Burma's political prisoners.
In 2008, the 2007 monk-led demonstrations were the focus of a Thangyat album titled “Phone Phone Cha Hma Lone Lone Ya Mae” (“Monks! Fight for Absolute Success”).
By LAWI WENG - Monday, March 29, 2010
The planned election in Burma is one of the main targets of this year's traditional Thangyat album of satire, poetry and music produced by Burmese activists living in exile in India.
The Burmese regime tried to stamp out the Thangyat tradition in 1988, but it is kept alive by Burmese exiles—most actively in India, where an album of satirical songs, poetry and music has been issued annually for the past 20 years.
This year's album is titled “Gaining Victory for Us and Defeat for Them.” It pillories not only the election, but also the regime's privatization program, its nuclear ambitions and Burma's growing poverty.
Not even the opposition National League for Democracy escapes the satire, which jokes about the party's debate about whether or not to participate in the election.
It's the military regime, however, that's the main target, in songs and verse that attack the junta's mismanagement of the economy, its human rights abuses and maneuvers to avoid relinquishing power.
Tribute is paid to the factory workers who have struck for better pay and working conditions. “They are not demanding labor rights, they are just demanding food to survive,” is a line from one song.
Another calls for solidarity by factory workers, farmers, students and democracy activists in a campaign to break the regime's hold on power.
The Thangyat tradition heralds April's Thingyan festival—Burma's famous New Year water festival.
The water thrown around so liberally during Thingyan is said to wash away the year's sins. But, goes one of the Thangyat songs, there's one big sin the water festival can't wash away—the sin of the military regime. “We all need to clean this sin,” is a line from the song.
Last year, pro-democracy activists produced a Thangyat album titled “Let's go to prison to conquer,” paying tribute to the defiance of Burma's political prisoners.
In 2008, the 2007 monk-led demonstrations were the focus of a Thangyat album titled “Phone Phone Cha Hma Lone Lone Ya Mae” (“Monks! Fight for Absolute Success”).
***********************************************************
The Irrawaddy - Junta on Collision Course with Asia
By WAI MOE - Monday, March 29, 2010
The Burmese military junta could be facing a diplomatic showdown with its Asian allies such as China and Japan after it rejected the international community’s calls for an inclusive political process by marginalizing the opposition in its Political Party Registration laws.
Japan is due to raise Burma‘s current political situation on the sidelines of the G-8 foreign ministerial meeting in Canada, which kicks off on Monday, said Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada at a press conference on Friday.
He warned that Japan will not expand its economic aid to Burma if pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is still barred from the election which due to take place this year.
He said that he had made Tokyo's stance clear to Burmese ambassador Hla Myint.
“This clearly differs from a free election where all stakeholders can participate, such as Japan wishes,” said Okada at the press conference.
Tokyo is one of Burma’s largest donors. According to the Japanese Overseas Development Assistance’s Web site, Japan granted more than Yen 1.5 billion (US $16 million) to the country in 2009. Like other countries in Asia, Japan repeatedly called for inclusiveness in the Burmese election.
Other Asian countries, such as China and some members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), spoke of their frustrations at Burma’s political process last week at the United Nations during a meeting of the Group of Friends of the Secretary-General on Myanmar [Burma] in New York.
“The group stressed the need for elections to be inclusive, participatory and transparent in order to advance the prospects of stability, democracy and development for all the people of Myanmar,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
The group includes Australia, China, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Norway, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, the UK, the US, Vietnam and the president of the EU, a position currently occupied by Spain.
Perhaps highlighting Beijing’s concern over potential political instability in Burma, the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency reported the group's call.
Ruling generals in the remote capital of Naypyidaw are still likely be under diplomatic pressure in the coming weeks over the divisive electoral laws during foreign visits to the country.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa is scheduled to visit Burma on March 30. Natalegawa’s main agenda is likely to include explaining international concerns over Burma's political situation to the military generals.
His visit to Burma comes a few days before Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao travels to Indonesia. Diplomatic sources said the Chinese leader is also expected to visit Burma in the near future.
Both Wen and Natalegawa are expected to raise their concerns with Naypyidaw over Burma’s electoral process and other issues, such as tensions with ethnic cease-fire groups.
Although Beijing rarely criticizes the Burmese regime publicly, Chinese officials have reportedly aired their concerns during bilateral talks, particularly after mass demonstrations were violently suppressed in Rangoon in September 2007, Chinese analysts have said.
The Indonesian minister’s trip to Burma precedes the 16th Summit of Asean on April 8-9 in Hanoi. With growing international condemnation of the electoral laws, Burmese politics will likely once again be a hot issue at the Asean summit.
The Burmese junta could also face an international dressing down from Vietnam in its position as Asean chair and a member of the Group of Friends of the Secretary-General on Myanmar.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will visit Burma on April 2-4. Dung is scheduled to meet junta supremo Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein.
However, Than Shwe warned the international community to distance itself from Burma’s election during a speech before 13,000 troops marking the 65th anniversary of Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw.
“During the transition to an unfamiliar system, countries with greater experience usually interfere and take advantage for their own interest. For this reason, it is absolute necessity to avoid relying on external powers,” he said.
By WAI MOE - Monday, March 29, 2010
The Burmese military junta could be facing a diplomatic showdown with its Asian allies such as China and Japan after it rejected the international community’s calls for an inclusive political process by marginalizing the opposition in its Political Party Registration laws.
Japan is due to raise Burma‘s current political situation on the sidelines of the G-8 foreign ministerial meeting in Canada, which kicks off on Monday, said Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada at a press conference on Friday.
He warned that Japan will not expand its economic aid to Burma if pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi is still barred from the election which due to take place this year.
He said that he had made Tokyo's stance clear to Burmese ambassador Hla Myint.
“This clearly differs from a free election where all stakeholders can participate, such as Japan wishes,” said Okada at the press conference.
Tokyo is one of Burma’s largest donors. According to the Japanese Overseas Development Assistance’s Web site, Japan granted more than Yen 1.5 billion (US $16 million) to the country in 2009. Like other countries in Asia, Japan repeatedly called for inclusiveness in the Burmese election.
Other Asian countries, such as China and some members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), spoke of their frustrations at Burma’s political process last week at the United Nations during a meeting of the Group of Friends of the Secretary-General on Myanmar [Burma] in New York.
“The group stressed the need for elections to be inclusive, participatory and transparent in order to advance the prospects of stability, democracy and development for all the people of Myanmar,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
The group includes Australia, China, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Norway, Russia, Singapore, Thailand, the UK, the US, Vietnam and the president of the EU, a position currently occupied by Spain.
Perhaps highlighting Beijing’s concern over potential political instability in Burma, the Chinese state-run Xinhua news agency reported the group's call.
Ruling generals in the remote capital of Naypyidaw are still likely be under diplomatic pressure in the coming weeks over the divisive electoral laws during foreign visits to the country.
Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa is scheduled to visit Burma on March 30. Natalegawa’s main agenda is likely to include explaining international concerns over Burma's political situation to the military generals.
His visit to Burma comes a few days before Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao travels to Indonesia. Diplomatic sources said the Chinese leader is also expected to visit Burma in the near future.
Both Wen and Natalegawa are expected to raise their concerns with Naypyidaw over Burma’s electoral process and other issues, such as tensions with ethnic cease-fire groups.
Although Beijing rarely criticizes the Burmese regime publicly, Chinese officials have reportedly aired their concerns during bilateral talks, particularly after mass demonstrations were violently suppressed in Rangoon in September 2007, Chinese analysts have said.
The Indonesian minister’s trip to Burma precedes the 16th Summit of Asean on April 8-9 in Hanoi. With growing international condemnation of the electoral laws, Burmese politics will likely once again be a hot issue at the Asean summit.
The Burmese junta could also face an international dressing down from Vietnam in its position as Asean chair and a member of the Group of Friends of the Secretary-General on Myanmar.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will visit Burma on April 2-4. Dung is scheduled to meet junta supremo Snr-Gen Than Shwe and Prime Minister Gen Thein Sein.
However, Than Shwe warned the international community to distance itself from Burma’s election during a speech before 13,000 troops marking the 65th anniversary of Armed Forces Day in Naypyidaw.
“During the transition to an unfamiliar system, countries with greater experience usually interfere and take advantage for their own interest. For this reason, it is absolute necessity to avoid relying on external powers,” he said.
***********************************************************
The Irrawaddy - NLD Will be Gagged: Media Sources
By KO HTWE - Monday, March 29, 2010
Burmese publications have reportedly been told by the regime's Press Scrutiny Board that they can carry special election sections provided they don't report on political parties that fail to register.
Sources say the decision expected to be taken on Monday by leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD) whether or not to register can be reported in the media. But if the NLD decides not to register there will be a black-out on any future coverage of its activities.
Many publications are now carrying special sections devoted to election news and interviews. Media sources say most of them—including The Myanmar Times, Biweekly Eleven, Modern and 7 Day News—have had articles rejected by the censors because they touched on sensitive issues related to the election.
According to sources in Rangoon, a “special security force” has been established to oversee the work of the Press Scrutiny Board during the election period.
The censorship board must submit any written material on the election to the new group before allowing it to be published. The group comprises high-ranking officials, including Lt-Gen Myint Swe, who is close to junta head Sen-Gen Than Shwe.
The Press Scrutiny Division announced on March 17 that registered parties could publish election-related news, but with certain conditions.
One condition requires them to apply to the censorship board, within 90 days of their registration, for permission to publish election-related material.
By KO HTWE - Monday, March 29, 2010
Burmese publications have reportedly been told by the regime's Press Scrutiny Board that they can carry special election sections provided they don't report on political parties that fail to register.
Sources say the decision expected to be taken on Monday by leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD) whether or not to register can be reported in the media. But if the NLD decides not to register there will be a black-out on any future coverage of its activities.
Many publications are now carrying special sections devoted to election news and interviews. Media sources say most of them—including The Myanmar Times, Biweekly Eleven, Modern and 7 Day News—have had articles rejected by the censors because they touched on sensitive issues related to the election.
According to sources in Rangoon, a “special security force” has been established to oversee the work of the Press Scrutiny Board during the election period.
The censorship board must submit any written material on the election to the new group before allowing it to be published. The group comprises high-ranking officials, including Lt-Gen Myint Swe, who is close to junta head Sen-Gen Than Shwe.
The Press Scrutiny Division announced on March 17 that registered parties could publish election-related news, but with certain conditions.
One condition requires them to apply to the censorship board, within 90 days of their registration, for permission to publish election-related material.
***********************************************************
USDA transformed to political party
Monday, 29 March 2010 22:06 Kyaw Kha
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The much anticipated transformation of the junta backed Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) into a political party, has come through. It will contest the 2010 general elections under the same nomenclature.
The information was disclosed by a high ranking party official.
The USDA has been converted into USDA party and all government staff and students and youths under 25 years of age have been expelled from the organization. The rest are being issued party membership cards since last week, the official said.
“We have started the ground work to contest the election. The organization is converted into a party. We have already formed division sand district level branches and all the assets and ownership have been transferred. There are now no more government property and assets,” he told Mizzima.
Though the USDA party has not yet been registered with the Election Commission, it is preparing to contest the election.
While the military regime is trying to blackout news of the steps being taken for the conversion, all the USDA members interviewed by Mizzima confirmed the news.
Party sources disclosed that they do not need to do special organizational work because they have been doing regular work by building roads and bridges for the people.
The State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) set up the USDA on 15 September 1993 after seizing power by a coup in 1988. The five top generals of the ruling ‘State Peace and Development Council’ (SPDC) including Senior Gen. Than Shwe are patrons of the organization.
The USDA has 17 State and Division level branches, 66 district level branches, 320 township branches and 24 million members, according to an official statement issued in 2007. Agriculture Minister Maj. Gen. Htay Oo is the General Secretary.
According to the Party Registration Law, government staff members and all persons under the age of 25 years are barred from being party members. But the exact number of current members of the USDA minus the barred members is not yet known.
Serving generals and serving ministers of the cabinet will contest the general election as candidates of the USDA, the opposition group in exile, the ‘Forum for Democracy in Burma’ (FDB) Secretary General Dr. Naing Aung said.
“Military personnel will contest the election through the USDA. Many senior leaders will resign from their army posts and will contest,” he said.
Naypyitaw, the new capital has instructed blacking out the news on the current status of the USDA, which is considered the pillar of the military regime. Earlier, Burmese analysts speculated that USDA would assume a new name to contest the election and may be broken up to more than one party.
USDA members have been building roads and distributing drinking water as part of its organizational work along with serving military party members. But the image of the USDA was tarnished after the pre-meditated attack on NLD members and leaders in 2003 in Depayin and its involvement in the brutal crackdown on protesters in the 2007 saffron revolution.
The source in Naypyitaw said, some serving cabinet ministers and serving military officers will announce their resignation from their posts soon.
The NLD party of Aung San Suu Kyi, who narrowly escaped being killed in the Depayin attack, decided today not to register the party with the Election Commission.
Mizzima learnt that USDA leaders monitored the NLD meeting on the issue, held today.
Monday, 29 March 2010 22:06 Kyaw Kha
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The much anticipated transformation of the junta backed Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) into a political party, has come through. It will contest the 2010 general elections under the same nomenclature.
The information was disclosed by a high ranking party official.
The USDA has been converted into USDA party and all government staff and students and youths under 25 years of age have been expelled from the organization. The rest are being issued party membership cards since last week, the official said.
“We have started the ground work to contest the election. The organization is converted into a party. We have already formed division sand district level branches and all the assets and ownership have been transferred. There are now no more government property and assets,” he told Mizzima.
Though the USDA party has not yet been registered with the Election Commission, it is preparing to contest the election.
While the military regime is trying to blackout news of the steps being taken for the conversion, all the USDA members interviewed by Mizzima confirmed the news.
Party sources disclosed that they do not need to do special organizational work because they have been doing regular work by building roads and bridges for the people.
The State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) set up the USDA on 15 September 1993 after seizing power by a coup in 1988. The five top generals of the ruling ‘State Peace and Development Council’ (SPDC) including Senior Gen. Than Shwe are patrons of the organization.
The USDA has 17 State and Division level branches, 66 district level branches, 320 township branches and 24 million members, according to an official statement issued in 2007. Agriculture Minister Maj. Gen. Htay Oo is the General Secretary.
According to the Party Registration Law, government staff members and all persons under the age of 25 years are barred from being party members. But the exact number of current members of the USDA minus the barred members is not yet known.
Serving generals and serving ministers of the cabinet will contest the general election as candidates of the USDA, the opposition group in exile, the ‘Forum for Democracy in Burma’ (FDB) Secretary General Dr. Naing Aung said.
“Military personnel will contest the election through the USDA. Many senior leaders will resign from their army posts and will contest,” he said.
Naypyitaw, the new capital has instructed blacking out the news on the current status of the USDA, which is considered the pillar of the military regime. Earlier, Burmese analysts speculated that USDA would assume a new name to contest the election and may be broken up to more than one party.
USDA members have been building roads and distributing drinking water as part of its organizational work along with serving military party members. But the image of the USDA was tarnished after the pre-meditated attack on NLD members and leaders in 2003 in Depayin and its involvement in the brutal crackdown on protesters in the 2007 saffron revolution.
The source in Naypyitaw said, some serving cabinet ministers and serving military officers will announce their resignation from their posts soon.
The NLD party of Aung San Suu Kyi, who narrowly escaped being killed in the Depayin attack, decided today not to register the party with the Election Commission.
Mizzima learnt that USDA leaders monitored the NLD meeting on the issue, held today.
***********************************************************
DVB News - Suu Kyi urges ‘unification’ with army
By AHUNT PHONE MYAT
Published: 29 March 2010
The detained leader of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party has said that civilians and soldiers in Burma should unite in order to develop the country.
Her statement was read out by NLD spokesperson Ohn Kyaing as the party on 27 March marked the 65th annual Armed Forces Day (or Resistance Day), which commemorates the start of the Burmese army’s resistance to Japanese occupation in 1945.
Around 1000 NLD members from across the country attended the event, along with foreign diplomats from countries such as Britain, Australia and the US.
“At this time, some people are saying things to create disunity among us and the Tatmadaw [army],” Suu Kyi was quoted as saying. “They are saying things that give the impression that the NLD doesn’t want the prosperity of the nation or the Tatmadaw.
“But in reality, we wish to see Burma and the Tatmadaw standing with dignity and honour. For this, I would like to request the people of Burma and the Tatmadawmen [army personnel] to be united and endeavour to develop a democratic nation.”
Burma has since 1962 been ruled by a military government that has aggressively expanded the size of the army, now thought to be up to 500,000-strong.
But the head of the junta, Than Shwe, said in a speech on Saturday in the new capital, Naypyidaw, that the country had been forced to assimilate the military and the government.
“The leaders of the Armed Forces turned from politicians into patriotic Tatmadawmen when armed struggle for independence was necessary, and they turned back into politicians…when the time came for political struggle,” he said.
He also warned parties looking to contest the elections this year to “show restraint at a time when the democratisation process has yet to reach maturity”.
“Great vigilance is necessary against unrest in the country, against election violence that jeopardizes rule of law, stability and tranquility and against circumstances leading to the disintegration of the Union.”
A letter sent on Saturday to Than Shwe by veteran opposition politicians requested that he revise the controversial 2008 constitution and strict election laws that bar Suu Kyi from running for office.
By AHUNT PHONE MYAT
Published: 29 March 2010
The detained leader of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party has said that civilians and soldiers in Burma should unite in order to develop the country.
Her statement was read out by NLD spokesperson Ohn Kyaing as the party on 27 March marked the 65th annual Armed Forces Day (or Resistance Day), which commemorates the start of the Burmese army’s resistance to Japanese occupation in 1945.
Around 1000 NLD members from across the country attended the event, along with foreign diplomats from countries such as Britain, Australia and the US.
“At this time, some people are saying things to create disunity among us and the Tatmadaw [army],” Suu Kyi was quoted as saying. “They are saying things that give the impression that the NLD doesn’t want the prosperity of the nation or the Tatmadaw.
“But in reality, we wish to see Burma and the Tatmadaw standing with dignity and honour. For this, I would like to request the people of Burma and the Tatmadawmen [army personnel] to be united and endeavour to develop a democratic nation.”
Burma has since 1962 been ruled by a military government that has aggressively expanded the size of the army, now thought to be up to 500,000-strong.
But the head of the junta, Than Shwe, said in a speech on Saturday in the new capital, Naypyidaw, that the country had been forced to assimilate the military and the government.
“The leaders of the Armed Forces turned from politicians into patriotic Tatmadawmen when armed struggle for independence was necessary, and they turned back into politicians…when the time came for political struggle,” he said.
He also warned parties looking to contest the elections this year to “show restraint at a time when the democratisation process has yet to reach maturity”.
“Great vigilance is necessary against unrest in the country, against election violence that jeopardizes rule of law, stability and tranquility and against circumstances leading to the disintegration of the Union.”
A letter sent on Saturday to Than Shwe by veteran opposition politicians requested that he revise the controversial 2008 constitution and strict election laws that bar Suu Kyi from running for office.
No comments:
Post a Comment