The 2010 General Election: A discourse on civil and constitutional rights in BurmaShare
Today at 14:58
Mon 15 Feb 2010, Banya Hong Sar, Canberra
Governmental elections are the foundation of democracy and government in modern world politics. The foundation of a nation is in its upholding of a constitution that guarantees civil and political rights for its citizens. Each clause of the constitution must guarantee these rights to all citizens. Burma’s 2010 new general elections will test these perspectives. The 12th of February is marked as “Union Day” in Burma, symbolizing unity among ethnicities or unity in diversity. This symbolization does not yet match with reality in the country of Burma, where civil wars and political conflicts between ethnic groups are deeply rooted in the history of the past sixty years.
Burma has failed to uphold the constitutional, civil, and political rights of its people, and thus its foundation as a nation, since the day after the country received independence in 1948. Imbalances of power between the central government and ethnic-based state authorities have been the seed of conflicts for over half the 20th century. The Mon, Karen, Shan, Chin, Kachin, Kayeh and other ethnic people fought for constitutional rights until 1960 but the Burman-dominated government denied them “State Constitutional Rights” in both the 1947 and 1973 new constitutions. The ethnic leaders have had no other means to gain rights besides forming armed military units, to wage civil war for the right of self determination under the Burmese constitution since that time. The battle is not yet over.
The new constitution amended by a forced referendum in May 2008 was another attempt by the government of Burma, led by the military junta, to control all constitutional power over Burma’s seven ethnic States. A 194 paged document containing all the clauses in the articles of the constitution left little space for ethnic people and states to hold constitutional power. In fact, the new constitution was based on a “unitary union” desired by the military junta, rather than the “federal union” demanded by the ethnic political leaders.
The New Mon State Party (NMSP), the principal ethnic political organization of Mon State and its people, has repeatedly urged the State Peace and Development Council, the current military junta, to redraft and have a proper debate about new constitution on several occasions. However, the military junta has rejected having a public debate on redrafting the new constitution. The Mon leaders finally rejected the constitution, and also refused to form a “Border Guard Force” of its military battalions. Tension between the SPDC and NMSP leaders both politically and militarily, has been intense for some months in Mon State. Consequently, the military junta used its power to charge a young Mon monk Buddhist teacher, and democracy activist, for possessing a laptop that contained some files protesting the new 2010 elections. The police detained and tortured him last month, and he is now in a prison cell without legal access.
Unless the military junta agrees to allow opposition parties, non-Burman State leaders’ demand for a public debate and redrafting of the constitution, the new election will be a joke. If the military junta forces all of Burma’s citizens to vote for its handpicked candidates in the upcoming elections, and the world accepts the outcome, Burma will continue to be dominated by a military government. The Burmese military junta is using every avenue and all its power to force all ethnic groups’ military battalions to form “Border Guard Forces” under the legal framework and control of the Burma Armed Force. Many ethnic leaders have rejected this invitation.
Mon State’s principle ethnic political party, the New Mon State Party, and its armed wing, the Mon National Liberation Army, have been asking Mon people at home and around the world to review the new constitution, seeking to know whether it contains the Mon peoples’ interests. Over thirty civil society groups in Mon State ran an anti- election campaign by releasing traditional “Fire Balloons” in mid 2009. The military junta got angry about the campaign, and cracked down on all leading civil rights groups in Mon State. Consequently, the Mon music and language groups are under a surveillance.
Burma has been moving down the road to democracy for over twenty years. However, the new constitution does not guarantee civil and constitutional rights for the country’s citizens. Burma’s citizens call for support from the world’s democratic leaders, asking them to pressure the current military junta to grant greater political dialogue and participation within the country. This call has been ignored for years.
Burma’s “Union Day” is meaningless unless “unity in diversity” is truly accepted by Burma’s society. The survival of Burma rests on a guarantee of constitutional rights for all its citizens, and especially for the rights of Burma’s seven ethnic states. Either pro-engagement or anti- engagement with Burma’s junta will not made any difference unless the new 2008 constitution publicly debated by all citizens. The world’s leaders must support Burma’s citizens at home and around the world by encouraging public debate on the new constitution, for the best interests of the Burmese nation. Members of democratic nations like Australia, British and USA should train constitutional lawyers in Burma.
Elections are the foundation of a modern democratic government. But, the new election sponsored by the military junta is but a bandage placed atop the political injuries of the last half century. The forcibly amended new constitution must be destroyed, and a “Federal Union” model must be drafted with allowances for equal representation for all the country’s citizens in 2010. This new model should be examined by constitutional experts from the UN, USA and other nations, with collaboration from a “Burmese Constitutional Drafting Committee that can be set up at the National Convention.
Burma is heading down a long road to democracy. Drafting the best model of a constitution, with equal representation from all ethnic representatives, the National League for Democracy, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and even representation from the current military junta, is a correct approach to solving Burma’s political crisis. A sixty day long National Convention should be held, to debate this new model of the constitution. Burma’s citizens and a constitutional technical assistance group must be given at least one hundred days for comments and debate. The new federal election should be held in late 2011 or early 2012, and then afterwards state elections should be held in due time.
Civil war is not the way to achieve political goals. Placing military rule over the nation is wrong. Neither civil war nor military rule can change Burma into a democratic nation. Constitutional reform, that guarantees constitutional rights to all citizens and all of Burma’s ethnic sates, is the best approach to the crisis. Union Day is about both unity in diversity and unity in purpose.
Tuesday, 23 February 2010
Monday, 22 February 2010
Burma's political prosecution of dissidents undermines legitimacy of planned elections
Min Myat Kyaw [Member, Asian Human Rights Commission]: "The sentencing of four supporters of democracy party leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to two years' imprisonment last week is the latest instance of how courts in Burma (Myanmar) operate under the military regime there to defeat civil and political rights, without regard to the terms of the very laws that they purport to uphold.
The imprisonment of Naw Ohn Hla and three others attracted some interest abroad partly because it coincided with a visit to Burma by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the country, Tomas Ojea Quintana. The envoy has rightly emphasized that an election scheduled for late in the year will not be taken seriously abroad unless all prisoners of conscience are freed.
But the manner in which cases of political imprisonment are conducted in Burma underscores the difficulties that the global community faces in documenting and addressing their incidence. The same week that Naw Ohn Hla was jailed, the Asian Human Rights Commission issued an appeal on new charges against Ma Sandar, who was released just last September after serving a sentence that was instigated by her complaints about corrupt councilors. The new case against her is under the same sections of law and before the same judge; the outcome too will probably be the same. The week before, the Commission issued an appeal for Dr. Wint Thu and eight others, whom Special Branch police illegally arrested and held incommunicado for nearly three months. In December a court handed them jail terms of up to 71 years for allegedly planning to commemorate the monk-led uprising of 2007. The prosecutor's evidence consisted of confessions that were extracted through police torture.
The constant movement of detainees to and from Burma's jails on charges that have little or nothing to do with the real reasons for their custody and even less to do with the standards of law that the courts pretend to enforce makes tracking their cases and understanding their mechanics a full time job. No sooner are persons like Ma Sandar or Naw Ohn Hla let out than they or others are rearrested and charged with new offences. There are no sweeps netting hundreds or thousands of dissidents that might grab headlines overseas. Nor are there any mass releases: amnesties free up space for new inmates, and typically include few political prisoners, many of whom are near to the end of their terms anyhow. Instead there is only a daily passing back and forth through the penal turnstiles. There is only the pointless inflicting of meaningless punishments on people like Naw Ohn Hla, Ma Sandar and Dr. Wint Thu, who are condemned for mundane acts that in most other parts of the world would not excite official interest, let alone attract criminal sanctions. There is only the cruel banality of a dictatorship whose institutions for political and social control are not going to go away on account of an election."
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/hotline/2010/02/burmas-political-prosecution-of.php
The imprisonment of Naw Ohn Hla and three others attracted some interest abroad partly because it coincided with a visit to Burma by the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in the country, Tomas Ojea Quintana. The envoy has rightly emphasized that an election scheduled for late in the year will not be taken seriously abroad unless all prisoners of conscience are freed.
But the manner in which cases of political imprisonment are conducted in Burma underscores the difficulties that the global community faces in documenting and addressing their incidence. The same week that Naw Ohn Hla was jailed, the Asian Human Rights Commission issued an appeal on new charges against Ma Sandar, who was released just last September after serving a sentence that was instigated by her complaints about corrupt councilors. The new case against her is under the same sections of law and before the same judge; the outcome too will probably be the same. The week before, the Commission issued an appeal for Dr. Wint Thu and eight others, whom Special Branch police illegally arrested and held incommunicado for nearly three months. In December a court handed them jail terms of up to 71 years for allegedly planning to commemorate the monk-led uprising of 2007. The prosecutor's evidence consisted of confessions that were extracted through police torture.
The constant movement of detainees to and from Burma's jails on charges that have little or nothing to do with the real reasons for their custody and even less to do with the standards of law that the courts pretend to enforce makes tracking their cases and understanding their mechanics a full time job. No sooner are persons like Ma Sandar or Naw Ohn Hla let out than they or others are rearrested and charged with new offences. There are no sweeps netting hundreds or thousands of dissidents that might grab headlines overseas. Nor are there any mass releases: amnesties free up space for new inmates, and typically include few political prisoners, many of whom are near to the end of their terms anyhow. Instead there is only a daily passing back and forth through the penal turnstiles. There is only the pointless inflicting of meaningless punishments on people like Naw Ohn Hla, Ma Sandar and Dr. Wint Thu, who are condemned for mundane acts that in most other parts of the world would not excite official interest, let alone attract criminal sanctions. There is only the cruel banality of a dictatorship whose institutions for political and social control are not going to go away on account of an election."
http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/hotline/2010/02/burmas-political-prosecution-of.php
Sunday, 21 February 2010
http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/3558-nld-presents-aung-san-suu-kyi-case-to-un-rights-envoy-.html
Chiang Mai, New Delhi (Mizzima) – The National League for Democracy's (NLD) Central Executive Committee (CEC) told UN rights envoy Tomas Ojea Quintana yesterday that Aung San Suu Kyi must to be released.
Her release is vital for Burma's national reconciliation; the five NLD CEC members told Quintana during their one hour meeting at Rangoon's Mya Yeik Nyo Royal Hotel.
“We talked with him about Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. We told him that she must be released. He also said that he wanted to meet with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi”, said U Win Tin an NLD CEC member present at the meeting.
Leading the NLD delegation was NLD Vice-Chairman Tin Oo the eighty-four year decorated soldier released last weekend after serving 6 years of house arrest.
“Mr. Quintana said to us that he was very glad to see all of our CEC members here and he was encouraged seeing us altogether. And he would note down what we presented here to him and report to his superiors”, Khin Maung Swe told Mizzima.
At the meeting the NLD brought up the junta's rejection of the NLD's 1990 election victory, the NLD's demand for the immediate release of all of Burma's more than 2000 and the urgent need to amend the widely reviled 2008 constitution which permanently enshrines the military's domination of national affairs.
The NLD team also made clear to the UN envoy that they were still adhering to the points outlined in the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration and therefore the party will not contest the upcoming national elections supposedly set to take place at some point this year. The Shwe Gong Daing Declaration was adopted last year and approved at plenary meeting attended by delegates from State and Division NLD branches, MPs and the party's central leadership.
“Human rights issues are important and they cannot be considered separate from basic politics. We have no plan to join the upcoming election. We will stand on the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration.”, Win Tin said.
In the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration, the NLD party called for amending the 2008 constitution, releasing all political prisoners, the resumption of real dialogue between the opposition and the military for national reconciliation and the need for some kind of official recognition of the NLD's 1990 election landslide victory.
During the meeting the NLD informed the UN rights envoy about the regimes numerous attacks on the NLD, including the forcible closing of NLD party offices, the removal of party signboards from NLD offices and the regime's various restrictions which prevent the NLD from working with the party's grassroots supporters.
Unclear if Envoy will be allowed to meet Aung San Suu Kyi
The envoy told the NLD representatives that he would leave for Naypyidaw on Friday and hoped that upon his return from the capital the generals would allow him to see Aung San Suu Kyi. It appears Quintana will only find out if he will be able to meet the Nobel Peace Prize Winner when he returns from the military regime's sparsely populated new capital.
Following the meeting the NLD expressed their satisfaction with the UN envoy and his visit to Burma.
“We are satisfied with his visit as he will present the human rights situation in Burma to the relevant UN authorities. With regards to Burma, it is not only a human rights issue, there are also political issues which must be presented too. We hope he understands about our political situation. We hope he also presents these political issues to the UN”, Win Tin said.
During his 5-days fact finding trip which began on the February 15th, Qunitana also visited Sittwe and Buthidaung prisons in Rakhine State. While in Rakhine State, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Resident Representative in Burma Steve Marshall also accompanied him. In Rakhine they met with over 20 NGOs and Muslim leaders.
According to the UN's Rangoon spokesperson at Buthidaung prison, Quintana met with prominent 88 Generation Student activist Htay Kywe and other political prisoners including Tun Nyo, Myat Tun, Ahmed and Kyaw Min. Kyaw Min, a member of the Rohingya minority and an elected MP member is presently serving a 47 year prison sentence following his 2005 arrest and subsequent nullification of his Burmese citizenship.
At Sittwe prison the envoys met with political prisoners Than Tin, Pyae Phyo Hlaing, Aung Tun Myint and U Sandar Thiri. After arriving back in Rangoon on Thursday, Quintana met with political prisoners at the infamous Insein prison. This group included Naw Ohn Hla, Ma Than Than Htay, Kyaw San, Kyi Than, Myo Win and Khai Kyaw Moe.
Although the Information Department of the UN's Rangoon office claimed their envoy would meet with ethnic leaders during his trip, the respected United Nationalities Alliance (UNA) told Mizzima they did not receive a request for a meeting from the UN.
The UNA spokesperson Pu Cing TsianThang.told Mizzima that “the SPDC (junta) interprets ethnic leaders as those having cordial relationship with them and non opposition parties. As we have not yet received any information from UN office until today, there is almost no hope for us to meet with him”.
http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/3558-nld-presents-aung-san-suu-kyi-case-to-un-rights-envoy-.html
Her release is vital for Burma's national reconciliation; the five NLD CEC members told Quintana during their one hour meeting at Rangoon's Mya Yeik Nyo Royal Hotel.
“We talked with him about Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. We told him that she must be released. He also said that he wanted to meet with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi”, said U Win Tin an NLD CEC member present at the meeting.
Leading the NLD delegation was NLD Vice-Chairman Tin Oo the eighty-four year decorated soldier released last weekend after serving 6 years of house arrest.
“Mr. Quintana said to us that he was very glad to see all of our CEC members here and he was encouraged seeing us altogether. And he would note down what we presented here to him and report to his superiors”, Khin Maung Swe told Mizzima.
At the meeting the NLD brought up the junta's rejection of the NLD's 1990 election victory, the NLD's demand for the immediate release of all of Burma's more than 2000 and the urgent need to amend the widely reviled 2008 constitution which permanently enshrines the military's domination of national affairs.
The NLD team also made clear to the UN envoy that they were still adhering to the points outlined in the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration and therefore the party will not contest the upcoming national elections supposedly set to take place at some point this year. The Shwe Gong Daing Declaration was adopted last year and approved at plenary meeting attended by delegates from State and Division NLD branches, MPs and the party's central leadership.
“Human rights issues are important and they cannot be considered separate from basic politics. We have no plan to join the upcoming election. We will stand on the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration.”, Win Tin said.
In the Shwe Gong Daing Declaration, the NLD party called for amending the 2008 constitution, releasing all political prisoners, the resumption of real dialogue between the opposition and the military for national reconciliation and the need for some kind of official recognition of the NLD's 1990 election landslide victory.
During the meeting the NLD informed the UN rights envoy about the regimes numerous attacks on the NLD, including the forcible closing of NLD party offices, the removal of party signboards from NLD offices and the regime's various restrictions which prevent the NLD from working with the party's grassroots supporters.
Unclear if Envoy will be allowed to meet Aung San Suu Kyi
The envoy told the NLD representatives that he would leave for Naypyidaw on Friday and hoped that upon his return from the capital the generals would allow him to see Aung San Suu Kyi. It appears Quintana will only find out if he will be able to meet the Nobel Peace Prize Winner when he returns from the military regime's sparsely populated new capital.
Following the meeting the NLD expressed their satisfaction with the UN envoy and his visit to Burma.
“We are satisfied with his visit as he will present the human rights situation in Burma to the relevant UN authorities. With regards to Burma, it is not only a human rights issue, there are also political issues which must be presented too. We hope he understands about our political situation. We hope he also presents these political issues to the UN”, Win Tin said.
During his 5-days fact finding trip which began on the February 15th, Qunitana also visited Sittwe and Buthidaung prisons in Rakhine State. While in Rakhine State, the International Labour Organization (ILO) Resident Representative in Burma Steve Marshall also accompanied him. In Rakhine they met with over 20 NGOs and Muslim leaders.
According to the UN's Rangoon spokesperson at Buthidaung prison, Quintana met with prominent 88 Generation Student activist Htay Kywe and other political prisoners including Tun Nyo, Myat Tun, Ahmed and Kyaw Min. Kyaw Min, a member of the Rohingya minority and an elected MP member is presently serving a 47 year prison sentence following his 2005 arrest and subsequent nullification of his Burmese citizenship.
At Sittwe prison the envoys met with political prisoners Than Tin, Pyae Phyo Hlaing, Aung Tun Myint and U Sandar Thiri. After arriving back in Rangoon on Thursday, Quintana met with political prisoners at the infamous Insein prison. This group included Naw Ohn Hla, Ma Than Than Htay, Kyaw San, Kyi Than, Myo Win and Khai Kyaw Moe.
Although the Information Department of the UN's Rangoon office claimed their envoy would meet with ethnic leaders during his trip, the respected United Nationalities Alliance (UNA) told Mizzima they did not receive a request for a meeting from the UN.
The UNA spokesperson Pu Cing TsianThang.told Mizzima that “the SPDC (junta) interprets ethnic leaders as those having cordial relationship with them and non opposition parties. As we have not yet received any information from UN office until today, there is almost no hope for us to meet with him”.
http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/3558-nld-presents-aung-san-suu-kyi-case-to-un-rights-envoy-.html
Thursday, 18 February 2010
Envoyé de l'ONU rencontre à Tin Oo
Envoyé de l'ONU rencontre à Tin Oo
Envoyé de l'ONU en Birmanie, Tomás Ojea Quintana, a dit à l'opposition de la Ligue nationale pour la démocratie (LND), adjoint Tin Oo qu'il s'attend à rencontrer Aung San Suu Kyi avant qu'il ne termine sa visite demain.
Jeudi, l'envoyé de l'ONU s'est entretenu avec Tin Oo, le vice-président de la LND, qui a été libéré après six ans d'assignation à domicile le week-end dernier, ainsi que d'autres hauts responsables du parti dans le cadre de sa visite de cinq jours en Birmanie d'étudier les conditions des droits humains avant les élections.
Tin Oo, 82 ans, est arrêté en compagnie de détenus Suu Kyi, en 2003, après un gouvernement soutenu par la bande a attaqué leur convoi au cours d'une tournée politique dans le Haut-Birmanie.
Au cours de la réunion d'une heure, Quintana dit Tin Oo et cinq fonctionnaires de la LND, dont Win Tin, qu'il a bon espoir de rencontrer Suu Kyi avant qu'il ne termine sa visite le vendredi, a indiqué le porte-parole NLD Khin Maung Swe, qui sont également joints à la réunion.
"U Tin Oo Quintana dit que Aung San Suu Kyi doit être libérée si le régime veut lui faire participer au processus de réconciliation nationale et aussi parce qu'elle est détenue en vertu d'une loi de la Constitution de 1974 qui n'existe plus», Khin Maung Swe a déclaré au Irrawaddy.
Lorsque Quintana interrogé sur la position de la LND sur l'élection, les responsables du parti ont répondu qu'ils n'avaient pas encore décidé s'il allait participer ou non. La décision sera prise uniquement après une rencontre avec le chef du parti Suu Kyi, disaient-ils.
«Nous avons dit que, même après la loi électorale est libéré, ce sera un défi pour le parti de décider de participer à l'élection sans la libération de Aung San Suu Kyi", a déclaré Khin Maung Swe.
«D'abord, il est important de rencontrer Daw Suu et, deuxièmement, il est important de rencontrer Snr-Gen Than Shwe, a déclaré Khin Maung Swe, ajoutant que sans ces mesures il n'y aura pas de solution politique.
Le vendredi, Quintana se réunira avec les responsables gouvernementaux à Naypyidaw avant de retourner à Rangoon.
L'envoyé de l'ONU allé à la tristement célèbre prison d'Insein à midi le jeudi d'examiner le traitement des autorités birmanes de prisonniers politiques.
Le régime a dit à plusieurs reprises que l'élection aura lieu cette année si elle n'a pas fixé de date, ni délivrés lois électorales. Néanmoins, il poursuit sa répression contre les dissidents. Quatre dissidents ont été condamnés à des peines de prison le lundi, jour de l'envoyé de l'ONU est arrivé.
Envoyé de l'ONU en Birmanie, Tomás Ojea Quintana, a dit à l'opposition de la Ligue nationale pour la démocratie (LND), adjoint Tin Oo qu'il s'attend à rencontrer Aung San Suu Kyi avant qu'il ne termine sa visite demain.
Jeudi, l'envoyé de l'ONU s'est entretenu avec Tin Oo, le vice-président de la LND, qui a été libéré après six ans d'assignation à domicile le week-end dernier, ainsi que d'autres hauts responsables du parti dans le cadre de sa visite de cinq jours en Birmanie d'étudier les conditions des droits humains avant les élections.
Tin Oo, 82 ans, est arrêté en compagnie de détenus Suu Kyi, en 2003, après un gouvernement soutenu par la bande a attaqué leur convoi au cours d'une tournée politique dans le Haut-Birmanie.
Au cours de la réunion d'une heure, Quintana dit Tin Oo et cinq fonctionnaires de la LND, dont Win Tin, qu'il a bon espoir de rencontrer Suu Kyi avant qu'il ne termine sa visite le vendredi, a indiqué le porte-parole NLD Khin Maung Swe, qui sont également joints à la réunion.
"U Tin Oo Quintana dit que Aung San Suu Kyi doit être libérée si le régime veut lui faire participer au processus de réconciliation nationale et aussi parce qu'elle est détenue en vertu d'une loi de la Constitution de 1974 qui n'existe plus», Khin Maung Swe a déclaré au Irrawaddy.
Lorsque Quintana interrogé sur la position de la LND sur l'élection, les responsables du parti ont répondu qu'ils n'avaient pas encore décidé s'il allait participer ou non. La décision sera prise uniquement après une rencontre avec le chef du parti Suu Kyi, disaient-ils.
«Nous avons dit que, même après la loi électorale est libéré, ce sera un défi pour le parti de décider de participer à l'élection sans la libération de Aung San Suu Kyi", a déclaré Khin Maung Swe.
«D'abord, il est important de rencontrer Daw Suu et, deuxièmement, il est important de rencontrer Snr-Gen Than Shwe, a déclaré Khin Maung Swe, ajoutant que sans ces mesures il n'y aura pas de solution politique.
Le vendredi, Quintana se réunira avec les responsables gouvernementaux à Naypyidaw avant de retourner à Rangoon.
L'envoyé de l'ONU allé à la tristement célèbre prison d'Insein à midi le jeudi d'examiner le traitement des autorités birmanes de prisonniers politiques.
Le régime a dit à plusieurs reprises que l'élection aura lieu cette année si elle n'a pas fixé de date, ni délivrés lois électorales. Néanmoins, il poursuit sa répression contre les dissidents. Quatre dissidents ont été condamnés à des peines de prison le lundi, jour de l'envoyé de l'ONU est arrivé.
Monday, 15 February 2010
Parliament Questions
Burma: Arms Trade
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department has had discussions with the government of (a) Canada, (b) New Zealand and (c) Brazil on an arms embargo against Burma. [316244]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government maintains a dialogue with a wide range of international partners on Burma, including the governments of Canada and New Zealand. In recent weeks we have also shared details of our position on Burma with Brazil, which became a non-permanent member of the Security Council in January.
In August 2009, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister wrote to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and his fellow UN Security Council members underlining that no one should be selling arms to a military regime with an appalling human rights record. A global arms embargo remains a priority for this Government, and we will continue to press for progress in our bilateral contacts and in relevant multi-lateral fora.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of arms trading with Burma, with particular reference to arms from (a) India, (b) Russia and (c) China; and what assessment he has made of the effects of such trade on the situation in Burma. [316582]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government believe that no one should be selling arms to the Burmese regime in view of their appalling human rights record and the high likelihood arms supplied will be use for internal repression. An EU arms embargo has been in place since 1996, and we are working to build support for a global arms embargo. To this end, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister wrote to the UN Secretary General and all members of the Security Council in August 2009.
Reports suggest that India, China and Russia have all supplied arms to Burma. China is believed to be the leading arms supplier and in early January 2010, media reports suggested Russia had agreed to supply $600 million of combat aircraft and arms to the Burma regime. In response to these reports, our embassy in Moscow raised our concerns with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 979W
The ability of Burma to continue to purchase arms from a wide range of suppliers has helped to reduce their defence and security costs and modernise an army responsible for widespread and systematic human rights abuses.
Burma: Human Rights
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had in the United Nations Human Rights Council and the United Nations General Assembly on reports of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma. [316245]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government remain deeply concerned at the human rights situation in Burma and we regularly raise the issue with EU and other international partners, and in the UN's human rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions condemning the Burmese regime for ongoing and systematic human rights abuses. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010. In addition, we continue to give our full support to the efforts of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma-Thomas Ojea Quintana, who is due to visit the country soon.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions with (a) his EU counterparts, (b) the United Nations Human Rights Council and (c) the United Nations General Assembly on reports of crimes against humanity in Burma. [316378]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government remain deeply concerned at the human rights situation in Burma and we regularly raise the issue with EU and other international partners, and in the UN's human rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions condemning the Burmese regime for ongoing and systematic human rights abuses. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010. In addition, we continue to give our full support to the efforts of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma, Thomas Ojea Quintana, who is due to visit the country soon.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aims and objectives he has set for the outcome of the United Nations Human Rights Council meeting on Burma. [316380]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: At the 13th session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010 we will work to secure a further, strong resolution condemning the continuing human right abuses in Burma. In our national intervention, and in the resolution text, we will seek to emphasise that the dire human rights situation, including the continued detention of 2100 political prisoners, child labour and the treatment of displaced people remain cause of significant concern. Burma's treatment of political leaders and suppression of freedom of expression undermine the credibility of elections planned for later this year.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 980W
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will seek to secure EU targeted sanctions against the government of Burma until the human rights situation in Burma improves. [316581]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government continue to believe that targeted EU sanctions against the military regime in Burma are an important means of maintaining pressure for political reform and respect for human rights. Sanctions introduced in 1996 have been strengthened over time, notably after the Saffron Revolution in 2007, and in August 2009 in response to the guilty verdict in Aung San Suu Kyi's trial. They are now among the EU's toughest autonomous measures against any country. The UK will not support any easing of sanctions in the absence of tangible progress on the ground.
Burma: Political Prisoners
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions in the United Nations Human Rights Council on the arrest of pro-democracy activist Nyi Nyi Aung in Burma in September 2009. [316241]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are deeply concerned at the arrest and imprisonment of Nyi Nyi Aung and are monitoring his case closely.
We continue to take every opportunity to raise the detention of Burma's 2100 political prisoners in the UN's Human Rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions calling for the release of all of political prisoners. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010.
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made representations to the Burmese authorities on permitting the International Committee of the Red Cross to resume its inspection of prisons in Burma. [316242]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The refusal of the Burmese authorities to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) independent and unsupervised access to political prisoners remains a grave concern, particularly as the number of prisoners of conscience has doubled to over 2100 since the 'Saffron revolution' in autumn 2007. We continue to urge the military government to co-operate fully with the ICRC and allow an immediate resumption of prison visits.
The UN General Assembly highlighted their concern at the condition of prisons and urged the regime to comply with human rights law in a resolution passed in November 2009. Our Ambassador in Rangoon last raised the issue of independent prison access for the ICRC to the Burmese government in August 2009 during the last visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma. Our Ambassador regularly raises the plight of political prisoners with Burmese ministers, and we remain in close contact with the ICRC on this issue.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 981W
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has received reports on the recent sentencing and imprisonment of a journalist who worked with the Democratic Voice of Burma. [316243]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are aware that Democratic Voice of Burma journalist Ngwe Soe Lin was sentenced to 13 years in prison on 27 January 2010 by a Burmese military court for offences under the Electronic and Immigration Emergency Provisions Acts. This case follows the recent sentencing of two other journalists from the Democratic Voice of Burma to 20 and 26 years imprisonment respectively. At least 13 journalists and bloggers are currently detained in Burma, as the Burmese authorities seek to prevent the free flow of information in advance of elections planned for later this year.
The Government have consistently called on the military authorities to release all of Burma's over 2100 prisoners of conscience. Without their release, elections planned for later this year can have no international credibility.
Burma: Politics and Government
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will request the United Nations Security Council to undertake a review of the 2008 Burmese constitution together with representatives of (a) pro-democracy, (b) ethnic and (c) other groups in Burma. [316379]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: In November 2009 the UK helped to secure a UN General Assembly Resolution on the human rights situation in Burma, which called on the Burmese authorities to undertake a transparent, inclusive and comprehensive review of the Constitution while fully engaging with the democratic opposition and ethnic groups. We believe that a process of dialogue involving all actors in Burma will ensure a sustainable transition to democracy. This view is shared by other members of the EU and the United States of America.
In the UN Security Council, we regularly test the level of consensus for action on Burma, and have succeeded in securing discussion and a number of important Presidential Statements since autumn 2007. We do not judge, however, that an attempt to secure a Security Council review on the 2008 Constitution now would be successful. A resolution on Burma tabled in January 2007 was vetoed by two Permanent Members of the Council and any attempt to invalidate the Constitution will suffer the same fate.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm100210/text/100210w0003.htm#10021071000485
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether his Department has had discussions with the government of (a) Canada, (b) New Zealand and (c) Brazil on an arms embargo against Burma. [316244]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government maintains a dialogue with a wide range of international partners on Burma, including the governments of Canada and New Zealand. In recent weeks we have also shared details of our position on Burma with Brazil, which became a non-permanent member of the Security Council in January.
In August 2009, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister wrote to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and his fellow UN Security Council members underlining that no one should be selling arms to a military regime with an appalling human rights record. A global arms embargo remains a priority for this Government, and we will continue to press for progress in our bilateral contacts and in relevant multi-lateral fora.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received of arms trading with Burma, with particular reference to arms from (a) India, (b) Russia and (c) China; and what assessment he has made of the effects of such trade on the situation in Burma. [316582]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government believe that no one should be selling arms to the Burmese regime in view of their appalling human rights record and the high likelihood arms supplied will be use for internal repression. An EU arms embargo has been in place since 1996, and we are working to build support for a global arms embargo. To this end, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister wrote to the UN Secretary General and all members of the Security Council in August 2009.
Reports suggest that India, China and Russia have all supplied arms to Burma. China is believed to be the leading arms supplier and in early January 2010, media reports suggested Russia had agreed to supply $600 million of combat aircraft and arms to the Burma regime. In response to these reports, our embassy in Moscow raised our concerns with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 979W
The ability of Burma to continue to purchase arms from a wide range of suppliers has helped to reduce their defence and security costs and modernise an army responsible for widespread and systematic human rights abuses.
Burma: Human Rights
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had in the United Nations Human Rights Council and the United Nations General Assembly on reports of crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma. [316245]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government remain deeply concerned at the human rights situation in Burma and we regularly raise the issue with EU and other international partners, and in the UN's human rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions condemning the Burmese regime for ongoing and systematic human rights abuses. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010. In addition, we continue to give our full support to the efforts of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma-Thomas Ojea Quintana, who is due to visit the country soon.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions with (a) his EU counterparts, (b) the United Nations Human Rights Council and (c) the United Nations General Assembly on reports of crimes against humanity in Burma. [316378]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government remain deeply concerned at the human rights situation in Burma and we regularly raise the issue with EU and other international partners, and in the UN's human rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions condemning the Burmese regime for ongoing and systematic human rights abuses. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010. In addition, we continue to give our full support to the efforts of the Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma, Thomas Ojea Quintana, who is due to visit the country soon.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what aims and objectives he has set for the outcome of the United Nations Human Rights Council meeting on Burma. [316380]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: At the 13th session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010 we will work to secure a further, strong resolution condemning the continuing human right abuses in Burma. In our national intervention, and in the resolution text, we will seek to emphasise that the dire human rights situation, including the continued detention of 2100 political prisoners, child labour and the treatment of displaced people remain cause of significant concern. Burma's treatment of political leaders and suppression of freedom of expression undermine the credibility of elections planned for later this year.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 980W
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will seek to secure EU targeted sanctions against the government of Burma until the human rights situation in Burma improves. [316581]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The Government continue to believe that targeted EU sanctions against the military regime in Burma are an important means of maintaining pressure for political reform and respect for human rights. Sanctions introduced in 1996 have been strengthened over time, notably after the Saffron Revolution in 2007, and in August 2009 in response to the guilty verdict in Aung San Suu Kyi's trial. They are now among the EU's toughest autonomous measures against any country. The UK will not support any easing of sanctions in the absence of tangible progress on the ground.
Burma: Political Prisoners
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has had discussions in the United Nations Human Rights Council on the arrest of pro-democracy activist Nyi Nyi Aung in Burma in September 2009. [316241]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are deeply concerned at the arrest and imprisonment of Nyi Nyi Aung and are monitoring his case closely.
We continue to take every opportunity to raise the detention of Burma's 2100 political prisoners in the UN's Human Rights bodies. At the last session of the Human Rights Council in September 2009, and at the UN General Assembly in November 2009, we helped to secure strong resolutions calling for the release of all of political prisoners. We will be looking to raise the issue again, and secure a further resolution, at the next session of the Human Rights Council in March 2010.
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has made representations to the Burmese authorities on permitting the International Committee of the Red Cross to resume its inspection of prisons in Burma. [316242]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The refusal of the Burmese authorities to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) independent and unsupervised access to political prisoners remains a grave concern, particularly as the number of prisoners of conscience has doubled to over 2100 since the 'Saffron revolution' in autumn 2007. We continue to urge the military government to co-operate fully with the ICRC and allow an immediate resumption of prison visits.
The UN General Assembly highlighted their concern at the condition of prisons and urged the regime to comply with human rights law in a resolution passed in November 2009. Our Ambassador in Rangoon last raised the issue of independent prison access for the ICRC to the Burmese government in August 2009 during the last visit of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma. Our Ambassador regularly raises the plight of political prisoners with Burmese ministers, and we remain in close contact with the ICRC on this issue.
10 Feb 2010 : Column 981W
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has received reports on the recent sentencing and imprisonment of a journalist who worked with the Democratic Voice of Burma. [316243]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: We are aware that Democratic Voice of Burma journalist Ngwe Soe Lin was sentenced to 13 years in prison on 27 January 2010 by a Burmese military court for offences under the Electronic and Immigration Emergency Provisions Acts. This case follows the recent sentencing of two other journalists from the Democratic Voice of Burma to 20 and 26 years imprisonment respectively. At least 13 journalists and bloggers are currently detained in Burma, as the Burmese authorities seek to prevent the free flow of information in advance of elections planned for later this year.
The Government have consistently called on the military authorities to release all of Burma's over 2100 prisoners of conscience. Without their release, elections planned for later this year can have no international credibility.
Burma: Politics and Government
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will request the United Nations Security Council to undertake a review of the 2008 Burmese constitution together with representatives of (a) pro-democracy, (b) ethnic and (c) other groups in Burma. [316379]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: In November 2009 the UK helped to secure a UN General Assembly Resolution on the human rights situation in Burma, which called on the Burmese authorities to undertake a transparent, inclusive and comprehensive review of the Constitution while fully engaging with the democratic opposition and ethnic groups. We believe that a process of dialogue involving all actors in Burma will ensure a sustainable transition to democracy. This view is shared by other members of the EU and the United States of America.
In the UN Security Council, we regularly test the level of consensus for action on Burma, and have succeeded in securing discussion and a number of important Presidential Statements since autumn 2007. We do not judge, however, that an attempt to secure a Security Council review on the 2008 Constitution now would be successful. A resolution on Burma tabled in January 2007 was vetoed by two Permanent Members of the Council and any attempt to invalidate the Constitution will suffer the same fate.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200910/cmhansrd/cm100210/text/100210w0003.htm#10021071000485
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