Burma's Challenge 2006

Burma's Challenge 2006

US Campaign for Burma Annual Conference
April 29-30, American University, Washington, DC

Burma: The Threat to the Peace
Presented by Aung Din, Policy Director, US Campaign for Burma

Slide 1 and 2; Introduction

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good morning. Thank you very much for gathering here today.

If we count from August 8, 1988, nationwide popular uprising, calling for democracy, human rights and an end of single party rule, Burma's democracy movement is now entering into 18^th year of its struggle. In these years, many other countries from Eastern Europe, Latin America, Africa and Asia became free countries and now enjoying freedom they deserve. We also expect people of Burma will be free soon from the brutal dictatorship with people power movement combined with maximum international support.

I can assure you that in these years, not a day goes by that people of Burma aren't trying to challenge the regime with various capacities. Courageous Burmese activists are willing to risk torture and death rather than renounce their beliefs or give up their non-violent struggle. They need our help.

For our part, we have to build maximum international pressure to strengthen the democracy movement inside Burma and to weaken the regime and its grip on power. Maximum international pressure means immediate intervention of the UN Security Council, which is one and only international body that can make binding resolution.

Today Burma can be described as a country of South East Asia, being ruled by the world most brutal dictatorship, which use all forms of abuses, including arbitrary detention, extrajudicial killing, forced relocation, forced labor, use of rape as weapon of war and purposely destruction of villages to oppress the population for its control of power. Burma is also a major producer and trafficker of heroine and illicit drugs. Burma's dictator General Than Shwe is second worst dictator in the world, just after Kim Jong IL of North Korea. Burma army has forcibly recruited over 70 thousands child soldiers, the most number of child soldiers in the world. Burma's regime incarcerated over 1,100 political dissidents, including the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Aung San Suu Kyi and over a dozen Members of Parliament. According to a report produced by Council on Foreign Relations, Burma is the source of unique HIV strain and spreading it to neighboring countries, China, India and South East Asia, through its drug trafficking route. Berlin-based Transparency International in October ranked Burma as the world's third most corrupt country, sharing the same rank with Haiti and Turkmenistan and just above Bangladesh and Chad, out of 159 countries. Over 500,000 people are hiding in the mountains and forests in the Eastern part of Burma, as the internal displaced persons (IDPs) to avoid the killing of the regime's soldiers, while over two millions people of Burma are living in neighboring countries as the refugees or illegal immigrants. Recently, Foreign Policy magazine ranks Burma in its annual failed states index as 18^th state of failure in critical category.

Among the problems in Burma, which are not contained in its own border, but spilling into the region and threatening to the peace and security of the region, I am going to present some situation, which will include the regime's brutal attack and oppression on democracy activists, the regime's attacks against the villages in ethnic areas and Internally Displaced Persons and the regime's misuse of state budget for their fantasies.

Slide 3, Aung Hlaing Win

This is Aung Hlaing Win, a 30-years old member of NLD.

Aung Hlaing Win was dragged from a restaurant in the capitol city of Rangoon on May 1st by four plain-clothes intelligence officers. Ten days later, his family was informed by Lieutenant Colonel Min Hlaing, the commander of Military Intelligence Unit No.1, that Aung Hlaing Win had died in custody after suffering a heart attack and that his body had already been cremated. The Lt. Col. offered Aung Hlaing Win's family $100 to pay for a memorial service, but the family refused the money.

Since Aung Hlaing Win had no previous health problems, his family filed a case at a local township court. In an extremely rare move that activists believe was an accident, the township judge permitted a doctor who had viewed Aung Hlaing Win's body to testify in a pre-trial hearing that his death was the result of an extensive and severe injuries inflicted upon his body. However, court officials, who serve only to do the bidding of the ruling military junta, called the death "natural" and dismissed the case.

Slide 4, Thet Naing Oo

This is Thet Naing Oo, a student activist and a former political prisoner. Photo at left is before he died and photo at right is after he died.

He was beaten to death on March 18th by the Rangoon Fire Brigade and municipal police officers. In an incident that should have been dealt with within the confines of the law, Thet Naing Oo was arrested and then beaten to death by government officers while he was handcuffed and held face-down in the street. Then he was placed on a bicycle taxi and beaten to death. This came just two years after he was released from prison after serving 10 years behind bars for speaking out for human rights and democracy.

Pictures of his skull received by us show lacerations across his whole skull and broken bones. Instead, the military junta has arrested two witnesses to the murder who are friends of Thet Naing Oo's. While the real perpetrators kick back and relax, these innocents are being charged with assault! They are in great danger themselves of being tortured and possibly killed.

Slide 5 and 6, Map of prisons in Burma and facts about political prisoners

These are just some examples of extra-judicial killing and arbitrary detention in Burma where democracy activists and human rights defender face daily. According to a former political prisoner who fled Burma and recently arrived on the Thai-Burma Border, current military junta leader Than Shwe and his cronies are shifting their tactics - rather than adding to the ranks of the country’s over 1,100 political prisoners or risking the continuing activities of its vocal opponents as exiles beyond the country’s borders, Burma’s military rulers simply want their opponents dead. And their preferred method of achieving this end has become military-incited and –backed mob violence.

According to sources inside Burma and the testimonies of recently escaped former political prisoners, prominent opponents to the rights-abusing and authoritarian military regime are beginning to sincerely fear for their lives. The first time the Burmese and the international community looked on in horror as democracy activists were attacked by plainclothes attackers, armed and trained by the military regime, was May 30, 2003, when the leader of the democracy movement and Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s motorcade was attacked and scores of non-violent supporters were brutally beaten to death. Aung San Suu Kyi and U Tin Oo, leaders of the National League for Democracy (NLD), have been detained and held under house arrest since then. Since Thet Naing Oo’s death, prominent democracy activists still inside Burma have noticed an increase in the presences of uniformed policemen and military intelligence officers following them and watching their neighborhoods. Several have even been assaulted and have experienced hostile confrontations with plainclothes intelligence officers and thugs in league with the military.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoner (Burma), at least 127 democracy activists have died in prisons and interrogation centers or been disappeared since 1988. At least 9 activists died in prison because of torture, malnutrition and inadequate medical care in 2005 and early 2006 alone.

Numbers of Prison in Burma: 39
Numbers of Prison Labor Camp in Burma: At Least 32
Numbers of Military Intelligence Interrogation Centers: At Least 40
Numbers of Political Prisoners: At Least 1,156 including Aung San Suu Kyi, U Tin Oo, U Hkun Tun Oo and 12 Members of Parliament Elect
Numbers of Political Prisoners Died in Prisons: At Least 90
Numbers of Political Prisoners Died in Interrogation Centers: At Least 8
Numbers of Political Prisoners Died Shortly After Their Release: At Least 10
Numbers of Political Prisoners Disappeared from Prisons: At Least 15
Numbers of Political Prisoners Died in Prison Labor Camps: At Least 4

Numbers of Political Prisoners Died in 2005 and 2006: At Least 9

Slide 7 and 8: Internally Displaced Persons

Let me tell you about IDPs, Internally Displaced Persons in Burma.

Generally, if you receive an envelope enclosed with a bullet; you will know that someone is threatening your life. And then you will go to police or law enforcement officials to make a complaint or you will find some way to protect yourself.

But, there will be different stories for the villagers who live in the Eastern and Southern part of Burma. When they receive the written relocation order, enclosed with a bullet in an envelope, from the local military commander, they know what will happen if they refuse to leave from the land where they live for generations. And they also know that they have no place to complain because the senders are the military authorities who run the country by guns and threats.

The military regime makes force relocations and attacks for two reasons. The regime thinks that these villages are the source of recruitment for the ethnic revolutionary forces. By moving these villages away from the original location, the regime tries to cut the supplies of food, new recruitment, funding and information for ethnic armed forces. Second reason is to pave the way for profitable projects, such as gas pipeline construction.

There will be two options for the villagers. If they move to the regime’s controlled relocation sites, they will become the subjects of the military to work without compensation, modern form of slavery, as described by the ILO. If they choose to run away, they will become the internally displace persons (IDPs), moving and hiding in the deep forest as the living targets of the regime’s soldiers.

The catalogue of human rights abuses includes the shelling of civilians, using villagers as forced labor and forcing civilians to be IDPs. Since 1996 more than 2,800 villages in eastern Burma have been destroyed and more than one million people displaced. They have either been sent to relocation camps where conditions are little better than death camps, or forced to hide in the jungle and scavenge for their existence, or have fled to camps on the Thai-Burma border. Many IDPs including children had just died from malaria. They lack the basic necessities of food and medicine. Conditions at night are harsh, with fugitives unable to light fires for fear of the smoke being seen by soldiers. Discovery would mean probable torture and death.

This slide (Slide 7) is produced by Thailand-Burma Border Consortium to show that militarisation in Eastern Burma between 1995 and 2005. You see, in ten years, military camps in Eastern part of Burma, which include Southern Shan State, Karenni State, Karen State, Mon State and Tensaserim Division, are increased dramatically from 106 battalions in 1995 to 308 battalions in 2005.

And this slide (Slide 8) shows the numbers of IDPs and area of their hiding in Eastern part of Burma in 2005. Numbers if IDPs hiding in free-fire zones are 92,000, IDPs in relocation sites are 108,000, IDPs in cease-fire areas are 340,000 and total numbers of IDPs become at least 540,000.

Slide 9 and 10; Regime's Move to Pyinmana

As you are aware, the Burmese military regime has moved its administration headquarters to Kyetpye, nearby Pyinmana, 200 miles North of Rangoon, beginning from November 6, 2005. Thousands of government staffs were given two-days notice for relocation and for packing their stuffs and office materials and no one is allowed to resign or retire. Witnesses saw the initial convoy departed from Rangoon at precisely 6:37 A.M on Nov 6, 2005. As the trucks pulled away from the ministries, army officers led a ritual chant of "We're leaving! We're leaving!" And on Nov 11, 2006, at 11:00 AM (11:00 AM on 11.11.2006) there was an opening ceremony of 11 Ministries in Naypyidaw, new name of Kyetpye. "Kyetpye" means "Chicken Run" and "Naypyidaw" means "Royal City" or "City of the King".

Most observers and even some government officials believe that it was solely the brainchild of Gen. Than Shwe. Some have speculated that government fears of a U.S. invasion are to blame for the move, or perhaps civil unrest or even the prophesies of a soothsayer. But, we strongly believe that actual reason of moving is to control the ethnic nationality areas. I will prove it later. The regime information minister said that shifting the capital to the center of the country was designed to help develop ethnic nationality areas. Foreigners, including staff members from foreign Embassies and journalists, are not allowed to visit Pyinmana until now. Two Burmese journalists, U Thaung Sein and Ko Moe Htun, were arrested on March 23, for taking pictures around Pyinmana and sentenced there imprisonment with hard labor.

The regime started the construction work in Kyetpye since December 2003. Until May 2005, at least 13,000 local residents were relocated to other areas and their lands and firms were forcibly confiscated. In early 2006, another 5,000 were forcibly relocated and totally 50 villages between Tat Kong and Pyinmana and Yamethin are ordered to move. The military placed a lot of landmines around Kyetpye to secure the area and in January 2006 alone, two villagers died and five injured. Criminal prisoners from Insein prison are sent to Pyinmana to work in construction projects. Over 150 Big and median size construction companies are working to build this new City and many of them are belonged to former drug lords Khun Sa and Lao Sit Han as well as Than Shwe's favorite businessman Teza. Although the regime does not disclose the cost of building this new capital, which include government ministries, military leaders' headquarters, offices, houses, five stars hotels, airport, schools, hospitals, golf course and many recreation and entertainment centers, we are sure that it will cost some much from the state budget, let alone the losses of local residents, whose lands were forcibly confiscated, whose lives were severely destructed and who were forcibly relocated. The regime spent US$ 160 millions to build an international airport in Pyinmana and US $ 12.00 millions for building a concrete ground for military parade.

Slide 11, 12 and 13: Burmese Army Attacks in Eastern Burma

Since November 2005, the regime began severe offensive in Karen State, Pegu Division and Karenni State, nearby new city Pyinmana, to increase security and safety of the military leaders and their newly established command centers.

On November 29, 2005, Burmese army attacked and burned down Ter Kweh Lay village in Mone Township in Nyaunglebin District. 15 houses were destroyed and over 80 people were displaced and in hiding.

On December 16, 2005, Burmese army sent four battalions to attack villages near Mawchi-Taungoo road in Taungoo District. 28 villages were destroyed and over five hundred people were displaced. The Burmese army also placed landmines around the villages to force the villagers not to return and build their villages.

On December 17, 2005, Pah Poe village was attacked and 255 people went to hiding.

On December 23, 2005, troops from Light Infantry Battalions (421), (426), (428) and (424) attacked Karen villages in Southern Karen State. They burned down 26 houses in Gee Gaw Ber village, and forced 610 villagers into hiding. 341 villagers from nearby village of Toe Ka Htoo also went into hiding to avoid the attack. They are hiding at the mountain height of between 3,500- 6,500 foot.

In January and February 2006, the regime's attack continued in Mone Township and Ler Don (aka Kyauk Gyi) Township in Karen State and forced more than 2,200 villagers from their home.

On March 9, 2006, three Burmese army battalions, LIB 366, LIB 368 and LIB 364 launched joint attacks on Klaw Lee, Saw Ka Der and Maw La Kee villages in Mone Township, burned down all houses, stole food and savings and forced villagers to flee.

Slide 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22: Photos taken from IDP's hiding areas

Slide 23 and 24; The Reasons of Attack

Burmese military's attacks in Nyaunlaybin District, Shew Gyin District and Toungoo Disrtict in Karen, Karenni States and Pegu Division, started in late November 2005, intensified in February and March and keep building up in April. As of April 16, 2006, over 60 villages were destroyed and over 11,000 people became IDPs and are now in hiding in jungle and mountains without food, medicine and shelters. About 1,000 IDPs have arrived at Mae Ra Moo refugee camp, opposite of the Salween River, in Mae Hong Son Province in Thailand. Nearly 400 more are living in make-shift shelters across the river from Mae Ra Moo camp awaiting permission to enter the refugee camp.

These brutal and cruel attacks of Burmese military against civilians and villages in Eastern Burma, beginning from November and still going on, to secure its new capital, have created the worst internal displacement crisis in Asia and this is the world's most serious humanitarian disasters.

Ladies and Gentlemen and Friends of Burma,

When people around the world, including celebrities, policy makers and activists, are rigorously campaigning today to stop violence in Darfur, Sudan, the tragedies of the people of Burma and brutality of Burmese military regime are largely unnoticed and unaddressed.

Let's work together to stop violence in Burma.

Let's work together to stop killing in Burma.

Let's work together to urge policy makers and the world leaders to pay attention to the situation in Burma and respond effectively and timely, before too late.
And let's work together to urge the UN Security Council to act in Burma without further delay.

Thank you,

Aung Din

The Second Burma Forum in Canada

The Second Burma Forum"
The Embassy West Hotel, 1400 Carling Avenue, Ottawa, Canada
March 17-18 at 9:00 AM- 4:00 PM

Aung Din
Policy Director
US Campaign for Burma

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I would like to begin by thanking the Convening Committee of the Second Burma Forum, especially U Than Aung, Ko Tin Maung Htoo, Ko Kyaw Moe, Ko Htun Htun Oo and Ko Htay Aung. I am also honored to be here with U Bo Hla Tint, MP elect from National League for Democracy party and a Cabinet Member of the NCGUB. I am also happy to be here together with my fellow Burmese activists in Canada as well as the Canadian activists who are helping us in our non-violent struggle.

Let me update you all about the current situation in Burma very briefly.

(1) According to the news this week in worldwide media, the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu was detected for the first time in poultry in Burma. Experts confirmed cases in hundreds of dead chickens at a farm outside of Burma's second-largest city, Mandalay. The regime's controlled media didn't cover yet the news, but international community is trying to help to stop and contain this outbreak.

(2) The most significant development inside Burma continues to be the regime's move to Pyinmana, 200 miles North of Rangoon. At the end of February, all the Ministries have moved to Pyinmana. The move has made it more difficult for diplomats and international agency representatives to see the ministers and there have been delays, mainly of bureaucratic nature, such as getting visa and other clearances. The regime has invested a tremendous amount of money in the relocation, as it tried to pre-empt the possibility of being taken by a popular uprising. In the face of threats to declare civil servants “deserters” if they were absent without leave, all ministries moved there without open objection. Morale is very low, given the lack of notice to move, in some cases civil servants were given 48 hours notice and were not allowed to bring family. Further, the move separated civil servants from Rangoon business interests that they depended on to supplement their income. There is also some concern that local contractors have not been paid for work done.

(3) Rangoon is experiencing more frequent power cuts, even in areas where there was always electricity, as electricity is being diverted to Pyinmana. The biggest budget deficit resulted from accelerating of construction in Pyinmana and moving to there as well as high fuel prices have made all commodity prices going out of control, startling even those who have gotten “used to” perennial inflation. Meanwhile, the ongoing economic mismanagement of the regime continues to worsen the situation of the Burmese population.

(4) New guidelines for humanitarian aid

On February 7th, the junta's Ministries of Planning, Home Affairs, and Foreign Affairs convened a meeting with national NGOs and International NGOs to distribute the so-called Green Book, a set of new guidelines for humanitarian aid. The Burmese version of those guidelines is more harsh and restrictive and contains some issues that are not included or mentioned in the English version. The Burmese version is far more detailed, but officials said they did not want to annoy the foreign organizations with too many details and, as a result, circulated a more sanitised English version.

Those guidelines are completely unacceptable for these main reasons:

1. They imply a politicization of actors and participants involved in humanitarian operations.

2. The conditions for the employment of national staff go against the existing regulations (legal basis) and practices of most of the organizations involved.

3. Complying with those guidelines would make the process of delivering humanitarian aid too heavy and would cause significant delays, as too many clearance procedures and requirements are demanded.

4. The new guidelines require all foreign funds to go through the Myanmar Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB) which is directly controlled by the regime.

The guidelines are coherent with the regime's political objectives: to gain total control on the ground and to ensure that political interference permeates every level of international humanitarian work. The ultimate aim is to manipulate the population into receiving assistance as the largesse of the regime and the USDA.

The UN agencies have already identified trends that could lead to a nationwide humanitarian crisis:

1. Accelerating impoverishment of the people, with an increasing number of individuals living below the poverty line.

2. High level of malnourishment among children under the age of five and an increasing number of children who cannot continue school, resulting in internal migration, child labour, unregulated economic activities, such as mining and logging.

(6) The regime continues to carry out a policy of disenfranchisement of the ethnic groups’ current leadership. The regime is aiming at creating more fragmentation and disintegration so that the gaps will be likely filled by groups that are closely linked to the regime and that have an economic agenda instead of a political agenda. In pursuit of this agenda, several top ethnic leaders have been sentenced to jail terms of up to 106 years in 2005. Military offensives in ethnic areas persist, and military presence in so-called ceasefire areas has been beefed up.

(7) Displaced persons

According to the latest figures released by the Thailand Burma Border Consortium (January 2006), there are 155,416 refugees from Burma in the camps along the Thai-Burma border.

Nearly 700,000 refugees are currently living in Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh and India, having escaped from Burma.

The exodus of Burmese to neighboring countries includes more than 400,000 to Thailand, where thousands arrive each month, according to the Thailand Burma Border Consortium, the main refugee aid group. It says the conflict wracking eastern Myanmar has destroyed some 3,000 villages and displaced 80,000 people a year in most recent times.

Burma and the UN General Assembly and UN Commission on Human Rights

On November 18, 2005, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Burma, in which the General Assembly expressed grave concern over the extension of house arrest and consistent harassment of senior leaders of the National League for Democracy, particularly Aung San Suu Kyi and Vice Chairman U Tin Oo. The Assembly strongly called on the Burmese regime to end systematic human rights violations, bring human rights abusers to justice, immediately release political prisoners, enable human rights defenders to safely pursue their activities, and end recruitment of child soldiers, rape and sexual violence by the armed forces, and systematic enforced displacement that led to refugee flows to neighboring countries. The General Assembly also urged the Burmese regime to become a party to all international human rights instruments and fully cooperate with the Special Envoy and the Special Rapporteur to bring the country towards civilian rule.

It was the 15th resolution adopted by the UNGA in 15 years in a row. As usual, the Burmese regime declared that it would not associate with the resolution and rejected it as it did in the past 14 years. The regime's Ambassador called on all developing countries to stand with his government in the name of the spirit of the Non-Aligned Movement and the unity of developing countries, and to defeat the European Union drafted resolution. The representative of Cuba proposed a motion of non-action to kill the draft resolution on Burma and urged all delegates to vote for it. After the vote, Cuba's proposal was defeated by 54 in favor, 77 against and 35 abstentions. Later, the resolution on the situations of human rights in Burma was adopted by consensus. Over 50 countries from developing world and Non-Aligned Movement, notably and ironically with including South Africa, a country which was free from the Apartheid rule after decades of freedom movement and successful international campaigns and India, the so-called largest democracy in the world, aligned with the dictators to stop addressing human rights situation of unfortunate people. We now know that in this world, rhetoric and reality are often opposites.

I am sure that UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva will soon adopt its 14^th resolution on Burma and it will be ignored by the regime as usual.

Burma and the UN Security Council

On September 20, 2005, Washington, DC based DLA Piper international law firm produced a report, entitled "Threat to the Peace; A Call for UN Security Council to Act in Burma', commissioned by former President of Czech Republic Vaclav Havel and Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Arch-Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa. Presenting the dire situation in Burma and comparing with the precedence, which Security Council decided to involve, two leaders called for the Security Council to act in Burma immediately. The great impact of this report is that plenty of the world leaders came to realize that Burma deserves a binding resolution from the UN Security Council, instead of non-binding resolutions adopted by UN General Assembly and UN Commission on Human Rights, which are ignored by the junta.

In December, before the UNSC briefing on Burma, leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- ASEAN -- used their summit to formally urge Burmese regime to release political prisoners and provide tangible proof that it is moving toward democracy. ASEAN also decided to send Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar to Burma to check on reforms. But it is not yet clear when he'll be allowed to go. This is a great improvement, but not materialized yet.

On December 16, 2005, for the first time in the 17 years, UN Security Council was briefed by UN Under-Secretary-General Ibrahim Gambari on the situation in Burma, with the presence of Secretary-General Kofi Annan and all member states. The issues covered by Ibrahim Gambari included litany of the problems that confronts Burma, the dire economic, social and political situation, the continued detention of political prisoners, the serious spread of diseases especially HIV, TB and Malaria, the food insecurity, the recruitment of child soldiers, the systematic abuse of human rights, lack of progress to actually tackle internal conflict, lack of progress on internal constitutional reform, lack of access of special envoy and increase movement of drugs in Burma.

A Way Forward and Canadian Support

I am here to ask for the support of Canadian Parliament and Government to help Burma free.

(1) Now, we are trying to have a resolution on Burma at the UN Security Council in the coming months, possibly in June. To make sure to have nine votes, which are required to put on the agenda and to make sure to persuade China and Russia not to oppose it, we would like to request Canadian Government to use its diplomatic effort and ask Chin and Russia to participate in international campaign to help Burma together. As a member of G 8, Canada has many chances to speak with China and Russia in various occasions. We would like to request Canadian Parliament to adopt a resolution, calling UN Security Council to act in Burma immediately. Even a letter from a group of Canadian MPs, calling its government and UNSC to take action on Burma, will be very helpful.

(2) ASEAN is now diverting from its tradition of non-interference and beginning to pressure the regime to expedite the political change in Burma. Some ASEAN members, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore are showing their willingness to work together with the United Nations and international community to promote freedom in Burma. We ask the Canadian Government to include Burma in its discussion with ASEAN as a whole and its bilateral meetings with members of ASEAN to encourage their stronger involvement in Burma.

(3) Two years ago, ASEAN Inter-Parliamentarians Caucus on Myanmar (Burma) (AIPMC) was formed with members of Parliament from both ruling and opposition parties from ASEAN countries, in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia and Thailand. In two years, AIPMC became a powerful mechanism in ASEAN and persuaded ASEAN governments to realize that how the military junta in Burma is destroying the image and dignity of the ASEAN, how it is cheating these governments and how it is using ASEAN to shield from the international pressure. In early this year, MPs from India also formed an Indian MP Caucus on Burma and now cooperating with AIPMC. We ask the Members of Canadian Parliament to form a similar caucus and work together with AIPMC.

Thank you.

Aung Din
Policy Director
US Campaign for Burma

UN's Annan Should Seize this Chance

Irrawaddy: UN’s Annan should seize this chance - Aung Din
Thu 15 Dec 2005
Filed under: News, Opinion
http://www.burmanet.org/news/2005/12/15/irrawaddy-un%E2%80%99s-annan-should-seize-this-chance-aung-din

When the UN Security Council is briefed by the UN on Burma, as it is about to be, it will be the first time the issue has been brought before the Council in the 17 years since a new military regime came to power in Rangoon, after a huge pro-democracy protest had been brutally suppressed in Burma.

While China and Russia—who both voted against the move in the UNSC—have said the briefing will be only a one-time event, and only an “informal consultation as a whole,” the US, Britain, the Philippines, Romania and others in the majority who voted in favor are working to ensure the Council offers its support for UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to move on Burma.

The success of this briefing and any subsequent efforts of the international community, such as the Asean Summit early this week, to press the Burmese regime to democratize and respect human rights now depends a great deal on Annan himself. It’s not clear whether Annan will give the briefing himself.

Most observers expect the secretary general to at least attend the briefing and offer his own comments, as well as answer the Council’s questions. All Council members, except the regime’s allies, hope that he will ask the Council to empower him in his efforts to bring about national reconciliation in Burma. If he does, however, he must first make it clear to the doubtful Council members —China, Russia, Japan, Brazil and Algeria—that the situation in Burma justifies UNSC involvement.

Encouragingly, in his report to the UNSC on December 9 on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, he said that “The emerging crisis in … Burma highlights other concerns for the protection of civilians. In these cases humanitarian access and the ability to protect the civilian population from the long-term social and economic consequences of conflict are denied …”

He also mentioned in the report that these conflicts lead to the forced recruitment of child soldiers through abduction, kidnapping, enslavement and coercion or intimidation of their parents or guardians. We believe that he is well aware of the claim by regime critics that an estimated 70,000 child soldiers have been drafted into the Burmese military in this way. He also highlighted forced displacement of rural communities as one of the most disturbing features of conflict. He added that there are 15 million refugees and 25 million internally displaced persons through conflicts worldwide. We believe that there are more than 2 million Burmese refugees, and 650,000 IDPs hiding in eastern Burma, who are within this category of violence.

In his report, Annan also highlighted the use of sexual violence against women and girls as a deliberate method of warfare that has become more horrifying in recent years. Although his examples of sexual violence were from conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, we hope he is also aware of the Burmese military’s use of rape as a weapon in conflicts with ethnic insurgencies. The use of sexual violence as a weapon of war by the Burmese army has been reported by UN rapporteur on the human rights situation in Burma Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, and has also been included in the texts of many consecutive resolutions of the UN General Assembly and the UN Commission on Human Rights.

The ball is now in Annan’s court, whether he briefs the Council or not. His mandate on Burma could well be strengthened, as called for by detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy and other Burmese. Judging from his report, we feel he may well use this rare opportunity effectively, and take seriously the plight of the people of Burma, for whom he has shown a lot of concern during his tenure as the secretary general.

Now is Annan’s chance to ask the powerful UNSC for the authority he needs to negotiate a peaceful and non-violent national reconciliation for the Burmese people. Although several countries have worked to get this far at the Council, the West and allies alone cannot provide this mandate.

In his report to the October opening session of the UN General Assembly on the human rights situation in Burma, Annan demanded the Burmese regime resume dialogue with representatives of all ethnic groups and political leaders as soon as possible, release all political prisoners, lift remaining constraints on all political leaders, allow reopening of the offices of the opposition NLD and include these groups in the generals’ proclaimed road map to democracy. He said he hoped to see these steps implemented by the first half of 2006.

The majority of countries on the Security Council have handed Annan a golden opportunity. We hope he will seize the moment to ask for the Council’s blessing in handling Burma. This would strengthen his mandate on Burma, and maybe help him to fulfill his earlier demands.

Aung Din, a former political prisoner in Burma, is co-founder and policy director of the Washington-based US Campaign for Burma.

Kofi Annan's Big Moment on Burma

Kofi Annan's Big Moment on Burma

Aung Din
December 12, 2005
Washington, DC

As ASEAN leaders in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia pressure Burmese military junta for the release of all political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and tangible improvement of the failed democratization process, the UN Security Council is planning to hear a briefing on the situation in Burma. This will be the first time the UN Security Council will discuss Burma in the 17 years since Burma's popular uprising in 1988. Although China and Russia have already said that it will be only a one-time event and only an "informal consultation as a whole", the United States, United Kingdom, the Philippines, Romania and other allies on the Security Council are working to ensure the Council offers its support for UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan's effort on Burma. The success of this briefing and any subsequent efforts of the international community to democratize and bring respect for human rights in Burma now depend a great deal on the Secretary-General himself.

Most observers expect that the Secretary-General will attend the briefing and offer his own comments, as well as answer questions the Council himself. All Council members, except the regime's allies, hope that Mr. Annan will ask the Council to empower him in his effort to facilitate national reconciliation in Burma. However, before he asks for the Security Council's support, he must first make it clear to the doubtful members of the Council --China, Russia, Japan, Brazil and Algeria-- that situation in Burma justified for the Security Council's involvement.

Encouragingly, in his report to the UN Security Council on last Friday, December 9, 2005, on the protection of civilians in armed conflict, he stated that "The emerging crisis in ... Burma highlights other concerns for the protection of civilians. In these cases humanitarian access and the ability to protect the civilian population from the long-term social and economic consequences of conflict are denied ...."

He also mentioned in the report that these conflicts rely upon child soldiers, who are commonly recruited and used against their will, through abduction, kidnapping, enslavement and coercion or intimidation of their parents or guardians. We believe that he is well aware of over 70,000 child soldiers forcibly recruited into the Burmese military. He also highlighted forced displacement within borders as one of the most disturbing features of conflict. In a graph attached in his report, he stated that numbers of refugee and internally displaced persons (IDP) are 15 millions and 25 millions respectively in 2004 all over the world. We believe that over two million population of Burmese refugees and over 650,000 populations of Burmese IDPs, hiding in Eastern part of Burma certainly fall within this "disturbing" category of violence.

The Secretary-General also highlighted the use of sexual violence, particularly against women and girls as a deliberate method of warfare that has become more horrifying in recent years. Although his examples of sexual violence in armed conflict are in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, we hope that he is also aware of the Burmese military regime's use of rape as weapon of war in ethnic nationality areas. The use of sexual violence as a weapon of war by the Burmese army has been reported by the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Situation in Burma, Professor Paulo Sergio Pinheiro and has also been included in the texts of many consecutive resolutions of the UN General Assembly and the UN Commission on Human Rights.

The ball is now in Mr. Annan's court. His briefing to the Security Council will determine whether the supportive countries on the Council will be able to strengthen his mandate with the support of the Security Council, as requested by National League for Democracy and the people from all walks of life in Burma. Judging from his above-mentioned report, we feel that he will use this rare and unique opportunity effectively and seriously for the sake of the people of Burma, for whom he has shown a lot of concerns during his tenure as the UN Secretary-General.

It is also important to note that the UN's current and previous Special Envoys to Burma have often complained of a weak mandate given by the UN General Assembly. Now is Mr. Annan's chance to request from the UN's penultimate body the authority he needs to negotiate a peaceful and non-violent national reconciliation for the Burmese people. Although many countries have worked to get this far at the Council, the West and other allies alone can not provide this mandate. As former editor of the Far Eastern Economic Review Michael Vatikiotis said in a recent opinion piece, the Secretary-General must ask --- and negotiate--- for it himself.

In his report to the 60^th session of UN General Assembly on the situation of human rights in Burma, Mr. Annan demanded the Burmese regime resumes dialogue with the representatives of all ethnic nationality groups and political leaders as soon as possible, releases all political prisoners, lifts the remaining constraints on all political leaders, allows reopening of the offices of National League for Democracy, and includes aforementioned groups in the regime's political road map. He went further by saying that he hoped to see these steps implemented by the first half of 2006.

The majority of the Countries on the Security Council have handed the Secretary-General a golden opportunity. We hope that Mr. Annan will seize the moment and request empowerment from the UN Security Council. Such backing will strengthen his mandate and help him keep his words


[Aung Din is a former political prisoner and Co-Founder and Policy Director of Washington, DC-based US Campaign for Burma.]

A Burmese Perspective and Efforts by the NLD and Aung San Suu Kyi to Engage with the International Community

The American Society of International Law, Tillar House

Burma: A Challenge to the International Legal System
December 8, 2005, 6:30 PM- 8:30 PM
Sponsored by ASIL and the ASIL's New Professionals Interest Group

Presentation of Aung Din, Policy Director, US Campaign for Burma

A Burmese Perspective and Efforts by the NLD/ASSK to Engage with the International Community

Introduction

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Let me begin with my appreciation to the ASIL and the ASIL's New Professionals Interest Group for sponsoring this event at very critical time. I would also thank all of you for gathering here today and your interest in Burma. As a Burmese citizen, it is encouraging to see people around the world taking an interest in my country. Thanks Andrew for your kind introduction.

As a Burmese citizen, an activist working for freedom and democracy in Burma and a supporter of our leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her party National League for Democracy, I came here to speak the efforts of Aung San Suu Kyi and NLD to engage with the International Community and the International Legal System to bring justice in Burma.

I believe many of you already knew what is Burma? And what is happening in Burma? For those, who don't know very well, let me say very briefly about Burma. Today Burma can be described as a country of South East Asia, being ruled by the world most brutal dictatorship, which use all forms of abuses, including arbitrary detention, extrajudicial killing, forced relocation and forced labor, use of rape as weapon of war, purposely destruction of villages to oppress the population for its control of power. Burma is also a major producer and trafficker of heroine and illicit drugs. Burma's dictator General Than Shwe is second worst dictator in the world, according to the Parade magazine, just after Kim Jong IL of North Korea. Burma army has forcibly recruited over 70 thousands child soldiers, the most number of child soldiers in the world, according to Human Rights Watch. According to Amnesty International, Burma's regime incarcerated over 1,200 political dissidents, including 1991 Nobel Peace Prize Recipient Aung San Suu Kyi and over a dozen Members of Parliament. According to a recent report produced by Council on Foreign Relations, Burma is the source of unique HIV strain and spreading it to neighboring countries, China, India and South East Asia, through its drug trafficking route. Berlin-based Transparency International in October ranked Burma as the world's third most corrupt country, sharing the same rank with Haiti and Turkmenistan and just above Bangladesh and Chad, out of 159 countries. Over 650,000 people are hiding in the mountains and forests in the Eastern part of Burma, as the internal displaced persons (IDPs) to avoid the killing of the regime's soldiers, while over two millions people of Burma are living in neighboring countries as the refugees or illegal immigrants.

Well. This is my homeland! Clearly, Burma is not in good shape.

Burma: 17 Years of Resistance

17 years after a popular uprising in Burma in 1988, calling for democracy, human rights and an end of military rule, the state of Burma has deteriorated dramatically and particularly for ordinary Burmese. The 1988 popular uprising was crushed brutally by the military ruler. But because of some pressure from internal and external forces including some members of the international community, a multi-party election in Burma was held in 1990. Even though the National League for Democracy party, led by Aung San Suu Kyi won a landslide victory, the party was unable to assume power. To this day, the military regime continues to refuse to honor the election results and the international response to Burma's crisis is still a polarizing issue.

The United States is a leader among democratic countries, including European Union, in pressuring Burmese junta through strong economic sanctions, an arms embargo, ban on financial transaction, freezing the regime's assets in the US, targeted visa restriction and other diplomatic measures. While the U.S. and EU choose to pressure and isolate the regime, neighboring countries choose the opposing way; so-called constructive engagement. China becomes the strongest ally and major weapon supplier of Burmese military junta. It makes another giant neighbor India to worry that it might lose influence over Burma against its arch-rival China. Now, under the "Look East" policy, India is also dealing nicely with Burmese military junta to counterbalance China, by providing some military equipments, military training, soft loans, financial assistance and mutual state leader visits. ASEAN's policy of non-interference among the member States also protects the regime from the international pressure.

Burma: A Challenge to the International Legal System

When non-violence democracy movement is being crushed brutally by the dictator, NLD and the people of Burma cried out loud to international civilized community for help. Aung San Suu Kyi mentioned repeatedly that "Please use your liberty to promote ours."

In Customary International Law, grave, repeated and systematic violations of human rights are forbidden. There are norms banning slavery, racial discrimination, tortures and genocide. There are norms prohibiting forcible denial of the right of peoples to self-determination .These rules bind the Nations regardless of whether they have rectified the specific conventions or not. Now, there is legal entitlement for any State or International Organization competent in area of human rights to request States where gross and large-scale violations of human rights are occurring to stop such violations. If they are not ended, International Community has authority to impose the measures to enforce the ending of such violations. Intervention in the affairs of individual State is fully justified, so long as serious and large-scale violations had been committed by its ruler, regardless of whether they amounted to a threat to the peace or not. Burma is such a case now. International Legal System is being requested by the people of Burma and human rights activists around the world to organize International Intervention in Burma. This is a great challenge for International Legal
System.

Burma and the UN General Assembly

Three weeks ago, on November 18, 2005, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution on Burma, in which the General Assembly expressed grave concern over the extension of house arrest and consistent harassment of senior leaders of the National League for Democracy, particularly Aung San Suu Kyi and Vice Chairman U Tin Oo. The Assembly strongly called on the Burmese regime to end systematic human rights violations, bring human rights abusers to justice, immediately release political prisoners, enable human rights defenders to safely pursue their activities, and end recruitment of child soldiers, rape and sexual violence by the armed forces, and systematic enforced displacement that led to refugee flows to neighboring countries. The General Assembly also urged the Burmese regime to become a party to all international human rights instruments and fully cooperate with the Special Envoy and the Special Rapporteur to bring the country towards civilian rule.

This is the 15th resolution adopted by the UNGA in 15 years in a row. As usual, the Burmese regime declared that it would not associate with the resolution and rejected it as it did in the past 14 years. The regime's Ambassador called on all developing countries to stand with his government in the name of the spirit of the Non-Aligned Movement and the unity of developing countries, and to defeat the European Union drafted resolution. The representative of Cuba proposed a motion of non-action to kill the draft resolution on Burma and urged all delegates to vote for it. After the vote, Cuba's proposal was defeated by 54 in favor, 77 against and 35 abstentions. Later, the resolution on the situations of human rights in Burma was adopted by consensus.

This is the dangerous message for all of us. People like us, who are being ruled and abused by the brutal dictatorship, have expected and believed for many years that United Nations is an important venue in international legal system to complain our unbearable sufferings, ask for help and get support. In this 60th General Assembly, all, except one, country specific resolutions on Burma, Iran, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan were challenged with "No Action Motions" proposed by these tyranny regimes with the support of many other countries. Although six resolutions were passed after these motions were defeated by majority in votes, the resolution on the human rights situation in Sudan was killed. Over 50 countries from developing world and Non-Aligned Movement, notably and ironically with including South Africa, a country which was free from the Apartheid rule after decades of freedom movement and successful international campaigns and India, the so-called largest democracy in the world, aligned with the dictators to stop addressing human rights situation of unfortunate people. We now know that in this world, rhetoric and reality are often opposites.

I would say that this is a big challenge for the International Legal System and International Law Society. Imagine that if the resolution on Burma is killed. What will happen? There will be no legal international concerns on the situation in Burma; no legal denunciation from international community on Burmese military junta for its systematic human rights violations; no more mandate for Secretary-General to use his offices for assisting realizing of political dialogue in Burma; no more UN Special Envoy; no more UN Special Rapporteur; and no more UN involvement. We will have no place to cry. And dictators like Burmese regime will be out of the scope of International Legal System or International Legal System will be irrelevant to those who run the country with iron fists and are conducting crimes against humanity.

Since last year, we knew that there were growing numbers of countries, trying to kill the country specific resolutions in UN General Assembly. This year they proved that they are becoming stronger than before and they might have sufficient numbers to kill all country specific resolutions in the next year, if international law society and democratic countries are unable to reform to address this ongoing challenge.

Burma and the UN Security Council

Last Friday, the UN Security Council, for the first time in the 17 years, agreed to invite senior officials from the UN Secretariat to brief the situation in Burma, in a close door meeting. This is a compromise between the U.S-led countries that believe the involvement of Security Council in Burma is long overdue and another group of China, Russia, Algeria, Brazil and Japan that believe that situation in Burma is no immediate threat to the international peace and security. Anyway, we welcome this decision and we hope that Secretary-General Kofi Annan will be able to convince all members of the Council that this is the time to act in Burma.

Actually, the National League for Democracy (NLD) has called for UN Security Council intervention in Burma since 2003. After the Depeyin Massacre, in which scores of NLD members were beaten to death by the regime's militia in Upper Burma, in which Aung San Suu Kyi and U Tin Oo were narrowly escaped from mass assassination, but subsequently arrested and detained to this day, NLD party requested the UN Security Council to intervene in Burma.

One day after the launch of the report "Threat to the Peace; A Call for the UN Security Council to Act in Burma", on September 21, 2005, NLD issued a statement, special appeal to international community to support the President Vaclav Havel and Bishop Desmond Tutu's call for Security Council to Act in Burma. In that statement, NLD leaders appreciate President Havel and Bishop Tutu, express their desire and commitment for peaceful change in Burma through meaningful dialogue, urge all member states of Security Council to address the situation in Burma and especially request permanent member states of the Council to refrain from exercising use of veto powers. NLD's strong endorsement for Security Council action in Burma is overwhelmingly echoed by the people from all walks of life in Burma, including veteran politicians, ethnic national parties, student and youth leaders and even some ceasefire ethnic groups.

Again, on October 28, 2005, NLD issued another statement, in which it repeated the request of all member states of Security Council to agree to act in Burma. At the same time, rank and file members of NLD tried to meet with respective Embassies in Rangoon and make personal appeal directly. We deeply appreciate the U.S, especially to those officials from the Congress, State Department, the White House and US's Mission in New York, who have been working tirelessly to raise Burma at the Security Council. Now, the ball is in Kofi Annan's court.

Now, the Ball is in Kofi's Court

It is sure that Russia and China have no intention to follow up any action after the briefing. We understand that U.S. and United Kingdom, together with many other members have decided to bring Burma on the Security Council's formal agenda. The briefing of Kofi Annan or his representative will weigh in to one side to win.

Russia and China are repeatedly saying that human rights situation mentioned in the report are exaggerating and current situation in Burma is nothing more than domestic problem. But Kofi Annan can prove that these facts mentioned in the report are exactly mentioned in his reports to General Assembly in this year and in the past years as well as the 28 consecutive resolutions adopted by consensus by the UN General Assembly and Commission on Human Rights in 15 years. Consensus means that they, Russia and China also included in decision making. How can they say these are exaggerating?

By comparing with the previous cases which Security Council decided to involve, Jared and a group of smart and dedicated lawyers, pointed out that the situation in Burma constitute the threat to the Peace. Kofi Annan also can truly say that all 28 resolutions are ignored by the regime and effort of his offices to mediate in Burma is totally ineffective, not because of his lack of will to work out, but because of his lack of powerful backing from Security Council. He should ask the Council to empower him with the Council's mandate to vigorously engage in the national reconciliation and democratization in Burma. We hope that he knows he can do more than expressing disappointment again and again. We also hope that he will use this rare opportunity effectively and seriously. By having strong empowerment from the Security Council through a binding resolution, his effort of assisting democratization in Burma will be more effective and he may practically expect the changes in Burma in the first half of 2006, a dead line set by himself in his report to UNGA on October 10, 2005...

Finally, I would like to make clear that we are not just wishing; but we are working continuously and tirelessly to bring about changes in Burma through international legal system. Let me conclude with the remark of Aung San Suu Kyi, "In a country like ours which is totally crushed by a military regime, justice is a dream. But it is a dream that we are determined to realize."

Thank you.

Aung Din
Policy Director
US Campaign for Burma