Thursday, 18 March 2010
Burma: Resistance Day Demo - Protest against military Dictatorship in Burma
Resistance Day Demo: Protest against military Dictatorship in Burma
Message By ; BDC
Dear Friends,
We would like to cordially invite you to join with us to commemorate Burma Resistance Day and to protest against illegitimate military regime in front of the Burmese military regime's embassy. Your participation will be highly appreciated and looking forward to see you all.
Date: 26 March 2010 (Friday)
Time: 13:00-14:00 pm
Place: In front of the Burmese Junta's Military Regime
Address: 19A Charles Street, London, W1J 5DX
Tube: Nearest tube station is Green Park
Thank you very much and looking forward to see you all.
http://www.bdcburma.org/EventDetails.asp?msg_id=88
Message By ; BDC
Dear Friends,
We would like to cordially invite you to join with us to commemorate Burma Resistance Day and to protest against illegitimate military regime in front of the Burmese military regime's embassy. Your participation will be highly appreciated and looking forward to see you all.
Date: 26 March 2010 (Friday)
Time: 13:00-14:00 pm
Place: In front of the Burmese Junta's Military Regime
Address: 19A Charles Street, London, W1J 5DX
Tube: Nearest tube station is Green Park
Thank you very much and looking forward to see you all.
http://www.bdcburma.org/EventDetails.asp?msg_id=88
CHAIRMAN OF THE PARLIAMENTARY FRIENDS OF BURMA SENT THE LETTER TO CHAIRMAN OF SPDC
CHAIRMAN OF THE PARLIAMENTARY FRIENDS OF BURMA SENT THE LETTER TO CHAIRMAN OF SPDC
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Today, Chairman of the Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) sent the letter to Chairman of SPDC Senior General Than Shwe and its Foreign Minister regarding electoral laws.
PFOB consists of Members and Senators from all parties of the Canadian Parliament.
Senior General Than Shwe
Chairman, State Peace and Development Council
Nay Pyi Taw
Myanmar
U Nyan Win
Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nay Pyi Taw
Union of Myanmar
Embassy of the Union of Myanmar
Sandringham Bldg
85 Range Rd, SUITE 902-903
Ottawa, ON
KIN 8J6
Dear Senior General Than Shwe,
The Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) has noticed the announcement by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) of new electoral laws in preparation for the planned elections this year.
We are very disappointed with the electoral laws, which exclude Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and more than 2,100 political prisoners from political participation. The law may also prohibit Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners from being a member in political parties. This is clearly another step in the wrong direction taken by the SPDC. It leads us to believe that the political party registration law makes a mockery of the democratic process, and ensures that the upcoming elections will be devoid of credibility.
PFOB is increasingly concerned that the SPDC continues to ignore calls by Canada and the international community, including members of ASEAN, to show concrete commitments to political reforms. We reiterate our call for SPDC to engage an inclusive political process leading to fair, transparent, and credible elections in which all citizens of Burma / Myanmar, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, can freely participate. We believe that a tripartite dialogue remains the best viable means towards achieving national reconciliation, long-lasting peace, and prosperity in Burma.
The Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) calls on the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) to overturn the law that bars political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, from participating in the political process. PFOB also calls on the authorities in Naypyidaw, Burma (Myanmar) to amend the 2008 constitution to ensure a genuine, all inclusive, democratic, political process in Burma.
Sincerely,
Hon. Larry Bagnell M.P.
Chair Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB)
Copy from http://www.yeyintnge.com/2010/03/chairman-of-parliamentary-friends-of.html
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Today, Chairman of the Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) sent the letter to Chairman of SPDC Senior General Than Shwe and its Foreign Minister regarding electoral laws.
PFOB consists of Members and Senators from all parties of the Canadian Parliament.
Senior General Than Shwe
Chairman, State Peace and Development Council
Nay Pyi Taw
Myanmar
U Nyan Win
Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Nay Pyi Taw
Union of Myanmar
Embassy of the Union of Myanmar
Sandringham Bldg
85 Range Rd, SUITE 902-903
Ottawa, ON
KIN 8J6
Dear Senior General Than Shwe,
The Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) has noticed the announcement by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) of new electoral laws in preparation for the planned elections this year.
We are very disappointed with the electoral laws, which exclude Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and more than 2,100 political prisoners from political participation. The law may also prohibit Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and political prisoners from being a member in political parties. This is clearly another step in the wrong direction taken by the SPDC. It leads us to believe that the political party registration law makes a mockery of the democratic process, and ensures that the upcoming elections will be devoid of credibility.
PFOB is increasingly concerned that the SPDC continues to ignore calls by Canada and the international community, including members of ASEAN, to show concrete commitments to political reforms. We reiterate our call for SPDC to engage an inclusive political process leading to fair, transparent, and credible elections in which all citizens of Burma / Myanmar, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, can freely participate. We believe that a tripartite dialogue remains the best viable means towards achieving national reconciliation, long-lasting peace, and prosperity in Burma.
The Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB) calls on the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) to overturn the law that bars political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize winner Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, from participating in the political process. PFOB also calls on the authorities in Naypyidaw, Burma (Myanmar) to amend the 2008 constitution to ensure a genuine, all inclusive, democratic, political process in Burma.
Sincerely,
Hon. Larry Bagnell M.P.
Chair Parliamentary Friends of Burma (PFOB)
Copy from http://www.yeyintnge.com/2010/03/chairman-of-parliamentary-friends-of.html
"The idea of human rights begins with a fundamental commitment to the dignity that is the birthright of every man, woman and child," said U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton while introducing the annual Human Rights Report:
"Progress in advancing human rights begins with the facts. And for the last 34 years, the United States has produced the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, providing the most comprehensive record available of the condition of human rights around the world."
The Report raised grave concerns about the human rights situation in Burma. Burma is ruled by a military regime dominated by the majority ethnic Burman group. The State Peace and Development Council, which is headed by Senior General Than Shwe [Tawn Shway], has assumed the duties of the government, and at all levels of the government, ultimate authority rests with military officers. The government also controls the security forces without civilian oversight.
The Report states that in 2009, the government of Burma "continued its egregious human rights violations and abuses. . . . including increased military attacks in ethnic minority regions, such as in the Karen and Shan state."
The Human Rights Report also states that "the regime continued to abridge the right of citizens to change their government and committed other severe human rights abuses."
There were reports of unlawful and arbitrary killings by security forces; of deaths of people held in government custody; of disappearances, rape and torture. The government frequently detained civic activists without charges. Citizens were imprisoned for political motives, and prisoners and detainees were held in harsh and life-threatening conditions.
In short, the government of Burma kept a tight leash on possible criticism of, or activism against, its policies by restricting its citizens' privacy, freedom of speech, press, assembly, association, religion, and movement. At the same time, it allowed violent treatment and discrimination against women, recruitment of child soldiers, discrimination against ethnic minorities, and trafficking in persons. The government took no significant actions to prosecute or punish those responsible for human rights abuses.
"The principle that each person possesses equal moral value is a simple, self-evident truth," said Secretary of State Clinton. ” With the facts in hand and the goals clear in our heads and our hearts, we recommit ourselves to continue the hard work of making human rights a human reality."
Burma at 'Critical Moment' as Elections Loom
Burma will go to the polls this year for the first time in 20 years, however controversial election laws will mean that the country's most prominent democracy activist will be banned from taking part.
The Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been in some form of detention for the last 14 years, will be banned from taking part in the poll.
In the last election in 1990, the country's military junta was shocked after Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory. The win came despite the fact that Suu Kyi was under house arrest and the country was under martial law. This time, the ruling generals are taking no chances.
Last week, the country released new electoral directives that will mean that anyone declared a “criminal” under the country's constitution will be barred from standing in the poll. Moreover, no members of political parties are allowed to stand as candidates.
On Monday, Tomas Ojea Quintana, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Burma (renamed Myanmar by the junta) said that the rules will stifle democracy. "Under these current conditions, elections in Burma cannot be considered credible," he told a news conference after presenting a report to the U.N. Human Rights Council.
No formal date has been set for the elections, although the favored day for superstitious senior general Than Shwe is believed to be Oct. 10, 2010 (10/10/10). It is also a month before Suu Kyi is due to be released from house arrest. Suu Kyi’s party, allowed to re-open regional offices that have been closed for seven years, is considering whether or not to boycott the election.
Burma has 2,100 prisoners of conscience in jail, among them 11 members of the NLD. Hundreds more have been jailed since a 2007 popular uprising that was led by monks. Quintana said that there was "no indication" that Burma was intending to release these political prisoners, and submitted a report urging a full inquiry into the regime's alleged abuses.
In his report, Quintana said, "The possibility exists that some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity, or war crimes under the terms of the statute of the International Criminal Court." Speaking to the Human Rights Council on Monday, Quintana noted that with elections being held this year, "Burma is at a critical moment in its history."
However, the country's ambassador to the U.N. Wunna Maung Lwin, said that the report was full of inaccuracies and "violates the right of a sovereign state." "We strongly condemn and reject these recommendations and the report as a whole," said the ambassador.
"My government has clearly stated that there are no prisoners of conscience and that those who are serving prison terms are (those) who offended the existing laws and regulations," he told the council. The issue was raised again on Wednesday, by Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo in a meeting with his Burmese counterpart, Nyan Win.
Romulo told reporters afterward that he was not satisfied with the conversation and would urge the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)— to which both Burma and the Philippines belong—to call for a reversal of the election decree, at the bloc's annual summit in Vietnam next month.
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/31586/
The Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been in some form of detention for the last 14 years, will be banned from taking part in the poll.
In the last election in 1990, the country's military junta was shocked after Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide victory. The win came despite the fact that Suu Kyi was under house arrest and the country was under martial law. This time, the ruling generals are taking no chances.
Last week, the country released new electoral directives that will mean that anyone declared a “criminal” under the country's constitution will be barred from standing in the poll. Moreover, no members of political parties are allowed to stand as candidates.
On Monday, Tomas Ojea Quintana, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Burma (renamed Myanmar by the junta) said that the rules will stifle democracy. "Under these current conditions, elections in Burma cannot be considered credible," he told a news conference after presenting a report to the U.N. Human Rights Council.
No formal date has been set for the elections, although the favored day for superstitious senior general Than Shwe is believed to be Oct. 10, 2010 (10/10/10). It is also a month before Suu Kyi is due to be released from house arrest. Suu Kyi’s party, allowed to re-open regional offices that have been closed for seven years, is considering whether or not to boycott the election.
Burma has 2,100 prisoners of conscience in jail, among them 11 members of the NLD. Hundreds more have been jailed since a 2007 popular uprising that was led by monks. Quintana said that there was "no indication" that Burma was intending to release these political prisoners, and submitted a report urging a full inquiry into the regime's alleged abuses.
In his report, Quintana said, "The possibility exists that some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity, or war crimes under the terms of the statute of the International Criminal Court." Speaking to the Human Rights Council on Monday, Quintana noted that with elections being held this year, "Burma is at a critical moment in its history."
However, the country's ambassador to the U.N. Wunna Maung Lwin, said that the report was full of inaccuracies and "violates the right of a sovereign state." "We strongly condemn and reject these recommendations and the report as a whole," said the ambassador.
"My government has clearly stated that there are no prisoners of conscience and that those who are serving prison terms are (those) who offended the existing laws and regulations," he told the council. The issue was raised again on Wednesday, by Philippine Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo in a meeting with his Burmese counterpart, Nyan Win.
Romulo told reporters afterward that he was not satisfied with the conversation and would urge the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)— to which both Burma and the Philippines belong—to call for a reversal of the election decree, at the bloc's annual summit in Vietnam next month.
http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/31586/
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