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MYANMAR
Parliamentarians reportedly still serving their sentences:
CASE No. MYN/04 - KHIN MAUNG SWE
CASE No. MYN/13 - SAW NAING NAING
CASE No. MYN/35 - SAW HLAING
CASE No. MYN/60 - ZAW MYINT MAUNG
CASE No. MYN/104 - KYAW KHIN
CASE No. MYN/118 - THAN NYEIN
CASE No. MYN/119 - MAY WIN MYINT
CASE No. MYN/215 - AUNG SOE MYINT
CASE No. MYN/236 - KHUN TUN OO
CASE No. MYN/237 - KYAW SAN
CASE No. MYN/238 - KYAW MIN
CASE No. MYN/241 - KHIN MAUNG WIN
CASE No. MYN/242 - KYAW KYAW
Parliamentarians arrested during government crackdown on mass protests in the autumn of 2007:
CASE No. MYN/243 - FU CIN SHING THANG
CASE No. MYN/244 - HTAUNG KHO HTAN
CASE No. MYN/245 - MYINT THEIN1
CASE No. MYN/246 - HLA PE
CASE No. MYN/247 - KYAW KHAING
CASE No. MYN/248 - TIN AUNG AUNG
CASE No. MYN/249 - BALA
CASE No. MYN/250 - HLA THEIN
CASE No. MYN/251 - MAUNG MAUNG THAN
CASE No. MYN/252 - MYAT HLA
CASE No. MYN/253 - HAN ZAW
CASE No. MYN/254 - THAN LWIN2
CASE No. MYN/255 - HLA AUNG
CASE No. MYN/256 - HLAING AYE*
CASE No. MYN/257 - KYAW MAUNG*
CASE No. MYN/258 - MYINT KYI*
CASE No. MYN/259 - SAW LWIN*
Parliamentarians who died in custody:
CASE No. MYN/53 - HLA THAN
CASE No. MYN/55 - TIN MAUNG WIN
CASE No. MYN/72 - SAW WIN
CASE No. MYN/83 - KYAW MIN
CASE No. MYN/131 - HLA KHIN
CASE NO. MYN/132 - AUN MIN
Parliamentarians who were assassinated:
CASE No. MYN/66 - WIN KO
CASE No. MYN/67 - HLA PE

Resolution adopted unanimously by the IPU Governing Council at its 182nd session
(Cape Town, 18 April 2008)


The Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union,

Referring to the case of the above-mentioned members-elect of the Pyithu Hluttaw (People's Assembly) of the Union of Myanmar, as outlined in the report of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians (CL/182/12(b)-R.1), and to the resolution adopted at its 181st session (October 2007),

Recalling its long-standing concerns about:

  • The complete disregard of the results of the election of 27 May 1990, in which the National League for Democracy (NLD) won 392 of the 485 seats;

  • The continuous removal from the political process of many parliamentarians-elect by various means, including arbitrary arrest, detention and sentencing under laws infringing basic international human rights standards, and pressure to resign from the NLD and thereby relinquish their status as elected members of parliament; as a result, 13 parliamentarians-elect remain imprisoned, in some instances their detention having been continuously extended without their ever having appeared in court, such as the case of Dr. May Win Myint and Dr. Than Nyein, whose health, together with that of U Kyaw San, remains highly precarious,
Recalling that in August and September 2007 widespread protests were held in Myanmar against the military regime; that between 3,000 and 4,000 protestors, including 17 parliamentarians-elect, were arrested; by the beginning of October 2007, the regime's increased use of force, multiple arrests, heavy military presence and an information blackout put an effective end to the protests; most protestors have since been released, though it is estimated that between 500 and 1,000 persons may still be detained; at the same time, it is reported that the authorities continue to search for some of the demonstrators who have gone into hiding,

Considering that, while 12 of the 17 parliamentarians-elect who were detained during the crackdown have since been released, the remaining five, except for Mr. Saw Lin whose trial is pending, have been sentenced for their participation in the peaceful demonstrations; that one of those parliamentarians, Mr. Than Lwin, was heavily struck by a member of the regime's paramilitary group during the demonstrations and had to be hospitalized urgently for the serious injury to his face and eyes, as a result of which he lost his sight in one eye; that the police have not acted on his complaint,

Considering that, in response to the violent crackdown on peaceful demonstrators, for the first time - on 11 October 2007 - the United Nations Security Council adopted a Presidential Statement on the situation in Myanmar deploring the violence against peaceful demonstrators, demanding the release of all political prisoners and stressing the need for the authorities to create the necessary conditions for a genuine dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the National League for Democracy, and all concerned parties and ethnic nationality groups, with the direct support of the United Nations; deep concern was also expressed by the United Nations Human Rights Council; recalling that the 117th IPU Assembly (October 2007) adopted a resolution entitled "The urgent need to immediately stop the widespread human rights violations and to restore the democratic rights of the people of Myanmar" in which it urged the Government of Myanmar to refrain from further acts of violence against current and future demonstrations and to release immediately and unconditionally all political prisoners, and urged parliamentarians worldwide to maintain their strong commitment to the promotion and protection of the fundamental human rights of the people of Myanmar as an expression of solidarity with their sacrifice and struggle against tyranny,

Recalling that the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar visited Myanmar from 11 to 15 November 2007 and submitted a report to the United Nations Human Rights Council in which he found inter alia that the "security forces, including the army and riot police, had used excessive force against civilians from 26 to 29 September 2007, in spite of several international appeals calling upon the Government of Myanmar to show restraint" and expressed particular concern "about the numerous accounts of the use of large-capacity informal detention centres, unacknowledged by State authorities, which are regarded as 'secret' facilities"; on 11 December 2007, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution expressing "deep concern regarding the findings of the report of the Special Rapporteur" and reiterated its call on the Government of Myanmar to release without delay those arrested and detained as a result of the repression of recent peaceful protests, to release all political detainees and to lift all restraints on the peaceful political activity of all persons,

Recalling the convening of a National Convention, an assembly comprised mainly of members hand-picked by the authorities, which completed its work in early September 2007 without allowing a free exchange of opinions and ideas and criminalizing any criticism of its work; considering that the authorities announced in February 2008 that the draft constitution drawn up by the National Convention would be put to a public referendum on 10 May 2008 and that they had turned down the offer of the United Nations for the international monitoring of the referendum; that, although the text has yet to be released for public scrutiny or study, leaked copies of the final draft show that it confers sweeping and overriding powers on the military,

Considering that more than a dozen activists were recently arrested after members of the NLD's youth wing staged a small protest against the draft Constitution,

Considering that the authorities have announced that general elections will be held in 2010 and that Daw Aung Suu Kyi will not be allowed to participate in the process; that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi issued a statement expressing her commitment to a substantive, time-bound dialogue and welcomed the facilitation of the United Nations; that a series of meetings have taken place between the Liaison Minister of the military regime, Mr. Aung Kyi, and Aung San Suu Kyi but have produced no result,

  1. Is deeply concerned that four parliamentarians have been sentenced, and that a fifth may soon be, for their participation in the peaceful protests against the regime in autumn 2007; is appalled at the irreparable ill-treatment of Mr. Than Lwin and the apparent total impunity for those responsible for such criminal acts;

  2. Strongly urges the authorities to release these five persons forthwith along with the 13 parliamentarians who continue to languish in prison on the basis of legal provisions that blatantly disregard their most basic rights;

  3. Denounces the final draft of the Constitution for providing a legal basis to prolong the military authorities' hold on power; reaffirms in this respect its long-standing conviction that the National Convention, owing to how it was set up and functioned, was illegitimate from the start and bound to produce a text that would fail to reflect the democratic values to which the people of Myanmar aspire;

  4. Is deeply concerned that the people of Myanmar not only lacked an opportunity to review, discuss and change the text, but are now called on to give it legitimacy through a referendum which, under the current circumstances, is bound to take place in a climate of fear, distrust and lack of total transparency, and therefore can have no credibility;

  5. Stresses once again that any transition towards democracy will fail so long as it is not genuinely free, transparent and reflective of the people's will, and preceded by the unconditional release of all political prisoners and the lifting of all restrictions on human rights and political activity;

  6. Urges the authorities once more to address its fundamental long-standing concerns in this respect and to engage in a meaningful dialogue with Aung San Suu Kyi and all concerned parties and ethnic nationality groups for the purpose of initiating a genuine democratic transition in Myanmar; calls on the authorities to take the necessary steps without further delay and to cooperate fully in this respect with the United Nations;

  7. Appeals to the international community to persevere in its united stand to promote change in Myanmar and publicly to express, under the current prevailing circumstances, its rejection of the referendum process and outcome, and appeals especially to the Member Parliaments of the IPU, in particular China and India as neighbouring countries, to lend their full support in this respect;

  8. Requests the Secretary General to convey this resolution to the authorities and to all other parties concerned;

  9. Requests the Committee to continue examining this case and report to it at its next session, to be held on the occasion of the 119th Assembly of the IPU (Geneva, October 2008).

1 - On 2 April 2008, MPU-Burma stated that Mr. Myint Thein had died following his release, as his health had seriously worsened during his detention.

2 - He remains in detention and is being tried.

* - Meanwhile sentenced to prison terms.


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