Human rights in Myanmar

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Myanmar
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Human rights in Myanmar (known as Burma to those who do not recognize the ruling military junta) are a long-standing concern for the international community and human rights organizations. There is general agreement that the military regime in Myanmar is one of the world's most repressive regimes.

The Freedom in the World 2004 report by Freedom House notes that "The junta rules by decree, controls the judiciary, suppresses nearly all basic rights, and commits human rights abuses with impunity. Military officers hold most cabinet positions, and active or retired officers hold most top posts in all ministries. Official corruption is reportedly rampant both at the higher and local levels." [1]

Brad Adams, director of Human Rights Watch's Asia division, in a 2004 address described the human rights situation in the country as appalling: "Burma is the textbook example of a police state. Government informants and spies are omnipresent. Average Burmese people are afraid to speak to foreigners except in most superficial of manners for fear of being hauled in later for questioning or worse. There is no freedom of speech, assembly or association." [2]

1 Personal freedom
- 1.1 Forced labour
2 Freedom of speech and political freedom
3 State-sanctioned torture and rape
4 Children's rights
5 See also
6 External links

[edit] Personal freedom

[edit] Forced labour

According to the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions several hundred thousand men, women, children and elderly people are forced to work against their will by the administration. Individuals refusing to work may be victims of torture, rape or death.

The International Labour Organization has continuously called on Myanmar to end the practice of forced labour since the 1960s. In June 2000, the ILO Conference adopted a resolution calling on governments to cease any relations with the country that might aid the junta to continue the use of forced labour. [3]

[edit] Freedom of speech and political freedom

A 2004 Amnesty International report names more than 200 individuals imprisoned between 1989 and 2004, who are among more than 1,300 political prisoners who, according to the organization, have been imprisoned after unfair trials. The prisoners, including National League for Democracy (NLD) leaders Aung San Suu Kyi and U Tin Oo, have "been wrongfully denied their liberty for peaceful acts that would not be considered crimes under international law", Amnesty International claims. [4].

The Freedom House report notes that the authorities arbitrarily search citizens' homes, intercept mail, and monitor telephone conversations, and that the possession and use of telephones, fax machines, computers, modems, and software are criminalized.

[edit] State-sanctioned torture and rape

A 2002 report by The Shan Human Rights Foundation and The Shan Women's Action Network, Licence to rape, details 173 incidents of rape and other forms of sexual violence, involving 625 girls and women, committed by Burmese army troops in Shan State, mostly between 1996 and 2001. The authors note that the figures are likely to be far lower than the reality. According to the report, "the Burmese military regime is allowing its troops systematically and on a widespread scale to commit rape with impunity in order to terrorize and subjugate the ethnic peoples of Shan State. The report illustrates there is a strong case that war crimes and crimes against humanity, in the form of sexual violence, have occurred and continue to occur in Shan State. The report gives clear evidence that rape is officially condoned as a 'weapon of war' against the civilian populations in Shan State." Furthermore, the report states that "25% of the rapes resulted in death, in some incidences with bodies being deliberately displayed to local communities. 61% were gang-rapes; women were raped within military bases, and in some cases women were detained and raped repeatedly for periods of up to 4 months." [5]

In a 2003 report, "No Safe Place: Burma's Army and the Rape of Ethnic Women", Refugees International document the widespread use of rape by Burma’s soldiers to brutalize women from five different ethnic nationalities. [6]

Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International also report frequent torture of prisoners, including political prisoners.

[edit] Children's rights

According to Human Rights Watch [7], recruiting and kidnapping of children to the military is commonplace. An estimated 70,000 of the country’s 350,000-400,000 soldiers are children. There are also multiple reports of widespread child labour.