‘on the way to one’

Dear friend
Today you will be seeing the wonderful scenes in newspapers and on TV of people celebrating Aung San Suu Kyi’s election victory. It looks as if the National League for Democracy has won most, if not all, of the 44 seats they contested.

In the past we always thought that Aung San Suu Kyi entering Parliament would be the final step on the path to democracy. As it turns out, it looks like this is just the first step. The NLD will only have around five percent of the seats in Parliament, while the military and the pro-military party have over 80 percent. Parliament itself has little power, and the Military have an effective veto over decisions by Parliament.

This is why, when Aung San Suu Kyi was asked last week to rank how democratic Burma is on a scale of one to ten, she answered: ‘On the way to one’.

Let’s not be in any doubt, Burma’s military rulers didn’t wake up one morning and suddenly decide they wanted Burma to be a democracy. They were under economic and political pressure, and they wanted that pressure lifted.  The sanctions and diplomatic pressure we have all worked so hard for over many years are now having an impact. Some reforms have happened, but there is still a long way to go.

Hundreds of political prisoners remain in jail, they must not be left behind. Human rights abuses actually increased last year, with the Burmese Army killing, raping and torturing.

Aung San Suu Kyi will try to use Parliament as a platform for further change, repealing repressive laws and changing the constitution, but the challenges she faces are immense. This is why we must continue to stand with her and all those still struggling for democracy in Burma.

Today is a day for celebration, but tomorrow it’s back to work. There is still a long road ahead.

The pressure is working. Please make a donation today to ensure we can keep supporting the people of Burma until they truly win their freedom. You can donate online here.

Thank you
Burma Campaign UK

PS:  Burma Campaign UK helped journalists from all over the world report on the by-elections from Burma. It’s one of the many ways we work hard behind the scenes ensuring the voices of people from Burma can be heard.

We also published a briefing paper here.

See Zoya Phan, Campaigns Manager at Burma Campaign UK, interviewed on Channel 4 News here.  Donate online at: http://www.burmacampaign.org.uk/donate

Burma update

The release of Aung Sang Suu Kyi was an amazing day, but there is a tendency, I think in the west to think that now Burma is ok. If only this were true … but things are progressing!  In the last few days many high profile political prisoners have been released in Burma.

Those released includes Ko Mya Aye, father of Wai Hnin, Campaigns Officer at Burma Campaign UK. Ko Mya Aye wanted us to pass on a message to supporters: “I would like to give my best wishes and many thanks to all the supporters of Burma Campaign UK, and people from inside and outside Burma for encouraging us and continuing our movement. This is one of the happiest days of my life to be with my family and continue my activities towards for democratic Burma. Thank you all.”

Wai Hnin is delighted her father has finally been released, speaking with him earlier today. “It was wonderful to hear his voice,” she said. “But typically it didn’t take long for him to start talking about politics, and how we must keep campaigning for the rest of the political prisoners to be freed.”

Ko Ko Gyi, another one of the leaders of the 88 Generation Students who were jailed again for their role in protests in 2007, and released today, told us; “Long ago you could just close the door and be in a dictatorship in one country, but now because of globalisation the role of international community and campaign groups has become very important to help those countries in dictatorship, so I would like to say thank you so much to all campaign groups and international community for their help for Burma.” (Ko Ko Gyi also joked with Wai Hnin about the fundraising bungee jump she did in 2010, which he heard about on the radio while in prison.)

Ethnic Rohingya MP U Kyaw Min, who has been in jail since 2005 and was also released today, also wanted to say thank you to Burma Campaign UK supporters, saying: “I really appreciate your support. Now we must work together to free those left in prison.”

These releases are fantastic news, but there are still many prisoners left in jail, and the laws under which released prisoners were arrested are still in place. We’ll be in touch soon about a new campaign to ensure independent monitors can enter Burma’s jails and assess how many political prisoners still need to be released.  You can read our media statement about the releases here.

 Ceasefire in Karen State?

In addition to the news on political prisoners,  there was another significant development, the agreement in principle of a ceasefire between the military-backed government and the Karen National Union (KNU). For many decades the Burmese Army has been committing horrific human rights abuses against the ethnic Karen of Burma. If the ceasefire does go ahead, and is followed by genuine political dialogue to solve the root causes of the conflict, it will be a very welcome step. However, what has happened is just a first step, there is still a long way to go.

Bwa Bwa Phan, a Karen community representative who used to work and volunteer with Burma Campaign UK, has written an article in Irrawaddy Magazine which explains why many Karen are still cautious. You can read the article here.

Developments in Burma this week show that campaigning does work, and is appreciated by those in Burma struggling for true freedom. We must keep up the pressure to keep making change happen.

You can donate to Burma Campaign UK – if you can please do … you can see from this update how our support is making an incredible difference.

Burma update

Despite some small reforms and the release of just under 300 political prisoners, most political prisoners, more than 1,000, remain in jail.

Most are kept in appalling conditions, some on death row or solitary confinement, in tiny dirty bare concrete cells with just as bucket as a toilet. They are not given proper food to stay healthy, and when they get sick they don’t get proper medical care. Some have been moved to remote prisons to make it very hard for their families to visit, and even if families to travel for days to see them, they are only allowed 15-20 minutes to talk. Torture is still being used against political prisoners.

Burma’s government is using political prisoners as human bargaining chips, releasing small numbers to gain positive publicity in an attempt to get sanctions lifted without making fundamental democratic reforms.

At the same time as promising reforms, the Burmese Army has stepped up attacks against ethnic civilians, with almost 150,000 forced to flee their homes in the past year. Women are being gang-raped and homes mortar-bombed.

Later this week UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will meet Burma’s new President, Thein Sein, on the fringes of a summit of South East Asian countries.

This is an opportunity for him to demand the immediate release of all political prisoners, and a nationwide ceasefire.

Send an urgent message to Ban Ki-moon now!

Aung Sang Sui Kyi Reith Lectures

Aung San Suu Kyi will be giving two of the 2011 Reith Lectures on the subject of ‘Securing Freedom’. Her lectures, which were recorded in Burma and smuggled out of the country, focus on the struggle for freedom and democracy, the meaning of freedom and dissent and the responsibility of the international community

Lecture 1 Dissent
On BBC Radio 4
Tuesday 28 June 9am
Repeated Saturday 2 July 22.15

Lecture 2 Liberty
On BBC Radio 4
Tuesday 5 July 9am
Repeated Saturday 9 July 22.15

On BBC World Service
Tuesday 28 June 16.05 (GMT +1)
Tuesday 5 July 16.05 (GMT +1)

The lectures will be repeated on BBC World Service at various times. For full details click here.

Burma: Crisis in Shan State

Out of site in the ethnic states of Burma, where journalists and diplomats are banned from visiting, the dictatorship has stepped up attacks against ethnic minorities. Last month we received reports from local organisationsin Shan State, Eastern Burma, telling us how the Burmese Army has been gang-raping women, torturing villagers, executing them, and firing mortar bombs into their villages. Many are taken as slaves to carry supplies for the Burmese Army.

With its fake election and release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the dictatorship is trying to fool the world into believing it has changed. But its actions speak louder than words.

The new attacks started when the dictatorship broke a ceasefire agreement with an armed ethnic political party, the Shan State Army ­ North. They had refused to join the Burmese Army, and so they were attacked. And as usual, the Burmese Army targeted civilians, raping, looting and killing.

What is happening in Burma is similar to what has happened in Libya and Syria ­ a brutal regime targeting civilians. But the response could not be more different. On Libya there is international action, on Syria there is international condemnation, but on Shan State, Burma, there is silence.

Help us break the silence, action is needed now!

Please write to the Foreign Secretary, William Hague MP, calling on the British government to act.

Foreign Secretary, William Hague MP

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

King Charles Street

London

SW1A 2AH

Here is a draft letter for you to print and send to the Foreign Secretary:

Your Name

Your Address

The Date

Dear Foreign Secretary,

I am writing to you regarding the current crisis in Shan State and the threat of increased conflict across Burma, which requires immediate international action.

On 13th March 2011 the dictatorship in Burma broke a 22 year long ceasefire agreement with the Shan State Army ­ North. 3,500 Burmese Army soldiers took part in a military offensive in north-central Shan State, an area with a population of 100,000. Sixty-five clashes were reported in the first three weeks of the dictatorship breaking the ceasefire. Civilians are being targeted in the military offensive, with mortar bombs fired at civilian villages. Abuses committed by the Burmese Army include arbitrary execution, arbitrary detention, torture, looting, rape, forced relocation and forced labour. These abuses are violations of international law. Since breaking the ceasefire, abuses continue on a daily basis.

Under the new 2008 Constitution, the Burmese Army is the only permitted armed organisation allowed in the country. The organisations with ceasefire agreements took part in the National Convention which drafted the principles of the Constitution. Every single one of their proposals which would grant some level of autonomy to ethnic states, and protection for ethnic rights and culture, were rejected by the dictatorship.

The British government has repeatedly stated that dialogue is the way to solve political problems in Burma. All armed ethnic organisations in Burma, those on ceasefire, and those not, are willing to enter into dialogue. The dictatorship, however, is once again using violence and military force rather than dialogue. It is also deliberately targeting civilians.

When the regimes in Libya and Syria attacked civilians, you led condemnation and international action. But on the situation in Shan State, and escalatingattacks against civilians in other ethnic states since the elections inBurma last November, you have been silent, and no practical action has beentaken.

I call on you to make a public statement condemning the dictatorship for breaking ceasefire agreements, and the serious human rights abuses it is committing in Shan State, and calling for a nationwide ceasefire in Burma.

The British government should also increase humanitarian assistance to those affected by conflict, including cross-border aid to areas where aid agencies and others do not have access.

Yours sincerely

Thank you for your support.

Anna

Burma Campaign UK

Burma Update – New Government – Same Dictatorship

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On Wednesday, Burma’s dictator, Than Shwe, officially disbanded the State Peace and Development Council, the body through which Burma’s dictators have ruled the country since 1997.  The new President, Thein Sein, was sworn in.

However, the changes are more about rebranding than reform. Dictatorship remains alive and well in Burma, guaranteed by a new Constitution and a new political structure. 

The new government is the final stage in the regime’s so-called ‘roadmap to democracy’, following the sham election last November. In reality, it is a transition from military to civilian dictatorship. The new parliament has no real power. Real power still lies firmly with the military and a new all-powerful body, the National Defence and Security Council. 

This is history repeating itself. Burma’s first dictatorship began in 1962, led by General Ne Win. Ne Win also introduced a new constitution through a rigged referendum and rubber-stamp parliament.

The real facts on the ground are that there are no new freedoms, that human rights abuses continue, and that those ruling Burma clearly have no intention of introducing any genuine reforms to improve human rights or move towards democracy.

For more details, read our press release here.

Burma update

the latest update from Burma Campaign UK

Dear friend

10th March is Ko Mya Aye’s 44th birthday. A leader of the 88 Generation Students, he has been in jail since 2007 for his role in the uprising that year, serving a 65 year jail term. The UN has ruled that his detention is arbitrary and illegal. Arbitrary detention is in violation of Article 7 of the Rome Statute. It is a crime against humanity. There are more than 2,100 political prisoners in Burma.

Please take action to persuade the European Union to support a UN Inquiry into crimes against humanity in Burma

Take Action – email European governments
So far ten European countries support an inquiry. If we can get four more to support, we will have more than half of EU members supporting an Inquiry. Our first targets are Denmark, Latvia, Sweden and Luxembourg.
Take action here now!

London Protest Thursday 10th March 2011 at six European Embassies
On 10th March, Wai Hnin, daughter of Ko Mya Aye, will be leading a protest visiting the embassies of six European countries which have failed to publicly support a UN inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma. The countries are Sweden, Latvia, Norway, Luxembourg, Germany and Denmark. Wai Hnin will be handing in a letter to each embassy, asking why they are not taking action to support her father and other political prisoners in Burma.

Please join us for a protest at European embassies in London to persuade the European Union to support a UN Inquiry into crimes against humanity in Burma
Meet: 11am sharp, outside The Globe Pub, Opposite Baker Street tube station. Don’t be late!

First stage: Walk together to Swedish and Latvian Embassies, hand in letter and short protest. Back to Baker Street tube approx 11.30am.
Public transport to Hyde Park Corner
Second Stage: Approximately 12 noon. Walk together to embassies of Norway, Luxembourg, Germany and Denmark.
Ends: Approximately 1pm.
Thank you for your support.

Anna
Burma Campaign UK

Support our work: Donate to the Burma Campaign UK and make a difference today.
You can be sure your donation will make a difference. Supporting the Burma Campaign UK is one of the most effective ways of supporting the struggle to free Burma.

1 free … 2202 to go!

Aung San Suu Kyi is released.
For this we give thanks and celebrate.
But …the fight continues for the release of the other 2202 political prisoners held in Burma.

The Burmese generals may be releasing Aung San Suu Kyi as a publicity stunt, to detract from their sham elections last week … but the west can continue with pressure to ensure real freedom is reinstated within Burma.

Please don’t think the campaign is over. Please continue to support the wrok of Free Burma UK … now is a key time from which real transformation could occur.

Burma: please don’t be fooled!

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There are reports coming from Burma that Aung San Sui Kyi is about to be released. Her detention expires on Saturday 13 November and under Burmese law she should be released. 

There is much speculation about whether or not Aung San Suu Kyi is about to be released. Burma’s generals may be calculating that by releasing Aung San Suu Kyi they will receive so much positive publicity it will counter the negative attention on the election. 

Obviously, we hope that Aung San Suu Kyi will be released. However, if she is released, the international community must not make the same mistake it has made in the past, hoping that this is a sign of change. Aung San Suu Kyi has been released twice before without there being any political change in the country. It is more likely that the dictatorship will try to use her release to try and persuade the international community to relax pressure on them.

Download our briefing on Aung San Suu Kyi here.

Show your support for Aung San Suu Kyi – wear our Free Burma t-shirt!

They are fairtrade and organic and all profits go to the Burma Campaign UK.

Burma update

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Aung San Suu Kyi Reaches 15 Years in Detention

On Sunday 24th October Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of Burma’s democracy movement, reached a total of 15 years in detention.  Although under Burmese law she should be released on 13th November, there are concerns that her detention could be extended, or strict gagging conditions put on her if she is released. You can take action calling on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to do more to secure the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners.

Wai Hnin’s Jump For Freedom

Wai Hnin overcame her fear of heights and did her jump for freedom, which has so far raised more than £8,500 for former political prisoners and Burma Campaign UK. Many thanks to everyone who has donated. If you haven’t, you can still donate.

You can watch the jump on our YouTube Channel.

UK Premier of New Burma Film – Tuesday 2nd November

‘This Prison Where I Live’ is a film about two comedians. Maung Thura, better known as Zarganar, Burma’s greatest living comic. Relentlessly victimised by the Burmese military junta, he is now in prison. Michael Mittermeier, in stark contrast, is free to practise his act as one of Germany’s leading stand-up comedians.

UK Premiere – Tuesday 2 November at Ritzy Picture-house, Brixton, London.  Book online 

Use the red button with 18.15 to book. 

There will also be a special Q&A with director Rex Bloomstein, Michael Mittermeier, Amnesty International UK, Wai Hnin from Burma Campaign UK, and The Co-operative.

All the best

Anna

Burma Campaign UK

Support our work: Donate to the Burma Campaign UK and make a difference today. You can be sure your donation will make a difference. Supporting the Burma Campaign UK is one of the most effective ways of supporting the struggle to free Burma. Donate now.