Myanmar’s Killing Fields


Secret footage and eyewitness accounts shine new light on a brutal campaign by the Myanmar military against Read more

Fighting escalates in Kachin, 6,800 newly displaced  

Seeking justice in Burma
April 2018

Fighting escalates in Kachin, 6,800 newly displaced  

Fighting between the Burmese military and Kachin Independence Army (KIA) intensified during April, with the UN estimating that some 6,800 people became newly displaced. Read more

Healthcare aid sought for political prisoners

Ex-political prisoners have sought the help of the government in the rehabilitation of thousands of so-called prisoners of conscience who were incarcerated for decades for fighting for their beliefs and for the return of democracy in Myanmar.

“The organisations helping ex-political prisoners can’t reach the whole country. There were many incidents where ex-political prisoners died because they could not afford cost of medical treatment or they did not have enough food,” said Daw Mie Mie from the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society.

“The incumbent government should take responsibility [for the prisoners] as a special duty,” she said during a forum, “Rehabilitation of Ex-Political Prisoners,” held at Yangon Book Plaza on Friday.

Former political prisoners who fought against the military regimes that ruled Myanmar for decades have suffered a lot physical and emotional damage while in detention, U Zaw Moe of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said.

“When they came out of jail, due to financial difficulties, they had to face rehabilitation problems again,” said U Zaw Moe, who is in charge of historical records and research for AAPP.

“Although organisations like us are giving assistance to ex-political prisoners, we can’t cover the whole country. It can all be covered only if the government helps. The government should not ignore them,” he added.

According to reports released by the Former Political Prisoners Society and the AAPP, there were from 7000 to 10000 political prisoners in Myanmar from 1962 to 2016, and 80 percent of them lived in  poor conditions.

“Free medical check-ups for them at public hospitals and local clinics should be provided,” Daw Mie Mie said.

Requesting free medical check-ups for ex-political prisoners at public hospitals and local clinics is not asking for a special privilege, said writer Ma Thida (Sanchaung).

“We want just to have specific public hospitals for giving treatment to ex-political prisoners. So, the government first needs to acknowledge political prisoners,” she said. “The list of them is now in the hands of the government. When it sets a policy to give free medical treatment to ex-political prisoners, all the processes can be easily done.”

After their release from prisons, the former political prisoners suffer from chronic diseases, including liver disease, which they got while in confinement, and they need healthcare services, she added.

To help former political prisoners, a healthcare centre was opened on Khatawmi 1 street near Dagon University in Dagon East township on February 3.

The centre run by the Ministry of Health and Sports provides medicine and other needs for political prisoners who need healthcare. They can also receive treatment at Hanthawadi U Win Tin Foundation Philanthropic Clinic every Saturday and Wednesday.

Current President U Win Myint, who is a former political prisoner, released 37 fellow prisoners of conscience on April 17.

The newly elected president also abrogated the rules and limitations placed on political prisoners who have been released under Ruling Law Section 401(1).

Political society welcomed and supported the actions of the president and called for the immediate release of the remaining political prisoners and people who are accused of political crimes.

The AAPP said around 13 political prisoners still remain in prison, and there are around 74 people who are facing trial while under detention. The organisation said 121 people have to fight lawsuits while under bail.

Myanmar Times

UN Security Council must act to end ongoing crimes against humanity in northern Burma

Statement by the Kachin Women’s Association of Thailand

UN Security Council must act to end ongoing crimes against humanity in northern Burma

We welcome the UNSC delegation’s historic visit to Burma from April 30 to May 1, 2018, which highlighted the large-scale displacement from northern Rakhine State, but we are disappointed that the UNSC delegates did not visit northern Burma, or make any mention of the ongoing Burma Army offensives and crimes against humanity also taking place there.

The UNSC’s failure to look at other parts of Burma clearly emboldened the Burma Army, who brazenly continued attacks, including heavy shelling, in six townships on April 30, and blocked thousands of IDPs from seeking safe refuge even while the UNSC delegates were in the country.

The current protests by thousands of youth and other community members in Myitkyina calling for safe passage of the IDPs, started on April 30, during the UNSC visit. Solidarity actions are now being held by youth in other parts of Burma, who are outraged at the Burma Army’s cruel entrapment of innocent civilians, many of them women, elderly and children.

In fact, the patterns of violations committed by the Burma Army in northern Rakhine State are the same as those which communities in other ethnic areas have suffered for decades. Particularly since the renewal of conflict in June 2011, Kachins have been enduring systematic rape, torture and killing at the hands of the Burma Army, leading to displacement of over 120,000 people.

Alarmingly, the military operations against the Kachin this year are taking place in a much wider area than in previous years, including not just eastern Kachin State but also western and central Kachin State, where Naypyidaw is accelerating large-scale development and exploitation of the rich natural resources in these areas, including jade, amber, gold, timber and hydropower.

Areas now targeted include Sumprabum and Injangyang townships in central Kachin State, where giant Chinese dams are planned on the Irrawaddy headwaters, as well as Danai and Mogaung townships where the Ledo Road is being developed as part of China’s One Belt One Road Initiative.

As outrage mounts around the country against the Burma Army for their brazen crimes, we urge the UN Security Council to take immediate action to pressure the Burma Army to immediately end their offensives and systematic violations throughout the country, so that inclusive political dialogue can begin towards federal democratic reform in Burma.

We therefore urge the UN Security Council:

  • To refer the situation in Burma to the International Criminal Court
  • To impose a global arms embargo on Burma
  • To place targeted sanctions on military officers responsible for crimes against humanity or other serious human rights violations.

Contacts:          Mrs. Moon Nay Li       +66 (0) 855 2337 91

                        Mrs. San Htoi               +95 (0) 942 3076 625

State Counsellor receives UN officials

During their stay in Nay Pyi Taw, the delegation paid a courtesy call on State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at 1530 hrs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
During the call, the State Counsellor underscored Myanmar’s readiness to receive the verified returnees and necessary cooperation of Bangladesh to expedite the repatriation process quickly. It is important for Bangladesh side to use prescribed forms agreed by both countries as early as possible for verification.
Furthermore, the State Counsellor also explained to the delegation on the matters pertaining to providing humanitarian assistance to affected communities, rebuilding trust and confidence among communities, citizenship issue, on-going closure of IDP camps, issuance of national verification cards(NVCs), restoring rule of law, issue of resettlement on the international boundary line between the two countries, possible recurrence of terrorist attacks at any time, necessity to find the root cause of the conflict, prevention of hate speech, and encouragement for school education.
Afterwards, the delegation met with Senior-General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services at the office of the Commander-in-Chief in the afternoon.
Then, the delegation held a comprehensive discussion with U Kyaw Tint Swe, Union Minister for the Office of the State Counsellor, U Thaung Tun,
Union Minister for the Office of the Union Government, Dr. Win Myat Aye, Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement and Chairman of the Implementation Committee on Recommendations on Rakhine State, U Kyaw Tin, Union Minister for International Cooperation, Dr. Aung Tun Thet, Chief Coordinator of Union Enterprise for Humanitarian Assistance, Resettlement, and Development in Rakhine (UEHRD), U Win Mra, U Tun Myat, U Khin Maung Lay, U Hla Myint and Dr. Daw Khin Nyo, who are national members of Advisory Board on Rakhine State, Dr. Thet Thet Zin, Chairperson of Myanmar Women’s Affairs Federation and Dr. Tha Nyan, U Myo Nyunt, U Maung Maung, U Aung Soe Lwin, Dr. Tin Hla, U Aung Naing, Dr. Hla Tun, U Than Lwin, and U Tin Myint from Interfaith Dialogue at Shwe San Eain Hotel in the evening.
In the evening, U Kyaw Tint Swe, Union Minister for the Office of the State Counsellor, hosted a working dinner for the delegation at Shwe San Eain Hotel.

State Counsellor Office

U.N. Myanmar rights envoy calls for halt to violence in Kachin state

GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations human rights expert on Myanmar voiced deep concern on Tuesday at a sharply escalation in hostilties in Kachin state, citing reports of the army using aerial bombings, heavy weapons and artillery fire on civilian areas near China.

FILE PHOTO – Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee gives her report to the Human Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, March 12, 2018. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse

“Innocent civilians are being killed and injured, and hundreds of families are now fleeing for their lives,” Yanghee Lee, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said in a statement.

Thousands of people rallied on Monday in Kachin to demand humanitarian access for villagers trapped by fighting between government forces and ethnic minority insurgents that has displaced more than 5,000 people. “Any wilful impediment of relief supplies may amount to war crimes under international law,” Lee said, appealing for access.

Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay, editing by Tom Miles