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Opinion: Without justice, the innocent will continue to be killed in Burma

October 3, 2017/in News

28 SEPTEMBER 2017 Veronica Collins, ND-Burma Abuses reportedly being carried out in Rakhine are the same as have been documented across the country – especially in ethnic nationality areas – since 2004, writes Veronica Collins of the Network for Human Rights Documentation in Burma. At a recent democracy forum held in Burma’s capital Nay Pyi […]

Memory of Sacrifice: Memory, Justice and the Saffron Revolution

September 25, 2017/in News

Aileen Thomson reflects on commemorations of the pro-democracy struggle. [This week’s posts on Tea Circle represent the start of our forum on the “Saffron Revolution,” during which we will feature submissions by those analyzing, debating, and reflecting upon the impact of Myanmar’s 2007 demonstrations, 10 years on. We will continue to accept submissions through the coming weeks, so if you […]

Opinion: Without justice, the innocent will continue to be killed in Burma

October 3, 2017/in News

Memory of Sacrifice: Memory, Justice and the Saffron Revolution

September 25, 2017/in News

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Opinion: Without justice, the innocent will continue to be killed in Burma

October 3, 2017/in News

28 SEPTEMBER 2017

Veronica Collins, ND-Burma

Abuses reportedly being carried out in Rakhine are the same as have been documented across the country – especially in ethnic nationality areas – since 2004, writes Veronica Collins of the Network for Human Rights Documentation in Burma.

At a recent democracy forum held in Burma’s capital Nay Pyi Taw, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi was clear about who she believes is to blame for the country’s problems. “The victims of the past, those who can’t shatter the shackles of the past, have caused a lot of hindrances in the democratic transition,” she told those assembled.

The Nobel Laureate’s comments came before the current crisis in Rakhine, where the Burmese military has been accused of a campaign of “ethnic cleansing” by the UN, resulting in the most rapid outflow of refugees since the Rwandan genocide in 1991. Those fleeing the violence arrive in Bangladesh with testimonies of horrific human rights violations, bullet wounds and marks of sexual violence.

It seems it is not victims, but the military that is a ‘hindrance’ on Burma’s path to democracy.

For the last 13 years, the Network for Human Rights Documentation (ND-Burma) has been recording human rights violations and fighting for justice for victims. The abuses reportedly being carried out in Rakhine are the same we have been documenting across the country – especially in ethnic nationality areas – since 2004. Though some violations are committed by ethnic armed organizations, the large majority are carried out by government security forces.

As the world’s attention is on Rakhine, the military has in fact renewed offensives in ethnic nationality areas on the other side of the country. As always, these have been accompanied by allegations of rights violations against civilians.

Indeed, ND-Burma’s documentation suggests that the military has not been restrained by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s government. Over the course of 2016 – the NLD’s first year in office – ND-Burma recorded almost double the number of human rights violations than in the previous year. As in Rakhine, denial of wrongdoing and impunity for abuses continue to be the norm.

A refusal to examine the country’s bloody past has resulted in the military carrying on with business as usual. ND-Burma believes the only way to stop the cycle of violence is to deliver justice for Burma’s many victims of human rights violations. Those that have committed grave human rights violations need to be held accountable and victims be given the support they need to rebuild their lives.

Currently, impunity and illiberalism is coded into the country’s institutions and laws. The military is not under civilian control and the Constitution it drafted in 2008 provides soldiers de facto immunity from prosecution. 25% of seats in the parliament are reserved for the military and three important ministries continue to be under their control.

When the NLD took office only last year, hope was sky high, both at home and abroad. The Dalai Lama spoke of a “historic milestone for Myanmar,” and “the immense goodwill and worldwide support for this flowering of democracy.” Having refused to investigate the military’s past abuses against civilians, this hope has quickly evaporated.

As a start, Burma needs to give unfettered access to the UN Fact Finding mission to investigate allegations of grave human rights abuses across the country. Most victims ND-Burma interviews say they want nothing more than an end to conflict and guarantees that no one will ever face these abuses again. This will require institutional reform and a drastic recalibration of the military’s role in Burmese politics.

In a case recorded by ND-Burma in 2010, a monk was arrested and tortured by the military for carrying out political activities in support of the NLD. When he refused to speak, the soldiers beating him said “we have the right to kill you, we will not be punished and nobody can take us to court because we are the state caretakers.”

If this attitude is ever to change, Burma will need to start talking about justice.

The Network for Human Rights Documentation (ND-Burma) is a 13-member organization whose members represent a range of ethnic nationalities, women and the LGBTI community. We have been documenting human rights abuses and fighting for justice for victims since 2004.

http://www.coalitionfortheicc.org

Memory of Sacrifice: Memory, Justice and the Saffron Revolution

September 25, 2017/in News

Aileen Thomson reflects on commemorations of the pro-democracy struggle.

[This week’s posts on Tea Circle represent the start of our forum on the “Saffron Revolution,” during which we will feature submissions by those analyzing, debating, and reflecting upon the impact of Myanmar’s 2007 demonstrations, 10 years on. We will continue to accept submissions through the coming weeks, so if you would like to add your voice, whether in your own post or in the form of a response to another, please see our Call for Submissions or write to our editors at: editor@teacircleoxford.com.]

Over the past few years, anniversaries of major events in the Myanmar pro-democracy movement, including the Saffron Revolution, are commemorated with the laying of memorial wreaths for those who were killed, speeches by movement leaders about the continuing struggle, and retrospective pieces in the media reflecting on how far the country has come, and how far there is yet to go.

Well-known leaders of the democracy movement are lauded, but the lesser-known, ordinary laypeople and monks continue to suffer the impacts of their involvement in protests like the Saffron Revolution. Their time in prison and association with the then-banned organizations continues to stigmatize them and their families, preventing them from full participation in society. Now that leaders of the democracy movement are leading the government, they should make clear that those who fought for democracy are to be celebrated, not shunned, and take steps to enable their full participation in the social, economic and political life of the country.

To the puzzlement of many outside observers, memorial events are relatively devoid of outrage and demands for justice, despite the state’s brutal response to the protests. The rhetoric focuses on the bravery and sacrifice of the protesters and activists, not the horrific acts committed by those in power. Some have attributed this to a Buddhist tendency toward forgiveness, and others to a calculated political maneuvering by activists still engaged in the day-to-day struggles to consolidate and improve democracy. While both are likely factors in many cases, there is more nuance in this rhetoric.

When it comes to justice for those killed, injured, tortured and detained in the Saffron Revolution, the way the events are remembered is instructive. By their words and actions, monks and lay members of the pro-democracy movement remember their fallen colleagues as heroes who gave of themselves for the betterment of the country, not as helpless victims of a brutal regime. For many, to focus on their victimhood is to belittle their bravery in the face of known risks, to retroactively invalidate their agency and the choices they made.

These dynamics should not be seen as a rejection of justice, but as setting forth a framework within which demands for justice should be understood. Official recognition and commemoration, done well, may go a long way to providing justice for victims of political imprisonment and of violence against protesters, addressing some of the consequences of the violations and providing a remedy to the victims. If former political prisoners and other pro-democracy activists are celebrated publicly as heroes rather than ostracized as criminals, perhaps they will have an easier time reintegrating into their communities, finding employment and restoring family ties.

For the most impact, recognition must come from the government, a more authoritative, wide-reaching source than a small group of activists holding ceremonies on anniversaries. Acknowledgment of wrongful imprisonment and recognition of activists’ contribution to the society should be done on an individual basis, in a way that makes it clear to families, communities and future employers that there should be no obstacle to that person’s full participation in the social, economic and political life of the country. Meaningful recognition and commemoration should also include expunging criminal records, removing notations on identity cards, restoring revoked professional licenses, and restoring citizenship and related rights to those who are still in exile.

This is not to say that those who suffered do not deserve justice, whether in the form of reparation, truth, criminal justice or some combination of those objectives. In fact, when commemorating the Saffron Revolution, many have called for assistance to survivors, an apology from the government, and institutional reform to prevent recurrence. Some have demanded prosecution of those who ordered the crackdown. However, at least at this historical moment, the focus is on recognition and commemoration – as heroes of the democracy movement who unjustly but bravely suffered for the good of the country.

Thousands of people throughout Myanmar made incredible sacrifices to move the country towards democracy. They braved the streets in demonstrations, spread information obtained from banned sources, rallied support for the movement’s leadership, and did millions of other everyday acts of resistance. For that, they have suffered imprisonment, exile, stigmatization, unemployment and have been left otherwise unable to fully participate in their society and enjoy the gains of their struggle. Now that the leaders of that movement have power, now that the country is, in fact, moving slowly towards democracy, those who helped make that happen should be able to enjoy the benefits as well.

Aileen Thomson is an independent expert on justice and human rights with a particular focus on transitional justice in Asia. She was previously the Head of Office for the International Center for Transitional Justice in Myanmar and Nepal. She has a J.D. (law) and a M.A. (international affairs) from the American University in Washington, D.C.

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ND Burma

ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.

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