Letters to the Editors,(Nation 7/20

[gawdech@xxxxxxxxxxxx]

Time for Burma government to begin improving human rights records:-

Dear General Than Shwe,
Aug 8 will mark the 10th anniversary of the pro-democracy movement in
Burma, a day that holds great symbolic significance for the Burmese people
and for the international community.
 Amnesty International is deeply concerned , therefore, about the potential
for heightened tension at this time between the authorities and political
activists. This has been reflected over the past few weeks by political
arrests and increased restrictions and surveilance of opposition leaders in
Burma.In particular we are referring to the incident on June 25 when
security forces prevented a group of National League for Democracy (NLD) 
members from entering the compound of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in Rangoon.
According to credible sources, the security forces severely beat several of
them who were peacefully trying to attend a meeting there.
 Amnesty International is further concerned that an unknown number of NLD
members of parliament elect have also been arrested recently and  asks that
you make public their names, their place of detention, and the charges
against them. Reports also indicate that those MPs elect who have not been
detained must report twice daily to the local authorities and are not
permitted to travel to other parts of the country. Such restrictions on
freedom of movement and assembly clearly constitute harassment by the
authorities of people engaged in
legitimate peaceful political activities.
 As this important anniversary approaches, we hope that you will begin to
defuse possibilities for conflict by taking immediate steps towards
inproving the human-rights situation.
 For example, the release of those prisoners of consceince who are elderly
or sick,such as U Win Tin, would help establish an atmosphere of trust
between the military and political activists. Improvements in prison
conditions and a commitment to ending forced labour and other human rights
violations against members of ethnic minorities would also be possitive
steps towards establ-ishing better relations among the government,the
oppos-ition and ethnic minorities.At this time last year,     Burma was
admitted to the Association of Southeast       Asian Nations(Asean)and
joined regional dialogue on the basis of a clear expectation that there
would be some  concrete improvements in the human-rights situation
there.As Asean and its partners to meet in Manila, we  urge you to take
prompt action to improve Burma's human rights records, which will not only
help defuse the    potential for serious conflict but earn your government
greater respect in the eyes of the international                   community.
Pierre Sane,
Secretary General,
Amnesty Internation.