CHR/BURMA NGO STATEMENTS (Item 9)

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Statements by: 

International Peace Bureau (Dr Sein Win)
Worldview International Foundation (Dr Thaung Htun)
Aliran Kesedaran Negara (Ms Deborah Stothard
Anti-Slavery International (Mr Kham Harn Fah)
____________________


55th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights 
Oral Intervention made by Dr. Sein Win 
International Peace Bureau 
Geneva. 
April 7, 1999.


Thank you Madam Chairperson.

I am Dr. Sein Win, an elected representative of the 1990 general elections 
from Paukhaung Constituency of Burma. I have taken this floor at each 
session of the UN Commission on Human Rights since 1991 to present the case 
of the 1990 general elections in Burma, with the hope that the Commission 
might help accelerate the process of democratization which is a vital step 
for the improvement of the human rights situation in my country. However, 
it is very disappointing to see that the response of the regime to the 
constructive recommendations made by the Commission is an extremely 
defensive, blanket denial and lack of respect for internationally-accepted 
human rights norms. Worse still is the regime's refusal to accept the visit 
of the UN Special Rapporteur since his appointment in 1996. 
[Instead, the regime has launched a systematic strategy to prevent the 
convening of parliament. To implement this strategy, it is resorting to 
deception, harassment, coercion, threats, prison and torture. A number of 
MPs-elect and NLD organizers have also died in prison under conditions so 
terrible as to support the inference that their deaths were intentional.]
In face of the deteriorating human rights and economic situation, the NLD 
renewed its request to the military regime to convene the parliament. On 
the eighth anniversary of the 1990 elections, the NLD informed the junta 
that it wanted the parliament convened by August 21st and that if the 
regime refused to fulfill its obligations under national and international 
law it would seek to convene the parliament notwithstanding the regime's 
failure.

In response, the regime -- principally through the Military Intelligence 
Directorate-vastly stepped up its campaign, not only to stop the 
parliament, but also to wipe out the democratic movement. This campaign is 
characterized by illegal and inhumane tactics and has resulted in the 
incarceration of more than 150 members of parliament. This is in addition 
to the approximately 40 members of parliament who were already imprisoned 
by the regime. As of March 16 this year, 22,482 members of the NLD had 
been forced to resign from the party and extraordinary new hardships are 
being imposed. Those who refuse to resign from their MP-elect status or 
from the party have been threatened with loss of their business licenses 
and that their family members would be fired from civil service or children 
be prohibited from attending school. 

So far, 42 NLD offices in townships have not only been forced to close down 
but the regime has also demanded that they transfer flags, seals and files 
to the local authorities. In addition to constant attacks on Daw Aung San 
Suu Kyi and the NLD leadership, the military has been using its control of 
the media to launch a psychological campaign by broadcasting news of 
resignations and ceremonial transfers of office property to local 
authorities as if politicians were rebel units surrendering arms to the 
government. For those MPs who resist the pressure, the last technique 
employed is to hold mass rallies in constituencies that endorse 
non-confidence motions in their respective elected MPs. Members of the 
Union Solidarity and Development Association, the political arm of the 
army, have been active in that campaign. 

The regime's campaign of fear against the elected Members of Parliament and 
their political parties has taken a terrible toll on the M.P.s, their 
families and the people of Burma. At present, approximately 190 members of 
parliament are incarcerated--some in prisons; some in what the military 
euphemistically refers to as "guest houses." [Thanks to the work of 
Amnesty International and other human rights groups, the world well knows 
the infamous conditions inside Burma's prisons.] According to information 
we are receiving, treatment and conditions in the "guest houses" are, at 
best, akin to minimum-security prisons. In many cases, however, the 
treatment is truly life-threatening. The regime is not providing adequate 
food or medical treatment and in some cases, not allowing anyone else to 
either. I would point to the death of U Aung Min, a member of the Mandalay 
Division Organizing Committee who died on October 21, 1998 while in custody 
at a "guest house."

The junta's latest action against the NLD, and one which has been widely 
condemned by the international community, is of course its contemptible 
exploitation of a human tragedy, by attempting to force Daw Aung San Suu 
Kyi, the party's Secretary-General out of the country by refusing to grant 
an entry visa to her dying husband;

In September 1998, the parties which won the overwhelming majority of 
parliamentary seats, formed a Committee Representing the People's 
Parliament (CRPP) to act on behalf of the entire parliament. [Among the 
parties constituting the CRPP are the National League for Democracy, Shan 
National League for Democracy, Arakan League for Democracy, Mon National 
Democracy Front and Zome National Congress. Four ethnic groups which have 
signed cease-fires with the regime, Shan Nationalities People's Liberation 
Organization, Kayan New Land Party, Karenni Nationalities People's 
Liberation Front and New Mon State Party also supported the CRPP.] This 
Committee was given signed mandates from 60 percent of the elected 
parliament members authorizing them to begin the work of the parliament, 
which the CRPP is now doing.

Among the CRPP's first actions were to revoke illegal laws promulgated by 
the regime and to restore the writ of habeas corpus. At present, the 
Committee is appealing for international recognition and has formed 
subcommittees charged with responsibilities for specific subject areas, 
such as ethnic affairs, finance, education, foreign affairs and defense. 

Madam Chairperson,
Let me stress the point that the parliament elected in 1990 is the 
repository of democratic legitimacy in Burma. The Committee Representing 
the People's Parliament is a necessary and legitimate step toward convening 
the full parliament and restoring a democratic system. The attempt of the 
military to demolish the legally existing National League for Democracy at 
various levels and suppression against the elected representatives of the 
people are the unlawful acts of the military that deserves the strongest 
possible condemnation of the Commission.

Thank you. 
*************************

55th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights 
Agenda Item 9 
Oral Intervention made by Dr. Thaung Htun, Worldview International Foundation 
April 7, 1999.

Madam Chairperson,

The Human Rights situation in Burma has deteriorated over the ten years the 
General Assembly and the Commission have adopted resolutions on this 
country. At each session, the regime's defence is that human rights are 
essentially the right to food, shelter and other social needs and that 
restrictive measures on fundamental freedoms and civil and political rights 
are essential for social harmony. 

However, along with civil and political rights, implementation of Economic, 
Social and Cultural rights has also been declining. This is largely due to 
mismanagement and the unjust economic and development policy of a regime 
whose main interest is to build up the armed forces at the expense of other 
sectors.
 
Burma, once known as the rice bowl of Asia, is now classified as a Least 
Developed Country, with a UNDP Human Development Index of 131 out of 171. 
Poverty and environmental degradation can be seen everywhere: in urban 
areas, in ethnic minority areas and in war zones. About one third of the 
rural population lives in absolute poverty, with no productive assets of 
their own.

Land confiscation exacerbates the existing problem of landlessness and the 
alienation of farmers from the means of livelihood. It has been carried out 
without compensation on the pretext of infrastruture development projects 
such as dams, roads and railways, the creation of new satellite towns, the 
construction of bases for the rapidly expanding army; and for the 
production of food for the military.

Over 30,000 acres of agricultural land were seized without compensation in 
1988-89 from farmers in 22 villages from Northern Dagon Township, Rangoon 
Division, for the purpose of creating New Dagon town. The farmers were left 
without work and impoverished. They lost the right to live in their own 
houses and were even classified as trespassers and forced to vacate. They 
also lost their savings with the Rural and Agricultural Bank. 

In February, 1999, 6300 acres of land in five villages in Kantbalu township 
in Sagai Division were confiscated, supposedly for the construction of the 
Mandalay-Myitkyina highway. Those farmers who tried to bring official 
complaints about this were detained by the police. 

In December 1998, there was a clash between 900 villagers from Htan-Gon 
village tract, Kant-balu Township, Sagai Division and soldiers from 
Infantry Battalion (11) in Shwe Bo, backed up by members of the Union 
Solidarity and Development Association, the political arm of the army. It 
erupted when a group of soldiers attempted, by means of intimidation and 
physical abuse to force the farmers to sign land sale contracts at 
undervalued prices 

In April 1998, the authorities confiscated over 3000 acres of land in 
Rae-za-gjou, Chin-su and Hanthawaddy in Sagaing Division. After realizing 
that government service personnel had no expertise in cultivation, the 
original cultivators were made to sign bonds undertaking production at the 
rate of thirty baskets of paddy per acre.

Confiscation of land is also very common as a punishment by the authorities 
when farmers fail to sell the required quota of their farm products at the 
price set by the government. This frequently occurs because of crop failure 
due to bad weather, or when farmers grow cash crops rather than the crop 
specified by authorities. There have also been incidents in which 
authorities searched for and confiscated paddy stored for the household use 
of peasant families or sometimes even the seed paddy for the next season, 
claiming that they had failed to supply their full quota of paddy. 
[Even though the ILO Commission of Inquiry into forced labor in Burma 
recommended the steps required to end the practice of forced labor, it 
continues unabated (note the decision (GB274/5/D.1 -- as revised) taken by 
the ILO Governing Body on 25 March to produce a report on non-compliance by 
21 May 1999). 

On the pretext of building dams and embankments, farmers have been forced 
to contribute labor and in default, pay money to the authorities. For 
example, in December, 1998, in Thanlwin and Kayan Township every household 
was forced to dig a minimum of two pits. In default, each household was 
ordered to pay seven hundred to one thousand five hundred Kyats. The 
villagers from whom such forced labor and penalties are demanded are 
undergoing tremendous hardship and suffering, since this forced labour must 
be added to the strain of rising costs. 

In April 1998, about 1000 farmers from eight townships in Sagaing Division 
were conscripted and brought to the Hanthawaddi camp where they had to 
labor without wages, with inadequate food and medicine from 7:00 a.m to 
5:00 p.m. without any rest periods. Because of these conditions and the 
harsh climate, seventeen died of malaria at the camp.]

The problem in the hill areas of border States seems intractable. These 
regions have suffered from long periods of neglect and isolation by 
successive governments. As we can see from the current report of the 
Special Rapporteur on Myanmar (E./CN.4/199/35) the problem of poverty in 
ethnic minority areas has been compounded by the regime's policy of 
massive forced relocation, forced labor, extortion of money, looting of 
properties and burning of villages and crops in the course of 
counter-insurgency operations, better known as the Four Cuts strategy. 
Millions of villagers have been driven out from their homelands, which were 
later declared by the army as free-fire zones. People have to leave their 
lands and assets and either move to new relocation sites where there are no 
means of livelihood or access to medical care, hide in the jungles without 
enough food, medical care or security, or flee as refugees to neighbouring 
countries. Traditional subsistence in an agrarian village economy has 
already been destroyed in many parts of ethnic minorities' area.
I would like to urge the Commission to request the Special Rapporteur in 
his future reports to look into the violations of human rights in Burma not 
only from the aspect of Civil and Political Rights but also from the aspect 
of Economic, Social and Cultural rights. 

Thank you Madam Chairperson

**********************

Aliran Kesedaran Negara
Oral Intervention on Item 9 (Question of the violation of human rights and
fundamental freedoms in any part of the world)
Delivered by Ms Deborah Stothard

Madam Chairperson,

May I remind the Myanmar delegation that this is the United Nations Commission
on Human Rights, not a comedy club.The bizarre descriptions used by the
delegation to gloss over the brutalities and oppressions inflicted on the
peoples of Burma by the so-called State Peace and Development Council is
nothing short of a sick joke.

It is outrageous that the regime dares to insult our intelligence by describing
the despicable practice of forced labour as ?voluntary contribution to
community development?. It is very clear that the practice imposed by the
regime in this regard in no way contributes to community development, indeed
the practice of forced labour in Burma is destructive to the communities
involved.

One dreads to think what other excuses the regime may think up if this
double-speak goes unchallenged - will they describe the extra-judicial killings
perpetrated by its troops as ?voluntary participation in target practice??

Madam Chairperson, as we sit here in comfort and safety in Geneva, it is easy
to cloak the perpetration of injustice and brutality with diplomatic talk and
euphemisms, it is easy for those representing the human rights violators to
smoothly deny the evidence presented before this Commission.

However, no one can deny the truth that the military regime has torn apart tens
of thousands of families by perpetrating military offensives, forced
relocations, forced labour, porterage and illegal detentions.

No one can deny that hundreds of thousands of people have fled Burma because
the regime routinely violates their civil, political, economic, social and
cultural rights with such force that they are in fear of their safety and
well-being. These violations also cause a significant percentage of Burma?s
population to be denied basic food, shelter and healthcare.

It is indisputable that the National League for Democracy has suffered the
worst year of repression in recent times, mainly because of its call to convene
the People?s Parliament based on the outcome of the 1990 election.

It is true the Committee Representing the Peoples Parliament [which was formed
when the regime refused to convene Parliament last year] continues to command
legitimacy because it has the mandate of the elected MPs whereas the junta only
commands a rule of force to suppress those who stand up for their fundamental
rights.

It is true that more than 150 elected MPs of the National League for Democracy
[which won the election] are being detained, and other MPs have been forced,
through threats and intimidation, to resign. Three MPs have died because of
harsh conditions of detention. Hundreds of NLD members and activists continue
to be detained under harsh conditions, some under lengthy jail sentences. Most
detainees are being denied access to family visits, legal counsel and medical
attention.

Therefore, I challenge the representatives of the Burmese military regime to
see for themselves the refugee camps and prisons before daring to utter such
glib denials at the next Commission on Human Rights.

I challenge the regime to allow the Special Rapporteur free access to Burma to
determine the extent of the oppressions inflicted on the peoples of the
country.

I challenge the military regime of Burma to live up to its public commitment to
a political solution as expressed by Mr. U Aye last week. As a first step to
this political solution, the regime should convene a genuine dialogue with the
democracy movement led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the ethnic nationality
leaders.

Finally, I challenge all of the members of the Human Rights Commission,
particularly those ASEAN states, to make a genuine commitment to the human
rights of peoples around the world, be they in Kosovo or Burma. The promotion
and protection of human rights deserves honest words, words that can be put
into action.

Thank you.
**************************
ANTI-SLAVERY INTERNATIONAL

Oral Intervention 
Agenda Item ( 9) 
By Kham Harn Fah 
(Update of last year Intervention by The Society for Threatened Peoples) 
Date: 7 April 1999

Madame Chairperson,

I would like to stress the fact that the forced relocation programs,  conducted
by the Burmese military regime since 1996 are still badly affecting the lives
of the people in Shan State. 

The mass forced relocations which took place in 1996, 1997 and early 1998 
have displaced over 300,000 people from 1,478 villages in Central Shan State.
These forced relocations continue to take place. 

Once relocated, the people often face forced relocation to other sites as part
of the military's consolidation of control. Villagers continue to be forced to
move to more concentrated and crowded sites. For example, the relocation sites
of Waeng Kao and Ho Ta in Murng-Nai township were moved again to the site of
Ton Hoong in October. These repeated relocations prevent the people from
resettling and deprive them of all means of livelihood. 

In most areas, the relocated villagers are still strictly forbidden from going
beyond 3 miles of the relocation sites. They are at risk of being shot on sight
if they return to their old villages, even if it is to grow or forage for food.

Killing 

Extrajudicial killings of villagers have also been continuing during 1998,
mostly caught returning to their old villages after being forcibly relocated.
On June 27, 1998, 13 villagers, including 2 women and 7 children, aged ranging
1-2-4-5-6-8-11, were caught in their fields and killed by the regime's troops
from LIB246, despite the fact that these villagers had been allowed by local
troops of IB44 to return and work in their fields. 

On 16.1.98, 36 village elders and community leaders were tortured and killed by
a combined force of troops from LIB514 and IB227, in Murng-Kerng township, on
the suspecion of harbouring rice to support the Shan resistance. 

The extra-judicial killing of 312 people have been documented in 1998. The
widespread nature and repeated occurrence of the killings, and the fact that
groups of up to 36 villagers, including women and children, have been killed,
indicate that the regime's troops are still carrying out a systematic policy to
terrorize the civilian Shan population into subjugation.

Rape 

58 cases of rape by the regime's troops in 1998, with officers involved in most
cases. Victims who tried to complain were ignored by the authorities, or even
accused of trying to defame military officers and were forced to pay fines,
and/or were punished otherwise. 

The fact that officers are committing the rapes, and that in each case the
offenders were not charged even when the victims complained to the authorities,
shows (again) that rape is being condoned by the military to intimidate the
local populations. 

In January 1999 alone, 12 rape cases involving minors of 16 and 17 years old,
in Nam-Zarng, Kun-Hing and Murng-Sart, have already been documented.

Forced Labour 

People throughout Shan State are being forced to work without payment by the
military authorities. They are forced to work on military bases; to grow crops
for the military on land that was seized from them; to work on military
business and infrastructure projects; and to serve as porters. 

In view of the increasing forced displacement carried out by the Burmese
military as part of its strategy of ethnic cleansing and other forms of
demographic engineering, and the suffering of thousands of people uprooted from
their homelands, I would like to urge the Representative of the
Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons to investigate the situation
and report back to the Commission . 

I also would like urge the international community to provide emergency
humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons in Burma. 

Thank you, Madam Chairperson

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<html>
Statements by: <br>
<br>
International Peace Bureau (Dr Sein Win)<br>
Worldview International Foundation (Dr Thaung Htun)<br>
Aliran Kesedaran Negara (Ms Deborah Stothard<br>
Anti-Slavery International (Mr Kham Harn Fah)<br>
____________________<br>
<br>
<br>
55th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights <br>
Oral Intervention made by Dr. Sein Win <br>
International Peace Bureau <br>
Geneva. <br>
April 7, 1999.<br>
<br>
<br>
Thank you Madam Chairperson.<br>
<br>
I am Dr. Sein Win, an elected representative of the 1990 general
elections <br>
from Paukhaung Constituency of Burma. I have taken this floor at each
<br>
session of the UN Commission on Human Rights since 1991 to present the
case <br>
of the 1990 general elections in Burma, with the hope that the Commission
<br>
might help accelerate the process of democratization which is a vital
step <br>
for the improvement of the human rights situation in my country. However,
<br>
it is very disappointing to see that the response of the regime to the
<br>
constructive recommendations made by the Commission is an extremely 
<br>
defensive, blanket denial and lack of respect for
internationally-accepted <br>
human rights norms. Worse still is the regime's refusal to accept the
visit <br>
of the UN Special Rapporteur since his appointment in 1996. <br>
[Instead, the regime has launched a systematic strategy to prevent the
<br>
convening of parliament. To implement this strategy, it is resorting to
<br>
deception, harassment, coercion, threats, prison and torture. A number of
<br>
MPs-elect and NLD organizers have also died in prison under conditions so
<br>
terrible as to support the inference that their deaths were
intentional.]<br>
In face of the deteriorating human rights and economic situation, the NLD
<br>
renewed its request to the military regime to convene the parliament. On
<br>
the eighth anniversary of the 1990 elections, the NLD informed the junta
<br>
that it wanted the parliament convened by August 21st and that if the
<br>
regime refused to fulfill its obligations under national and
international <br>
law it would seek to convene the parliament notwithstanding the regime's
<br>
failure.<br>
<br>
In response, the regime -- principally through the Military Intelligence
<br>
Directorate-vastly stepped up its campaign, not only to stop the <br>
parliament, but also to wipe out the democratic movement. This campaign
is <br>
characterized by illegal and inhumane tactics and has resulted in the
<br>
incarceration of more than 150 members of parliament. This is in addition
<br>
to the approximately 40 members of parliament who were already imprisoned
<br>
by the regime. As of March 16 this year, 22,482 members of the NLD had
<br>
been forced to resign from the party and extraordinary new hardships are
<br>
being imposed. Those who refuse to resign from their MP-elect status or
<br>
from the party have been threatened with loss of their business licenses
<br>
and that their family members would be fired from civil service or
children <br>
be prohibited from attending school. <br>
<br>
So far, 42 NLD offices in townships have not only been forced to close
down <br>
but the regime has also demanded that they transfer flags, seals and
files <br>
to the local authorities. In addition to constant attacks on Daw Aung San
<br>
Suu Kyi and the NLD leadership, the military has been using its control
of <br>
the media to launch a psychological campaign by broadcasting news of
<br>
resignations and ceremonial transfers of office property to local <br>
authorities as if politicians were rebel units surrendering arms to the
<br>
government. For those MPs who resist the pressure, the last technique
<br>
employed is to hold mass rallies in constituencies that endorse <br>
non-confidence motions in their respective elected MPs. Members of the
<br>
Union Solidarity and Development Association, the political arm of the
<br>
army, have been active in that campaign. <br>
<br>
The regime's campaign of fear against the elected Members of Parliament
and <br>
their political parties has taken a terrible toll on the M.P.s, their
<br>
families and the people of Burma. At present, approximately 190 members
of <br>
parliament are incarcerated--some in prisons; some in what the military
<br>
euphemistically refers to as &quot;guest houses.&quot; [Thanks to the
work of <br>
Amnesty International and other human rights groups, the world well knows
<br>
the infamous conditions inside Burma's prisons.] According to information
<br>
we are receiving, treatment and conditions in the &quot;guest
houses&quot; are, at <br>
best, akin to minimum-security prisons. In many cases, however, the 
<br>
treatment is truly life-threatening. The regime is not providing adequate
<br>
food or medical treatment and in some cases, not allowing anyone else to
<br>
either. I would point to the death of U Aung Min, a member of the
Mandalay <br>
Division Organizing Committee who died on October 21, 1998 while in
custody <br>
at a &quot;guest house.&quot;<br>
<br>
The junta's latest action against the NLD, and one which has been widely
<br>
condemned by the international community, is of course its contemptible
<br>
exploitation of a human tragedy, by attempting to force Daw Aung San Suu
<br>
Kyi, the party's Secretary-General out of the country by refusing to
grant <br>
an entry visa to her dying husband;<br>
<br>
In September 1998, the parties which won the overwhelming majority of
<br>
parliamentary seats, formed a Committee Representing the People's <br>
Parliament (CRPP) to act on behalf of the entire parliament. [Among the
<br>
parties constituting the CRPP are the National League for Democracy, Shan
<br>
National League for Democracy, Arakan League for Democracy, Mon National
<br>
Democracy Front and Zome National Congress. Four ethnic groups which have
<br>
signed cease-fires with the regime, Shan Nationalities People's
Liberation <br>
Organization, Kayan New Land Party, Karenni Nationalities People's <br>
Liberation Front and New Mon State Party also supported the CRPP.] This
<br>
Committee was given signed mandates from 60 percent of the elected <br>
parliament members authorizing them to begin the work of the parliament,
<br>
which the CRPP is now doing.<br>
<br>
Among the CRPP's first actions were to revoke illegal laws promulgated by
<br>
the regime and to restore the writ of habeas corpus. At present, the
<br>
Committee is appealing for international recognition and has formed 
<br>
subcommittees charged with responsibilities for specific subject areas,
<br>
such as ethnic affairs, finance, education, foreign affairs and defense.
<br>
<br>
Madam Chairperson,<br>
Let me stress the point that the parliament elected in 1990 is the <br>
repository of democratic legitimacy in Burma. The Committee Representing
<br>
the People's Parliament is a necessary and legitimate step toward
convening <br>
the full parliament and restoring a democratic system. The attempt of the
<br>
military to demolish the legally existing National League for Democracy
at <br>
various levels and suppression against the elected representatives of the
<br>
people are the unlawful acts of the military that deserves the strongest
<br>
possible condemnation of the Commission.<br>
<br>
Thank you. <br>
*************************<br>
<br>
55th Session of the UN Commission on Human Rights <br>
Agenda Item 9 <br>
Oral Intervention made by Dr. Thaung Htun, Worldview International
Foundation <br>
April 7, 1999.<br>
<br>
Madam Chairperson,<br>
<br>
The Human Rights situation in Burma has deteriorated over the ten years
the <br>
General Assembly and the Commission have adopted resolutions on this
<br>
country. At each session, the regime's defence is that human rights are
<br>
essentially the right to food, shelter and other social needs and that
<br>
restrictive measures on fundamental freedoms and civil and political
rights <br>
are essential for social harmony. <br>
<br>
However, along with civil and political rights, implementation of
Economic, <br>
Social and Cultural rights has also been declining. This is largely due
to <br>
mismanagement and the unjust economic and development policy of a regime
<br>
whose main interest is to build up the armed forces at the expense of
other <br>
sectors.<br>
&nbsp;<br>
Burma, once known as the rice bowl of Asia, is now classified as a Least
<br>
Developed Country, with a UNDP Human Development Index of 131 out of 171.
<br>
Poverty and environmental degradation can be seen everywhere: in urban
<br>
areas, in ethnic minority areas and in war zones. About one third of the
<br>
rural population lives in absolute poverty, with no productive assets of
<br>
their own.<br>
<br>
Land confiscation exacerbates the existing problem of landlessness and
the <br>
alienation of farmers from the means of livelihood. It has been carried
out <br>
without compensation on the pretext of infrastruture development projects
<br>
such as dams, roads and railways, the creation of new satellite towns,
the <br>
construction of bases for the rapidly expanding army; and for the <br>
production of food for the military.<br>
<br>
Over 30,000 acres of agricultural land were seized without compensation
in <br>
1988-89 from farmers in 22 villages from Northern Dagon Township, Rangoon
<br>
Division, for the purpose of creating New Dagon town. The farmers were
left <br>
without work and impoverished. They lost the right to live in their own
<br>
houses and were even classified as trespassers and forced to vacate. They
<br>
also lost their savings with the Rural and Agricultural Bank. <br>
<br>
In February, 1999, 6300 acres of land in five villages in Kantbalu
township <br>
in Sagai Division were confiscated, supposedly for the construction of
the <br>
Mandalay-Myitkyina highway. Those farmers who tried to bring official
<br>
complaints about this were detained by the police. <br>
<br>
In December 1998, there was a clash between 900 villagers from Htan-Gon
<br>
village tract, Kant-balu Township, Sagai Division and soldiers from 
<br>
Infantry Battalion (11) in Shwe Bo, backed up by members of the Union
<br>
Solidarity and Development Association, the political arm of the army. It
<br>
erupted when a group of soldiers attempted, by means of intimidation and
<br>
physical abuse to force the farmers to sign land sale contracts at <br>
undervalued prices <br>
<br>
In April 1998, the authorities confiscated over 3000 acres of land in
<br>
Rae-za-gjou, Chin-su and Hanthawaddy in Sagaing Division. After realizing
<br>
that government service personnel had no expertise in cultivation, the
<br>
original cultivators were made to sign bonds undertaking production at
the <br>
rate of thirty baskets of paddy per acre.<br>
<br>
Confiscation of land is also very common as a punishment by the
authorities <br>
when farmers fail to sell the required quota of their farm products at
the <br>
price set by the government. This frequently occurs because of crop
failure <br>
due to bad weather, or when farmers grow cash crops rather than the crop
<br>
specified by authorities. There have also been incidents in which <br>
authorities searched for and confiscated paddy stored for the household
use <br>
of peasant families or sometimes even the seed paddy for the next season,
<br>
claiming that they had failed to supply their full quota of paddy. <br>
[Even though the ILO Commission of Inquiry into forced labor in Burma
<br>
recommended the steps required to end the practice of forced labor, it
<br>
continues unabated (note the decision (GB274/5/D.1 -- as revised) taken
by <br>
the ILO Governing Body on 25 March to produce a report on non-compliance
by <br>
21 May 1999). <br>
<br>
On the pretext of building dams and embankments, farmers have been forced
<br>
to contribute labor and in default, pay money to the authorities. For
<br>
example, in December, 1998, in Thanlwin and Kayan Township every
household <br>
was forced to dig a minimum of two pits. In default, each household was
<br>
ordered to pay seven hundred to one thousand five hundred Kyats. The
<br>
villagers from whom such forced labor and penalties are demanded are
<br>
undergoing tremendous hardship and suffering, since this forced labour
must <br>
be added to the strain of rising costs. <br>
<br>
In April 1998, about 1000 farmers from eight townships in Sagaing
Division <br>
were conscripted and brought to the Hanthawaddi camp where they had to
<br>
labor without wages, with inadequate food and medicine from 7:00 a.m to
<br>
5:00 p.m. without any rest periods. Because of these conditions and the
<br>
harsh climate, seventeen died of malaria at the camp.]<br>
<br>
The problem in the hill areas of border States seems intractable. These
<br>
regions have suffered from long periods of neglect and isolation by 
<br>
successive governments. As we can see from the current report of the
<br>
Special Rapporteur on Myanmar (E./CN.4/199/35) the problem of poverty in
<br>
ethnic minority areas has been compounded by the regime's policy of 
<br>
massive forced relocation, forced labor, extortion of money, looting of
<br>
properties and burning of villages and crops in the course of <br>
counter-insurgency operations, better known as the Four Cuts strategy.
<br>
Millions of villagers have been driven out from their homelands, which
were <br>
later declared by the army as free-fire zones. People have to leave their
<br>
lands and assets and either move to new relocation sites where there are
no <br>
means of livelihood or access to medical care, hide in the jungles
without <br>
enough food, medical care or security, or flee as refugees to
neighbouring <br>
countries. Traditional subsistence in an agrarian village economy has
<br>
already been destroyed in many parts of ethnic minorities' area.<br>
I would like to urge the Commission to request the Special Rapporteur in
<br>
his future reports to look into the violations of human rights in Burma
not <br>
only from the aspect of Civil and Political Rights but also from the
aspect <br>
of Economic, Social and Cultural rights. <br>
<br>
Thank you Madam Chairperson<br>
<br>
**********************<br>
<br>
Aliran Kesedaran Negara<br>
Oral Intervention on Item 9 (Question of the violation of human rights
and fundamental freedoms in any part of the world)<br>
Delivered by Ms Deborah Stothard<br>
<br>
Madam Chairperson,<br>
<br>
May I remind the Myanmar delegation that this is the United Nations
Commission on Human Rights, not a comedy club.The bizarre descriptions
used by the delegation to gloss over the brutalities and oppressions
inflicted on the peoples of Burma by the so-called State Peace and
Development Council is nothing short of a sick joke.<br>
<br>
It is outrageous that the regime dares to insult our intelligence by
describing the despicable practice of forced labour as ?voluntary
contribution to community development?. It is very clear that the
practice imposed by the regime in this regard in no way contributes to
community development, indeed the practice of forced labour in Burma is
destructive to the communities involved.<br>
<br>
One dreads to think what other excuses the regime may think up if this
double-speak goes unchallenged - will they describe the extra-judicial
killings perpetrated by its troops as ?voluntary participation in target
practice??<br>
<br>
Madam Chairperson, as we sit here in comfort and safety in Geneva, it is
easy to cloak the perpetration of injustice and brutality with diplomatic
talk and euphemisms, it is easy for those representing the human rights
violators to smoothly deny the evidence presented before this
Commission.<br>
<br>
However, no one can deny the truth that the military regime has torn
apart tens of thousands of families by perpetrating military offensives,
forced relocations, forced labour, porterage and illegal 
detentions.<br>
<br>
No one can deny that hundreds of thousands of people have fled Burma
because the regime routinely violates their civil, political, economic,
social and cultural rights with such force that they are in fear of their
safety and well-being. These violations also cause a significant
percentage of Burma?s population to be denied basic food, shelter and
healthcare.<br>
<br>
It is indisputable that the National League for Democracy has suffered
the worst year of repression in recent times, mainly because of its call
to convene the People?s Parliament based on the outcome of the 1990
election.<br>
<br>
It is true the Committee Representing the Peoples Parliament [which was
formed when the regime refused to convene Parliament last year] continues
to command legitimacy because it has the mandate of the elected MPs
whereas the junta only commands a rule of force to suppress those who
stand up for their fundamental rights.<br>
<br>
It is true that more than 150 elected MPs of the National League for
Democracy [which won the election] are being detained, and other MPs have
been forced, through threats and intimidation, to resign. Three MPs have
died because of harsh conditions of detention. Hundreds of NLD members
and activists continue to be detained under harsh conditions, some under
lengthy jail sentences. Most detainees are being denied access to family
visits, legal counsel and medical attention.<br>
<br>
Therefore, I challenge the representatives of the Burmese military regime
to see for themselves the refugee camps and prisons before daring to
utter such glib denials at the next Commission on Human Rights.<br>
<br>
I challenge the regime to allow the Special Rapporteur free access to
Burma to determine the extent of the oppressions inflicted on the peoples
of the country.<br>
<br>
I challenge the military regime of Burma to live up to its public
commitment to a political solution as expressed by Mr. U Aye last week.
As a first step to this political solution, the regime should convene a
genuine dialogue with the democracy movement led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi
and the ethnic nationality leaders.<br>
<br>
Finally, I challenge all of the members of the Human Rights Commission,
particularly those ASEAN states, to make a genuine commitment to the
human rights of peoples around the world, be they in Kosovo or Burma. The
promotion and protection of human rights deserves honest words, words
that can be put into action.<br>
<br>
Thank you.<br>
**************************<br>
<div align="center">
ANTI-SLAVERY INTERNATIONAL<br>
<br>
</div>
Oral Intervention <br>
Agenda Item ( 9) <br>
By Kham Harn Fah <br>
(Update of last year Intervention by The Society for Threatened Peoples)
<br>
Date: 7 April 1999<br>
<br>
Madame Chairperson,<br>
<br>
I would like to stress the fact that the forced relocation
programs,&nbsp; conducted by the Burmese military regime since 1996 are
still badly affecting the lives of the people in Shan State. <br>
<br>
The mass forced relocations which took place in 1996, 1997 and early 1998
<br>
have displaced over 300,000 people from 1,478 villages in Central Shan
State. These forced relocations continue to take place. <br>
<br>
Once relocated, the people often face forced relocation to other sites as
part of the military's consolidation of control. Villagers continue to be
forced to move to more concentrated and crowded sites. For example, the
relocation sites of Waeng Kao and Ho Ta in Murng-Nai township were moved
again to the site of Ton Hoong in October. These repeated relocations
prevent the people from resettling and deprive them of all means of
livelihood. <br>
<br>
In most areas, the relocated villagers are still strictly forbidden from
going beyond 3 miles of the relocation sites. They are at risk of being
shot on sight if they return to their old villages, even if it is to grow
or forage for food.<br>
<br>
Killing <br>
<br>
Extrajudicial killings of villagers have also been continuing during
1998, mostly caught returning to their old villages after being forcibly
relocated. On June 27, 1998, 13 villagers, including 2 women and 7
children, aged ranging 1-2-4-5-6-8-11, were caught in their fields and
killed by the regime's troops from LIB246, despite the fact that these
villagers had been allowed by local troops of IB44 to return and work in
their fields. <br>
<br>
On 16.1.98, 36 village elders and community leaders were tortured and
killed by a combined force of troops from LIB514 and IB227, in
Murng-Kerng township, on the suspecion of harbouring rice to support the
Shan resistance. <br>
<br>
The extra-judicial killing of 312 people have been documented in 1998.
The widespread nature and repeated occurrence of the killings, and the
fact that groups of up to 36 villagers, including women and children,
have been killed, indicate that the regime's troops are still carrying
out a systematic policy to terrorize the civilian Shan population into
subjugation.<br>
<br>
Rape <br>
<br>
58 cases of rape by the regime's troops in 1998, with officers involved
in most cases. Victims who tried to complain were ignored by the
authorities, or even accused of trying to defame military officers and
were forced to pay fines, and/or were punished otherwise. <br>
<br>
The fact that officers are committing the rapes, and that in each case
the offenders were not charged even when the victims complained to the
authorities, shows (again) that rape is being condoned by the military to
intimidate the local populations. <br>
<br>
In January 1999 alone, 12 rape cases involving minors of 16 and 17 years
old, in Nam-Zarng, Kun-Hing and Murng-Sart, have already been
documented.<br>
<br>
Forced Labour <br>
<br>
People throughout Shan State are being forced to work without payment by
the military authorities. They are forced to work on military bases; to
grow crops for the military on land that was seized from them; to work on
military business and infrastructure projects; and to serve as porters.
<br>
<br>
In view of the increasing forced displacement carried out by the Burmese
military as part of its strategy of ethnic cleansing and other forms of
demographic engineering, and the suffering of thousands of people
uprooted from their homelands, I would like to urge the Representative of
the Secretary-General on Internally Displaced Persons to investigate the
situation and report back to the Commission . <br>
<br>
I also would like urge the international community to provide emergency
humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons in Burma. <br>
<br>
Thank you, Madam Chairperson<br>
<br>
*********************<br>
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