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Canada Asia Working Group: Burma Re



Subject: Canada Asia Working Group: Burma Report 6

CAWG Brief on Burma (Part 6 of 6 parts - End notes only)

Notes

[1] Background to the current situation is well-documented in Bertil
Lintner, Outrage (London: White Lotus, 1990); Far Eastern Economic
Review Yearbooks, 1989-93, entries on Burma; Amnesty International
annual reports on Myanmar; and Asian Human Rights Commission, "Facts
Sheet on Burma", included in a kit, Release all Political Prisoners,
Stop Human Rights Violations in Burma (Hong Kong, 1992).

[2] United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Resolution 1993/73,
"Situation of human rights in Myanmar", 66th meeting, 10 March 1993.

[3] Subcommission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of
Minorities, Resolution 1993/19, "The situation in Myanmar", 27th
meeting, 20 August 1993.

[4] "Introductory Statement by the Special Rapporteur to the Third
Committee of the General Assembly on 24 November 1993" (Preliminary
Report on the situation of human rights in Myanmar prepared by Yozo
Yokota, Special Rapporteur of the Commission on Human Rights under
resolution 1993/73); see also "Human Rights Questions: Human Rights
Situations and Reports of Special Rapporteurs and Representatives,
Situation of human rights in Myanmar", United Nations General
Assembly, 48th session, document A/48/578, 16 November 1993 (Hereafter
cited as "Human Rights Questions, A/48/578"). .

[5] United Nations General Assembly Third Committee, Resolution on
"Situation of human rights in Myanmar" dated 6 January 1993. See also
Paul Lewis, "U.N. Rebukes Myanmar Leaders on Human Rights and
Democracy", New York Times, 7 December 1993.

[6] SLORC Declaration No. 11/92, cited in Amnesty International,
Myanmar: The climate of fear continues, member of ethnic minorities
and political prisoners still targeted (London, October 1993) (ASA
16/06/93), page 3. (Hereafter cited as "Amnesty International,
Myanmar, 1993".)

[7] SLORC Order No. 13/92, 2 October 1992, section 4) b) vi.

[8] Amnesty International, Myanmar, 1993, page 3.

[9] "Conference adjourned by Burma junta", South China Morning Post,
12 January 1993; Bertil Lintner, "Conventional Wisdom: Junta's attempt
to amend constitution fails", Far Eastern Economic Review, 18 February
1993, page 20; "Burma junta opposed over political role", SCMP, 7
April 1993; "Burma military in calls for seats", SCMP, 8 June 1993;
for account of SNLD rejection of SLORC's constitutional demands, see
11 August 1993 editions of Bangkok Nation and Bangkok Post.

[10] "Human Rights Questions, A/48/578, page 30.

[11] "Burma bars Nobel winners", South China Morning Post, 6 February
1993; Alan Boyd, "Nobel wake-up call over Burma", SCMP, 13 February
1993; "Laureates call for sanctions against Burma", SCMP, 21 February
1993; and Rodney Tasker and Bertil Lintner, "Difficult Guests", FEER,
4 March 1993, page 10. For the full text of the "Nobel Laureates Call
for Suu Kyi's Release", see Dawn News Bulletin, March 1993, pages
49-50.

[12] Desmond Tutu, "Burma as South Africa", Far Eastern Economic
Review, 16 September 1993, page 23.

[13] Maureen Aung Thwin, "Burma's PR Offensive", Far Eastern Economic
Review, 26 August 1993, page 22; see also Letters to the Editor in
FEER, 21 October and 11 November 1993.

[14] "The SLORC's 1993 Offensive against Karen Civilians", An
Independent Report by the Karen Human Rights Group, Mae Sot, Thailand,
10 July 1993. (Hereafter cited as "The SLORC's 1993 Offensive against
Karen Civilians".)

[15] "Burmese minority wants own state", Hong Kong Standard, 16
August, 1993; Bertil Lintner, "Name Dropping: Junta's policies may
spark renewed ethnic insurgency", FEER, 19 August 1993, page 18.

[16] "Burmese Rebel Group Signs Ceasefire with Junta", Reuter, 3
October 1993; "Karens Offer Conditional Peace Talks with Burma",
Bangkok Post, 13 October 1993; Sutin Wannabovorn, "Rangoon Offers
Burma Rebels Fresh Peace Talks", Reuter, 19 November 1993; "Burmese
rebels press for ceasefire: Conditions set for end of conflict",
Toronto Globe and Mail, 25 November 1993; Pac Rim Intelligence Report,
"Burma - Rebel Groups Said 'Ready' to Talk with SLORC", Bangkok
Nation, 7 December 1993.

[17] Martin Smith, Burma: Insurgency and the Politics of Ethnicity
(London, 1991); Amnesty International documents; "The SLORC's 1993
Offensive against Karen Civilians", cited above; confidential sources.

[18] Position paper of the National Democratic Front (Burma).

[19] Amnesty International, Myanmar: 'No law at all' (ASA 16/11/92),
October 1992, pages 21-23.

[20] Jack Dunford, "Mid-year Report on Burma/Burmese Border", 5 August
1993, page 3.

[21] "The Current Situation in Burma (with emphasis on Karen State) as
Viewed from Manerplaw" (Private circulation).

[22] "The SLORC's 1993 Offensive against Karen Civilians", cited
above. See also, "Operation Dragon King: the forced relation of
Burma's village peasants", Burma Issues, September 1993.

[23] "Grave Human Rights Violations Committed by SLORC against Rural
Civilian Mon Population, CPPSM Newsletter, Committee for Publicity of
People's Struggle in Monland, May, 1993, pages 2-4.

[24] "SLORC's Troops Rape, Plunder and Seize Mon Villagers", CPPSM
Newsletter, August 1993, page 2.

[25] "KNPP Hands over POWS: They confess to various forms of human
rights abuses", Dawn News Bulletin, March 1993, pages 40-41.

[26] Amnesty International and confidential sources.

[27] Amnesty International, Myanmar, 1993, page 9. For conditions in
Insein Jail, see "Inside Burma's Nightmare Jail", Asia Week, 21 July
1993.

[28] "Response by the Government of Myanmar to the Memorandum of the
Special Rapporteur", Human Rights Questions A/48/578, page 19.

[29] "Heavy Sentence for Opponents", Irrawaddy, 31 October 1993, pages
4-5 (citing British Broadcasting Corporation); "Delegates to
Convention Arrested", Dawn News Bulletin, July-August 1993, page 4;
"To Discourage the Others", FEER, 18 November 1993, page 9.

[30] Amnesty International, Myanmar, 1993, pages 5-8; "Arrests in
Burma since June 1993", Irrawaddy, Burma Information Group, Bangkok,
15 November 1993.

[31] "Monk Tells of Persecution at Home", Bangkok Post Weekly, 24
September, 1993.

[32] Canada Asia Working Group, "Myanmar (Burma)", Human Rights in
Asia: 1992, pages 16-17.

[33] For example, on portering and other forced labour, see Amnesty
International, Myanmar, 1993, pages 14-17.

[34] "The SLORC's 1993 Offensive against Karen Civilians", cited
above, page 12.

[35] Amnesty International, Myanmar, 1993, page 15. On portering, see
pages 14-17.

[36] Bangkok Nation, 23 June 1993, quoted in Burma Alert, July 1993,
page 2.

[37] Charles-Antoine de Nerciat, "Prisoners in Burmese gulag pave a
highway for heroin", Hong Kong Standard, 8 February 1993; James
Pringle, "Burma's dissident chain gang: Shackled prisoners toil on the
road of sin", South China Morning Post, 7 March 1993. In an account of
"A Journey to Kengtung" (Dawn News Bulletin, July-August 1993, pages
28-30), reports being told, "For peddling heroin you get two or four
years, for political activity [you get] life." Many of the workers are
teenagers. They are held incommunicado and their parents think they
are dead.

[38] "On-going Human Rights Violations", Dawn News Bulletin,
July-August 1993, pages 17-18.

[39] Many examples are given in "The SLORC's 1993 Offensive against
Karen Civilians".

[40] Amnesty International, Arrests and Trials of Political Prisoners,
January-July 1991 (Document ABA 16/10/91), December 1991, pages 46-47.

[41] "Effective International Action against the Military Junta in
Light of the Present Situation Facing the People of Burma", written
statement of the Karen National Union and the Democratic Alliance of
Burma for the Amnesty International Burma Group Meeting, Munich,
Germany, 23-25 October, 1992, page 4. Although these statistics are a
year old, they are basically still accurate; indeed, the numbers may
now be larger.

[42] See Asia Watch, "Bangladesh: Abuse of Burmese Refugees from
Arakan", October 9, 1993 (hereafter cited as "Asia Watch, 'Bangladesh:
Abuse of Burmese Refugees'"); and "Burmese Border Consortium Refugee
Relief Programme: Programme Report for Period, 1 January to 30 June
1993", Church of Christ in Thailand.

[43] See Asia Watch, "Bangladesh: Abuse of Burmese Refugees"; "Appeal
on Burmese refugees", South_China_Morning_Post, 1 January 1993; Bertil
Lintner, "Distant Exile: Rohingyas seek new life in Middle East",
FEER, 28 January 1993, pages 12-13; "UN seeks greater repatriation
role", South China Morning Post, 13 May 1993.

[44] "Border attack sparks protest by Bangladesh", South China Morning
Post, 23 March 1993.

[45] "139 refugees unwilling to go back", Irrawaddy, 15 October 1993,
page 4 (citing Bangkok Post); Jack Dunford, "Report on Burma/Burmese
Border for September", 12 October 1993 (citing Bangkok Post, 12
October 1993).

[46] See various issues of Dawn News Bulletin, published by the All
Burma Students' Democratic Front, P.O. Box 1352, G.P.O. Bangkok 10501,
Thailand.

[47] Bertil Lintner, "Unfunny money", Far Eastern Economic Review, 14
January 1993, page 51.

[48] For a full discussion of the Union of Myanmar Holding Company,
see Maung Doe, "Manipulation of the Economy by the Military in Burma",
Dawn News Bulletin, March 1993, pages 21-25.

[49] Kyaw Thi Hao and Myint Shwe, "Human Rights Violations under
National Security Laws in Burma", Human Rights Violations under the
National Security Laws in Asian Countries, Korean NGO's Network for
the UN World Conference on Human Rights, pages 87-94.

End of CAWG brief on human rights in Burma

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