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Resolution of the European Parliame (r)



Resolution of the European Parliament
17 September 1998


The European Parliament,

-having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma,

A. Deeply concerned at the continuing and extremely serious human rights
abuses committed by the military authorities in Burma, especially the
violation of humanitarian law by the Burmese army in ethnic minority areas,

B. deploring the restrictions by the SPDC on the freedom of movement of
Aung San Suu Kyi and the repeated locking in her car for six days in July
and thirteen days in August 1998 to prevent her visiting NLD members, the
ban by the SPDC restricting her to Rangoon and all other restrictions
placed on her movement, effectively putting her under house arrest,

C. whereas tension has been increasing in Burma since thousands of students
staged ant-government protests on a university campus in the biggest
demonstration since 1996,

D. Gravely concerned about the arrests in September 1998 of many NLD
members, including 50 members who were elected to Parliament in the 1990
elections,

E. greatly concerned at the ongoing use of riot police against university
students in Rangoon peacefully demonstrating for the release of arrested
students and improvements in the education system in September 1998 and the
confinement of these students to their campuses,

F. whereas on 19 August the International Labour Organistion released its
report on forced labour, based upon a year-long inquiry, in which it stated
that the practices is "widespread and systematic" with "total disregard for
the human dignity, safety and health and basic needs of the people",

G. noting that European multinational oil companies now provide almost a
third of the total legal foreign investment committed in Burma and an even
higher proportion of funds disbursed,

H. noting with great concern that, according to its own figures, the
military authorities in Burma spent half the budget in 1996 on defence and
only 14% on education,

I. welcoming the recent decision by some European companies to halt all
further activities in Burma, and hoping that their example will be followed
by other companies,

J. concerned at the arrests and summary deportations of Burmese refugees in
Thailand and reports that some of the deported are being forced into labour
camps on their return to Burmese territory,

K. noting the refusal by the SPDC in July 1998 to grant entry to the
special envoy of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan on a mission to seek
political dialogue between the regime and the opposition,

L. noting that most of the world's heroin comes from Burma and deploring
the strong ties between the military regime and drug producers,

1. Reiterates its condemnation of the military dictatorship in Burma and
all human rights violations by the SPDC;

2. Calls again on the Burmese Government to guarantee the fundamental
rights of the Burmese people, to release all political prisoners and to
allow freedom movement for Aung San Suu Kyi;

3. Believes that, in the interest of a foreign policy founded upon the
principles of human rights and democracy, the scope of the WTO to take
these principles into account should be enlarged rather than restricted and
calls upon the European Union to use its weight as the biggest trading
power of the world to this end;

4. Criticises in this context the Commission decision to insist on a
conflict resolution panel within WTO over the law of the US State of
Massachusetts, which set a pricing penalty on purchases of goods by state
authorities from companies that do business with Burma,

5. Calls on the Burmese Government to put an immediate end to all forced
labour practices in Burma and the human rights violations connected to it;

6. Urges the SPDC to allow the visit, without preconditions or
restrictions, of the UN Special Rapporteur on Burma in order to enable him
to discharge his mandate fully;

7. Reaffirms its opinion that foreign direct investment in Burma makes an
important financial contribution to the SPDC, while failing to provide even
indirect benefits to the Burmese people;

8. Calls on the EU not to contribute to the controversial UNDCP project in
Burma;

9. Calls on the Council to ensure that the current CFSP common position on
Burma is strictly enforced, in particular with regard to the ban on entry
visas and further strongly calls on the EU Member States to refrain from
giving transit visas to SPDC and military personnel;

10. Calls on the Council to respond to Aung San Suu Kyi's request for EU
economic sanctions against the SPDC by ending all links between the
European Union and Burma based on trade, tourism and investment  in Burma
by European companies; as a first step, call on the Council to expand the
measures taken in the common position be ending trade promotion and
expanding the ban on entry visas;

11. Supports the Council's decision not to accept the participation of
Burma in EU-ASEAN meetings and ASEM until there are significant
improvements in human rights and democracy in Burma;

12. Calls on the Council to use its discussions with the ASEAN and Japan
and China to pressure the SPDC to enter into dialogue with the democratic
opposition and ethnic minorities;

13. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Commission,
the Council, the NLD, the SPDC, ASEAN and the WTO.