From: hrcoord@igc.apc.org (Human Rights Coordinator)
Newsgroups: soc.rights.human
Subject: BURMA: International image remains
Date: 17 Dec 92 17:50:00 GMT
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1476700879:000:5443
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!hrcoord    Dec 17 09:50:00 1992


From: Human Rights Coordinator <hrcoord>
Subject: BURMA: International image remains 

/* Written 12:06 am  Dec 17, 1992 by newsdesk@igc.apc.org in
igc:ips.englibrary */ Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all
rights reserved.  Permission to re- print within 7 days of
original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: BURMA: International image remains tainted by human rights
record

bangkok, dec 14 (ips/yuli ismartono) -- burma's dismal human
rights record is once again in the spotlight following recent
reports of a hunger strike by opposition leader aung san suu kyi,
under house arrest for the past three years.

despite diplomatic efforts to clear its international image, the
ruling state law and order restoration council (slorc) continues
to face intense critical scrutiny.

before the united nations general assembly in october, foreign
minister ohn gyaw presented slorc's agenda for change in his
country, which had taken the isolationist 'burmese road to
socialism' for more than two decades under general ne win.

ne win stepped down in 1988 following bloody clashes between
demonstrators and the army, causing hundreds of deaths and driving
thousands to flee across the border into thailand.

ohn gyaw cited the release of political prisoners in burma, a halt
to military operations against ethnic minorities and a timetable
for drafting a new constitution.

slorc also ended three years of martial law in september and
acceded to the four geneva conventions on human rights, but has
yet to sign the 1977 protocols on the protection and humanitarian
treatment of victims of non-international armed conflicts.

rangoon has been waging a continuous battle against insurgent
ethnic minorities along its borders since it gained independence
from britain in 1947. last year, more than 300,000 burmese muslim
rohingyas fled to neighbouring bangladesh to escape alleged
religious persecution.

''we welcome positive actions taken by the burmese government, but
the measures announced by slorc do not meet goals set out by the
u.n. commission on human rights,'' said a report by the new
york-based lawyers committee for human rights.

a committee of the u.n. general assembly recently passed a
resolution condemning the burmese government's human rights
record. this month, it is expected to place burma on the list of
nations which blatantly violate their own people's basic rights.

suu kyi, head of the national league for democracy (nld) and
winner of the 1991 nobel peace prize, was detained in 1989 during
her political campaigns but has never been tried.

she was banned from running in the 1990 general elections, burma's
first multi-party polls since ne win took over power, but the nld
still managed to bag more than 80 percent of the votes.

the ruling junta, however, refused to acknowledge the victory
citing voting irregularities, and instead jailed senior party
officials. (more/ips)

burma: international (2)

suu kyi has refused outside funds or assistance for her upkeep.
she has donated her one million dollar nobel prize to a trust fund
established to promote health and education in burma.

''the meagre personal funds she has used to maintain herself
(while in detention) are now almost exhausted,'' her husband,
oxford university prof michael aris, said recently in london.
''i'm afraid it is beginning to look like a hunger strike.''

slorc has denied the reports, insisting suu kyi is in ''reasonably
good health'' and well-taken care of. the junta reiterated its
offer for her release, on condition that she leaves the country,
but she has consistently refused it.

special u.n. human rights envoy yozo yokota, currently in rangoon,
has asked to see suu kyi but slorc has refused to allow any
outsiders to meet her. her husband and two sons were only able to
visit her in august after a two-year communication ban.

analysts say burma is unlikely to initiate reforms in the near
future despite the imminent censure by the united nations and
continuing attacks from international human rights groups.

slorc has made it clear the military would hold on to power.
''the military is the only institution capable of taking the
leading role in the country's politics and of preserving national
unity,'' the state-run 'working people's daily' wrote in october.

it said political parties should take a back seat for the sake of
national unity. ''if not, the national objective will be lost and
the nation will face the same fate it experienced in 1948,'' it
warned, referring to the start of the ongoing civil war.

the continuing conflict with the insurgents has been cited as the
main reason for the military's retention of power.

''we have a lot of nationalities here and the problem of national
unity is always inherent in our country,'' said slorc spokesperson
colone ye htut. burma, he said, wants to avoid the disintegration
that has taken place in the former soviet union and yugoslavia.

analysts say slorc is unlikely to step aside until a new
constitution is formed, which could take years, given the need for
a national referendum. slorc will hold a national convention next
month to draft guidelines for the new constitution.

the government said the convention would include ethnic group
leaders, elected members of parliament, farmers, workers,
technocrats and legal experts. but suu kyi, who was expelled from
the nld at the orders of slorc, is unlikely to attend.
(end/ips/np/yi/ln/92)