III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 116 

Providing for free and fair elections in Burma. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 26, 2015 

Mr. GRAHAM (for himself, Mr. MENENDEZ, and Mr. RUBIO) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

RESOLUTION 

Providing for free and fair elections in Burma. 

Whereas the Union Election Commission of Burma announced that the country will hold general elections in 

the final quarter of calendar year 2015; 

Whereas Burma’s history with general elections has been 

characterized by controversy, conflict, and interference 

instigated by the military of Burma (the Tatmadaw), including in May 1990 and November 2010, and in the 

April 2012 by-elections; 

Whereas the Tatmadaw refused to transfer power to the National League for Democracy (NLD), an opposition political party led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, following the 

May 1990 elections in which the NLD won 392 of 492 

seats, and used the flawed 2008 Constitution of Burma 

to undermine elections in November 2010; 


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Whereas stated intentions of the Government of Burma to 

negotiate a Federal union with ethnic leaders and groups 

is not matched by the ongoing Tatmadaw offensives in 

Kachin and Northern Shan States; 

Whereas, on March 5, 2015, and March 10, 2015, the Government of Burma responded to peaceful student protests 

in Rangoon and Letpadan with brutal violence and detained over 120 peaceful protestors; 

Whereas the United Nations Special Representative of the 

Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict stated 

on January 27, 2015, ‘‘I . . . urge the Government to 

put a final end to impunity for conflict-related sexual violence that is particularly targeting ethnic minority 

areas.’’; 

Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar stated on January 

16, 2015, ‘‘I remain particularly concerned at the failure 

of measures to ensure accountability of military officials, 

including [for] sexual and gender based violence in conflict zones.’’; 

Whereas the Tatmadaw continues to wield unchecked political 

and economic power and influence in Burma, as evidenced by the consumption of over 23 percent of the national budget; the set-aside of one-quarter of the seats in 

parliament which gives the Tatmadaw veto power over 

legislative and constitutional reforms; and control of the 

country’s largest business conglomerates, including in the 

natural resource sector; 

Whereas the 2008 Constitution of Burma preserves and protects the power and influence of the Tatmadaw through 

Articles 417, 418, 420, and 425, which provide the PresiVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:40 Mar 27, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR116.IS SR116

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dent of Burma with authority to declare a state of emergency ‘‘due to acts or attempts to take over the sovereignty of the Union by insurgency, violence and wrongful or forcible means’’; to transfer legislative, executive, 

and judicial powers to the Commander-in-Chief of the 

Defense Services ‘‘to enable him to carry out the necessary measures to speedily restore its original situation 

in the Union’’; for such Commander to ‘‘restrict or suspend as required, one or more fundamental rights of the 

citizens in the required area’’; and for such Commander 

to extend the state of emergency for two periods of six 

months each; 

Whereas other provisions in the 2008 Constitution of Burma 

are contrary to democracy and the rule of law, including 

Article 59(f), which prohibits anyone from being President who has children born outside of Burma; Article 

354, which limits certain freedoms that contradict laws 

‘‘enacted for Union security, prevalence of law and order, 

community peace and tranquility or public order and morality’’; and Article 436, which subjects constitutional 

amendments to a 75-percent vote threshold in parliament 

(thereby confirming the Tatmadaw’s veto power); 

Whereas the NLD Central Executive Committee released a 

statement on January 13, 2015, expressing concern with 

the stall of democratic transition and reforms in Burma, 

and identifying the following conditions as prerequisites 

for free and fair general elections: constitutional amendments ‘‘in line with the desire of the people’’; government 

involvement that is free from bias; fair and credible enforcement of election laws and regulations by the Union 

Election Commission; and cessation of discrimination and 

bias by the government to political parties; 


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Whereas the Commander-in-Chief in Burma General Min 

Aung Hlaing stated on January 21, 2015, regarding the 

planned elections in Burma, ‘‘When things become really 

out of control, if the President says the military needs to 

step in, in that region or state, the military will step in 

when a state of emergency is declared.’’; 

Whereas a state of emergency and military administration 

was declared on February 17, 2015, in Kokang Self-Administered Zone due to renewed armed conflict; 

Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar stated on January 

19, 2015, ‘‘. . . there are signs that since my last visit, 

restrictions and harassment on civil society and the 

media may have worsened . . . If Myanmar is serious 

about transitioning to democracy, it must be serious 

about allowing persons affected by its actions to express 

their frustrations without being punished.’’; 

Whereas the Government of Burma responded to the various 

concerns raised by the Special Rapporteur with accusations of interference in Burma’s internal affairs, and 

pointedly failed to criticize slanderous comments made by 

a Buddhist nationalist monk who called the Special 

Rapporteur a ‘‘bitch’’ and ‘‘whore’’; 

Whereas the United States Permanent Representative to the 

United Nations Samantha Power stated in Louisville, 

Kentucky, on January 12, 2015, ‘‘Burma is still a long 

way from being a rights-respecting democracy. The civilian government is still subordinate to the military, and 

the Constitution continues to give the military the broad 

authority to dismiss Parliament and veto any constitutional amendment.’’; 


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Whereas Ambassador Power further stated, ‘‘Attacks against 

the Rohingya and other Muslim groups have even increased . . . Yet virtually no one has been held accountable, and the humanitarian situation continues to deteriorate.’’; 

Whereas the Government of Burma, under the direction and 

leadership of President Thein Sein, submitted draft legislation to parliament that seeks to stigmatize and discriminate against religious minorities in Burma through 

coercive population control, marriage restrictions, and 

anti-conversion methods that violate established international human rights norms and instruments to which 

Burma is a party; 

Whereas Ambassador Power reaffirmed, ‘‘Our tools include 

incentivizing continued progress, shining a bright light on 

the government’s shortcoming, and imposing targeted 

sanctions on individuals who stand in the way of 

change.’’; 

Whereas President Barack Obama stated during his visit to 

Burma on November 14, 2014, that the United States 

expects elections in Burma ‘‘to take place on time. We 

do not want to see delays, because it’s time for the voice 

of the people of Burma to be heard in a fair, free, and 

transparent manner . . . the constitution amendment 

process needs to reflect inclusion rather than exclusion, 

that there are certain provisions in the Burmese constitution that objectively don’t make much sense.’’; and 

Whereas internationally recognized standards of free and fair 

elections include: the right of adult citizens to register 

and vote in elections, without discrimination; equal opportunity for individuals to stand as candidates, form political parties, and conduct campaign and civic education 


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activities free from interference and intimidation; the fair 

and impartial conduct of elections, including accountable 

voter registration processes and transparent resolution of 

election disputes by independent election commissions 

and judiciaries; and an electoral environment that is free 

from fear, intimidation, and violence: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) endorses the aforementioned internationally 

3 recognized prerequisites for free and fair general 

4 elections in Burma and finds them consistent with 

5 those articulated by the National League for Democ6 racy in its January 13, 2015, statement; 

7 (2) calls upon the President and the Secretary 

8 of State to— 

9 (A) publicly support meaningful efforts to 

10 reform the 2008 Constitution of Burma, with 

11 the full and unfettered participation of the peo12 ple of Burma and in a manner that promotes 

13 and protects the democratic development of 

14 Burma and safeguards against arbitrary and 

15 capricious interference by the Tatmadaw; 

16 (B) support free and fair elections in 

17 Burma, including by taking bilateral and multi18 lateral steps, as necessary, to ensure that the 

19 Tatmadaw and its affiliates do not influence the 

20 outcome of such elections (including through a 


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1 declaration of a state of emergency in order to 

2 influence or postpone such polls) and that 

3 President Thein Sein and other ruling govern4 ment officials do not engage in the use of offi5 cial resources (including international assist6 ance) for electioneering; and 

7 (C) express solidarity with the United Na8 tions special mechanisms that are investigating 

9 and protesting against violations of human 

10 rights in Burma, and to express concern re11 garding the Government of Burma’s refusal to 

12 work cooperatively with such mechanisms; 

13 (3) calls upon the United States Government, 

14 in partnership with other international donors, to 

15 ensure that the Government of Burma and the 

16 Union Election Commission function in an inde17 pendent, fair, and impartial manner throughout the 

18 preparation and conduct of elections in Burma, and 

19 that the Tatmadaw publicly affirms in advance that 

20 it will honor the results of such elections; 

21 (4) expects the President to delay further steps 

22 toward normalization of relations with Burma, in23 cluding immediately suspending all military-to-mili24 tary engagement with the Tatmadaw, should the 

25 Government of Burma, including the Tatmadaw and 


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1 any of its affiliates, undermine the prospects for free 

2 and fair elections in Burma; 

3 (5) expects the President to take additional ac4 tions to sanction specific individuals within the Gov5 ernment of Burma whom the President determines 

6 undermine free and fair elections in Burma, includ7 ing through the denial of visas and freezing of assets 

8 of such individuals, as appropriate; 

9 (6) calls upon the President and the Secretary 

10 of State to take action to ensure that ethnic groups 

11 in Burma are not coerced, in any way or by any 

12 means, into ceasefire agreements with the Govern13 ment of Burma; 

14 (7) calls upon the Secretary of State to work 

15 with like-minded regional and international govern16 ments to ensure that the general elections in Burma 

17 meet international standards of free and fair elec18 tions, including by ensuring that international and 

19 domestic monitors have full and unimpeded access to 

20 all aspects of the electoral process; and 

21 (8) calls upon the Secretary of State to publicly 

22 and forcefully condemn human rights abuses com23 mitted by the Tatmadaw and to demand credible 

24 and independent investigations and prosecutions of 


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1 any and all allegations of such abuse, including with 

2 respect to— 

3 (A) the January 19, 2015, rape and mur4 der by the Tatmadaw of two Kachin volunteer 

5 schoolteachers in Northern Shan State; 

6 (B) the December 22, 2014, murder of 

7 Daw Khin Win, a nonviolent protestor at the 

8 Letpadaung mine site; 

9 (C) the November 19, 2014, killing of 23 

10 cadets in Laiza, Kachin State, by the 

11 Tatmadaw’s shelling; 

12 (D) the October 4, 2014, murder of Ko 

13 Par Gyi in Mon State, a freelance journalist 

14 and former body guard of opposition political 

15 leader Aung San Suu Kyi; and 

16 (E) the September 13, 2012, fatal shooting 

17 by the Tatmadaw of 14-year-old Ja Seng Ing in 

18 Hpakant Township, Kachin State. 

Æ 


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