IV
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 328
Expressing the sense of the Congress in recognition of the 10th anniversary
of the free and fair elections in Burma and the urgent need to improve
the democratic and human rights of the people of Burma.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 16, 2000
Mr. PORTER (for himself, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. GILMAN, Mr. SMITH of New Jer-
sey, Mr. DELAHUNT, Mr. PITTS, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. DIAZ-
BALART, Mr. ROHRABACHER, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr.
SHAYS, Mr. CASTLE, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. SANDERS, Mr.
HORN, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. BALDACCI, Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. GUTIERREZ,
Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. STARK, Mr. OLVER, Ms. LEE, Mr.
WAXMAN, Mr. RUSH, and Mr. UDALL of Colorado) submitted the fol-
lowing concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
International Relations
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Congress in recognition of the
10th anniversary of the free and fair elections in Burma
and the urgent need to improve the democratic and
human rights of the people of Burma.
Whereas in 1988 thousands of Burmese citizens called for a
democratic change in Burma and participated in peaceful
demonstrations to achieve this result;
Whereas these demonstrations were brutally repressed by the
Burmese military, resulting in the loss of hundreds of
lives;
•HCON 328 IH
Whereas despite continued repression, the Burmese people
turned out in record numbers to vote in elections deemed
free and fair by international observers;
Whereas on May 27, 1990, the National League for Democ-
racy (NLD) led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi won more
than 60 percent of the popular vote and 80 percent of
the parliamentary seats in the elections;
Whereas the Burmese military rejected the results of the elec-
tions, placed Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and hundreds of
members of the NLD under arrest, pressured members
of the NLD to resign, and severely restricted freedom of
assembly, speech, and the press;
Whereas 48,000,000 people in Burma continue to suffer
gross violations of human rights, including the right to
democracy, and economic deprivation under a military re-
gime known as the State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC);
Whereas on September 16, 1998, the members of the NLD
and other political parties who won the 1990 elections
joined together to form the Committee Representing the
People’s Parliament (CRPP) as an interim mechanism to
address human rights, economic and other conditions,
and provide representation of the political views and voice
of Members of Parliament elected to but denied office in
1990;
Whereas the United Nations General Assembly and Commis-
sion on Human Rights have condemned in nine consecu-
tive resolutions the persecution of religious and ethnic
minorities and the political opposition, and SPDC’s
record of forced labor, exploitation, and sexual violence
against women;
•HCON 328 IH
Whereas the United States and the European Union Council
of Foreign Ministers have similarly condemned conditions
in Burma and officially imposed travel restrictions and
other sanctions against the SPDC;
Whereas in May 1999, the International Labor Organization
(ILO) condemned the SPDC for inflicting forced labor on
the people and has banned the SPDC from participating
in any ILO meetings;
Whereas the 1999 Department of State Country Reports on
Human Rights Practices for Burma identifies more than
1,300 people who continue to suffer inhumane detention
conditions as political prisoners in Burma;
Whereas the Department of State International Narcotics
Control Report for 2000 determines that Burma is the
second largest world-wide source of illicit opium and her-
oin and that there are continuing, reliable reports that
Burmese officials are ‘‘involved in the drug business or
are paid to allow the drug business to be conducted by
others’’, conditions which pose a direct threat to United
States national security interests; and
Whereas despite these massive violations of human rights and
civil liberties and chronic economic deprivation, Daw
Aung San Suu Kyi and members of the NLD have con-
tinued to call for a peaceful political dialogue with the
SPDC to achieve a democratic transition: Now, therefore,
be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the Sense of the Congress that—
(1) United States policy should strongly sup-
port the restoration of democracy in Burma, includ-
•HCON 328 IH
ing implementation of the results of the free and fair
elections of 1990;
(2) United States policy should continue to call
upon the military regime in Burma known as the
State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)—
(A) to guarantee freedom of assembly,
freedom of movement, freedom of speech, and
freedom of the press for all Burmese citizens;
(B) to immediately accept a political dia-
logue with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Na-
tional League for Democracy (NLD), and eth-
nic leaders to advance peace and reconciliation
in Burma;
(C) to immediately and unconditionally re-
lease all detained Members elected to the 1990
parliament and other political prisoners; and
(D) to promptly and fully uphold the terms
and conditions of all human rights and related
resolutions passed by the United Nations Gen-
eral Assembly, the Commission on Human
Rights, the International Labor Organization,
and the European Union; and
(3) United States policy should sustain current
economic and political sanctions against Burma as
the appropriate means—
•HCON 328 IH
(A) to secure the restoration of democracy,
human rights, and civil liberties in Burma; and
(B) to support United States national se-
curity counternarcotics interests.
Æ