BurmaNet News, September 22, 2009

[Editor]

September 22, 2009 Issue #3802


INSIDE BURMA
AP: Suu Kyi's party wants to talk about Myanmar poll
AP: Moderate earthquake rattles northwest Myanmar
TIME via AP: Burmese-American held in Rangoon

ON THE BORDER
Mizzima News: Nineteen infected with A (H1N1) virus in Meala refugee camp

INTERNATIONAL
Irrawaddy: Clinton expected to address 'friends of Myanmar' group
Reuters: Myanmar PM to attend UN assembly after 14-yr absence
Reuters: U.S. allows Myanmar minister to visit Washington
AFP: US Senator calls hearing on Myanmar policy
Irrawaddy: Sangha leader calls for united opposition

PRESS RELEASE
HRW: Burma: End repression of Buddhist Monks; Intimidation intensifies
ahead of second anniversary of crackdown
AAPPB: Burma political prisoners' rights group: prisoner releases “cynical
ploy to ease international pressure”



____________________________________
INSIDE BURMA

September 22, Associated Press
Suu Kyi's party wants to talk about Myanmar poll

Yangon, Myanmar – Senior members of Myanmar pro-democracy leader Aung San
Suu Kyi's party have asked the country's military government to allow them
to meet with the detained Nobel Peace Prize laureate and her deputy to
discuss next year's elections, a party spokesman said Tuesday.

National League for Democracy spokesman Nyan Win said the party sent a
letter to junta leader Senior Gen. Than Shwe last Wednesday asking for
such permission.

"We need to discuss future party policies and other broad political issues
under present circumstances," Nyan Win said, adding that the 2010
elections would be on the agenda.

The military government has planned the election as part of its seven-step
"roadmap to democracy" in accordance with a constitution promulgated last
year. Suu Kyi's party has decried the constitution as undemocratic and has
not yet decided whether to take part in next year's polls, for which an
exact date has not been set.

Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy won a landslide victory in a 1989
election, but was not allowed to take power by the military.

Suu Kyi and her deputy Tin Oo were both detained in 2003 after a pro-junta
mob attacked them during a political tour of northern Myanmar. Suu Kyi,
who has been in detention for about 14 of the past 20 years, had her term
of house arrest extended by 18 months in May.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said last month that elections in
Myanmar must be free and fair, amid mounting concerns among some
governments and rights groups that they won't be credible.

Ban said he was working hard to keep the pressure on Than Shwe and other
Myanmar leaders to live up to their commitments to hold legitimate polls
in 2010. At a minimum, the U.N. wants Suu Kyi and 2,000 other political
prisoners released.

Than Shwe has resisted U.N. demands for reconciliation with the country's
pro-democracy movement, ignoring four Security Council statements and
direct entreaties by Ban and his top envoy.
____________________________________

September 22, Associated Press
Moderate earthquake rattles northwest Myanmar

Yangon, Myanmar — A moderate 5.6-magnitude earthquake shook parts of
northwestern Myanmar early Tuesday causing no casualties but damaging
Buddhist temples believed to date to the 11th century, officials and
residents said.

The moderate earthquake occurred just after 2 a.m. with the epicenter
about 260 miles (418 kilometers) northwest of the commercial capital,
Yangon, said Thein Htay, an official from the national Meteorological
Department.

The quake was felt in several towns in the northwestern Magway Division,
none of which are densely populated or have high-rise buildings, he said.
There were no known casualties.

Residents reported damage to two ancient Buddhist temples in Ohn Pwetaw
village and a pagoda in Yay Nan Chaung, saying the structures were
believed to have been built in the 11th century and were known for their
colorful frescoes.

The extent of the damage was not immediately known. The residents
requested anonymity because of fears of speaking to reporters in the
military-ruled country.
____________________________________

September 22, TIME via Associated Press
Burmese-American held in Rangoon

Rangoon, Burma — The U.S. Embassy said Tuesday that it has been allowed to
visit a Burma-born American detained in the country for the past three
weeks but refused to divulge details about his health or whereabouts.

Embassy spokesman Drake Weisert said officials were allowed to visit Kyaw
Zaw Lwin on Sunday and have since contacted his family. He had a visa to
visit the country, but it is unclear why he traveled to Rangoon.

Dissident groups have said the Maryland-based Kyaw Zaw Lwin arrived in
Rangoon on Sept. 3 and has not been heard from since. It is not known why
the junta detained him, but many of his family members have been held over
the years for their pro-democracy activities.

Kyaw Zaw Lwin's mother is serving a five-year jail term while his sister
was sentenced to 65 years in prison for her role in pro-democracy protests
two years ago.

The news of Kyaw Zaw Lwin's whereabouts comes just days after the junta
announced it was granting early release to 7,114 prisoners for good
behavior on humanitarian grounds. The country is believed to hold roughly
65,000 prisoners, including more than 2,200 political detainees, according
to estimates by human rights groups.

Only 119 of those released Friday were political prisoners and the amnesty
did not include the country's best-known political prisoner, Nobel Peace
Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who is head of the National League for
Democracy and remains under house arrest.

The junta has repeatedly denied holding any political prisoners, saying
all inmates have been found guilty of criminal offenses.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch said the number of political
prisoners has more than doubled in the past two years, and more than 100
dissidents have been jailed in recent months.

Among those imprisoned in the past two years include people involved in
peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations in 2007 and some who assisted
victims of the cyclone in 2008. The group said some were handed
decades-long sentences.

It said the country has 43 known prisons holding political activists and
more than 50 labor camps.

____________________________________
ON THE BORDER

September 22, Mizzima News
Nineteen infected with A (H1N1) virus in Meala refugee camp – Phoe Zaw

Chiang Mai – Even as three teenagers and two children were found infected
with the A(H1N1) virus, the total number of those afflicted rose to 19 in
the Meala Burmese refugee camp, located along the Thai-Burma border.

The first infection in the camp was detected on August 5, and on September
16 samples of another five people were taken to the MaeSot Hospital, where
they were declared infected on September 21.

The latest cases of the virus were found on those aged 16, 15, 13, 34, and 3.

“The children are in  a stable condition. They are not suffering, it is
moderate,” a medical compounder at the camp told Mizzima.

He added that the family of the infected children had been instructed to
tell their children to use handkerchiefs to cover their nose and mouth
while coughing.

Besides, camp authorities said, they are now organizing training on health
education in the camp. Although they were able to provide masks to
infected children and their families, due to lack of funds, they were
unable to provide masks to all the people in the camp.

The camp hosts about 40,000 Burmese refugees, a majority of whom are
ethnic Karen.

____________________________________
INTERNATIONAL

September 22, Irrawaddy
Clinton expected to address 'friends of Myanmar' group – Lalit K Jha

Washington — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is expected to attend a
meeting on Wednesday of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s “Group of
Friends” on Myanmar (Burma), signaling a heightened interest by the Obama
administration in the Burma issue.

Informed sources told The Irrawaddy that the meeting—on the sidelines of
the ongoing UN General Assembly session—could provide a platform for
Clinton to inform international partners about the administration’s review
of its Burma policy. The US State Department has indicated that Clinton
will announce the results of the review soon.

Clinton told the Brookings Institute last week that she would discuss
Burma with Asian partners in New York.

Ban’s 14-member “Group of Friends” was established by the
secretary-general in December 2007. Several foreign ministers are expected
to attend Wednesday’s meeting, although it is understood that Burmese
Foreign Minister Nyan Win will not be there.

UN diplomatic sources said Nyan Win’s absence is understandable; given
that a majority of the countries in the group do not agree with the
Burmese regime’s “road map” and the continued house arrest of
pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

Informed sources said the junta’s most recent amnesty was received coolly
in the West in view of Suu Kyi’s continued detention. In a statement on
the amnesty, Ban called on the junta to take further steps to ensure the
release of remaining political prisoners, including Suu Kyi, as a
necessary move towards a credible process of national reconciliation and
democratic transition.

Meanwhile, Burmese Prime Minister Thein Sein is scheduled to address the
UN General Assembly on September 28.

Travel restrictions on Burmese diplomats in New York will also apply to
Thein Sein, authoritative sources here said. His visa, like those of all
Burmese officials, is annotated: "Traveler to remain within a 25-mile
radius of UN headquarters, New York City," the sources said.

Burma is expected to figure prominently on the agenda of a meeting of
foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on
Saturday, convened by UN Secretary General Ban. Burmese Foreign Minister
Nyan Win is expected to attend.

____________________________________

September 22, Reuters
Myanmar PM to attend UN assembly after 14-yr absence – Aung Hla Tun

Yangon – The prime minister of army-ruled Myanmar plans to visit the U.N.
General Assembly for the first time in 14 years, a government official
said on Tuesday.

When General Thein Sein travels to New York he will be the most senior
junta member to attend the annual gathering of world leaders since the
second-in-command, Maung Aye, in 1995.

"He is leaving Myanmar for New York via Singapore this weekend," said the
official, who asked not to be identified.

The visit follows the decision by the United States to lift a visa ban to
allow the country's Foreign Minister, Nyanm Win, to visit the Myanmar
embassy in Washington before going to the U.N.

Since a brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Myanmar in
1988, Washington has maintained a broad range of sanctions on the
generals, including travel restrictions, to force them to initiate
reforms.

The Obama administration is reviewing its policy towards the former Burma,
although there are no signs of a change in its stance towards sanctions,
which have been largely ineffective because of continued trade with
neighbours China and India.

Relations between the United States and Myanmar appear less frosty than in
recent years after last month's visit by Senator Jim Webb, the first by a
U.S. official in more than a decade, which was described by the junta as
"a success for both sides".

Myanmar's military, which has ruled the country since a 1962 coup, will
hold elections next year, the first in two decades, as part of its
protracted seven-stage "road map" to democracy, a plan derided as a sham
by critics of the regime.

An Asian diplomat in Yangon said the Myanmar premier will use the trip try
to convince the international community of the legitimacy of the polls.

"He will explain the election to the general assembly and some officials
from Obama administration and prominent politicians, including Jim Webb,
on the sidelines of this trip," the diplomat added.

(Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Jason Szep)

____________________________________

September 22, Reuters
U.S. allows Myanmar minister to visit Washington

New York – In a gesture toward Myanmar's military rulers, the United
States has allowed the country's foreign minister to travel to Washington
to visit the Myanmar embassy, a U.S. official said on Monday.

Foreign Minister Maj. Gen. Nyan Win did not meet any U.S. officials while
in Washington and is now in New York for the U.N. General Assembly, said
the U.S. official, who spoke on condition that he not be named.

"The foreign minister has already made a side trip to Washington ... while
in Washington he did not meet anybody from the U.S. government," the
official said.

Relations between the United States and Myanmar, which has been under
military rule for almost five decades, have been strained this year by the
junta's conviction of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi for an internal
security breach.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner, who has spent 14 of the past 20 years in
some form of detention, was sentenced on August 12 to another 18 months of
house arrest, enough to keep her off the campaign trail for next year's
elections.

Suu Kyi was indicted in May for breaking a security law protecting the
state from "subversive elements" a few weeks before her house arrest was
due to be lifted.

Her trial triggered international outrage and critics said the charges
were trumped up by Myanmar's military rulers to minimize her influence
before Myanmar's elections next year.

The charges stemmed from a bizarre incident in May, when an American, John
Yettaw, swam to her lakeside home in Yangon and stayed there, uninvited,
for two days. He was sentenced to seven years' hard labor but was later
deported.

Myanmar plans to hold its first election in two decades next year, which
the junta says will bring an end to almost five decades of unbroken
military rule. Few, however, are convinced, and say the army will still
hold the real power.

The Obama administration is reviewing its policy toward Myanmar, sometimes
known by its colonial name Burma. While U.S. sanctions have not brought
change in Myanmar, there appears to be little sentiment now in the
administration to ease them.

(Reporting by Arshad Mohammed and Paul Eckert)

____________________________________

September 22, Agence France Presse
US Senator calls hearing on Myanmar policy

Washington — A key US Senator sharply critical of US economic sanctions on
Myanmar announced Tuesday he would hold an October 1 hearing on their
effectiveness in fostering democratic reforms there.

Democratic Senator Jim Webb, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations
subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs, said the panel would
evaluate the effectiveness of the US approach.

Webb, whose home state is Virginia, denounced US sanctions in late August
after making a rare visit to Myanmar, warning they were "overwhelmingly
counterproductive" and risked pushing Myanmar closer to regional giant
China.

Webb's office said a list of witnesses for the hearing -- typically a step
towards introducing legislation -- would be made public at a future date.

The hearing "will examine Burma?s current economic and political situation
and discuss how the country?s long history of internal turmoil and ethnic
conflicts has affected the development of democracy," his office said.

"In addition, it will review the current policy of US-imposed economic
sanctions unmatched by many other countries, discuss what role the United
States can and should play in promoting democratic reform in Burma, and
hear testimony on how to frame a new direction for US-Burma relations."

Webb's office announced the hearing one week after US President Barack
Obama's acting point man on Myanmar said that a review of US policy was
almost complete and hinted at changes in the way Washington has pressed
for democratic reforms there.

____________________________________

September 22, Irrawaddy
Sangha leader calls for united opposition – Simon Roughneen

Bangkok — Two years ago, the sight of thousands of saffron-clad monks
marching in silence, hands clasped and heads bowed, briefly sparked hopes
that some loosening of military control in Burma might be in sight.

Would the junta dare harm the revered monks and pink-robed nuns who took
to the streets to bolster protests that begun as a response to an
arbitrary fuel price hike in August 2007?
A student monk from Burma holds a photo of Aung San Suu Kyi and joins the
protest held to commemorate the annual memorial day of the Saffron
Revolution in front of the Burmese embassy in Colombo last year. (Photo:
Reuters)

Some observers thought, for the few short days between the start of the
monk demonstrations and the army crackdown that the army would not dare
touch the monks. However, the Saffron Revolution was crushed when the army
moved in under the order of the ruling generals.

In hindsight, given that monks in Mandalay were beaten up, imprisoned and
shot in 1990, when they marked another two year anniversary—commemorating
the 1988 student demonstrations when the army killed around 3000
Burmese—such optimism was unfounded.

Speaking at a Bangkok press conference on Tuesday to launch the Human
Rights Watch report “The Resistance of the Monks: Buddhism and Activism in
Burma,” author Bertil Linter said that “the crackdown in 2007 undermined
whatever little legitimacy the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC)
has in the eyes of most Burmese people.”

However, given that the army has a new constitution which mandates a
civilian version of military rule and it is seeking to legitimize itself
by holding elections in 2010, while not releasing the 2,100 political
prisoners in the country's jails, it seems the junta will not be
challenged in the foreseeable future.

Venerable Sayadaw U Pannya Vamsa is spiritual director at the Burmese
Buddhist temple in Penang, Malaysia. Speaking to The Irrawaddy last week,
he said that the international community needs to understand that the
situation in Burma is getting worse—“That has been the trajectory for the
past 60 years, and that while we are grateful for the kind support they
have shown, the people of Burma need to see action, and there needs to be
direct dealing with the real problems faced by Burma's people.”

While the clergy does not have or seem to seek an overtly political role,
its 400,000 members are a bellwether for Burma's political climate, and it
has sought to open political space for others, by carefully chosen
activism, such as in 2007. However, it seems unlikely that the monks and
nuns will be able to take to the streets any time between now and the 2010
elections.

More than 250 Buddhist clergy remain in prison, and unknown numbers of
monks either sought refuge overseas or returned to their villages,
discarding their robes. There seems to be scant prospect that a heavily
infiltrated Sangha (another name for the Buddhist clergy), now under
constant army surveillance, can mobilize again anytime soon.

Monks in Burma have sought assistance from their counterparts in the
Sangha in exile. One of the most outspoken and prominent is U Pannya
Vamsa, who is also co-founder and chairperson of the International Burmese
Monks Organization (IBMO), established in October 2007, as Burmese monks
and nuns were being shot at, beaten, rounded-up and imprisoned.

“Before 2007, I did not take a direct interest in politics,” he said. “I
left Burma five decades ago to do missionary work and that was my
priority. However, the monks in Burma pleaded with me to use my voice and
influence, as they could not in such a repressive system.”

While direct political involvement is not ordinarily sanctioned by
Buddhist teaching, there are exceptions, as Stanford University's Paul
Harrison outlined in a 2008 interview with the Council on Foreign
Relations.

He said that clergy are forced to use their influence to help the
oppressed when there is no other option. That Buddhist clergy have become
more active in recent decades is “a testimony to the situation in many
Buddhist countries where previously things were not so bad in terms of
political oppression.”

Things have been bad in Burma for a long time. The Burmese Sangha have
been politically active a number of times, and their defiance of some
sacrilegious British actions—such as Crown officials refusing to remove
their shoes when entering places of worship—helped spark the resistance to
colonial rule. The Sangha later protested following the 1962 military coup
and participated in demonstrations against military rule in 1974, 1988 and
1990.

Now, the Sangha is trying to take the fight to the global level, and U
Pannya Vamsa told The Irrawaddy he is forming alliances with religious
leaders of other faiths, at the highest level, to raise awareness about
the situation in Burma. He was condemned in an unsigned letter published
by the Ministry of Religion in Burma for his efforts, though significantly
no junta figure would put his or her name to the document.

Under the controversial 2008 constitution, approved in a rushed and in a
flawed referendum held within days of the Cyclone Nargis disaster, monks
do not have voting rights. This is something carried over from previous
constitutions and electoral systems in the country and indicates that the
military has sought to keep the clerics at a remove from politics, fearing
their influence, which is based on what Linter described as “a symbiotic
relationship with the Burmese people”, 90 percent of whom are Buddhist and
whose alms-giving helps to materially support the Sangha across the
country.

U Pannya Vamsa thinks that the military is trying to divide the Burmese
people, to ensure that no effective opposition can challenge its grip on
power.

 “The army will proceed with elections its own way, based on the premise
that its sole ambition is to perpetuate military rule in Burma, in
whatever form,” he said.

Some donor governments and other organizations have advocated some form of
engagement with the junta, seeing the elections as an opening to bring
about a more enlightened authoritarianism in Burma and in turn creating
space for civil society or opposition groups to gain a political foothold.

U Pannya Vamsa believes this to be a fallacy. “I spoke to the EU, who
seemed happy that Burma was going to have elections,” he said. “However, I
explained that these are not going to be real elections. 'Election' is
just a name, this is an army project, under army law.”

With the Sangha in Burma silenced, the ethnic ceasefire groups either
divided among themselves or mulling a response to the junta's demand to
join the state security services, and the political opposition scattered
or in jail, there seems little prospect that the junta can be successfully
challenged anytime soon.

U Pannya Vamsa says that with more coherent international support, the
Burmese opposition can revive and form a united front, “without ceding
their autonomy or identity in the process.”

He thinks that this might set an example to members of the Burmese
military, some of whom who are not happy with their leaders, or how the
country is run.

“Not all the military are bad,” he said, “but they just follow orders, as
they have no leadership to show them another path, and do not know what to
do.”

____________________________________
PRESS RELEASE

September 22, Human Rights Watch
Burma: End repression of Buddhist Monks; Intimidation intensifies ahead of
second anniversary of crackdown

Bangkok – Buddhist monks in Burma face continuing repression, intimidation
and harsh prison sentences two years after the military government’s
brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrations, Human Rights Watch said in a
report released today.

The 99-page report, “The Resistance of the Monks: Buddhism and Protest in
Burma,” written by longtime Burma watcher Bertil Lintner, describes the
repression Burma’s monks experienced after they led demonstrations against
the government in September 2007. The report tells the stories of
individual monks who were arrested, beaten and detained. Two years after
Buddhist monks marched down the street of the detained opposition leader
Aung San Suu Kyi, hundreds of monks are in prison and thousands remain
fearful of military repression. Many have left their monasteries and
returned to their villages or sought refuge abroad, while those who
remained in their monasteries live under constant surveillance.

“The stories told by monks are sad and disturbing, but they exemplify the
behavior of Burma’s military government as it clings to power through
violence, fear, and repression,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human
Rights Watch. “The monks retain a great deal of moral authority, making
principled stands by monks very dangerous for a government that doesn’t.”

The report says that since the 2007 events, thousands of monks have been
disrobed (defrocked) and deterred from fulfilling their pivotal role as
social mediators in Burmese society. The report also details the crucial
social-service role played by monks following the devastation of Cyclone
Nargis in 2008 – and the repression faced by many as a consequence.

In a December 2007 report, Human Rights Watch documented 21 deaths as a
result of security forces shooting and beating crowds of monks and
civilians. Thousands of monks and their supporters were arrested.

Approximately 240 monks are now serving harsh prison terms inside Burma,
including 30-year-old U Gambira, who is serving a 63-year prison term for
his role as one of the protest movement’s leaders. In the report he is
quoted saying:

“We adhere to nonviolence, but our spine is made of steel. There is no
turning back. It matters little if my life or the lives of colleagues
should be sacrificed on this journey. Others will fill our sandals, and
more will join and follow.”

U Gambira is now held at an isolated prison in western Burma near the
Indian border, where he is reportedly in ill health.

The military government has intensified its surveillance of monasteries,
closed down health and social services programs run by local monastic
groups in Rangoon and other parts of the country such as Pakokku and
Magwe, and continued to disrobe Buddhist monks suspected of political
activities. One of the monks Human Rights Watch interviewed in Mandalay
said:

“There are military intelligence agents outside, and they watch everyone
who goes in and out of the gates. A man from the security services comes
every morning and evening to check who of the monks are here, then he
leaves.”

“That the military government would treat monks engaged in peaceful
protests in such an appalling manner shows not only its brutality, but
just how out of touch the generals are with the views and sensibilities of
ordinary people,” Adams said. “This is not surprising, as the government
has no popular legitimacy and bases its policies on what will keep it in
power, not what the public wants or needs.”

The report also traces the long history of activism in the Buddhist Sangha
(the Buddhist monkhood). It documents how Buddhist monks have become
involved in overt acts of political defiance during periods of great
repression in Burma, from the time of British colonialism to anti-military
protests following the military coup of 1962, and in major demonstrations
against military rule in 1974, 1988, and 1990.

The report also details how the ruling State Peace and Development Council
(SPDC) routinely represses community welfare, health, and education
initiatives by the monks, while at the same time attempting to utilize
Buddhism as a tool to gain political legitimacy, often by building large
pagodas and lavishing gifts on selected senior monks and monasteries.

“While the casual observer may see the crimson robes and temple-building
in Burma as a sign of religious freedom, the reality is that monks who
engage in peaceful resistance have long been targeted by successive
military governments,” Adams said.

“The Resistance of the Monks” complements the campaign launched by Human
Rights Watch on September 16 for the release of political prisoners,
including detained monks, ahead of elections planned in 2010. Human Rights
Watch called on key actors in the international community, including
China, India, the members of the Association of Southeast Asian States
(ASEAN), the United States, the European Union, Australia, and the new
government in Japan to make it clear that the planned elections will not
be considered credible and legitimate if they are held with so many monks,
Buddhist nuns, activists and opposition figures in prison.

“Public anger remains high in Burma, and the potential for a repeat of the
demonstrations in 2007 is very real unless the international community
puts coordinated pressure on the regime to engage in a credible political
reform process,” Adams said. “It would not be surprising to see monks on
the streets again if social grievances are not addressed.”

 Selected accounts from the report

“For us, it was not politics, but a question of religion. We just went out
into the streets to recite metta sutta, loving kindness. We did not
advocate violence to overthrow the government
We wanted the government to
have a better policy for the people. So we decided to boycott the junta
with our bowls turned upside-down. That’s called patta nikkujjana kamma.
We did not accept food, medicines or anything from the authorities. That’s
the only way we can fight for our rights. This has nothing to do with
politics.”

– Buddhist monk U Viccita, talking about his role in the peaceful 2007
demonstrations, Burma, 2008

“The regime’s use of mass arrests, murder, torture, and imprisonment has
failed to extinguish our desire for the freedom that was stolen from us.
We have taken their best punch. Now it is the generals who must fear the
consequences of their actions. We adhere to nonviolence, but our spine is
made of steel. There is no turning back. It matters little if my life or
the lives of colleagues should be sacrificed on this journey. Others will
fill our sandals, and more will join and follow.”

– Buddhist monk and protest leader U Gambira, November 2007

“I’m being watched all the time. I am considered an organizer. Between
noon and 2 p.m., I am allowed to go out of the monastery. But then I’m
followed. I had to shake off my tail to come to this meeting today. I’m
not afraid, not for myself. I’m not afraid to tell foreign journalists
what happened. And I’m prepared to march again when the opportunity
arises. We don’t want this junta. And that’s what everyone at my monastery
thinks as well.”

– Buddhist monk U Manita, Burma, July 2008

“[S]omething was achieved [in September 2007]. A whole new generation of
monks has been politicized. We’re educating them. We’re still boycotting
the military. We are not accepting gifts and offerings from them. One of
the reasons why the regime will fall is globalization. No country can be
isolated like before. Look at Indonesia, that regime fell. Now it’s a
democracy. We want the UN’s Security Council to take up the Burma issue,
that the UN investigates what really happened. 
 But China and Russia can
use their veto. Please tell the world what’s happening in our country!”

– Buddhist monk U Igara, Burma, July 2008

Upon release, it will be available at: http://www.hrw.org/en/node/85648

For more of Human Rights Watch work on Burma, please visit:
http://www.hrw.org/en/asia/burma

For more information, please contact:
In Bangkok, David Mathieson (English): +66-87-176-2205 (mobile)
In Bangkok, Sunai Phasuk (Thai, English): +66-81-6323052 (mobile)
In Washington, DC, Tom Malinowski (English): +1-202-612-4358; or
+1-202-309-3551 (mobile)
In New York, Elaine Pearson (English): +1-212-216-1213; or +1-646-291-7169
(mobile)
In London, Brad Adams (English): +44-20-7713-2767; or +44-790-872-8333
(mobile)
In Tokyo, Kanae Doi (Japanese, English): +81-3-3234-9145; or
+81-90-2301-4372 (mobile)
In Mumbai, Meenakshi Ganguly (English, Hindi, Bengali): +91-98-200-36032
(mobile)


____________________________________

September 22, Association Political Prisoners-Burma
Burma political prisoners' rights group: prisoner releases “cynical ploy
to ease international pressure”

[Mae Sot, Thailand] The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners
(Burma) (AAPP) today confirmed that 127 political prisoners have been
released from prisons in Burma.  Last Thursday evening in Rangoon,
state-run MRTV carried a news bulletin announcing that 7,114 prisoners
were to be released “on humanitarian grounds.”

43 members of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s National
League for Democracy (NLD) party were released, including three MPs.
However, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, her personal assistant U Win Htein and NLD
Vice-Chairman U Tin Oo all remain in detention.  No leading opposition
figures were released in the amnesty.

AAPP Secretary Tate Naing said, “Important political figures like Daw Aung
San Suu Kyi, Shan National League for Democracy leader U Khun Tun Oo, 88
Generation Students leader Min Ko Naing and other prominent activists are
still in prison, because the regime perceives them as a threat to its
absolute power.”

22 women, four monks, and four journalists were released.  The journalists
included Eint Khaing Oo and Kyaw Kyaw Thant, arrested for their efforts to
help a group of Cyclone Nargis survivors.  Also released were U Peter and
Daw Nu Nu Swe, arrested and sentenced to six years imprisonment after they
refused to open the door to security forces who were searching for their
son, Sithu Maung.  A leader of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions,
22 year-old Sithu Maung was arrested at a different location and is
currently serving a jail term of 11 years and 6 months in the remote
Buthidaung prison for his role in protests in August and September 2007.

“We are happy for those political prisoners released, and for their loved
ones.  But from a political perspective, this is just a cynical ploy
designed to ease international pressure. There can be no real progress
towards democracy in our country until all political prisoners are
released,” Tate Naing continued.

According to AAPP, more than 2,000 political prisoners remain in jail,
including at least 124 activists who are in poor health.

Since November 2004 there have been a total of six amnesties for
prisoners.  According to the ruling State Peace and Development Council’s
own figures, 45,732 prisoners were released under those amnesties. 
According to AAPP, only 1.3% of them were political prisoners.

The latest amnesty was expected.   In mid-July the Burmese permanent
representative to the U.N., U Than Swe, said the regime was ‘processing to
grant amnesty to prisoners on humanitarian grounds’.  U Than Swe’s
comments came in response to a briefing given by UN Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon on his visit to the country earlier in July.  The amnesty also
comes shortly before the opening of this year’s UN General Assembly
session to be attended by General Thein Sein, the junta-appointed Prime
Minister.

For media interviews, please contact:

Tate Naing, AAPP Secretary +66(0)81-287-8751
Bo Kyi, AAPP Joint-Secretary +66(0)81-324-8935