Burma Campaign UK
Burma Campaign UK has published a new statement responding to a letter from the British government about its policy on political prisoners in Burma. The statement argues that the British government letter was misleading in several ways, and that the British government is paying lip service to human rights in Burma. Burma Campaign UK has …
Kyaw Hla Aung is a human rights defender and a Rohingya community leader from Rakhine State who promotes minority rights in the country. On 15th July 2013, he was taken from his home in Sittwe. After his arrest, he was charged with three different counts, and transferred to Sittwe Prison. When his trial began on …
Burma Campaign UK today welcomes the release of Khin Mi Mi Khaing, Myint Myint Aye and Thant Zin Htet, who have been on hunger strike since December 13th. The three were released after Pegu Divisional court accepted their appeal against the charges against them. Khin Mi Mi Khaing and Myint Myint Aye are leaders of …
On Thursday 19th December two Kachin civilians, Brang Yung and Lahpai Gam, had their sentences increased from 2 to 7 years in jail. They were already serving 2 year prison sentences after a verdict last month. It is not yet clear why their sentences were increased. Although Thein Sein promised to release all political prisoners …
Press Release from the US Campaign for Burma (Washington, DC, December 19, 2013) – Today, the U.S. Campaign for Burma (USCB), along with 41 other human rights organizations, expressed concern that the Burmese government is continuing to arrest political prisoners/prisoners of conscience at alarmingly high rates. These arrests blatantly discredit the Burmese government’s claim that …
Three human rights activists, who were arrested in June, have been on hunger strike since 13th December. Khin Mi Mi Khaing, Myint Myint Aye and Thant Zin Htet were arrested for supporting farmers protests against land confiscation. They have been on trial for more than six months. They have been refused bail, and faced more …
Burma Campaign UK today highlights the case of La Ring as political prisoner of the month in our No Political Prisoner Left Behind campaign, and urged Foreign Secretary William Hague to pressure the military-backed government in Burma to repeal all repressive laws, and secure the immediate unconditional release of all political prisoners in Burma. La …
Burma Campaign UK today delivered 1,000 letters calling on the Foreign Secretary William Hague to pressure the military-backed government in Burma to set up a permanent and independent review committee for political prisoners and secure their immediate unconditional release. Although there have been releases of many high profile political prisoners, hundreds of activists are still …
Two Kachin peace activists, May Sabe Phyu and Maran Jaw Gun, were today fined 40,000 Kyat ($40, £24), for violating Section 18 of Burma’s Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, The case took place at San Chaung Township Court, Rangoon. They had taken part in a peaceful protest in Rangoon on the International Day of …
Today Burma Campaign UK welcomed the news that 69 political prisoners have been released but expressed concerns that, once again, the release of political prisoners is cynically timed with the visits of high profile international delegations. Activists Aung Soe and Naw Ohn Hla were among the released prisoners, and their cases were highlighted in our …
Updated Sanctions Crucial for Responsible US Investment (Washington, D.C.) Today, November 7, 2013, thirty-seven organizations submitted a joint letter to President Barack Obama calling on the US Administration to update the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list with respect to Burma and implement unambiguous criteria for removing and adding persons to the list. This list maintained …
Leading campaigning groups and charities who bank with The Co-operative Bank are demanding that the Co-op’s pioneering Ethical Policy survive the bank’s transition to new ownership. Charities including Action Aid, Greenpeace and Oxfam are among the signatories to an open letter written by the Save Our Bank campaign which is being published this weekend in …
Burma Campaign UK today urged President Thein Sein to immediately release Bauk Ja and all remaining political prisoners unconditionally. Burma Campaign UK today highlighted Bauk Ja as political prisoner of the month as part of the No Political Prisoner Left Behind Campaign. A Kachin activist, Bauk Ja, has been arrested on false charges and she …
The British Foreign Office has finally released details of the costs incurred for Burma’s President Thein Sein visiting the UK in July 2013. The invitation to President Thein Sein was controversial, given the limited nature of Burma’s reforms and the scale of human rights abuses still taking place. The British government did not secure …
British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said in a letter to Burma Campaign UK that the British government; ‘continue to receive deeply troubling reports of the use of sexual violence in Burma’s conflict zones’. The letter was in response to thousands of letters and campaign postcards calling for action to end rape and sexual …
Today marks the second anniversary of Sumlut Roi Ja, an ethnic Kachin woman, being abducted by the Burmese Army. She is still missing, presumed dead. Sumlut Roi Ja is a 28-year-old mother who was arrested by Burmese Army soldiers on October 28th 2011 while working on a family’s farm near her village Hkai Bang, close …
News Release by the Shan Human Rights Foundation Burmese government troops use villagers as human shields after attacks against ceasefire group in central Shan State On October 13, 2013, Burmese government troops forced 18 villagers to walk between them as human shields while returning to their base, after attacking a Shan ceasefire group in …
Public statement by senior members of the worldwide Triratna Buddhist Order As a Buddhist, I am utterly opposed to the encouragement of violence and discrimination against Muslims in Burma and elsewhere in the name of Buddhism. Violence and discrimination led by Buddhists against non-Buddhist minorities is also well documented in other countries, including Sri Lanka. …
Media Release from Kachin National Organisation On the morning of Tuesday 22nd October, the Burmese Army launched an offensive at Namlim Pa and Mung Ding Pa village tracts in Mansi Township, Southern Kachin State. This happened after the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) re-positioned to re-open the Kaihtik-Bhamo motorway. Burmese Army Light Infantry Battalions 45, …
The continuing problem of the use of rape and sexual violence by the Burmese Army was raised in the British Parliament today, during a debate on international development. Valerie Vaz MP raised the issue of the use of rape and sexual violence by the Burmese Army, and Justine Greening, the Minister for International Development, …
Aung San Suu Kyi and EU Parliament urged to place human rights, anti-Muslim violence at the top of the agenda of European visit BANGKOK – Legislators from across Southeast Asia today called on Aung San Suu Kyi and European Parliamentarians and leaders to use the National League for Democracy (NLD) leader’s visit to Europe …
133 Ethnic Civil Society Organizations Express Concern and Reservation Regarding Foreign Military Engagement with the Burmese Military Today, October 17, 2013, 133 civil society organizations, representing 15 of Burma’s ethnic nationalities, submitted a joint letter to President Barack Obama of the United States, Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom, and Prime Minister Tony …
Media Release by The Swedish Burma Committee The developing EU-Myanmar partnership must reflect commitments to civil society, said an alliance of human rights organizations ahead of the launch of the EU-Myanmar Joint Task Force. “We urge you to ensure substantive civil society participation in all areas of the task force,” the organizations wrote in …
Statement By Members Of The European Burma Network Members of the European Burma Network welcome the decision of the European Union to continue with the annual United Nations General Assembly resolution on Burma. We are concerned that despite the fact that the government of Burma has not met a single one of the twenty …