By Burma Campaign UK |
March 24, 2013
Burma Campaign UK welcomes the United Nations Human Rights
Council Resolution on Burma, passed by consensus on Thursday 21st March.
The resolution highlighted serious human rights abuses which could
violate international law, including ‘…arbitrary detention, forced
displacement, land confiscations, rape and other forms of sexual
violence, torture and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, as well as
violations of international humanitarian law,…. violence, displacement
and economic deprivation affecting persons belonging to national or
ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities… armed conflict in Kachin
State and the associated human rights violations and allegations of
international humanitarian law violations, desecration of places of
worship, sexual violence
and torture…’
In a blow for President Thein Sein, the Burmese government failed in
its attempt to have Burma moved from Item 4 of the Council’s agenda,
‘Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention’, to Item
10, ‘Technical assistance and capacity building.’ Thein Sein also failed
to persuade Council members not to renew the mandate of the Special
Rapporteur on Burma. The mandate was extended for a further year.
“With so many serious on-going human rights abuses in Burma, it’s not
surprising that Thein Sein is attempting to stop the Human Rights
Council document what is taking place,” said Anna Roberts, Executive
Director at Burma Campaign UK. “While it is welcome that the Human
Rights Council is highlighting on-going abuses by the government of
Burma which violate international law, we also need to see action from
the international community to pressure Thein Sein to end these abuses.
Unfortunately, the opposite is happening as pressure is being relaxed.”
The Human Rights Council also repeated a call, made more than thirty
times in previous Resolutions by the Human Rights Council and UN General
Assembly, to ‘… take necessary measures to ensure accountability and
end impunity, including by undertaking a full, transparent and
independent investigation into all reports of violations of
international human rights and international humanitarian law’. Given
the continuing refusal of the government of Burma to respond to this
demand, it is time for the Human Rights Council to look again into
establishing a Commission of Inquiry into possible war crimes and crimes
against humanity in Burma.
Highlighting yet another way in which Burma fails to meet its
obligations under international law, the Council also called on the
government of Burma to: ‘…fulfil its obligations as a party to
international treaties and other legally binding instruments, and to
become a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or
Degrading Treatment or Punishment.’
The Council also called on the government of Burma to meet its
international treaty obligations in relation to the ethnic Rohingya;
‘…to repeal and/ or amend laws that deny the Rohingya, inter alia, the
right to birth registration, the ability to marry and freedom of
movement, including equal access to citizenship, through a full review
of the Citizenship Law of 1982 to ensure that it conforms to
international obligations defined in treaties to which the Government of
Myanmar is a party, including their right to a nationality.’
“This Resolution is a reminder that two years into the reform process
Burma still has one of the world’s worst records on human rights, with
multiple violations of international law,” said Anna Roberts.
For more information contact Mark Farmaner on 07941239640.
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