WORLD REPORT 2015

Burma

The reform process in Burma experienced significant slowdowns and in some cases reversals of basic freedoms and democratic progress in 2014. The government continued to pass laws with significant human rights limitations, failed to address calls for constitutional reform ahead of the 2015 elections, and increased arrests of peaceful critics, including land protesters and journalists […]

British Government Defends Burma Reforms: Burma Campaign UK Responds

This briefing paper responds in detail to the British government’s misleading claims and the selective use of information that it uses to defend Burma’s reform process and its own trade-led policy […]

Statement from the Open Government Partnership Awareness Workshop for Civil Society

Over 193 representatives from 80 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and networks in Myanmar participated in the Open Government Partnership (OGP) awareness-raising workshop in Yangon from 19-20 January 2015. The objective of this workshop was to raise awareness and understand the potential benefits, opportunities, weaknesses and concerns regarding Myanmar’s participation in the OGP in the context of the recent transition process and the political developments in Myanmar since 2011 […]

Tony Blair’s Secret Involvement With Burma’s Government

Burma Campaign UK is calling on Tony Blair to disclose what his involvement is with President Thein Sein of Burma.

Tony Blair has visited Burma on around three occasions, and is believed to be providing some kind of advisory role to the President. However, for the past year he has been refusing to disclose exactly what his role is, and what kind of advice he is providing. The British Foreign Office, which helped to arrange at least one of his visits to Burma, has turned down a freedom of information request asking for the details and purpose of his visit […]

UN: Request for Burmese Peacekeepers Misguided

(New York) – A United Nations offer to the Burmese armed forces to consider sending troops to UN peacekeeping missions could lead to abuses and undermine peacekeeping standards, Human Rights Watch said today in a letter to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The secretary-general’s special advisor on Myanmar, Vijay Nambiar, extended the invitation to the Burmese defense services commander in chief, Sr. Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, during a recent visit to Burma […]

Training War Criminals? – British Training of the Burmese Army

This briefing examines the British government’s controversial military training to the Burmese Army.

The training is taking place despite the Burmese Army still committing serious human rights abuses which violate international law. Crimes committed by the Burmese Army since the reform process began include rape and gang rape of ethnic women, including children, deliberate targeting of civilians, arbitrary execution, arbitrary detention, torture, mutilations, looting, bombing civilian areas, blocking humanitarian assistance, destruction of property, and extortion. Many of these abuses could be classified as war crimes and crimes against humanity […]

Council Conclusions on the Comprehensive Framework for the European Union’s Policy and Support to Myanmar/Burma

The Council adopted the following conclusions:

“The Council welcomes and endorses the attached Comprehensive Framework consisting of priorities for the European Union’s policy and support in the next three years to the on-going reforms in Myanmar/Burma. This Framework sets forth EU’s goals and priorities geared towards building a lasting partnership and promoting closer engagement with the country as a whole […]

Conflicting Realities: Reform, Repression and Human Rights in Burma

This report by the Subcommittee on International Human Rights is intended to recognize the important achievements brought about as part of Burma’s reform process, in particular the election of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other candidates from the NLD as Members of Parliament (MP) this April. At the same time, we wish to warn against hasty or irresponsible optimism and to sound the alarm about the lack of civilian control over the Burmese military, which has very serious human rights and humanitarian consequences. Recent progress has not yet extended to all parts of the country, nor to all of the people of Burma. Going forward, we believe that it is important for the international community to look beyond central Burma in assessing the depth and sincerity of the country’s reforms. Respect by the Burmese government and military for human rights and international law in Burma’s ethnic minority
areas will be the real measure of change in the country and should inform any decision regarding the permanent removal of sanctions by Canada […]

Sustaining Myanmar’s Transition: Ten Critical Challenges

A new Asia Society report takes stock of progress and challenges in Myanmar’s reform process over the past two years and thinks through ways forward for U.S.-Myanmar relations […]

Resolution on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar

The full text of the United Nations Human Rights Council Resolution that calls on the government to end human rights violations and ensure accountability and end impunity, maintains the resolution under agenda Item 4 of “Human rights situations that require the Council’s attention” and also extends the mandate of Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma, Tomás Ojea Quintana.