Burma: Arrest Warrants Issued Against Messrs. Moe Thway, Wai Lu and Wai Hmuu Thwin

The Observatory has been informed by reliable sources about the issue of arrest warrants against Messrs. Moe Thway, a member of Generation Wave Youth Force, a network of human rights defenders that campaigns for civil and political rights, including the signature of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by Burma, and that campaigns against the Letpadaung copper mine project, and have brought the campaign to national attention, as well as Wai Lu and Wai Hmuu Thwin, members of Yangon People Service Network, which campaigns for the respect of rule of law and democracy in Burma and has been involved in the campaign against the Letpadaung project […]

Lifting EU Sanctions Will Unlikely Lead to an Improved Human Rights Situation in Burma

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organization Altsean-Burma regret that the European Union (EU) has discarded its own benchmarks for reform in order to dismantle sanctions against Burma/Myanmar.

The disposal of this important and legitimate instrument to push forward positive change in the country is inconsistent, as mass atrocities continue in Kachin state and targeted violence endangers Rohingya and other Muslims in the western and central regions. In addition to undermining its own credibility, the EU decision threatens to decelerate the pace of reforms and prolong a state of impunity in Burma/Myanmar […]

Joint Open Letter on Review of the European Union’s Joint Decision on Burma

Dear Minister,

We are writing to you regarding the upcoming review of the European Union’s joint decision on Burma/Myanmar and to call upon you to support the continuation of the state of suspended sanctions against Burma/Myanmar for an additional year.

While we acknowledge that positive steps have been taken by the government in Burma/Myanmar, we caution that reforms have not led to progress towards national reconciliation. Nor have they sought to stem the ongoing human rights abuses and impunity, which continue to be serious problems in the country […]

Burma/Myanmar Not Ready for Rights-Compliant Investment

The current legal, political, and economic context in Burma/Myanmar does not enable foreign investment that complies with key international norms and standards. This is the finding of an informal visit to Burma/Myanmar carried out by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) along with […]

Renewed Arakan State Violence Underscores Government’s Failure to Protect Minorities and to Prevent Ethnic Cleansing

Renewed communal violence in Arakan State has exposed the Burmese government’s failure to stop ethnic cleansing, protect minority groups, especially Muslim Rohingya, and implement reforms to address the root causes of human rights violations targeting these groups, said the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organisation, the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma) […]

Burma: Release All Remaining Political Prisoners Now and Respect Civil and Political Rights

The Burmese authorities should immediately and unconditionally release all remaining political prisoners and fully respect the civil and political rights of the Burmese people, including former political prisoners, said the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organization, the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma). In her Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in Norway in June, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi also appealed for the earliest, unconditional release of all remaining political prisoners […]

Letter to the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting from International NGOs on the Draft ASEAN Human Rights Declaration

The International Commission of Jurists, International Federation for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Dignity International, and Article 19, write to you today to express our grave concerns regarding the process of drafting the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD). We understand that the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) will be transmitting to you a draft of the Declaration during your meeting with them on 8 July 2012 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia […]

Paris-based and International Human Rights Community Come Together to Support Aung San Suu Kyi’s Struggle for Democracy

As Madame Aung San Suu Kyi concludes a historic tour in Europe with a three-day visit to Paris, French as well as international human rights activists warmly welcome her and wish to echo her call for sustained reforms and progress in the rule of law in Burma. Today, many signs indicate that the transition process in the country remains fragile and uncertain. The international community needs to maintain strong support to the Burmese population, including refugees and internally displaced people, as well as human rights defenders inside Burma and on its borders […]

International Monitoring and Protection of all Civilians from Religious and Ethnic Violence Needed in Western Burma

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma), the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) of Indonesia, and Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) of Indonesia are deeply alarmed by the continued sectarian violence in Rakhine State in western Burma since 3 June 2012, which has resulted in fatalities, injuries, destruction of property and displacement of residents. We appeal for immediate international attention to this disaster […]

The ASEAN Human Rights Declaration: Drafts must be published and subject to meaningful consultations with local, national and regional civil society and human rights defenders

We, the undersigned international human rights organizations, are concerned that the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) has yet to take the necessary steps to ensure that the process of drafting the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration […]