PHR Issues Report Documenting Massacre in Burma; Calls for Immediate Investigation

PHR today released a report detailing the organized attacks against Muslims that took place in central Burma in late March and resulted in the killing of at least 20 children and four teachers. The report provides evidence that state authorities, who idly stood by watching the events unfold, are complicit in these crimes. The rights group also issued policy recommendations […]

Burma’s Leaders Should Take Steps to Investigate and Prevent Anti-Muslim Violence

Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) calls on Burma’s government to act urgently to halt anti-Muslim incitement and to invite international investigators to launch an immediate independent investigation into a reported massacre of more than two dozen Muslim students in Meiktila on March 21 […]

Easing of Sanctions on Burmese Imports Does Little to Improve Human Rights There

As expected, the Obama administration today suspended the US ban on imports from Burma, just days before President Obama’s historic visit to that country. Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is disappointed that the decision was not coupled to a requirement for proper […]

Letter to President Obama Regarding His Trip to Burma

Dear President Obama: We, the undersigned NGOs, are writing to express our grave concern regarding continuing abuses against ethnic groups in Burma and the implications of your planned trip. By going under current circumstances, you take on a lot of responsibility […]

Rights Groups Express Strong Concern About Weak Requirements for U.S. Investment in Burma

After submitting a detailed comment to the U.S. Department of State expressing concern over weak reporting requirements for U.S. companies considering investing in Burma, EarthRights International, Freedom House, Physicians for Human Rights, U.S. Campaign for Burma and United to End Genocide issued the following statement […]

Human Rights Violations Continue in Burma’s Karen State Despite Announcements of Political Reforms

Even as Burma’s central government institutes political reforms, the Burmese army continues to routinely violate the human rights of ethnic minorities in Karen State, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) reported today, citing findings from a field survey conducted earlier this year […]

Bitter Wounds and Lost Dreams: Human Rights Under Assault in Karen State, Burma

Even as Burma’s central government institutes political reforms, the Burmese army continues to routinely violate the human rights of ethnic minorities in Karen State, PHR reports, citing findings from a field survey conducted in early 2012.

PHR’s report – Bitter Wounds and Lost Dreams: Human Rights Under Assault in Karen State, Burma – provides a snapshot of ongoing abuses against Karen people and communities in the country’s mountainous eastern region bordering Thailand, where the army has been battling insurgent groups for decades […]

Rights Groups Express “Grave Concern” Regarding U.S. Policy on Investment in Burma

In response to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s announcement on the lifting of restrictions on U.S. investment in Burma, five human rights groups issued the following statement:

“We express grave concern regarding the U.S. government’s decision to allow investments into businesses connected to the Burmese regime that are corrupt and help to fuel human rights violations. As it stands now, investment in many of the most attractive sectors of the Burmese economy is likely to worsen the human rights situation while directly benefitting individuals and entities responsible for rights abuses, who contribute to corruption, or are otherwise acting to obstruct political reform […]

Under Siege in Kachin State, Burma

In September 2011, PHR conducted an investigation in Burma’s Kachin State in response to reports of grave human rights violations in the region. PHR found that between June and September 2011, the Burmese army looted food from civilians, fired indiscriminately into villages, threatened villages with attacks, and used civilians as porters and human minesweepers […]

First Widespread Survey of Burma’s Chin State Shows Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity

In advance of the Universal Periodic Review of human rights in Burma, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) today announced findings from the first population-based survey to document human rights violations in all nine townships of Chin State. The report, “Life Under the Junta: Evidence of Crimes Against Humanity in Burma’s Chin State,” provides the first quantitative data of human rights violations against the people of Chin State in Western Burma. The report also reveals that at least eight of the violations surveyed fall within the purview of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and may constitute crimes against humanity […]