Statement of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar

… During the mission, I met with the Minister of Home Affairs, the Minister of Defence, the Minister of Border Affairs, the Attorney-General, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Union Election Commission, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs […]

All DVB VJs Freed

The Free Burma VJ campaign is delighted to confirm the release of all the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) video journalists (VJs) in an amnesty of political prisoners on 14 January 2012 […]

Release of Political Prisoners: One Step of Many Needed for Democracy in Burma

In its most substantive gesture to date, Thein Sein’s government released 651 prisoners on Friday 16 January. Among those released are ethnic leaders, leaders of the 88 Generation Student movement, and other prominent political prisoners. We applaud their release and recognize the importance of this step but further reforms are necessary in order for freedom and democracy to truly come to Burma.

The most crucial step that must be taken is the amendment or repeal of existing repressive laws, such as the Electronics Transactions Law, which subjects individuals to up to fifteen years in prison for the dissemination or receipt of information considered a threat to national tranquility, and the Unlawful Associations Act. Such repressive laws have long been used to imprison political opponents. As long as these laws remain on the books, the people of Burma will continue to risk arrest solely for expressing their opinion. This is something many of the recently released political prisoners know well, having been arrested, sentenced, released in an amnesty, and then subsequently rearrested multiple times. The concern that these political prisoners could be returned to prison should they seek to speak out against the government is of particular concern given that their release was based upon Article 401 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which allows for prisoners’ sentences to be suspended or remitted, but not cancelled as in previous amnesties. This means that should they be rearrested they could be forced to serve the remainder of their original sentence […]

AAPP-B’s View on President U Thein Sein’s Amnesty Announcement

President U Thein Sein’s administration declared an amnesty on the 12th of January, 2012 regarding the release of 651 male and female prisoners on the 13th of January, 2012 under article 401 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Act. According to the data that AAPP-B has collected and verified up to the morning of the 14th of January 2012, the number of political prisoners among those released under the amnesty announcement is 272 […]

AIPMC Welcomes Release of Political Prisoners, but More Still Needs to Be Done

The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus welcomed recent, far-reaching release of political prisoners in Myanmar as a major step towards national reconciliation […]

Statement by the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission

The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission had made appeals to the President that at a time when the Republic of the Union of Myanmar is building a democratic nation and striving for national unity, those among prisoners […]

Official Statement on 13 January Amnesty

The Best Friend warmly welcomes the release of political prisoners, including many of our friends such as U Gambira, U Ghosita, and U Kheminda, and members of The Best Friend including Ma Thanda Tun and Ko Nyo, as a significant step forward. However, we still have to continue the struggle for complete and irreversible democratic progress, and we ask the international community to continue to support genuine democratization in Burma […]

Political Prisoner Release is a Significant Step, Thein Sein’s Government Must Take More

Burma Partnership welcomes the release of political prisoners today, in what has been one of the most significant moves made so far by President Thein Sein. This is a crucial step towards greater democracy in Burma and we hope that Thein Sein’s government will continue to make substantive changes […]

CSW Welcomes “Significant and Positive” Prisoner Releases

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) today welcomed the release of several high-profile political prisoners in Burma, including Min Ko Naing and Ko Mya Aye, leaders of the failed pro-democracy uprising in 1988, and continued to call for the unconditional release of all remaining political prisoners […]

Political Prisoners Released: Allow International Monitors to Account for All Remaining Detainees

The release of key political prisoners on January 13, 2012 is a crucial development in promoting respect for human rights in Burma, but all remaining political prisoners should be freed immediately and unconditionally, Human Rights Watch said today […]