Source from 
European Parliament,
European Parliament,
The European Parliament
,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to Articles 18 to 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) of 1948,
– having regard to Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) of 1966,
– having regard to the statement made by UN Special Rapporteur Tomás Ojea Quintana on 5 May 2010,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted
at the 3009th Foreign Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 26
April 2010,
– having regard to the statement made by High Representative
Catherine Ashton on 1 March 2010 on the rejection of Aung San Suu Kyi's
appeal by the Supreme Court of Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Chairman's Statement issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit held in Hanoi on 9 April 2010,
– having regard to the European Council Conclusions - Declaration on Burma/Myanmar of 19 June 2009,
– having regard to the Council Conclusions on Burma/Myanmar adopted
at the 2938th General Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg on 27
April 2009,
– having regard to the EU Presidency Statement of 23 February 2009
calling for all-inclusive dialogue between the authorities and the
democratic forces in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to UN Secretary-General's report of 28 August 2009 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the resolution of the UN Human Rights Council of
26 March 2010 on the situation of human rights in Burma/Myanmar,
– having regard to the Declaration issued by the Presidency on
behalf of the European Union on 14 May 2009 on the arrest of Aung San
Suu Kyi,
– having regard to Rule 122(5) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. having regard to the announcement by the Burmese authorities of national elections in 2010, the first since 1990,
B. whereas in their published form the five electoral laws and the
four decrees violate all democratic principles and make the holding of
free elections impossible, in particular by excluding the country's 2200
known political prisoners; whereas members of religious orders in
Burma/Myanmar, including an estimated 400 000 Buddhist monks, are
explicitly banned from voting, highlighting the perpetual discrimination
by the military junta on the basis of religion or status,
C. whereas these laws violate the basic principles of freedom of
expression and right of association; whereas Burmese news media based
abroad, which constitute the main source of news for the Burmese people,
are still banned from operating within Burma/Myanmar,
D. whereas these laws are based on the 2010 Constitution, which
guarantees impunity for the crimes committed by the current regime and
provides for the complete suspension of fundamental rights during the
state of emergency, for an indefinite period; whereas Burma/Myanmar's
new constitution is designed to maintain a dictatorship in a civilian
guise, and does not grant any human rights or offer any prospect of
genuine change,
E. whereas any expression of dissident political views is
systematically and brutally repressed (for example by means of arbitrary
arrests, unfair trials, imprisonment, torture and extrajudicial
killings),
F. whereas elections cannot be considered free and fair if the opposition is not involved,
G. whereas the National League for Democracy (NLD), the clear victor
in the last democratic elections, has decided to boycott the elections
announced for 2010, in the light of the conditions imposed on
participation; whereas the NLD was disbanded by law on 6 May 2010, after
not registering for the elections,
H. having regard to the declaration issued at the 16th ASEAN Summit
stressing the importance of reconciliation and the holding of free,
regular general elections open to everyone,
I. whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar
has condemned ‘gross and systematic’ human rights abuses committed by
Burma/Myanmar's dictatorship, stating that they constitute ‘a state
policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and
judiciary at all levels’, and has called for the establishment of a
United Nations commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against
humanity committed by the dictatorship,
J. whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar continues to refuse the
EU Special Envoy on Burma permission to visit the country and engage in
dialogue, despite repeated requests over many months,
K. whereas since 2003 the Government of Burma/Myanmar has rejected
every single proposal by the United Nations and the international
community to revise its seven-stage ‘roadmap to democracy’,
L. whereas there are currently 2200 known political prisoners being
detained for engaging in peaceful activities in Burma/Myanmar, and
whereas more than 140 political prisoners are being deliberately denied
medical treatment, including 88 Generation Student leader Ko Mya Aye,
who has a life-threatening heart condition,
M. whereas the military continues to perpetrate human rights
violations against civilians in ethnic conflict areas, including
extrajudicial killings, forced labour and sexual violence,
N. whereas attacks against ethnic minority civilians in eastern
Burma/Myanmar continue, resulting in hundreds of thousands of displaced
persons, many of whom, owing to restrictions on humanitarian assistance
by the dictatorship, can only be reached by cross-border aid from
neighbouring countries,
O. whereas Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the opposition NLD, has been
under house arrest since 2003; whereas on 14 May 2009 the authorities
arrested her on charges that she had breached the terms of her house
arrest by permitting the visit of an American, John Yettaw; whereas on
11 August 2009 a criminal court inside Insein prison in Rangoon
sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to three years' imprisonment for violating
her house arrest, a sentence which was subsequently reduced to 18
months' house arrest; whereas on 1 March 2010 the Supreme Court of
Burma/Myanmar rejected Aung San Suu Kyi's appeal against the unjust
sentence imposed on her in 2009,
P. whereas the EU remains a major donor to Burma/Myanmar and stands
ready to increase its assistance to the people of the country, in order
to improve their social and economic conditions,
Q. whereas ECHO has reduced funding for refugees on the
Thailand-Burma border, despite the number of refugees remaining almost
the same, and has ended funding for boarding schools in refugee camps,
R. whereas the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations
General Assembly, the United Nations Human Rights Council, the European
Union and many governments have said that the solution to Burma's
problems is proper tripartite dialogue between Aung San Suu Kyi and the
NLD, genuine ethnic representatives and the Government of Burma/Myanmar,
and whereas the Government of Burma/Myanmar is still refusing to enter
into such dialogue,
1. Reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the people of Burma/Myanmar;
2. Condemns the holding of elections under completely undemocratic
conditions and on the basis of rules which exclude the main democratic
opposition party and deprive hundreds of thousands of Burmese citizens
of their right to vote and stand for election, in a clear attempt to
exclude the country's entire opposition from the ballot;
3. Deplores the fact that, under the new constitution, the military
will be guaranteed at least 25% of the seats in parliament and will have
the power to suspend civil liberties and legislative authority whenever
it deems that to be necessary in the interests of national security;
4. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to take without
delay the steps needed to ensure a free, fair and transparent electoral
process, including the participation of all voters, all political
parties and all other relevant stakeholders in the electoral process,
and agree to the presence of international observers; calls for the
electoral laws published in March 2010, which make the holding of free
and transparent elections impossible, to be repealed;
5. Calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to heed the appeals of
the international community to allow Aung San Suu Kyi and all other
prisoners of conscience to participate in the political process;
6. Urges the international community to make every effort to ensure that free and democratic elections are held;
7. Strongly urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to lift
restrictions on freedom of assembly, association, movement and
expression, including for free and independent media, in part by making
Internet and mobile telephone services openly available and accessible
and ending the use of censorship;
8. Strongly condemns the ongoing systematic violations of the human
rights, fundamental freedoms and basic democratic rights of the people
of Burma/Myanmar; calls on the authorities of Burma/Myanmar to put an
end to violations of international human rights and humanitarian law;
9. Urges the Government of Burma/Myanmar to release all prisoners of
conscience without delay, unconditionally and with full restoration of
their political rights and to refrain from further politically motivated
arrests;
10. Calls on the High Representative and the Member States publicly
to support the recommendation of the United Nations Special Rapporteur
on Burma/Myanmar that the United Nations establish a commission of
inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma/Myanmar,
and to include this request in the draft resolution to be discussed at
the United Nations General Assembly in 2010;
11. Emphasises that the political and socioeconomic challenges
facing Burma/Myanmar can only be addressed through genuine dialogue
between all stakeholders, including ethnic groups and the opposition;
12. Reaffirms the essential importance of a genuine process of
dialogue and national reconciliation for a transition to democracy;
calls on the Government of Burma/Myanmar immediately to open a genuine
dialogue with all parties and ethnic groups; welcomes, in this context,
the mediation efforts by the UN Secretary-General and the UN Special
Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar;
13. Urges the governments of China, India and Russia to use their
considerable economic and political leverage with the Burmese
authorities in order to bring about substantial improvements in
Burma/Myanmar and to stop supplying the country with weaponry and other
strategic resources; calls on the governments of the ASEAN countries and
of China, which have a ‘privileged relationship’ with Burma/Myanmar, to
use their good offices in particular to try to reverse Burma's policy
of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya, which is resulting in hundreds
of thousands fleeing over the border into Bangladesh and increasing the
hardship of the ultra-poor living in the Cox's Bazaar district;
14. Expresses its strong support for the continued work of the EU
Special Envoy and invites the Burma/Myanmar authorities to cooperate
fully with him;
15. Welcomes the Council's decision to extend the restrictive
measures provided for in the current EU decision by another year and
emphasises its readiness to revise, amend or strengthen the measures
already adopted in the light of developments on the ground;
16. Calls on the Commission to reverse cuts in funding for refugees
on the Thailand-Burma border and immediately start funding cross-border
aid, especially medical assistance;
17. Reiterates its call for a solution to the problem of the
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh; urges the Bangladesh Government to
authorise their official registration as refugees and the Burma/Myanmar
authorities to halt all forms of persecution of the Rohingya and fully
to respect their fundamental rights as a religious and ethnic minority;
18. Welcomes the European Union's support for a global arms embargo
and urges European governments and the Commission actively to start
working to build a global consensus in favour of such a ban;
19. Supports the mediation mission undertaken by the UN Secretary-General and welcomes his commitment to solving this problem;
20. Instructs its delegations for relations with ASEAN, China,
Russia, the USA, India, the countries of South Asia and Japan to place
Burma/Myanmar on the agenda for their meetings with their counterparts
and discussion partners in those countries;
21. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the
Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for
Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of
the Member States, the EU Special Envoy for Burma, the Burmese State
Peace and Development Council, the governments of the ASEAN and ASEM
member states, the ASEM secretariat, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary
Myanmar Caucus, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the UN Secretary-General, the UN
High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Human Rights Special
Rapporteur on Burma/Myanmar.
