Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Phyo Min Thein floats political party

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - Phyo Min Thein, a former student leader has floated a political party called ‘Ludu (People’s) Democracy Party’ to contest the forthcoming election.“I think we should go through the electoral process like other political parties because we have to provide people some alternative,” former Secretary of ‘All Burma Federation of Students Union’ (ABFSU) Phyo Min Thein told Mizzima.

ABFSU, which has played a major role in the country's struggle for freedom and democracy, is now an underground organization with many of its leaders in jail.

Phyo Min Thein also said that the party’s registration and adoption of the party policy and programme will be done only after March 29.The party flag will be tricolour in blue, red and yellow.Former ABFSU Chairman in 1988 Nyo Tun, will join this party’s preparatory committee.

The preparatory committee of this party comprises Nyo Tun, Phyo Min Thein, Thein Tin Aung, Min Lwin, Lu Thit, Thein Htay and Myo Min Tun, accounting for seven members. The party’s motto will be Freedom, Equality, Fraternity, and People’s Democracy, he added.

It is learnt that they will try for the inclusion of detained pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and imprisoned ethnic leader Khun Tun Oo in the electoral process.

Other political parties, which are so far ready to contest in the general election are:

(1) Union of Myanmar (Burma) Scientific National Political Party

(2) National Political Alliance League

(3) Democratic Party-Myanmar

(4) Rakhine State National Political Force

(5) National Unity Party

(6) Diversity and Peace Party

(7) Kachin State Progressive Party

(8) Wunthanu NLD

(9) 88-Geneartion Students United Democratic Party

(10) Union of Myanmar National Politics

However, some of their actual names in English can be different from the names mentioned, when they actually register with the Election Commission.

Two political parties, the Union of Myanmar National Politics League led by Aye Lwin and 88-Generation Students and Youths (Union of Myanmar) registered with the Election Commission on March 22.

The National League for Democracy (NLD), which is facing a political crisis due to the recently promulgated electoral laws, will decide on the party registration issue on March 29, at its plenary meeting to be attended by Central Committee members and Central Executive Committee members to be held at the party head office.

NLD not to re-register with EC

National League for Democracy has decided not to re-register with the Election Commission for the 2010 general elections, following hectic parleys by the party brass at a meeting today.

"After a vote of the committee of members, the NLD party has decided not to register as a political party because the election laws are unjust," National League for Democracy (NLD) spokesman Nyan Win told reporters at the party headquarters in Rangoon.

This decision not to contest the election was decided unanimously at a meeting of members of the Central Executive Committee and Central Committee of States and Divisions, after heated debates both in the party fold and in Burmese political circles."Vice-Chairman Tin Oo, who was released from house arrest recently, announced two decisions taken at the meeting. One was not to register the party and another was not to abolish the party although it is not being registered," said a youth leader who was waiting for the party decision in front of the party office.

Aung Shwe, chairman of Burma’s National League for Democracy did not turn up for the meeting of the party brass today, for a crucial decision on whether the party would re-register with the Election Commission.A hundred and thirteen members of the party's Central Executive Committee and Central Committee attended the meeting today, except Aung Shwe (the chairman), U Lwin (secretary) and Lun Tin (CEC member).

Sources in the party told Mizzima that Aung Shwe had sent a message since yesterday, which said he would abide by the decision of detained party general secretary Aung San Suu Kyi.

The junta’s electoral laws announced on March 8, states if NLD wants to re-register, it must expel the general secretary Suu Kyi, who was sentenced to 18 months under house arrest, 10 members of the Central Committee and other party members accounting for 430 odd.

If the NLD, 12 million members at a highest point, does not re-register within the 60 day deadline that ends on May 7, it’ll cease to exist automatically. There is a heated debate on among party leaders whether the party should be re-register.

On March 13, the leader of the party, Suu Kyi told her lawyers that she didn’t want the party to be re-registered.

During the meeting of NLD’s leaders, near the Shwegondine traffic light, two trucks of security men and two fire trucks were stationed. In the campus of the B.E.H.S (3) Bahan, there were eight trucks of security forces.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Suu Kyi against NLD party joining elections

Aung San Suu Kyi is against registering her opposition party for Myanmar's upcoming elections because the ruling junta's restrictions on the vote are "unjust," her lawyer said on Tuesday.Suu Kyi was quoted as saying she would "not even think" of registering her National League for Democracy for the polls which the government says will be held this year but stressed she will let the party decide for itself.

The NLD won the last elections held in Myanmar in 1990 by a landslide but was barred by the military from taking power.The credibility of the upcoming vote has already been called into question but it would suffer even more without the participation of the country's principal opposition party.

Suu Kyi is under house arrest and is effectively barred from running and voting in elections under recent laws enacted by the military-ruled government.One of the laws requires parties to register for the elections or cease to exist.Her comments came ahead of a crucial meeting Monday in which NLD senior members will decide whether the party registers for the vote.

Although Suu Kyi has been under detention for 14 of the last 20 years, she is still general-secretary of the party and its most dominant figure."Personally, I would not even think of registering (the party) under these unjust laws," Suu Kyi said, according to her lawyer Nyan Win who met with her Tuesday at her lakeside villa in Yangon.She added: "I am not instructing the party or the people. They are free to make their decisions democratically," Nyan Win said.

Suu Kyi's house arrest was extended last year after she was convicted on charges of violating the terms of her detention when an American man swam uninvited to her lakeside property.She is serving an 18-month term of house arrest and many top members of her party and ethnic-based parties are in prison.Under the new laws they would be barred from the vote.Her comments came hours after Myanmar's highest court refused to accept a lawsuit filed by the NLD seeking to revoke the five election laws, which were enacted earlier this month.The laws set out rules for the vote, but have been widely criticized as designed to keep Suu Kyi out of the race.

One law prohibits anyone convicted of a crime from being a member of a political party and instructs parties to expel convicted members or face de-registration.
Lawyer Kyi Win said the Supreme Court refused to accept the lawsuit, saying it did not have power to handle such a case.The lawsuit was largely symbolic since Myanmar's courts invariably adhere to the junta's policies, especially on political matters.

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Burma Janta debar Aung San Suu Kyi

Burma regime said in the new political parties registration act published today that anyone serving a prison term cannot be a party member for the polls.
Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD), which won the country's last elections in 1990 but was stopped from taking power by the military would in turn be abolished if it failed to obey the rules.
The Nobel Peace laureate was sentenced to three years in jail in August over an incident in which a US man swam to her lakeside home.Suu Kyi's sentence was commuted by junta supremo Than Shwe to 18 months under house arrest.
"I have noticed that we have to expel Daw Suu. Their attitude is clear in this law," NLD spokesman Nyan Win told the news agency, using a respectful form of address to refer to Suu Kyi."I was extremely surprised when I saw this, I did not think it would be so bad." Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi faces expulsion from her own party and is barred from standing in polls this year under the military junta's new election laws, a spokesman said today.
Than Shwe has promised to hold poll at a still unspecified date this year, as a sham aimed at legitimising and entrenching the military's nearly five-decade grip on power

Friday, March 5, 2010

NLD donates water facilities in Bogale

NLD donates potable water facilities in Bogale
Thursday, 04 March 2010 20:57 Myint Maung
A donation of Kyat 2.3 million worth water treatment plant and water pumps from the National League for Democracy (NLD) has come as a boon to two villages in Cyclone Nargis-hit Bogale Township, Irrawaddy Division.

The NLD Bogale Township Organizing Committee members supervised drilling of tube wells in Upper Pho Nyo and Kani Gyi villages. Now the party has donated drinking water facilities.

"We donated a 8' x 4.5' water storage tank capable of holding 800 gallons of water, a water filtering tank and water pumps with compressors to village elders on March 2 by inviting an abbot from Pho Nyo village," Ohn Kyaing, NLD Nargis Assistance Committee Chairman told Mizzima.

"The water from the tube wells were tested and we also arranged for a certificate by water experts after laboratory reports, which say the water is fit for drinking," he added.

Upper Pho Nyo village has 300 houses and 1,800 people and in Kani village there are over 1,000 people and over 200 houses. The villagers will use the water from the two tube wells donated by NLD.

"The water from Kani Gyi village tube well is pure and also tastes good. According to the chemical laboratory report, it has no impurities and is potable water grade," Nargis Assistance Committee Secretary Dr. Win Naing said.

The Committee donated seed money of Kyat 50,000 each to two monasteries in the two villages ravaged by Cyclone Nargis.

Cyclone Nargis devastated Irrawaddy and Rangoon Division on May 2008 leaving about 140,000 people dead or missing and about 2.4 million people homeless.

International Tribunal on Burma Calls for End to Impunity of Military Regime

March 3, 2010, 10 am EST International Tribunal on Burma Calls for End to Impunity of Military Regime (New York) Nobel Peace Laureates Shirin Ebadi and Jody Williams - along with human rights experts Dr. Heisoo Shin (Korea) and Professor Vitit Muntarbhorn (Thailand) - today released the findings and recommendations developed during the International Tribunal on Crimes Against Women of Burma held this week in New York City. The quasi-legal event featured compelling testimony - the first ever - of 12 women from Burma who have suffered rape, torture, and other crimes at the hands of the military junta. The event highlighted the egregious human rights crimes, including rape as a weapon of war, and called for policymakers to demand a last resort: the International Criminal Court. "Women should no longer be invisible when crimes are committed against them with impunity," said Jody Williams, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997. "The history of violence and oppression of women in Burma is long and sordid--and must come to an end." A few of the women who testified are colleagues of Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the opposition, still under house arrest and a prisoner of General Than Shwe. Than Shwe is the war criminal who has reigned terror over the people of Burma for decades. World leaders have rallied in support of her freedom countless times since her Nobel Peace Prize award in 1991, passing UN resolutions almost annually and demanding the release of her and other political prisoners. But these cries have fallen on deaf ears, with the international community failing to hold General Shwe and his cronies criminally responsible. The resulting impunity has given the ruling generals of Burma even more license to escalate their power and continue to inflict violence on the people of Burma. "We live in a globalized world, which means that Burma cannot do whatever it wants to its people within its own walls," said Shirin Ebadi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003. "Globalization is effective when it helps bring an end to injustice. The international community cannot stand by and let other countries to use their sovereignty to commit atrocities against their own people." The purpose of the Tribunal was to spotlight the oppression of women of Burma in order to encourage policymakers and political leaders to take specific action now. The women Nobel Laureates have joined with the Women's League of Burma to highlight the systemic use of rape and other forms of violence against ethnic women in Burma. The Women's League of Burma is an umbrella organization comprising thirteen women's organizations of different ethnic backgrounds in Burma. The women who testified now live in Thailand, Bangladesh, the US and Canada and traveled to New York to tell their personal stories and those of their families. Their stories include a range of horrific human rights violations and crimes. Testimony was organized into three categories: violence against women (rape, sexual violence, trafficking), civil and political violations (torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, harassment), and social, economic and cultural violations (forced labor, portering, relocation). Violence against women in Burma is often ethnically motivated, particularly minority groups such as the Karen who have been brutally persecuted by the military regime. he following are the recommendations of the Tribunal: Recommendations to the international community, particularly the United Nations: *Urge States to take collective action to ensure the implementation of Security Council Resolutions 1325, 1820, 1888, and 1889 guaranteeing women's full participation in post-conflict reconstruction, and freedom from all forms of sexual violence. *Strongly urge the UN Security Council to refer Burma to the International Criminal Court. *Call upon United Nations member States to fulfill their obligations to exercise universal jurisdiction and to prosecute through their national tribunals perpetrators of the crimes against the civilian population of Burma, including women. *Ask United Nations agencies with a presence in Burma to increase their work in promoting and protecting human rights. *Call upon the United Nations Security Council to take effective measures against state authorities on the basis of the responsibility of the state to protect its people from egregious human rights violations (Responsibility to Protect Doctrine). *Urge the United Nations system to take measures to ensure that the Burmese authorities comply with international human rights standards and international humanitarian law. Recommendations to Burma's military regime: *Stop all forms of violence against women. "End the intimidation, harassment, arbitrary arrest, unlawful detention, torture, and degrading treatment against women [and all] political prisoners; [and] respect and adhere to the principles and norms of the international [criminal and] human rights standards, particularly Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women..." *Stop attacks and persecution against ethnic nationalities and groups. *Release immediately and unconditionally all political prisoners. *Grant access to United Nations agencies and non-governmental humanitarian groups to ensure that women, in particular, are assisted effectively. *Provide access to and cooperate with United Nations agencies and human rights organizations to monitor human rights within Burma. *Ratify all human rights treaties, including ICCPR and ICESCR, and implement them effectively. *Abide by rules of customary international law, such as the prohibitions against torture, slavery, and violence against women and children. *Ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, reform and implement domestic legislation accordingly. *Establish an effective process for dialogue between different stakeholders including democracy groups, ethnic minorities/nationalities, and concerned authorities with emphasis on women's participation in the pursuit of democracy. *Revise the constitution, particularly the amnesty provisions, and other national laws in an inclusive and participatory manner, engaging all stakeholders including women, to ensure consistency with international legal obligations and human rights standards. *Establish effective judicial mechanisms and other processes to establish accountability and provide adequate remedies for international crimes and human rights violations to end impunity. *Build human-centered national development plans and processes that respond to women's human rights bearing in mind the special needs of rural women, and allocate national resources fairly and equitably for this purpose. Recommendations to the Asia-Pacific region (including ASEAN, bilateral and other channels): *Call upon ASEAN through its Summit of Heads of Government to impel Burma to apply effective and time-limited measures to comply with the ASEAN Charter and international legal obligations and human rights standards. *Invite the ASEAN Intergovernmental Human Rights Commission to submit thematic reports covering particular issues related to Burma. *Bearing in mind the ASEAN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women and various declarations on children's rights in the region, to which Burma has subscribed, support the establishment of the ASEAN Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children, including consideration of the situation in Burma. *Call upon the various partners of ASEAN and other regional bodies and states engaging with Burma to influence constructive changes in the country. *Prohibit trade with Burma involving goods produced through forced labor, as well as oil, gas, and electricity generated as a result of forced relocations. *Take effective cross-border measures to prevent and punish human trafficking, in particular that of women and children, and to offer gender and child sensitive measures to protect and assist those victimized by trafficking. *Respect the rights of refugees and internally displaced persons, protect them from violence, abuse, and exploitation, and forced repatriation, which violates the international principle of non-refoulement, and ensure the application of basic standards of international law. For more information, and to arrange interviews, please contact us: *Rachel Vincent: Mobile: + 1-613-276-9030, rvincent@nobelwomensinitiative.org *Kimberley MacKenzie: +1-908-342-0160, kmackenzie@nobelwomensinitiative.org *Kieran Bergmann: +1-613-569-8400 ext. 115, kbergmann@nobelwomensinitiative. For more information, and to arrange interviews, please contact us: *Rachel Vincent: Mobile: + 1-613-276-9030, rvincent@nobelwomensinitiative.org *Kimberley MacKenzie: +1-908-342-0160, kmackenzie@nobelwomensinitiative.org *Kieran Bergmann: +1-613-569-8400 ext. 115, kbergmann@nobelwomensinitiative.org

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