JOINT MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
15 November 2000
- –Hanja Maij-Weggen, Niranjan Deva, John Bowis and Mary Elizabeth Banotti, on behalf of the PPE-DE Group
- –Glenys E. Kinnock, on behalf of the PSE Group
- –Chris Davies, Elizabeth Lynne and Jules Maaten, on behalf of the ELDR Group
- –Patricia McKenna and Caroline Lucas, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group
- –Luisa Morgantini, Feleknas Uca, Armando Cossutta, Alain Krivine, Marianne Eriksson and Pernille Frahm, on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group
- –Verts/ALE (B5-0850/2000),
- –PSE (B5-0853/2000),
- –ELDR (B5-0857/2000),
- –GUE/NGL (B5-0861/2000),
- –PPE-DE (B5-0864/2000),
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Burma
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma, in particular its resolutions of 16 September 1999, 18 May 2000 and 7 September 2000,
– having regard to the recent declarations of the EU Presidency on Burma (25 August 2000, 2 September 2000 and 6 October 2000),
– having regard to the decision by the EU Foreign Ministers during their meeting on 9 and 10 October in Luxembourg, to extend the common position on Burma for a further six months because the political situation there has not improved and welcoming the decision by Switzerland and Liechtenstein to conform to the EU common position by freezing the assets of senior leaders of the ruling SPDC junta,
– having regard to the report of the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights in Burma, Mr Rajsoomer Lallah, which was released on 16 October and noted that the human rights situation in Burma is rapidly deteriorating, and dismayed that he felt compelled to resign,
– having regard to the opinion issued by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on 10 October on the case of James Mawdsley, which declared his imprisonment to be arbitrary under international law,
A. welcoming the news of James Mawdsley’s release from Burma on 20 October, but dismayed at reports that he was subjected to beating in Keng Tung prison during the last month of his detention,
B. welcoming the news that six elderly political prisoners have now been released following a request made by UN Special Envoy Razali Ismail during his visit to Burma in October, but dismayed that their release was made conditional upon their signing a statement accepting that they would be taken back into prison if they continued their pro-democracy activities, and further dismayed at reports that Soe Thein, a journalist and NLD member who has been detained without trial since May 1996, is critically ill following a second heart attack,
C. whereas the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, and other senior party members remain under de facto house arrest imposed after they were prevented from travelling to Mandalay on 21 September, while deputy chairman Tin Oo remains in detention at a military base north of Rangoon,
D. whereas the elected parliament of Burma, which is now represented by the Committee Representing the People’s Parliament (CRPP), has still not been permitted to convene,
E. whereas reliable sources estimate that there are currently up to 3 000 political prisoners in Burma and that many of these prisoners are subjected to hard labour and torture and are being denied medical attention,
F. whereas the policy of forced relocation in Shan State continues, as well as the forced labour practices in the junta’s current offensive against the Karen people,
G. noting that the Burmese junta has expressed its intention to annihilate the NLD by the end of the year 2000, and discerning a pattern that the recent actions taken against the NLD – including an attempt to evict the NLD headquarters from its current location – may be a systematic campaign to accomplish such a goal,
H. noting that 1 892 elected representatives around the world (including 70 MEPs) have now signed the Declaration of Solidarity drafted by the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma, thereby expressing their solidarity with the democratically elected members of the parliament in Burma,
I. whereas Mrs Aung San Suu Kyi has clearly stated that ‘constructive engagement’ by ASEAN Members in relation to Rangoon has not worked, the Council has still not responded to her request to implement economic sanctions and has not taken any significant economic measures against the SPDC, and two committees of the outgoing US Senate and House of Representatives have introduced import sanctions bills against Burma,
J. noting that the EU Foreign Ministers have agreed to meet with their ASEAN counterparts (including Burma) in Laos in December 2000,
1. Reiterates its call of September 2000 on the Council and Commission to implement sanctions against Burma and to make the December EU-ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ meeting strictly conditional upon:
- –the Burmese junta releasing all political prisoners without conditions and allowing freedom of movement for Aung San Suu Kyi and her party members; and
- –the Burmese junta entering into a meaningful dialogue with the election-winning NLD and the ethnic nationalities;
and calls for the European Union, the United States, Japan and other regional governments to draw up a clear international plan, which could be based upon the consensus agreed at the meeting about Burma in Seoul, in March 2000, to persuade the Burmese military junta to begin such a dialogue;
2. Strongly condemns the junta’s forcible relocation of over 300 000 villagers in the Central Shan State and its continuing policy to force villagers to carry weapons and supplies for the military, and to act as human mine-sweepers in its offensive against the Karen people;
3. Is deeply concerned about the spread of HIV/AIDS, the rising production of amphetamines, and the fact that Burma is now the world’s second largest producer of opium and its derivative, heroin, after Afghanistan, which is having a destabilising impact on society both in Burma and the surrounding countries;
4. Notes with concern that ASEAN rejected the call by the UN Secretary General for ASEAN – Troika mediation to defuse the rising political tension in Burma and create an atmosphere conducive to constructive political dialogue, and asks the Council to voice its support for the Secretary General’s proposal;
5. Regrets the SPDC decision to postpone a visit by the EU Troika mission, which was intended to encourage dialogue between the leaders of the SPDC, Mrs Aung San Suu Kyi and other NLD leaders, and calls on the Council to renew its efforts towards implementing this visit;
6. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, ASEAN, the NLD and its General Secretary Aung San Suu Kyi and the Government of Burma.