MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION

12.12.2006

with request for inclusion in the agenda for the debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure
by Geoffrey Van Orden, Thomas Mann, Bernd Posselt, Simon Coveney and Charles Tannock,
on behalf of the PPE-DE Group
on the situation in Burma

B6‑0647/06

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Burma

The European Parliament,

–  having regard to the resolution on the situation of human rights in Myanmar adopted on 14 April 2005 at the 61st session of the UN Commission on Human Rights, and to the resolution on the situation of human rights in Myanmar adopted by the UN General Assembly on 23 December 2004,

–  having regard to the UN Security Council's decision of 15 September 2006 to place Burma on its formal agenda, the visit to Burma of UN Under Secretary General for Political Affairs Ibrahim Gambari from 9-12 November 2006 and his subsequent briefing of the Security Council,

–  having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma, in particular that of 17 November 2005,

–  having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 817/2006 of 29 May 2006 renewing restrictive measures against Burma,

–  having regard to the Chairman's Statement of the Sixth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) held in Finland on 10-11 September 2006,

–  having regard to Rule 115(5) of the Rules of Procedure,

A.  whereas the so-called State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) continues to subject the people of Burma to appalling human rights abuses, such as forced labour, persecution of dissidents, conscription of child soldiers and forced relocation,

C.  whereas the National Convention, first convened in 1993 to draft a constitution and which has been suspended many times since then, resumed on 10 October 2006 but stills lacks any credibility due to the absence of many representative groups, most notably the National League for Democracy (NLD),

D.  whereas it is 17 years since NLD leader and Nobel Laureate and Sakharov Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi was first put under house arrest, an unjustified punishment that the military junta extends perniciously every year,

E.  whereas Burma's neighbours need to take a more robust stance against the abuses of the military regime in that country, and demands that Burma improve its human rights record and embrace democracy,

F.  whereas more than thirty per cent of children under five suffer from malnutrition, mortality rates for malaria and tuberculosis remain very high and nearly half of school-age children never enrol,

G.  whereas, according to the International Narcotics Control Strategy Report for 2006, Burma is the world's second largest producer of illicit opium, accounting for more than ninety per cent of south-east Asian heroin,

1.  Condemns the SPDC for its relentless suppression of the Burmese people and its total failure to make any significant move towards democracy, despite having ruled for over forty years;

2.  Refuses to recognise the legitimacy of any constitutional proposals produced by the National Convention so long as it does not include the NLD and other political parties; urges the National Convention to present a road map to democracy that genuinely reflects the wishes of the Burmese people instead of consolidating the military's stranglehold on power;

3.  Demands the immediate and unconditional release of Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners - estimated to number over 1,100 - held by the SDPC;

4.  Deplores the SPDC's recent closure of five International Committee of the Red Cross field offices (in Mandalay, Mawlamyine, Hpa-an, Taunggyi and Kyaing Tong), effectively making it impossible for the organisation to carry out its humanitarian work, and calls on the SPDC to allow these offices to re-open without delay;

5.  Strongly condemns the regime's brutal crackdown against several large ethnic groups, including the Karen of eastern Burma, which has lead to large scale suffering and internal displacement; reports estimate that in 2006 alone, 82,000 people were forced to leave their homes in eastern Burma, bringing the number of internally displaced people within Burma to at least 500,000;

6.  Welcomes the fact-finding mission to Burma by the Malaysian Foreign Minister, Syed Hamid Albar, as a result of the position taken the previous year by the eleventh ASEAN summit and trusts that this will now result in tougher measures by ASEAN nations against the military junta in Burma;

7.  Further welcomes the International Labour Organization's decision to take its concerns about the SPDC's abhorrent use of forced labour before the UN Security Council and the International Court of Justice, and hopes that this tougher course of action will prompt the SPDC into ending this practice;

8.  Recognises that the EU's targeted sanctions have not so far achieved the desired impact on those directly responsible for the suffering of the Burmese people; calls on the Council to ensure that all Member States rigorously apply existing restrictive measures;

9.  Further calls on the Council to expand the scope of the sanctions and to expand the list of those targeted, so that it includes many more SPDC ministers, deputies, members, supporters and workers, in addition to their family members, and businessmen and other prominent individuals associated with the regime;

10.  Urges China and other countries that continue to supply weaponry and other support to the military junta to desist from this and to join the international community in its efforts to bring about change for the better in Burma;

11.  Welcomes the decision by South Korean prosecutors to indict 14 people, working for seven South Korean companies, for allegedly providing technology and equipment to help the Burmese regime build a weapons factory in Pyay, central Burma;

12.  Further welcomes the UN's recent opening of the first of seven legal assistance centres, located at Ban Mae Nai Soi camp in north-western Thailand, for Burmese refugees living in neighbouring Thailand and expects additional robust UN measures against the SPDC to be forthcoming;

13.  Insists that all aid destined for Burma must be delivered through genuine non-governmental organisations and must reach the people for whom it is intended, with the least possible involvement of the SPDC and asks the Commission to give its assurances that none of the aid benefited the regime there;

14.  Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the governments of the Member States, the governments of the ASEAN nations, the National League for Democracy, the State Peace and Development Council and the Secretary-General of the United Nations.