Burma Background

l The Military regime l Human rights abuses l Refugees asylum seekers and internally displaced peoples l Children and human rights l

Burma is a country of some fifty million people with over one-third of the population being ethnic minorities, who mainly inhabit the mountainous border regions of the country.

Since 1962, Burma has been ruled by a succession of highly authoritarian military regimes dominated by the majority Burman ethnic group.

In 1990, pro-democracy parties led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won more than 80 percent of the seats during generally free and fair parliamentary elections, but the junta refused to recognize the results.

The current controlling military junta, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), is the country's de facto government, with subordinate Peace and Development Councils ruling by decree at the division, state, city, township, ward, and village levels. It is the most repressive of all the regimes.

The military regime exercises absolute power over all functions of government, and decades of economic mismanagement and rampant corruption has resulted in Burma being declared a least developed country by the UN.

Human rights abuses

Burmese citizens do not have the right to criticize or change their government. Security forces carry out extrajudicial killings. People are disappeared, and security forces rape, torture, beat, and otherwise abuse prisoners and detainees.

Burmese citizens are subjected to arbitrary arrest without appeal. Arrests and detention for political dissent occur frequently.

Democracy supporters, primarily members of the country's largest pro-democracy party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), are arrested and imprisoned or placed under house arrest.

Aung San Suu Kyi and NLD Vice Chairman U Tin Oo have been under house arrest since 2003, and all NLD offices, except the Rangoon headquarters, have been closed.

At the end of 2003 an estimated 1,500 security detainees were in prison. Prison conditions are harsh and life threatening, and facilities are spartan. However, prisoners' rights are improving as a result of efforts by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which has regular access.

The Government regularly infringes on citizens' privacy; security forces systematically monitor citizen's communications, search homes without warrants, and relocate persons forcibly without just compensation or legal recourse. The Government forcibly relocates large ethnic minority civilian populations, confiscates land and property, uses forced labor, and conscripts child soldiers. The Government also carries out forced conscription of the civilian population into militia units.

The Government severely restricts freedom of speech, press, assembly, association, and movement. The Government also restricts freedom of religion, coercively promotes Buddhism over other religions, and imposes restrictions on religious minorities. Acts of discrimination and harassment against Muslims are common. Security forces monitor citizens' movements and restrict freedom of movement, in particular, foreign travel by young female citizens.

The Government does not permit domestic human rights organizations to function independently and is hostile to outside scrutiny of its human rights record. It has refused several requests by the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Human Rights (UNSRHR), Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, to visit. Senior government officials also refuse to meet the UNSRHR outside the country. The Government allowed the International Labor Organization (ILO) to operate a liaison office in Rangoon; however, some individuals who sought to report incidents of forced labor were detained or subjected to criminal prosecution.

Violence and societal discrimination against women is common, as is discrimination against religious and ethnic minorities.

Trafficking in persons, particularly in women and girls primarily for the purpose of prostitution, remains widespread, despite some efforts to address the problem. The Government restricts worker rights, bans unions, and uses forced labour for public works and for the support of military garrisons.

Forced child labor remained a serious problem, despite recent ordinances outlawing the practice. The forced use of citizens as porters by the military--including mistreatment, illness, and sometimes death--continues, as does forced recruitment of child soldiers.

Refugees, asylum seekers and internally displaced peoples

The increasing repression in Burma and rampant inflation has resulted in people in large numbers fleeing to Thailand and neighbouring countries, to escape the harsh political and economic conditions in Burma.

This exodus has resulted in large numbers of Burmese ending up as illegal migrant workers in Thailand. Numbers are now estimated at over one million. These workers have filled labour shortages in Thailand, as thousands of Thai’s seek better employment opportunities abroad, or are no longer prepared to work in dangerous or dirty low paid employment.

A revised Thai government policy toward Burmese workers has resulted in thousands of illegal Burmese workers now being allowed to work legally in Thailand, in all kinds of businesses in every province in Thailand. The main areas of Burmese workers concentration is now in the Maesot Tak province area, followed by Ranong in the south of Thailand. This influx of Burmese workers has increased the number of children being born in Thailand.

Internally Displaced People

The situation of Internally Displaced People (IDP’s), in Burma remains critical. There is an estimated 2 million IDP’s living in precarious existences in locations throughout the country. People in Burma become displaced as a result of SPDC policies that either directly or indirectly compel them to leave their homes. Villagers are subject to forced relocation by the SPDC as part of the military’s four-cuts program.

Children and human rights

The children born to the illegal Burmese migrant workers in Thailand have ended up being stateless, due to their status in Thailand and Burma. It is estimated that there are close to two million stateless Burmese children in Thailand.

Most of the children living as IDP’s in the conflict areas in Burma are victims of rape, torture, landmines and killed by the army and security forces. Health is a major concern for those children in living IDPS areas. Although some health care teams reach the IDP’s, the medicines and the care they are able to provide is insufficient for the numbers of IDP’s in hiding in the border areas. Education is sometimes only available in temporary makeshift schools with volunteer teachers. These school lack supplies, and are forced to move from place to place to avoid the SPDC forces.

The majority of the children born in IDP areas do not receive birth certificates or official citizenship papers. Without documents, newborns remain non-entities, meaning that they do not exist legally. They are excluded from education, health services, land ownership, political participation and the rights to travel freely. There is no opportunity to improve their lives, and no chance to return home because they have no documents to prove their identity.

The Office of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child assessed the performance of the Burmese military regime in January 2004. A damning report on the systematic denial of the human rights of children was issued.