UA: 319/11 Index: ASA 16/006/2011 Myanmar Date: 31 October 2011

URGENT ACTION - BURMESE MONK NEEDS URGENT MEDICAL CARE

U Gambira, a Buddhist monk imprisoned in Myanmar because of his role in antigovernment protests in 2007, is seriously ill in prison. Amnesty International has recently received information that his injuries resulted from torture he suffered in 2009. He urgently needs to be transferred to a hospital and treated for his injuries.

U Gambira is held in solitary confinement in Kale prison, northern Myanmar. Some former prisoners who were able

to visit him reported that he has difficulty speaking, and that he has scars and marks on his hands, arms and body.

In addition, U Gambira is reported to suffer from very severe headaches several times a week, which cause him to

cry out in pain. When this happens, prison guards administer an injection, which results in U Gambira falling asleep

for about five hours. When he wakes up he is in a daze and finds it very difficult to speak. There is concern that U

Gambira is being injected with drugs rather than being treated for his injuries. He is not thought to have received

any appropriate treatment since he was tortured. The former prisoners asked authorities at Kale prison to send U

Gambira to hospital for treatment. Amnesty International has learned that a former prison official has also written to

the authorities calling for U Gambira to receive medical treatment and expressed his fear that the injections

administered to U Gambira may be harmful.

U Gambira is believed to have been tortured in April 2009, when he was held in Hkamti prison, north of Kale.

Reports suggest he was tortured after requesting permission to exercise. Prison guards shackled him and

handcuffed him to a chair, stuffed a cloth in his mouth, and placed a black cloth bag over his head. They then beat

him on the head with a stick. U Gambira is reported to have been left handcuffed to the chair for extended periods

during which time he was spoon-fed by the guards. He was transferred to Kale Prison on 12 May 2009.

Please write immediately in English or your own language:

• Calling for U Gambira to be admitted to hospital immediately for a full and independent medical examination,
• and for him to be given all necessary medical treatment;
• Calling for U Gambira to be released immediately and unconditionally, as he is a prisoner of conscience,
• detained solely as a result of his peaceful activism;
• Urging the authorities to conduct a full and impartial investigation into the reports that U Gambira was tortured,
• with the results made public and those responsible brought to justice;
• Note that torture and other forms of ill-treatment are absolutely prohibited under international law.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 12 DECEMBER 2011 TO:

Minister of Home Affairs

Lt Gen Ko Ko

Ministry of Home Affairs

Office No. 10

Nay Pyi Taw

Union of Myanmar

Fax: +95 67 412 439

Email: ddg.gad@gad.gov.mm

Salutation: Dear Minister

Chairman,

U Win Mya

Myanmar National Human Rights

Commission

Office No. 10, Nay Pyi Taw

Union of Myanmar

Fax: +95 67 412 439

Salutation: Dear Chairman

And copies to:

Warden of Kale Prison

U Go Kyin Paung

Kale Prison

Sagaing Division

Union of Myanmar

Salutation: Dear Warden

Also send copies to diplomatic representatives accredited to your country. Please insert local diplomatic addresses below:

Name Address 1 Address 2 Address 3 Fax Fax number Email Email address Salutation Salutation

Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above date.

URGENT ACTION

BURMESE MONK NEEDS URGENT MEDICAL CARE

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

U Gambira is serving a 63-year prison sentence for his peaceful activities in the major anti-government protests that began in Myanmar in August 2007. He is a founding member of the All Burma Monks Alliance (ABMA), which was formed in September 2007 and went on to mobilize tens of thousands of monks to join the demonstrations. U Gambira was sentenced in November 2008 after an unfair trial.

U Gambira was sent to Hkamti Prison, Sagaing Division in northern Myanmar on 22 November 2008 and was transferred to Kale Prison, also in Sagaing Division in May 2009. Kale Prison is more than 1000 kilometres from Yangon, his home town. In

his Progress Report on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar in March 2011, Tomas Ojea Quintana, the UN Special

Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, urged the Myanmar authorities to “halt the practice of transferring prisoners of conscience to remote locations, a practice that reportedly began in late 2008, and appears to be further punishment that deprives prisoners of regular family visits as well as crucial supplemental food and necessary medicine. This practice endangers prisoners of conscience, as they suffer additionally from these even harsher conditions of detention, and creates additional hardship for the families of the prisoners.”

Rule 22 (2) of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners stipulates that: “Sick prisoners who require

specialist treatment shall be transferred to specialized institutions or to civil hospitals. Where hospital facilities are provided in an institution, their equipment, furnishings and pharmaceutical supplies shall be proper for the medical care and treatment of sick prisoners, and there shall be a staff of suitable trained officers.”

Name:U Gambira

Gender: M

UA: 319/11 Index: ASA 16/006/2011 Issue Date: 31 October 2011

Press Release
7 April 2010
ASEAN leaders should act over Myanmarx92s appalling rights record

Myanmarx92s appalling human rights record is a serious breach of the ASEAN charter and should be at the top of the agenda for Southeast Asian states attending the organisationx92s summit in Ha Noi on 8 April, Amnesty International said today.

x93It is clear that Myanmar has been seriously and systematically breaching the ASEAN Charterx92s human rights provisions. It is now up to the summit, under its new chair Viet Nam, to address this breach as a matter of urgency,x94 said Donna Guest, Amnesty Internationalx92s Deputy Asia Programme Director.

x93The 10 members of ASEAN should also continue to press Myanmar to halt the increasing repression of activists, particularly from the countryx92s large ethnic minority community,x94 said Donna Guest.

ASEAN (The Association of South Eastern Asian Nations) has urged Myanmarx92s military government to free Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners and deliver free, fair and inclusive elections in 2010.
Myanmarx92s government recently enacted election laws that bar hundreds of thousands of persons, including at least 2,200 political prisoners, from meaningfully participating in the election. Widespread political repression and ongoing armed conflicts continue in the run-up to the election.

x93ASEANx92s reputation as a meaningful regional forum will suffer if it does not call for Myanmar to respect freedom of expression, assembly and association in the lead-up to the election,x94 said Donna Guest.
Myanmarx92s highly restrictive new election laws have drawn criticism from the governments of Indonesia and the Philippines, and resulted in an election boycott by the National League for Democracy, the main Myanmar opposition party headed by Aung San Suu Kyi.

x93This summit is an opportunity for Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia to continue their demands for Myanmar to improve its human rights record,x94 said Donna Guest. x93The ASEAN summitx92s final statement should include a clear condemnation of Myanmarx92s human rights record.x94
To give weight to its statements on Myanmar, ASEAN needs to address human rights crises in member countries, including through empowering the new ASEAN Intergovernmental Human Rights Commission to address individual rights violations.

Background
Indonesia, Cambodia, Brunei, Laos, Malaysia, Viet Nam, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Myanmar are members of ASEAN, which was founded in 1967.
Article 20(4) of the ASEAN Charter states: x93In the case of a serious breach of the Charter or noncompliance, the matter shall be referred to the ASEAN Summit for decision.x94

Press Release
7 April 2010
ASEAN leaders should act over Myanmar’s appalling rights record

Myanmar’s appalling human rights record is a serious breach of the ASEAN charter and should be at the top of the agenda for Southeast Asian states attending the organisation’s summit in Ha Noi on 8 April, Amnesty International said today.

“It is clear that Myanmar has been seriously and systematically breaching the ASEAN Charter’s human rights provisions. It is now up to the summit, under its new chair Viet Nam, to address this breach as a matter of urgency,” said Donna Guest, Amnesty International’s Deputy Asia Programme Director.

“The 10 members of ASEAN should also continue to press Myanmar to halt the increasing repression of activists, particularly from the country’s large ethnic minority community,” said Donna Guest.

ASEAN (The Association of South Eastern Asian Nations) has urged Myanmar’s military government to free Aung San Suu Kyi and all other political prisoners and deliver free, fair and inclusive elections in 2010.
Myanmar’s government recently enacted election laws that bar hundreds of thousands of persons, including at least 2,200 political prisoners, from meaningfully participating in the election. Widespread political repression and ongoing armed conflicts continue in the run-up to the election.

“ASEAN’s reputation as a meaningful regional forum will suffer if it does not call for Myanmar to respect freedom of expression, assembly and association in the lead-up to the election,” said Donna Guest.
Myanmar’s highly restrictive new election laws have drawn criticism from the governments of Indonesia and the Philippines, and resulted in an election boycott by the National League for Democracy, the main Myanmar opposition party headed by Aung San Suu Kyi.

“This summit is an opportunity for Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia to continue their demands for Myanmar to improve its human rights record,” said Donna Guest. “The ASEAN summit’s final statement should include a clear condemnation of Myanmar’s human rights record.”
To give weight to its statements on Myanmar, ASEAN needs to address human rights crises in member countries, including through empowering the new ASEAN Intergovernmental Human Rights Commission to address individual rights violations.

Background
Indonesia, Cambodia, Brunei, Laos, Malaysia, Viet Nam, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Myanmar are members of ASEAN, which was founded in 1967.
Article 20(4) of the ASEAN Charter states: “In the case of a serious breach of the Charter or noncompliance, the matter shall be referred to the ASEAN Summit for decision.”

AI Index: ASA 16/005/2009

Datum: 11 september 2009

UA nr: 242/09

Land: MYANMAR

BURMESE HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST ARRESTED

Kyaw Zaw Lwin (also known as Nyi Nyi Aung), a male Burmese human rights activist who works for the Thai-based campaign group, Forum for Democracy in Burma, was arrested on 3 September after flying from Thailand to Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city. He may be in police custody in Myanmar and is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment.

Kyaw Zaw Lwin, aged 39, has been involved in the Burmese pro-democracy movement for over 20 years. He was a student activist during the popular uprising against military rule in 1988, which government security forces violently suppressed, killing an estimated 3,000 people. He subsequently fled to Thailand. He was later resettled in the United States and was naturalized as an American citizen. He returned to Thailand to continue his campaigning efforts in 2005. In June of this year, he travelled to New York as part of a delegation of Burmese activists representing the Free Burma Political Prisoners Now campaign. They delivered a global petition which called upon the United Nations to secure the release of all political prisoners in Myanmar.

He had tried to enter Myanmar with a US passport and a visa issued by the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok. Sources believe that Kyaw Zaw Lwin was arrested in Yangon because of his pro-democracy activities.

Kyaw Zaw Lwin’s mother and sister, Thet Thet Aung, are serving a five-year and a 65-year prison sentence respectively for their involvement in the major anti-government demonstrations in August and September 2007. Kyaw Zaw Lwin’s family are close associates of Htay Kywe, one of the leaders of a group of activists known as the 88 Generation Students Group. This group started the first protest marches against rising fuel and food prices in August 2007. The protests later grew in size and significance and became known as the “Saffron Revolution”, after the monks who led thousands of peaceful protesters in the streets of Yangon and several other cities in Myanmar. The protesters added calls for the release of all political prisoners and demanded an end to the long-standing political impasse through a process of national reconciliation. The authorities brought the protests to an end with a violent crackdown in late September 2007. Htay Kywe is now serving a 65-year prison sentence for his role in the protests.

BACKGROUNDINFORMATION

Amnesty International has long-standing concerns about the deprivation of basic rights during detention in Myanmar. People are frequently arrested for peaceful political activities without warrant and held incommunicado. Torture and other forms of cruel, inhuman and
degrading treatment are common in pre-trial detention. There are more than 2,200 political prisoners in Myanmar, almost double the number before the “Saffron Revolution” in 2007.

ACTION NEEDED:
Write:
* calling on the authorities to release Kyaw Zaw Lwin immediately and unconditionally unless he is charged with a recognizably criminal offence;
* urging the authorities to guarantee that Kyaw Zaw Lwin is not tortured or ill-treated while he remains in custody and that he has access to his family, legal counsel, and proper medical care;
* urging the authorities to provide information on his whereabouts, and the reasons and legal basis for his continued detention.

ADDRESSES:

Minister for Home Affairs
Maung Oo
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Fax: +95 67 412 439
Aanhef: Dear Minister

Minister of Information
Brigadier-General Kyaw Hsan
Ministry of Information
Bldg. (7), Naypyitaw,
Union of Myanmar
Aanhef: Dear Minister

Minister of Foreign Affairs
Nyan Win
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Aanhef: Dear Minister

COPIES TO:

Zijne Excellentie de heer U Thaung Tun
Ambassade van de Unie van Myanmar
Boulevard General Wahis 9
B-1030 Brussel
Belgixeb
Fax: 00-322 7055048
Or to diplomatic representatives for Myanmar in your own country.

14 May 2009
Pressrelease 14 May
Myanmar democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi faces trial on Monday 18 May after an American national is alleged to have swum across the lake in front of her house and stayed there for two days.

Amnesty International called on the UN Security Council and Myanmar’s Asian neighbours to urgently intervene to secure Daw Aung San Suu Kyix92s release from prison.

The current order keeping Daw Aung San Suu Kyi under house arrest is set to expire on 27 May 2009. Her party, the National League for Democracy, is reported to have said that the upcoming trial is an excuse to keep her locked up.

“The government of Myanmar must free Daw Aung San Suu Kyi at once, without condition, and not return her to house arrest,” said Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty Internationalx92s Myanmar expert.

Amnesty International has also highlighted the detention of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s two female companions, Khin Khin Win and her daughter, who were arrested at the same time and face trial with her.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has recently been in poor health. When her regular doctor, Tin Myo Win, called on her on 7 May, security forces prevented him from entering her house. On returning home, he was taken away by the authorities. Dr Tin Myo Win is a former prisoner of conscience, whose current whereabouts remain unknown.

“Khin Khin Win, her daughter and Dr. Tin Myo Win are now among more than 2,100 political prisoners currently being held in prison in Myanmar,” said Benjamin Zawacki.

“Just like other political prisoners, they are at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Conditions in Myanmar prisons are extremely bad and jeopardise the health of prisoners.”

“In the absence of a unified international voice, the Myanmar government will continue to act in utter disregard for human rights. Now more than ever, the Security Council and ASEAN member states must send an unequivocal signal to the generals that they can no longer act with impunity,” Zawacki concluded.
Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been detained for 13 of the past 19 years, mostly under house arrest. In March 2009, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention said that the detention of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi violated both international law and Myanmarx92s domestic legislation.

PUBLIC AI Index: ASA 16/003/2009
06 May 2009

UA 120/09 Health concern/Fear of torture or other ill-treatment/Prisoner of conscience

MYANMAR Zarganar (m), aged 48, pro-democracy activist, comedian

Popular comedian Zarganar, who has been imprisoned since June 2008 for helping survivors of Cyclone Nargis, is in urgent need of medical attention for his various health problems. He is now understood to be receiving some medication from the authorities, though it is unclear what type he is receiving. Zarganar now urgently needs proper medical treatment in a hospital, with his condition continually monitored by doctors.

He has been in Myitkyina Prison, in the northern Kachin State, since November 2008. He lost consciousness in his cell for more than two hours on 16 April, and was only taken to Myitkyina hospital 10 days later. At that time doctors found that he had high blood pressure, spondylitis (inflammation of the joints of the spine) and an enlarged heart. Blood samples were taken, and tested at a larger hospital: these showed that he has developed hyperthyroidism (overactivity of the thyroid gland, which can cause heart problems). Zarganar has had a history of high blood pressure and stomach complaints which began before he was imprisoned.

Zarganar is serving a 35-year prison sentence for leading a movement that collected money and supplies for the survivors of Cyclone Nargis, which hit Myanmar on 2-3 May 2008. He was arrested on 4 June of that year, after he criticised the governmentx92s handling of the cyclone relief situation in interviews with foreign journalists. Zarganar, who had joined the 1988 uprising against military rule, had been previously arrested for his pro-democracy efforts.

Zarganar is one of 21 people still behind bars for their independent post-cyclone relief efforts. All of them were arrested for delivering aid to the victims, for reporting on the cyclone, and even for burying the dead.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

The lack of healthcare in Myanmar’s prisons has damaged the health of prisoners already suffering from serious medical conditions.

At least 210 political prisoners have been moved to remote prisons since November 2008. Zarganar is currently being held over 1,400km from his family, who live in the country’s main city, Yangon. It is now much more difficult for families of the 210 prisoners to visit their relatives in prison. The poor conditions and inadequate medical care mean that political prisoners often rely on family members to provide them with basic medicines, food and clothing. Many family members must undertake long journeys x96 in some cases up to nine days x96 to visit them.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English or your own language:
- urging the authorities to ensure that Zarganar receives immediate access to any medical treatment he may require, and that this continues until he is released;
- calling on the authorities to release Zarganar immediately and unconditionally as soon as he has received the urgent medical treatment he needs;
- reminding the authorities that under international standards, everyone in custody should have access to appropriate medical care;
- calling for immediate action to ensure that while he is in detention, Zarganar is granted full access to his lawyer and family.

APPEALS TO:

Maung Oo
Minister for Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw, Union on Myanmar
Fax: +95 67 412 439
Salutation: Dear Minister

Brigadier-General Kyaw Hsan
Minister of Information
Ministry of Information
Bldg. (7), Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Salutation: Dear Minister

Nyan Win
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Salutation: Dear Minister

and to diplomatic representatives of Myanmar accredited to your country.

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 17 June 2009.

PUBLIC AI Index: ASA 16/002/2009
26 March 2009

UA 83/09 Health concern/ Fear of torture or ill-treatment/Prisoners of conscience

MYANMAR Hla Myo Naung (m), pro-democracy activist
Min Ko Naing (m), 46, pro-democracy activist

Pro-democracy activists and prisoners of conscience, Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing are in need of urgent and proper medical treatment. Hla Myo Naung is in danger of completely losing his eyesight, having already gone blind in one eye whilst in detention after being denied specialist medical treatment. Min Ko Naing suffers from a worsening eye condition, gout and high blood pressure for which he has received inadequate medical treatment.

According to a Radio Free Asia report on 18 March, Hla Myo Naung complained of failing eyesight. He describes seeing flashes of strobe light in one of his eyes, similar to what he experienced in his other eye before he lost sight in it. He says a doctor has checked his eye with a torch and prescribed him eye drops, but he has received no other treatment.

Hla Myo Naung is being held in Myitkyina Prison in Kachin State in northern Myanmar, 1,470km away from his hometown, the countryx92s largest city of Yangon. He was arrested in Yangon on 10 October 2007, as he was looking for a doctor who could treat his ruptured cornea. He subsequently lost sight in that eye after he failed to receive the specialist treatment that he needed.

Both Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing were sentenced on 11 November 2008 to 65 yearsx92 imprisonment for their roles in the major anti-government protests of August and September 2007. The sentence was handed down in a closed hearing in Maubin Prison in the south-western Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) Division.

Min Ko Naing is being held in Kengtung prison in Shan State in north-eastern Myanmar, 1,120km away from his family’s home in Yangon. The prison is reportedly cold and damp and the conditions are understood to be adversely affecting Min Ko Naing’s health. He has been suffering from an eye condition, gout and high blood pressure for which he has received inadequate medical treatment. In April 2008, a specialist treated his eye problem in prison, but only after repeated delays. The specialist told Min Ko Naing his eyesight had been affected by his many years in damp conditions in prisons. Min Ko Naingx92s eye condition is now deteriorating once again. In addition, his hands are said to be numb and he has difficulty moving them.

As a founding member of the 88 Generation Students group, which started the peaceful anti-government protests of August and September 2007, Min Ko Naing has been singled out for harsh treatment and is allowed out of his cell far less than other prisoners. Before he was transferred to Kengtung prison, he had spent more than a year in Yangonx92s Insein prison where he was held in solitary confinement for over 23 hours each day. Min Ko Naing was arrested on 21 August 2007, two days after leading a peaceful march in Yangon, to protest at increased fuel prices.

Min Ko Naing is one of the best-known political dissidents in Myanmar. As chair of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU) he was at the forefront of the pro-democracy mass uprising that took place across Myanmar in 1988. The uprising was brutally suppressed by the military junta and an estimated 3,000 people were killed and thousands more imprisoned or disappeared. For his part in the demonstrations Min Ko Naing was imprisoned for 15 years, many of them spent in solitary confinement. He was not released until 2004. Hla Myo Naung, also a leader of the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, and a former law student, was arrested in March 1990 and given a three year prison sentence.

On 17 March 2009, the Myanmar government told the UN Human Rights Council that family members of political prisoners were allowed to make x93visits and necessary health treatments are provided to the prisonersx94.
However, the situation of Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing belies these claims. Amnesty International has recently documented several other cases where access to medical treatment to political prisoners in Myanmar has been withheld or restricted.

Since November 2008 at least 135 political prisoners have been transferred, many to prisons far from their families and in remote locations in Myanmar. Prisoners in Myanmar routinely rely on family members to supply medicines and supplement their food, which is made extremely difficult when prisoners are held a long distance from their family home.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English or your own language:
- calling on the authorities to release Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing immediately and unconditionally;
- urging the authorities to ensure that Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing have immediate and continuing access to full medical treatment pending their release from prison;
- reminding the authorities that under international law, they must ensure access to appropriate medical care for all residents of Myanmar including those in detention;
– calling for immediate action to ensure that while they are in detention, Hla Myo Naung and Min Ko Naing are granted full access to their lawyers and family;
- calling on the authorities to ensure that all detainees in Myanmar are treated humanely, with full respect for their human rights, and that prisoners are not subjected to torture or other ill-treatment.

APPEALS TO:

Maung Oo
Minister for Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw, Union on Myanmar
Fax: +95 67 412 439
Salutation: Dear Minister

Brigadier-General Kyaw Hsan
Minister of Information
Ministry of Information
Bldg. (7), Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Fax: +95 67 412 363
Salutation: Dear Minister

Nyan Win
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Salutation: Dear Minister

COPIES TO: diplomatic representatives of Myanmar accredited to your country.

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UPDATE – BURMA

30 January 2009

RSF launches petition calling for the release of bloggers Nay Phone Latt and
Zarganar

SOURCE: Reporters sans frontixe8res (RSF), Paris

(RSF/IFEX) – Reporters Without Borders urges the international community not
to forget Nay Phone Latt ( http://www.nayphonelatt.net/), a Burmese blogger
who was arrested on 29 January 2008 and was sentenced on 10 November to 20
years and six months in prison, or Zarganar, one of Burma’s best known
comedians, who is serving a 59-year jail sentence in appalling conditions
for criticising the military government online.

"On this sad anniversary for Nay Phone Latt, we are launchinga petitionfor
his and Zarganar’s release," Reporters Without Borders said. "Theydid
nothing to deserve these punishments and must be freed. Nay Phone Latt’s
only crime was to be caught in possession of a film regarded as subversive
by the military government. Zarganar was convicted solely for expressing his
views."

The press freedom organisation added: "Their trials were farces organisedby
special courts that take their orders directly from the government. The
international community, especially UN secretary-general Ban Ki-Moon’s
special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, who is due to visit Burma shortly, need to
pay close attention to what is going on."

Aged 28, Nay Phone Latt was arrested on 29 January 2008 with several members
of the opposition National League for Democracy, who were released a few
hours later. He received a combined jail sentence of 20 years and six months
on 10 November from a special court inside Insein prison that was headed by
judge Daw Soe Nyaam.

The sentence consisted of two years for violating article 505 (b) of the
Criminal Code (which punishes defamation of the state), three years and six
months for violating article 32 (b) of the Video Act and 15 years for
violating article 33 (a) of the Electronic Act. He is suffering from eye
problems but has not been allowed to see a doctor. He is due for release in
2028.

Zarganar, who kept a blog that was widely read by Burmese Internet users
both in Burma and abroad, was arrested on 5 June for writing in his blog
about the widespread criticism of the government’s relief efforts after the
country was devastated by a cyclone the previous month. Sentenced to 45
years in prison under the Electronic Act by the Insein prison court on 21
November, he was given an additional 14-year jail sentence for unspecified
"offences" six days later. He is due to be released in 2067.

Nay Phone Latt and Zarganar were awarded a special press freedom prize by
Reporters Without Borders on 4 December.

Sign the petition: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=30156

Updates the Zarganar case: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/99183

Updates the Nay Phone (Phon) Latt case:
http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/98683

For further information, contact Vincent Brossel, RSF, 47, rue Vivienne,
75002 Paris, France, tel: +33 1 44 83 84 70, fax: +33 1 45 23 11 51,
e-mail: asia@rsf.org, Internet: http://www.rsf.org

The information contained in this update is the sole responsibility of RSF.
In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit RSF.
__________________________________________________________
DISTRIBUTED BY THE INTERNATIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION EXCHANGE (IFEX)
CLEARING HOUSE
555 Richmond St. West, # 1101, PO Box 407 Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5V 3B1
tel: +1 416 515 9622 fax: +1 416 515 7879
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PUBLIC                      AI Index: ASA 16/001/2009               
              30 January 2009

UA 27/09       Health concern/ Prisoner of conscience              

MYANMAR       Robert San Aung (m), 54, Lawyer

AmnestyInternational is concerned for the safety and well-being of Robert San Aung, apro-democracy activist and prisoner of conscience. Robert is suffering fromdysentery, is generally in poor health and in need of urgent medical attention.It is not clear if he has been denied medical treatment; however, AmnestyInternational has recently documented cases where access to medical treatment hasbeen withheld or restricted.

Robert San Aungwas arrested along with at least six others on 19 June 2008 for his part in ademonstration outside the home of detained pro-democracy leader Daw Aung SanSuu Kyi, in Yangon, Myanmarx92s largest city. The demonstration had beenorganised to mark Aung San Suu Kyix92s 62nd Birthday and draw attention to theextension of her house arrest at the end of May 2008. He was charged underSections 505(b) and 143 of the Penal Code, two vaguely worded securityprovisions which are frequently used to criminalise acts of peaceful politicaldissent. He was denied access to legal counsel throughout his trial and wassubsequently sentenced to two and a half years in prison for his participationin the peaceful demonstration.

On 24 November2008 Robert San Aung was transferred from Insein Prison, Yangon to Kale Prison,Sagaing Division. It is now much more difficult for his family in Yangon tovisit him. The poor prison conditions and inadequate medical care in Myanmarx92sprison mean that political prisoners often rely on family members to providethem with basic medicines, food and clothing.

Robert San Aungis an active member of the pro-democracy movement, which has left himvulnerable to harassment, prosecution and imprisonment. A trained lawyer, hewas disqualified from practising law by the High Court in Myanmar in January1993. He was disbarred for providing legal representation to pro-democracyleaders, and for his attempts to expose the negligence of civil servants and thefailings of Myanmarx92s legal system. He served seven years in prison between1997 and 2003 as a result of his political activities.

BACKGROUNDINFORMATION

There arecurrently over 2,100 political prisoners in Myanmarx92s prisons. Many are held inpoor conditions which have led to serious deterioration in their health or theexacerbation of existing medical conditions. Many prisoners are denied accessto medication and appropriate medical treatment. Political prisoners are oftensubjected to torture and other ill-treatment. The International Committee ofthe Red Cross has not been able to visit prisons in Myanmar since the end of2005.

The Myanmarauthorities have an obligation under international law to provide for minimumacceptable levels of accommodation, food and medical care for prisoners anddetainees. For example, under the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatmentof Prisoners, the Myanmar authorities have a duty to provide the services of aqualified medical officer within prisons or detention facilities; to transferprisoners and detainees who require specialist treatment to specializedinstitutions or to civil hospitals; and to provide prisoners with food ofnutritional value adequate for health and strength.

Increasingnumbers of political activists have been sentenced to prison terms after closedtrials. Between October 2008 and mid-January 2009 at least 280 people havegiven jail terms for their peaceful political activities. Since November 2008over 100 political prisoners have been transferred, many to remote locations inMyanmar. The new locations require family members to undertake long journeys x96sometimes six days or more x96 to visit them.   Even then, the authoritiessometimes do not permit families to visit their relatives in prison.

Judicialproceedings have failed to show any regard for due process, and trials havebeen held in special closed courts, without access to legal counsel or adequatetime to prepare a defence. The ruling State Peace and Development Council(SPDC) has ignored repeated calls by the UN to release all political prisoners.UN Special Envoy Ibrahim Gambari is due to visit the country on 31 January.

RECOMMENDEDACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible, in English oryour own language:
- urging theauthorities immediately to provide Robert San Aung with all necessary medicaltreatment;
- calling onthe authorities to release Robert San Aung immediately and unconditionally assoon as he has received the urgent medical treatment he needs;
- calling forimmediate action to ensure that while he is in detention, Robert San Aung isgranted access to lawyers and family;
- calling onthe authorities to ensure that all detainees are treated humanely, with fullrespect for their human rights, and that no one is subject to torture or otherill-treatment.

APPEALS TO: (We have only given one fax number aswe can not guarantee the reliability of other numbers. Please also send appealsby post.)

Maung Oo
Minister for Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
Office No. 10
Naypyitaw, Union on Myanmar
Fax:                 +95 67 412 439
Salutation:        Dear Minister 

Senior General Than Shwe
Chairman
State Peace and Development Council
c/o Ministry of Defence,
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Salutation:         Dear General

Nyan Win
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Naypyitaw, Union of Myanmar
Salutation:         Dear Minister

COPIES TO: diplomatic representatives of Myanmar accredited to yourcountry.

PLEASE SEND APPEALSIMMEDIATELY. Check with theInternational Secretariat, or your section office, if sending appeals after 13March 2009.

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AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL 
OPEN LETTER

Date 29 January 2009

To the governments of Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar andThailand 

Your Excellencies,

We write to you to raise our serious concern about the plight of the Rohingyas,a Muslim minority from Rakhine State, western Myanmar. Thousands of Rohingyas havefled in recent months on boats sailing for Thailand and Malaysia, and hundredsare missing, feared drowned.  Their situation has reached a critical stageover the last two months, as the Thai military have forcibly expelledapproximately 1,000 Rohingyas arriving in southwest Thailand by boat, while theIndian and Indonesian authorities have rescued hundreds of them. 

In order to address this crisis, Amnesty International makes the followingrecommendations to the governments of Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia,Myanmar and Thailand as a matter of urgency:

?  Myanmar must immediately stop  the systematic persecution ofthe Rohingya minority, which is the root cause of the crisis; 
?  All governments should meet their obligations under the law ofthe sea and provide assistance to those in distress at sea, including searchand rescue service; 
?  All governments should provide immediate access to the UN RefugeeAgency (UNHCR) to all Rohingyas in their territory; 
? All governments should ratify the UN Convention relating to the Statusof Refugees, its 1967 Protocol, and the UN Convention relating to the Status ofStateless Persons.

With lives still at risk, Amnesty International reminds regional governments oftheir specific obligations under the law of the sea which are applicable to situationsof migrants found or intercepted at sea.  In addition to the UN InternationalConvention on Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR), both the United NationsConvention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and International Convention for theSafety of Life at Sea (SOLAS), to which Bangladesh, Malaysia, Indonesia, India,Myanmar, Thailand and India are parties, include obligations to provideassistance to those found in distress at sea.  These obligations existconcurrently to human rights obligations. 

Specifically, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) obligesstate parties to require the master of a ship flying its flag to render assistanceto any person found at sea in danger of being lost and rescue persons indistress.  The obligation to provide assistance applies regardless of thenationality, status or circumstances of the individuals.  Moreover, allcoastal states are obliged to establish and maintain search and rescue servicesfor this purpose, including through regional cooperation arrangements. 

Ensuring the safety and dignity of those rescued and of the crew must be the immediateconsideration in determining where individuals rescued at sea are taken.  Underinternational law, the state responsible for the search and rescue region inwhich survivors were recovered is responsible for providing a place of safetyor ensuring that such a place of safety is provided.   However, each statemust ensure that individuals are not returned or transferred to a place wherethey may be at risk of serious human rights violations.  Where individualsmay be seeking or be in need of international protection, the rescuing statemust transfer them to territory where access to a fair and satisfactory asylumprocess with full procedural safeguards is guaranteed. 

Amnesty International calls on regional governments to cooperate in providing follow-upcare for Rohingya survivors, deliver persons rescued at sea promptly to a placeof safety, and ensure that they have access to a fair and satisfactory asylumprocess to assess their protection needs. 

Amnesty International welcomes Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajivax92s stated commitmentto convene a regional forum on the Rohingyas.  Flows of Rohingyas fromMyanmar to neighbouring countries present an enormous challenge which can onlybe addressed regionally.  Any regional solution must ensure that thoseRohingyas who have a well-founded fear of persecution in Myanmar are notreturned there, and that those found not to be in need of protection are returnedin a humane manner.  Specifically, the Thai government must stop forciblyexpelling Rohingyas and provide them with immediate humanitarian assistance andcease any plans to proceed with more expulsions, as has been credibly reported. Hundreds of Rohingyas are missing or have died after the Thai securityforces set them adrift in unseaworthy boats with little or no food and water.  Someof the Rohingyas reported being beaten by the Thai security forces, which theThai government has categorically denied. On 29 January Indonesia announced itwas still determining the fate of almost 200 Rohingyas and Bangladeshis, whohad landed in Weh Island, Aceh province on 7 January.  The Indian navyhave rescued hundreds of Rohingyas on or near the Andaman Islands. 

Amnesty International is encouraged by reports on 27 January that Prime MinisterAbhisit  invited UNHCR to participate in the proposed regional forum.  Thismove is crucial given that the Thai authorities have not yet granted UNHCRaccess to all Rohingyas held in detention, so that their protection needs canbe assessed.  Most notably, UNHCR had requested access to a group of 126Rohingyas reportedly detained by the Thai authorities.  According tosubsequent reports, the group may have been collectively expelled by the Thaimilitary on 23 January.  Amnesty International urges the governments of  India,Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand not to return these individuals, to grantUNHCR immediate access to the Rohingyas in their countries in order to determinetheir protection needs, and to ensure that no one who would face serious humanrights violations in any country be returned there.

It is only through a regional initiative, involving Bangladesh, India, Indonesia,Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand, and with the participation of UNHCR, that adurable solution can be found to the plight of the Rohingyas.  For thelast three decades hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas have fled systematic persecutionto neighbouring countries in Asia, the vast majority to Bangladesh.  Moreover,within Myanmar, the Rohingyas suffer from specific deeply discriminatorypolicies targeting them.  They are denied citizenship and are thuseffectively stateless.  Rohingyas who are returned to Myanmar continue tobe at serious risk of human rights violations, including forced labour, forcedeviction, land confiscation, and severe restrictions on freedom of movement.  Such violations have had a severe impact on the groupx92s livelihood and foodsecurity.  It is imperative that the Myanmar authorities immediately stopsubjecting the Rohingyas to these violations and change discriminatory policiesaimed at denying them their fundamental rights.  Until these root causesare addressed by the Myanmar government, Rohingyas will continue to flee toneighbouring countries. 

Until the human rights situation in Myanmar improves, Rohingyas and others facingpersecution in Myanmar will continue to flee their homes and seek safety elsewhere.In this context, Amnesty International also urges the governments of Bangladesh,India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar and Thailand to ratify the UN Conventionrelating to the Status of Refugees, its 1967 Protocol, and the UN Conventionrelating to the Status of Stateless Persons. Ratification of these Conventionswill provide a suitable legal framework for a consistent, coherent regionalapproach necessary to address this growing problem.

We thank you for your immediate attention to this urgent matter.

Yours very truly,

Sam Zarifi 
Asia-Pacific Director 
Amnesty International 
Working to protect humanrights worldwide