On May 25, the military junta of Burma (”Myanmar”), in defiance of the will of the international community expressed for years, extended the house arrest of democracy fighter Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, which was due to expire, for another year. This decision immediately brought condemnation from governments and NGOs around the world, including UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, the German EU Presidency, and many human rights organizations. This year, United States First Lady Laura Bush joined all 16 female Senators from both sides of the aisle, who set aside their political differences to appeal to the UN to request the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Continuing the actions of Taiwanese NGOs to participate in international campaigns for democracy in Burma, we hope that all women politicians in Taiwan can jointly engage in this democratic and humanitarian effort to call on the government of Burma to immediately release Nobel Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all the other democrats who have been imprisoned or repressed, and to give the Burmese people a life of democracy and freedom without fear.
Ever since Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest, the international democratic community has made ceaseless efforts with various approaches to secure the release of this preeminent fighter for democracy and human rights. These measures have included diplomatic and economic sanctions, as well as many campaigns by NGOs. Since 19 June 2005 (her sixtieth birthday), numerous global actions have been undertaken by international organizations, such as protests or prayer rallies in front of embassies and offices of the Burmese government, to call on the regime to release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. However, since Burma has no office of any type in Taiwan, in the past two years Taiwanese NGOs have launched petitions, to participate in these international campaigns.

Democracy and human rights are universal values that know no boundaries. We remember particularly how Taiwan received assistance and solidarity from the international democratic community during its process of democratization. Therefore, today, we female politicians in Taiwan sign this joint statement, which will be sent to the Secretary General of the United Nations, the European Union, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in order to express the concern of Taiwanese people from all walks of life for democracy and human rights in Burma. We call on the international community to continue its pressure on the Burmese military regime to swiftly release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and the other Burmese democracy activists, to restore democracy unconditionally, and allow the people of Burma to live in an environment of democracy and freedom.

Initiators:
Legislator Huang, Sue-ying (DPP)
Legislator Chao, Liang-Yen (KMT)
Legislator Lai, Shin-Yuan (TSU)
Legislator Hsiao, Bi-Khim (DPP)
Legislator Huang, Chao-Shun (KMT)

Signatories (arranged by category and alphabetic order):
Female Members of the Legislative Yuan

Chang, Ching-Hui (DPP)
Chang, Hwa-Kuan (DPP)
Chang, Li-Shan (Independent)
Chen, Hsiu-Ching (KMT)
Chen, Shui-Hui (DPP)
Chen, Ying (DPP)
Chu, Fong-chi (KMT)
Hsieh, Hsin-ni (DPP)
Hsu, Jung-Shu (DPP)
Hsueh, Ling (DPP)
Huang Ho, Tsai-Feng (KMT)
Hung, Hsiu-Chu (KMT)
Kao Chin, Su-Mei (NPSU)
Kuan, Bi-Ling (DPP)
Ko, Shu-Ming (PFP)
Kuo, Su-Chun (KMT)
Lan, Mei-Chin (DPP)
Lee, Ching-An (KMT)
Lee, Jih-Chu (KMT)
Lei, C. Joanna (KMT)
Liao, Wan-Ju (KMT)
Lin Hsu, Shao-Ping (KMT)
Lin, Shu-Fen (DPP)
Lin, Tai-Hua (DPP)
Lu, Shiow-Yen (KMT)
Pan, Wei-Kang (KMT)
Shen, Chin-hwei (PFP)
Tang, Bi-A (DPP)
Tien, Chiu-Chin (DPP)
Wang, Shu-Hui (DPP)
Wang, Yu-Ting (KMT)
Yang, Chiung-Ying (KMT)
Yang, Fang-Wan (DPP)
Yang, Li-Hung (KMT)
Yang Cheng, Chin-Ling (PFP)
Yeh, Yi-Ching (DPP)
Yen, Sandy (DPP)
Yin, Ling-Ying (TSU)

Male Members of the Legislative Yuan
Chen, Min-Jen (DPP)
Lwo, Shih-Hsiung (KMT)
Marr, Chang-Chi (PFP)

Female City and County Councilors
Chiu, Su-Fen (Taoyuan County, DPP)
Her, Hsin-Chun (Taichung County, DPP)
Hsu, Chia-Ching (Taipei City, DPP)
Hsu, Shu-Hua (Taipei City, DPP)
Huang, Shiou-Fang (Changhua County, DPP)
Liu, Hsiao-Mei (Hualien County, DPP)
Tang, I-Ching (Tainan City, DPP)
Wu, Szu-Yao (Taipei City, DPP)

Other Political Figures
Su, Chih-Fen (Commissioner, Yunlin County, DPP)
Jason Hu (Mayor, Taichung City, KMT)
Shirley Shao (KMT)