Yangon – I have just completed a three-day working visit at the invitation of the new Government of Myanmar in my capacity as Special Adviser to the Secretary-General. This follows my earlier visit shortly after the elections in November last year. The purpose of this visit was three-fold: (more…)

Washington: Asserting the new “Thein Sein`s government is just a continuation of the military regime,” eleven pro-democracy Myanmarese groups have asked the junta to conduct dialogue with all stakeholders to revise the 2008 constitution. (more…)

New York – The Secretary-General has taken note of the official announcement in Naypyitaw of the transfer of power from the State Peace and Development Council to the new Government of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. (more…)

Members of the European Burma Network (EBN) met in Prague, Czech Republic, on 12th and 13th February, 2011. The European Burma Network brings together organizations promoting human rights and democracy in Burma, and works in solidarity with Burma’s democracy movement. (more…)

Nay Pyi Taw, December 17 – The following is the full text of the address delivered by Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services Senior General Than Shwe at the Passing out of Parade of No. 13 Intake of the Defence Services Technological Academy. (more…)

Nay Pyi Taw –The following is the translation of the message sent by Chairman of the State Peace and Development Council Senior General Than Shwe on the occasion of the 90th Anniversary National Day. (more…)

“I will continue to work for national reconciliation among the people, among all of us. There is no one that I cannot work or talk with; if there is a will to work together, it can be done. If there is a will to talk to one another, it can be done. I will take this path….. These problems are not going to be resolved overnight. We’ve all got to learn the meaning of reconciliation. We don’t want conflicts to be resolved through armed battles. It has always been our policy. We want them to be resolved through dialogue and reconciliation and I am very, very saddened that our country is still at a point where conflicts are to be resolved through force of power.” – Daw Aung San Suu Kyi (NLD headquarters, November 14)

Now, we all understand every country will follow its own path.  No one nation has a monopoly on wisdom, and no nation should ever try to impose its values on another.  But when peaceful democratic movements are suppressed —- as they have been in Burma, for example — then the democracies of the world cannot remain silent.  For it is unacceptable to gun down peaceful protestors and incarcerate political prisoners decade after decade.  It is unacceptable to hold the aspirations of an entire people hostage to the greed and paranoia of bankrupt regimes.  It is unacceptable to steal elections, as the regime in Burma has done again for all the world to see. (more…)

1. Today, the first elections were held in Burma/Myanmar, since those of 1990 whose results were never implemented. (more…)

On 7 November Burma will hold its first elections in 20 years. This should have been a moment to be welcomed for a country that has suffered under repressive military rule since 1962. (more…)

“And I would like to underscore the American commitment to seek accountability for the human rights violations that have occurred in Burma by working to establish an international Commission of Inquiry through close consultations with our friends, allies, and other partners at the United Nations. Burma will soon hold a deeply flawed election, and one thing we have learned over the last few years is that democracy is more than elections. And we will make clear to Burma’s new leaders, old and new alike, that they must break from the policies of the past.” – Hilary Clinton, US Secretary of State (Department of State)

“I have to say that as a loyal Indian citizen, it breaks my heart to see the prime minister of my democratic country—and one of the most humane and sympathetic political leaders in the world—to engage in welcoming the butchers from Myanmar and to be photographed in a state of cordial proximity… Nothing perhaps is more important right now as the day of the phony electoral event approaches than global public discussion of the real nature of the forthcoming electoral fraud…” – Amartya Sen, Nobel Prize-winning economist and Harvard University professor (AFP, Irrawaddy).

“We don’t need foreign observers. We have abundant experience in holding elections…. Besides, the election laws enacted are very balanced and easy to understand…. The elections will be held for this country and in accordance with the rules of the country and we do not need to make clarification on the credibility of the election.” – Thein Soe, Union Election Commission, Chairman (AP, AFP, Reuters)

On 6 October 2010, when asked by reporters whether Thailand plans to repatriate Myanmar displaced persons after the elections, Ms. Vimon Kidchob, Director-General of the Department of Information and Foreign Ministry Spokesperson said that there was a misinterpretation of Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya’s remarks during his visit to New York, and that there existed no such plan.  Rather, what the Minister referred to is Thailand’s intention to launch a comprehensive programme to help better prepare Myanmar people now residing in Thailand, including Myanmar displaced persons in terms of training, education and capacity building.  The objective is to ensure that these people can return home with dignity, be self-reliant, and participate and contribute meaningfully to their country’s development when the situation in their country becomes conducive for their eventual return, whenever that may be. (more…)

“There were no crimes against humanity in Myanmar…(w)ith regard to the issue of impunity, any member of the military who breached national law was subject to legal punishments…there was no need to conduct investigations in Myanmar since there were no human rights violations there.” – U Wunna Maung Lwin, Myanmar Ambassador to the Human Rights Council (HRW/Mizzima)

“A dictator in civilian clothing is still a dictator. The fact that they are moving out of uniform but still constricting the political space within Burma is a problem for Burma…. Burma has to open up its political space, have a dialogue with the ethnic groups within Burma would allow for an effective and viable political opposition and have a real competition within civil society in Burma.” – Philip J. Crowley, Assistant Secretary, US Department of State

“I feel I’m a clown, I’m a joke. I just want to do nice things so my kids can respect me. I want to live in a hut in Burma.” – Mike Tyson, former World Heavyweight Champion (Toronto Sun)

“It is a source of frustration … that Myanmar has been unresponsive so far to these efforts…. A lack of cooperation at this critical moment represents nothing less than a lost opportunity for Myanmar.” – Ban Ki-Moon, United Nations Secretary General (Reuters)

No. 8/2010(ABMA+88+ABFSU)
Rangoon, Burma

The political forces which are thinking of participating in elections should not gamble the fate of the country with their dreams.
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“Today, as we mark Aung San Suu Kyi’s 65th birthday, she will be marking this day as yet another day without freedom, cut off from her children and family, under house arrest imposed on her by the military dictatorship that rules Burma.” – The Dalai Lama