There are two categories of political prisoners in Burma: those who used arm struggle and those who were wrongfully accused of using violence. The majority has been wrongfully accused. The rest are mainly ethnic minorities who were faced with no other choice than to arm themselves against a brutal and lasting military presence. The decision to participate in armed struggle must be viewed against the backdrop of violent crimes committed by the Burmese military and police for decades.
We must recognize the fact that being accused of violence and actually committing an act of violence are two very different things. AAPP has always called for the release of political prisoners, not just prisoners of conscience, in order to be as inclusive as possible of all those who have been unjustly imprisoned for their political beliefs. Every time someone calls for the release of prisoners of conscience in Burma, the majority of ethnic minority political prisoners behind bars are being excluded. Prisoners of conscience exclude, for example, ethnic minority leaders such as Naing Soe, a leading member of the All Arakan Students and Youth Congress (AASYC), sentenced to six years on bogus charges of trafficking drugs and arms, among other things. The AASYC, a political organization working towards democracy through non-violent means, is no stranger to being branded a terrorist organization by the government. Many of its members have been arrested on spurious charges of domestic terrorism and treason.
Prisoners of conscience also exclude internally displaced persons who have sought shelter from Burma’s aggressive attacks by fleeing to an area controlled by an ethnic armed resistance group. They are then wrongfully accused of working with an unlawful organization and sent to jail.
Armed ethnic resistance groups exist because ethnic minorities are constantly threatened, marginalized, and subject to violence by the Burma Army. These groups look forward to the day they can demobilize, disarm, and resume their normal lives to reap the benefits of a democratic Burma. Keeping them in prison as “terrorists” or “criminals” while others are released will only engender mistrust and pessimism on the side of the ethnic minority groups. And without trust, there can be no foundation for a genuine national reconciliation process. How can an ethnic minority group believe the government if their leaders and members remain behind bars? As a first step, I urge the government to immediately lift the unlawful association ban against ethnic resistance groups, so as to show its sincerity in negotiating on equal terms and making a commitment to releasing ethnic minority political prisoners.
Whenever someone calls for the release of prisoners of conscience they are excluding many activists who are behind bars on outrageous criminal charges. Even though they were arrested for non-violent political offenses, such as taking part in peaceful demonstrations or collecting funds for prisoners’ families, the government sought to criminalize their political behavior in an effort to degrade the democracy movement. To the government, U Myint Aye is a criminal. The 61-year-old is co-founder of the Human Rights Defenders and Promoters Network (HRDPN), an organization formed to raise awareness among the people of Burma on their rights under the UN Declaration on Human Rights. In 2008 U Myint Aye was wrongfully convicted of a bomb plot as well as offering cash awards to terrorists. He is one of many who might fall through the cracks and remain behind bars.
I know personally how painful it is to be forgotten about when in prison. “To be forgotten is to die a little.”
The only way to ensure that no one is left behind is by establishing a joint review board with a mandate of verifying the number of remaining political prisoners in Burma. The board should be transparent, independent, accountable, and include non-governmental organizations as well as former political prisoners. Similar calls have been made by Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, British Foreign Secretary William Hague, Burma Campaign UK, US Ambassador to Burma Derek Mitchell, and UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma Tomas Ojea Quintana.
Opinion by Bo Ky, joint-secretary of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners Burma (AAPP-B).
2012.08.28 The Irrawaddy -The Name Game about Burma’s Political Prisoners