McGill University
Delegation
Burma, Human Rights, And The Pro-Democracy Movement
18 March 2004 : Burma , Human Rights, and the Pro-democracy Movement Conference at McGill
On 18 March 2004 the Free Burma Coalition of McGill University (now known as the Burma Solidarity Collective) organized a public conference on human rights and democracy in Burma . This event was part of a North American tour of two outstanding pro-democracy activists from Burma , Ms Daw San San and Ms Khin Ohmar (See their bibliographies below). This conference was an opportunity for the McGill and Montreal community to obtain first-hand information on the situation of human rights inside Burma , and also to hear the demands of the Burmese pro-democracy movement to the international community.
Over sixty participants attended the conference, and got the chance to hear the moving account of Daw San San’s difficult time in prison. Both Daw San San and Khin Ohmar explained how foreign investment under the military regime in Burma is fueling human rights abuses – citing the case of the Yadana pipeline built by oil giants Total and Unocal in Southeast Burma – and the perpetuation of dictatorship. The two activists enthusiastically lent their support to the Free Burma Coalition’s divestment campaign, which seeks to see McGill University dis-invest from companies having links with Burma ’s military regime.
Daw San San : Elected Member of Parliament of the 1990 Elections (National League for Democracy, Rangoon Division).
Daw San San was imprisoned two times for her political activities as an elected MP. The first time was from 1991-1992, soon after she won a parliamentary seat in the 1990 election. Daw San San’s party, the National League for Democracy, led by Nobel Peace Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, won a total of 82% of the seats in the 1990 election, but the military regime refuse to convene the Parliament and hand-in power to the elected MPs. The regime instead sentenced her and 45 fellow MPs to life imprisonment for attempting to form a parallel government. Her sentence was temporarily suspended in May 1992 – on condition that she put an end to her political activities. She was again imprisoned from 1997-2001 after giving an interview to British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). At the time she was serving as vice-chairperson of the Rangoon Division NLD party and team leader of the NLD party's Women Wing, Rangoon Division.
Daw San San fled to the Thai-Burma border in the aftermath of the Depayin Massacre of 30 May 2003 , when the military regime ambushed and arrested Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her NLD convoy in Upper Burma . Daw San San wrote a letter to the United Nations and Burma ’s military leader, Senior-General Than Shwe, requesting the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners. She was detained by the authorities one more time for a night, and then made the difficult choice of fleeing to exile instead of a returning to prison.
Khin Ohmar : Presidium Board Member of the Women's League of Burma (WLB), Coordinator of the women and peace building program of the WLB, and Women's Affairs Coordinator of the Burma UN Office of the NCGUB.
Khin Ohmar was involved in the 1988 pro-democracy uprising in Burma as a university student and left the country after the military coup. She resettled to the US as a political refugee and finished her BA in natural science from Simon's Rock College of Bard, Great Barrington, Massachusetts, US. Since 1998, she returned to Thai-Burma border and worked with a number of democratic opposition groups including the Burmese Women’s Union , the Women’s League of Burma and the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma.
The Free Burma Coalition of McGill University (now known as the Burma Solidarity Collective)
Students seeking to promote human rights and a return of democracy to Burma formed the Free Burma Coalition (now known as the Burma Solidarity Collective) at McGill University in November 2001. McGill was thus joining an international network of student and community groups working to get rid of Burma ’s military dictatorship, which has impeded the country’s economic and social development since the early 1960s.
FBC/BSC has three main objectives:
1- To foster awareness on the situation of human rights in Burma . FBC/BSC frequently organizes public conferences, video screenings, and distribution of information on a range of Burma-related topics, including women’s rights, the environment, history of the pro-democracy moment, and situation of ethnic nationalities.
2- To support of the pro-democracy movement and the civil society of Burma . FBC/BSC raises funds to support human rights and education groups working at the Thai-Burma border, such as the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPPB), the Karen Teacher Working Group (KTWG), and the English Immersion Program (EIP) based in Umphium Mai refugee camp. In late 2004 BSC also raised funds for Burmese migrants who were victims of the tsunami in Thailand .
3- To undermine the support of the military regime, through boycott and divestment campaigns. One of FBC/BSC main campaign since its foundation is to get McGill University to divest its investments and purchasing contracts from firms having links with Burma ’s military regime. Both the Students Society of McGill University and the Post-Graduate Students’ Society of McGill University have passed resolution supporting this campaign, and hundreds of students and faculty members have signed petition requesting the university to disinvest, as it did in the case of Apartheid South Africa . More information on this campaign can be found on FBC/BSC’s website: www.ssmu.ca/freeburmamcgill
ABOUT BURMA / INTERNET LINKS
Civil Society Organizations on Burma
Canadian Friends of Burma
CFOB is a Canadian NGO supporting Burma ’s pro-democracy movement. CFOB coordinates awareness and advocacy campaigns in Canada , such as consumer boycotts on goods produced in Burma . It maintains dialogue with the Canadian government on federal policy towards Burma , and helped form Parliamentary Friends of Burma, a group of MPs supporting human rights and democracy in Burma.
www.cfob.org
The US Campaign for Burma
Most student/grassroots community groups supporting Burma ’s pro-democracy movement in the United States are affiliated with the US Campaign for Burma . USCB coordinates advocacy campaigns, lobbies the US government on its foreign policy towards Burma , and organizes exposure trip for students to the Thai-Burma border.
www.uscampaignforburma.org
Info-Birmanie
Info-Birmanie is a France-based NGO collecting, analyzing and publishing Burma-related information. It seeks to promote in the francophone community the voice of Burmese democrats, and expose human rights violations occurring inside Burma . It closely monitors the lawsuits currently filed in France and Belgium against the French oil firm Total for alleged human rights abuses that occurred during the construction of the Yadana pipeline in Burma .
www.info-birmanie.org
Burma Campaign UK
BCUK is a leading activist group on Burma in the United Kingdom . BCUK lobbies the British government and the European Union in favor of economic sanctions on Burma , and coordinate various boycott campaigns. BCUK also compiles a famous “dirty list” of companies having links with Burma.
www.burmacampaign.org.uk
Altsean-Burma
Altsean is a network of Southeast Asian organizations supporting Burma ’s pro-democracy movement. It notably produces quarterly report cards providing an overview of the current situation inside Burma , as well as detailed reports on specific issues, such as humanitarian aid, Burma ’s drug trade and economic sanctions.
www.altsean.org
Information on Human Rights in Burma
National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma
NCGUB is Burma ’s government-in-exile, formed in 1990 after the military regime refused to recognize election results.
www.ncgub.net
Women’s League of Burma
Reports on the situation of women inside Burma can be found on the website of this umbrella organization.
www.womenofburma.org
Earthrights International/Burma Project
Earthrights International studies the relationship between human rights abuses, environmental degradation and the military dictatorship in Burma . Among many different projects Earthrights International documented the human rights abuses linked to the Yadana pipeline, and now monitors the development of the Shwe gas pipeline in Western Burma.
http://www.earthrights.org/burma.shtml
Assistance Association for Political Prisoners – Burma
AAPPB compiles detailed information on the condition of political prisoners in Burma , and offers support to their families. Their website notably contains a list of current political prisoners, and other reports.
www.aappb.net
Shan Human Rights Foundation (SHRF)
SHRF publishes excellent monthly reports as well as special reports documenting human rights violations in Shan State .
http://www.shanland.org/HR/HR_Frame.htm
Free Burma Rangers (FBR)
FBR is one of the few organizations that provide cross-border relief effort to Burma from the Thai border. The FBR website provides up-to-date information on the current areas of conflict, particularly Karen and Karenni State .
www.freeburmarangers.org
Reporters Sans Frontières
RSF produces frequent updates and petition campaigns regarding imprisoned journalists in Burma .
www.rsf.org
Amnesty International
Recent AI reports on Burma include:
Myanmar : Administration of Justice: Grave and Abiding Concerns (April 2004)
Myanmar : The Rohingya Minority: Fundamental Rights Denied (May 2004)
www.amnesty.org
Human Rights Watch
HRW published several key reports on human rights violations in Burma , including a groundbreaking study on child soldiers, “My Gun is as Tall as Me”.
http://www.humanrightswatch.org/doc?t=asia&c=burma
News on Burma
Burmanet News
Compiles daily news articles on Burma produced by news agencies worldwide.
www.burmanet.org
The Irrawaddy Magazine
Formed by Burmese citizens in exile, the Irrawaddy provides in-depth coverage of current news and issues related to Burma and Southeast Asia
www.irrawaddy.org
Mizzima
New-Delhi based news agency on Burma , with a focus on India-Burma relations.
www.mizzima.com
Democratic Voice of Burma
Other Source of Information
The Burma Library
The Burma Library contains over 5,000 documents on all topics related to Burma . It is the most comprehensive source of information on Burma available on the internet.
www.burmalibrary.org
