§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the UN Commission on Human Rights regarding the mandate of the Special Rapporteur in respect of human rights in Burma. [157463]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe fully support the efforts of Sergio Pinheiro, the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights. We are currently working with our EU partners on this year's Commission on Human Rights Resolution on Burma, including on Pinheiro's Mandate.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the UN Special Envoy to Burma. [157467]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI am in regular contact with Tan Sri Razali Ismail, the UN Special Envoy to Burma and last met him when he visited London in July 2003. We fully support his tireless efforts to promote reconciliation in Burma and we urge the regime to allow him to return to Burma soon—he and the UN have a crucial role to play in the reconciliation process.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assessment he has made of the treatment of Rohingya Muslims under Burma's 1982 Citizenship Law; [157469]
(2) what assessment he has made of the treatment of Rohingya Muslims in Arakan State in Western Burma. [157470]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe are concerned by the issue of ethnic minority rights and the abuses suffered by ethnic groups in Burma including the Rohingya Muslims. The UK welcomes and is supportive of all efforts to encourage the Burmese military regime to enter into genuine and substantive dialogue with democratic and ethnic group leaders in Burma leading to national reconciliation.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what representations he has made to the Burmese Government about the level of political detentions in the country since May 2003; '[157615]
(2) what representations he has made to the State Peace and Development Council in Burma about the release of all prisoners of conscience from prison; [157627]
(3) what representations he has made to the State Peace and Development Council in Burma about the release of Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest; [157628]
(4) what representations he has made to the State Peace and Development Council in Burma about lifting all restrictions on the activities of the National League for Democracy and other political parties in Burma. [157632]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI have repeatedly called on the Burmese regime to release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest, to release all political prisoners and prisoners of conscience and to allow freedom of speech992W and activity for the National League for Democracy and all political parties. Most recently I pressed these issues when I met the Burmese Ambassador on 23 February.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of political detentions in Burma(a) between May 2002 and May 2003 and (b) since May 2003. [157616]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe estimate that there were approximately 1,300 political prisoners in Burma between May 2002 and May 2003. We estimate that there are currently about 1,350 political prisoners in Burma.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of rapes committed by members of the Burmese Army in 2003. [157630]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe do not have the information to make a reliable estimate.
§ Mr.BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he expects that the Burmese Army will complete the withdrawal of troops from(a) Karen, (b) Karenni and (c) other ethnic areas. [157631]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienIt is not possible to predict when the Burmese Army will complete its withdrawal of troops from these areas.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the extent of the use of child soldiers in Burma by the State Peace and Development Council. [157634]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe are deeply concerned by reports of child soldiers in Burma. UNICEF estimates that as many as 70,000 child soldiers are in the Burmese national army and Human Rights Watch reported in October 2002 that they constituted one fifth of Burma's army and can be as young as 11-years-old. The issue has been included in successive EU co-sponsored UNGA and UNCHR resolutions. In January 2004, the UN Security Council passed a Resolution on Children Affected by Armed Conflict. We highlighted our concerns on child soldiers in Burma.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the ceasefire agreement between the State Peace and Development Council in Burma and the Karen National Union; [157635]
(2) what recent discussions he has had with the Burmese Government about the establishment of a process for monitoring infringements of the ceasefire between State Peace and Development Council troops and those of the Karen National Union. [157722]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWhen I met the Burmese Ambassador on 23 February, I welcomed the talks between the State Peace and Development Council and the Karen National Union to agree a ceasefire. I hope that these talks will lead to a permanent peace settlement.
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§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the extent of forced labour in Burma. [157643]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe Burmese Government have still to address effectively the international community's concerns over the use of forced labour in Burma. In 2002 and 2003 there was a worrying number of credible reports suggesting forced labour was widespread in Burma, especially in the border areas where the military presence remains high. At the International Labour Organization (ILO) Governing Body meeting on 20 November 2003 the EU expressed grave concern at the Burmese Government's failure to take effective action on forced labour and stressed the need to fully implement the recommendations from the ILO High Level Team report of September 2001 without any further delay. The ILO's Governing Body meeting in March 2004 will give further consideration to the situation in Burma.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last had contact with the Karen National Union; and what was discussed. [157645]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI have had no direct contact with the Karen National Union.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he last communicated with representatives of the State Peace and Development Council in Burma; and what the content of the exchange was. [157646]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI met the Burmese Ambassador on 23 February to discuss the State Peace and Development Council plans for a National Convention. I pressed for the release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners. I stressed the need for an inclusive, transparent National Convention with a clear time-frame. We welcome the move from detention to house arrest of U Tin Oo, but we call for his and Aung San Suu Kyi's full release.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of the number of(a) Karen and (b) Karenni people who have been displaced by the Burmese Army in each of the last three years. [157647]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe estimate that approximately 140,000 refugees, mostly from Karen and Karenni States, live in refugee camps on the Thai/Burmese border. As many as one million live as illegal migrants in Thailand. We estimate there are about 630,000 internally displaced people within Burma.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Burma; and what representations he has made to the Burmese Government about the matter. [157723]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThere has been no significant improvement in the human rights situation in Burma. I regularly raise our concerns on humanitarian issues with the Burmese authorities, most recently when I met the Burmese Ambassador on 23 February. We cosponsored the UN General Assembly Human Rights Resolution on Burma last December and will play an994W active role in the forthcoming UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva. We strongly support the efforts of the UN Special Rapporteur for Human Rights, Sergio Pinheiro.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations his Department has made to the Burmese Government about the need for an independent investigation into the violence perpetrated in Depayin on 30 May 2003. [157726]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienWe have repeatedly condemned the violent regime-sponsored attack on Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her convoy on 30 May 2003. The UK cosponsored the UN General Assembly Resolution on Burma in December 2003 that called on the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) to hold a full and independent enquiry into Depayin with international co-operation. We await the SPDC's response.
§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Burmese Government about the fate of the 11 people sentenced to death for high treason under Article 122(1) of the Penal Code. [157727]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienThe UK opposes the use of the death penalty in all circumstances and we, together with European Union partners, call on all countries to abolish the death penalty. The EU Presidency expressed the EU's grave concern over the sentences in a demarche to the Burmese authorities in December.