Brutal Suppression of Student Protests in Myanmar and the Case of Phyoe Auny

Picture Source: Amnesty International

Myanmar

The Republic of the Union of Myanmar is state in Southeast Asia that is bordered by India, China, Thailand, Laos and Bangladesh. After independence from the United Kingdom in 1948, Myanmar became an independent republic. Between 1962 and 2011 the people of Myanmar endured nearly 50 years of brutal and authoritarian military rule, which plunged it into becoming one of the most impoverished countries in the world. Throughout the period of military rule, many human rights abuses occurred over the years including the brutal suppression of student and pro-democracy protests. The opposition leader of the NLD party, Aung San Suu Kyi, was regarded as one of the world’s most prominent political prisoners during this time, having been detained under house arrest for 15 out of 21 years between 1989 and 2010. After her release, 2011 saw the introduction of constitutional and democratic reform in Myanmar, and the bringing about of a nominally civilian government. Although widespread criticisms of the road to democracy have remained, just this month the NLD secured a landslide victory in parliamentary elections in Myanmar, and are expected to elect a president by March of 2016.

Human Rights Issues in Myanmar

According to Amnesty international’s 2014/15 report “The State of the World’s Human Rights”, the key issues of concern with respect to Human Rights in Myanmar include: discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, especially the Rohingya; internal armed conflicts between the military and opposition militia in parts of the country, and the use of torture and rape in these conflicts; the forced acquisition of land; and severe restrictions on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, with excessive force, arbitrary arrest and imprisonment being used to silence dissent. Some improvements have been noted including the government’s release of over 500 child soldiers from the military, the 2012 release of over 200 political prisoners, and continuing negotiations to pursue a ceasefire in conflict areas. Some steps were also made in 2014 to amend the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, which have been regularly usedby government and police to charge and imprison protesters since its enactment in 2012. However, the law still falls far short of international human rights standards. In particular, Article 18 allows for the imprisonment of individuals who conduct peaceful assemblies and processions without applying for and receiving written prior consent. This is inconsistent with both Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantee the right to peaceful assembly.

Student Protests in Letpadan and the Case of Phyoe Phyoe Aung

At the end of 2014 and in early 2015, student groups and unions held protest marches and talks with Government to express their concern about the new National Education Law enacted in September of 2014. Students are concerned the law limits their academic freedom by further centralising control of universities within government; curtailing students’ access to minority ethnic language courses; and restricting the formation of student unions. Phyoe Phyoe Aung is the leader of one of Myanmar’s largest student unions, and was a key organiser of the protest marches. On 10th March, police used excessive force in stopping protestors in Letpadan from marching to Yangon, severely beating hundreds of students. 127 students, journalists and bystanders were arrested and charged on the day. 69 of those arrested, including Phyoe Phyoe Aung, are still currently detained on charges under the Penal Code including unlawful assembly; rioting; and inciting the public to commit offences against the State or the public tranquillity. The maximum sentence for these crimes is nine years and six months in prison. Under international law, an arrest is unlawful if a person is arrested for activity that is protected under international law, such as exercising the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.

Next Steps

The new government of Myanmar must unconditionally and immediately release Phyoe Phyoe Aung and all other individuals imprisoned for exercising their right to peaceful assembly, and must drop all charges against them. All police officers and other officials implicated in rights violations in the Letpadan protests must be held accountable for their excessive use of force, and a full and transparent independent investigation must be conducted into these crimes. With elections now complete, now is an important time to be holding the new government to account for changes it must make to ensure that principles of international law are both followed and enacted in Myanmar. To that end we must write to the Government of Myanmar to urgently request these actions be taken.