{"id":4044,"date":"2018-05-14T10:02:20","date_gmt":"2018-05-14T03:32:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/new-eng\/?p=4044"},"modified":"2021-01-21T10:05:00","modified_gmt":"2021-01-21T03:35:00","slug":"myanmar-violence-and-unlawful-charges-against-anti-war-protesters-alarming-for-myanmars-civic-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/?p=4044","title":{"rendered":"Myanmar: Violence and Unlawful Charges against Anti-war Protesters Alarming for Myanmar\u2019s Civic Space"},"content":{"rendered":"

Myanmar: Violence and Unlawful Charges against Anti-war Protesters Alarming for Myanmar\u2019s Civic Space<\/strong><\/p>\n

(14 May 2018, Bangkok) \u2013 The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) is concerned about the use of violence against the anti-war protesters in Yangonon 12 May, and urges the authorities to immediately drop all charges against the protesters, which are based on the newly amended controversial 2011 Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful ProcessionLaw.<\/p>\n

Since early April the armed conflict in Kachin State has escalated alarmingly and has displaced at least 5,000 civilians. According to aid organisations and the Kachin Independence Army, the current clashes have been the most intense\u00a0since 1960s.[1]\u00a0The conflict in Kachin has triggered strong anti-war sentiment among youth leaders and local civil society organisations, who organised several marches and peaceful protests in major cities such as Myitkyina, Mandalay and Yangon, demanding safe passages for trapped civilians and an end to Kachin conflict.<\/p>\n

Prior to the planned anti-war march in Yangon on 12 May, some 16 people related to the protests were charged under the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law.\u00a0Two of the organisers, Lum Zawng and Sut Seng Htoi were convicted and fined 30,000 kyat (US$22) each. Two other activists from Pyay Region \u2013 MettaOo and Myo Thu Htut \u2013 were also charged under the same law for participating in the protests in Myitkyina.\u00a0Others were\u00a0harassed and kept under surveillanceby Myanmar security forces, including Special Branch and the Myanmar Police. Military supporters on social media sent countless violent and threatening messages to the organisers, and others who shared information about the planned march.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, rather than support the peaceful march and protect the protesters, the police used batons to disperse some\u00a0300\u00a0peaceful protesters who staged a sit-in and chanted anti-war slogans.[2]\u00a0Violence also broke out between pro-military protesters and anti-war protesters.[3]\u00a0At least nine people were arrested on the same day, and another 17 protesters were charged under the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law, which has been criticised by civil society as being\u00a0highly restrictive of the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, freedom of expression, and democracy in Myanmar.[4]<\/p>\n

The use of such repressive laws is not unfamiliar to Myanmar, as it was widely used by the authorities to suppress political activists and dissenters during the Military regime. The fact that it is still used by the civilian-led Government is particular alarming as the country claims to be committed to democracy and respecting the voice of the people. The use of force and violence by the police against the protesters is another sign of shrinking civic space. And it contradicts\u00a0Article 39 of the 2008 Constitution that states \u2018the Union shall enact necessary law (..) for flourishing of a genuine, disciplined multi-party democratic system\u2019.[5]<\/p>\n

FORUM-ASIA condemns any use of violence and unlawful charges against the peaceful protesters and requests Myanmar Government to protect and promote fundamental freedoms\u00a0in the country. FORUM-ASIA furthermore\u00a0reiterates its position[6]\u00a0to urge the Lower House to reject the amendments to the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law in the coming parliamentary session this month.<\/p>\n

About FORUM-ASIA:<\/strong><\/p>\n

FORUM-ASIA is a regional human rights group with 58 member organisations in 19 countries across Asia. FORUM-ASIA has offices in Bangkok, Jakarta, Geneva and Kathmandu. FORUM-ASIA addresses key areas of human rights violations in the region, including freedoms of expression, assembly and association, human rights defenders, and democratisation.<\/em><\/p>\n

For further information, please contact:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2013\u00a0<\/strong>East Asia and ASEAN Programme, FORUM\u2010ASIA (asean@forum\u2010asia.org<\/a>)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1]https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-myanmar-military\/thousands-call-for-aid-access-for-villagers-trapped-by-fighting-in-myanmar-idUSKBN1I11AT<\/a><\/p>\n

[2]https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-myanmar-kachin-protests\/myanmar-riot-police-break-up-anti-war-protest-in-yangon-idUSKCN1ID0GU<\/a><\/p>\n

[3]https:\/\/www.mmtimes.com\/news\/yangon-police-charge-release-17-peace-protesters.html<\/a><\/p>\n

[4]https:\/\/www.forum-asia.org\/?p=25966<\/a><\/p>\n

[5]http:\/\/www.burmalibrary.org\/docs5\/Myanmar_Constitution-2008-en.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n

[6]https:\/\/www.forum-asia.org\/?p=25966<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Myanmar: Violence and Unlawful Charges against Anti-war Protesters Alarming for Myanmar\u2019s Civic Space (14 May 2018, Bangkok) \u2013 The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) is concerned about the use of violence against the anti-war protesters in Yangonon 12 May, and urges the authorities to immediately drop all charges against the protesters, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4045,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-statement"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4044"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4046,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4044\/revisions\/4046"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4045"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4044"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4044"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/equalitymyanmar.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4044"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}