Special Branch officers harass party members

Thursday, 12 August 2010 15:12 administrator

Rangoon (Mizzima) – Burmese junta intelligence staff have called at the homes of Democracy Party members uninvited and intimidated them, party chairman Thu Wei outlined in a written complaint to the Union Election Commission in Naypyidaw on Monday.

“Police Special Branch officers visited the residences of our party members and asked them to provide two passport photos along with bio data and personal profiles,” Thu Wei said. “This is intimidation of our members and cannot be tolerated.”

As per electoral laws, the party sent its list of 1,000 members, the minimum required for a national party, to the junta’s electoral watchdog, which was later handed to this security agency. The officers then made the visits during which members were questioned, he said.

In a country that shows little tolerance to opposition movements, people see the appearance of such officers at the door of one’s with distrust and fear, believing intelligence offers can only bring trouble.

Though submitting two passport photos and a detailed personal profile was not set out in electoral laws or election commission pronouncements, the officers nevertheless demanded party members submit them, said Thu Wei, who demanded the commission to stop security forces making such calls.

“We visited many parties to cover the election news, interviewing many party members and found them very reluctant to join political parties. The questioning by security agencies in this manner makes them more hesitant to participate in politics”, a domestic reporter told Mizzima.

Meanwhile, the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) was continuing to conduct election campaigning among people in Rangoon and recruiting party members without obstruction. They even waived the prescribed party membership fee of 1,000 Kyat to these newly recruited party members, party organisers said.

Critics have accused the USDP of converting public money contributed through the state apparatus to the former Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA) into the party war chest fund of USDP.