New campaign highlights plight of Burmese political prisoners

by Mizzima News
Friday, 11 December 2009 18:29

New Delhi (Mizzima) - United Kingdom’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in collaboration with human rights activists groups on Thursday launched a novel campaign to create awareness about over 2,000 political prisoners languishing in prisons across military-ruled Burma.

In the run up to the Burmese military junta’s planned general elections in 2010, the FCO, the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), the Thailand-based Assistant Association of Political Prisoners-Burma (AAPPB) and the Burma Campaign UK (BCUK) said they are launching the new campaign to reveal the hidden stories of political prisoners the junta has put away in prison cells for their activism and political beliefs.

The groups said, “Elections in Burma will have no credibility or legitimacy until these [political] prisoners are released.”

The campaign, launched this week with stories of five of the top profile detainees, will continue until the elections in 2010. The story of a political prisoner will be told every week.

For this week, the campaign has chosen the story of popular Burmese comedian, film actor and director Zarganar (alias) Maung Thura, who was arrested and detained for his involvement in humanitarian work for victims of Cyclone Nargis in the Irrawaddy delta.

Maung Thura, a qualified dentist, is currently serving a sentence of 35 years in prison and was deliberately transferred to a remote prison in Myitkyina town of Kachin state in Northern Burma.

“The story of a prisoner will be told every week. It will take over 40 years to profile all 2100 prisoners of conscience. The Burmese regime continues to imprison anyone who speaks against them, however mildly, and very few genuine political prisoners are released. Many face long sentences of between 65 and 100 years,” the group said.

Supporting the campaign, British Member of Parliament Ivan Lewis in a statement said, “This campaign will highlight the courage of Burma's prisoners of conscience and the tragedy for Burma of their continued imprisonment.”