Conditional release of Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung

Conditionalrelease

Burma/Myanmar

October 15, 2014

TheObservatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme ofthe International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World OrganisationAgainst Torture (OMCT), has received new information and requests your urgentintervention in the following situation in Burma/Myanmar.

NewInformation:

TheObservatory has been informed by reliable sources about the release ofMr. Kyaw Hla Aung, a 75-year old Rohingya human rights defender.

According tothe information received, on October 7, Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung was released from theSittwe Prison in Arakan/Rakhine State. He was granted a presidential amnesty inaccordance with Section 401 of the Criminal code which also authorises thePresident to order Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung to serve the remainder of his originalsentence if he fails to fulfil the conditions of his release. Before beingreleased, Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung had to sign a pledge committing not to take part inother “crimes or illegal activities”.

Kyaw HlaAung had been detained since July 15, 2013, when authorities in Sittwe Townshiparrested him in connection with a protest by internally displaced Rohingyaagainst attempts by the government to register them as ‘Bengali’ in April 2013.On September 26, 2014, the Sittwe District Court sentenced Kyaw Hla Aung to oneyear and six months in prison on charges of rioting in connection with theApril 2013 protest.

The Observatorywelcomes the release of Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung and thanks all the individuals,institutions, and organisations that intervened in his favour. However, theObservatory regrets that he was arbitrarily detained for more than a yearbefore being released and that his released was conditional and reiterates itsconcern about the criminalisation of human rights defenders who are as accusedof taking part in crimes and illegal activities.

TheObservatory more generally reiterates its call on the Burmese authorities toput an end to all acts of harassment – including at the judicial level –against all human rights defenders in Burma, and to comply with allinternational human rights standards and international instruments ratified byBurma, in particular the United Nations (UN) Declaration on Human RightsDefenders, adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 9, 1998.

Backgroundinformation:

In 1986, Mr.Kyaw Hla Aung was imprisoned for two years for writing an appeal to theauthorities on behalf of local farmers whose land had been confiscated. In1990, he was arrested during a crackdown on Rohingya activists and spent thenext 10 years in jail. In June 2012, Government authorities detained him, alongwith several other Rohingya aid workers, for his alleged involvement in thesectarian unrest that hit Arakan State. He was released in August 2012.

On April 26, 2013, the local governmentof Arakan/Rakhine State undertook a survey of Muslim IDPs in Sittwe Township inorder to provide the authorities with population data. The authorities requiredMuslim Rohingya to be recorded as “Bengalis,” a term that is perceived asderogatory and that the government routinely uses to describe Rohingya.

After some members of the communitybeing surveyed contested being called “Bengali”, violence ensued. Clashesbetween Rohingya IDPs and immigration officials during the protests forced theauthorities to suspend the registration process.

The events related to April 26 havesince been used as a pretext to falsely prosecute Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung.

Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung was re-arrested onJuly 15, 2013 by police officers in Sittwe Township. He was arbitrarilydetained without charges at Sittwe Police Station No. 1 and denied access tohis family and lawyers.

On September26, 2014, Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung was sentenced by the Sittwe District Court to oneyear and six months in prison on charges of rioting (Article 147 of theCriminal Code) in connection with the April 26, 2013 protest at Thetkalpyin IDPcamp in Sittwe Township. However, Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung was not present during theprotest and had, in fact, tried to contact camp leaders in order to advise themto keep the demonstration peaceful.

Former United Nations SpecialRapporteur on human rights in Burma Tomás Ojea Quintana, who repeatedly calledfor Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung’s release, described him as a prisoner of conscience andsaid his detention was arbitrary. Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung suffers from hypertensionand stomach problems that require regular medication.

Actionsrequested:

Please writeto the authorities of Burma, urging them to:

i. Guarantee in all circumstances thephysical and psychological integrity of Mr. Kyaw Hla Aung, as well as of all human rights defenders inBurma/Myanmar;

ii. Put an end to acts of any acts ofharassment, including judicial harassment, against him as well as against allhuman rights defenders in Burma/Myanmar;

iii. Comply with all the provisions ofthe United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, in particular withits:

- Article 1, which provides that“everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, topromote and to strive for the protection and realization of human rights andfundamental freedoms at the national and international levels”;

- Article 6(a), which foresees that“everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, toparticipate in peaceful activities against violations of human rights andfundamental freedoms”;

- Article 12.2, which provides that“the State shall take all necessary measures to ensure the protection by thecompetent authorities of everyone, individually and in association with others,against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adversediscrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a consequence of hisor her legitimate exercise of the rights referred toin the present Declaration”;

Addresses:

· U Thein Sein, Presidentof Myanmar, President Office, Office No.18, Naypyitaw, MYANMAR; Fax: + 95 1 652624

· Lt. Gen Ko Ko, Ministerfor Home Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Office No. 10, Naypyitaw, MYANMAR;Fax: +95 67 412 439

· U Win Mra, Chairman ofthe Myanmar National Human Rights Commission, 27 Pyay Road, Hline Township,Yangon, Republic of the Union of Myanmar; Fax: +95-1-659668

· Dr. Tun Shin, AttorneyGeneral, Office of the Attorney General, Office No. 25, Naypyitaw, MYANMAR;Fax: +95 67 404 146/ 106

· U Tun Tun Oo, ChiefJustice, Office of the Supreme Court, Office No. 24, Naypyitaw, MYANMAR; Fax: +95 67 404 059

· U Kyaw Kyaw Htun,Director General, Myanmar Police Force, Ministry of Home Affairs, Office No.10, Naypyitaw, MYANMAR; Fax: +951 549 663 / 549 208

· H.E. Mr. Maung Wai,Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative to theUnited Nations in Geneva, Avenue Blanc 47, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland. Fax: +41 22732 89 19, +41 22 732 73 77, Email: mission@myanmargeneva.org

· Embassy of Myanmar inBrussels, Boulevard Général Wahis 9, 1030 Brussels, Belgium, Fax: +32 (0)32 2705 50 48, Email: mebrussels@skynet.be

Pleasealso write to the diplomatic representations of Burma in your respectivecountries.