BURMA: AUTHORITIES PREVENT HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

C O N F I D E N T I A L RANGOON 000803 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP/MLS, DRL, AND IO PACOM FOR FPA E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/13/2019 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM BM SUBJECT: BURMA: AUTHORITIES PREVENT HUMAN RIGHTS DAY CEREMONY REF: RANGOON 629 Classified By: Political Officer Marc Shaw for Reasons 1.4 (b) & (d) ¶1. (C) Pyay city (Bago Division) Peace and Development Council officials (PDC) in Burma questioned Human Rights Defenders and Promoters (HRDP) leaders Maung Maung Lay and Min Min on December 9 in an effort to thwart HRDP efforts to hold an annual ceremony December 10 commemorating the 61st International Human Rights Day. Maung Maung Lay contacted us early December 10 to report that authorities had questioned him the previous evening shortly after he arrived in Pyay. According to Maung Maung Lay, authorities complained that the organization did not request advance permission to hold the event. (Note: In practice, Home Affairs Ministry officials at the local level insist on pre-approval of large organized gatherings.) According to Maung Maung Lay, police, in coordination with PDC officials, detained Min Min for approximately eight hours on December 10 and threatened to arrest him if he did not immediately cancel the planned ceremony. Local authorities told Maung Maung Lay, who was visiting from Rangoon, to depart Pyay immediately. HRDP members confirm they complied with the authorities' requests and did not hold the ceremony. ¶2. (C) HRDP was formed in 2002 to raise human rights awareness and advocate on behalf of the Burmese people. Its leader, Myint Aye, is currently in prison serving a 20-year sentence. He was arrested in August 2008 on charges of possessing explosive materials. Min Min (aka La Min Tun) was one of the estimated 7,114 prisoners released by the government in September 2009 (reftel). DINGER