Informatie over gewetensgevangenen in Myanmar. Op zondag 20 juni 2010 organiseert Amnesty Utrecht een Sponsorloop om hen te ondersteunen.

More than 100 of the recently jailed dissidents have been transferred by the authorities from Insein Prison to prisons around the country. Prisoners in Myanmar routinely rely on family members to supply medicines and supplement their food, which is made extremely difficult when prisoners are held a long distance from their family home.

 Su Su Nway  

Labour activist Su Su Nway, who is a member of the main opposition party National League for Democracy (NLD), is serving a sentence of eight years and six months in a remote prison, far from her family, for taking part in anti-government protests against rising fuel and commodity prices in August 2007. She narrowly avoided arrest during a protest at which a government-backed social organisation, the Union Solidarity and Development Association (USDA), beat her supporters, forced them into waiting vehicles and detained them. After this Su Su Nway went into hiding until 13 November 2007, when she was arrested for putting up an anti-government banner near the hotel in Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city, where the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar was staying. After her arrest on 13 November 2007, Su Su Nway was tried in the North Yangon District Court. She was sentenced on 11 November 2008 to 12 years and six months in prison. Her sentence was later reduced on appeal to eight years and six months. She was initially detained in Yangon's Insein Prison but shortly after her sentencing, she was moved to Kale prison, in the north of the country, some 680 miles from Yangon, and from there to Hkamti prison, in August 2009. Hkamti is one of the remotest prisons in the country. It is in a malarial area, and many prisoners there have contracted it. Su Su Nway suffers from a congenital heart condition and high blood pressure, which are made worse by conditions at the prison where she is held, Hkamti, Sagaing Division where she cannot get proper medical care. The prison is 1,200 miles from her family's home in Yangon, so it is very difficult for them to visit and bring her necessary food and medicine. Prisoners typically rely on their families to bring them medicine and food, as supplies in prison are completely inadequate. Su Su Nway had to be hospitalised on 20 March 2009, but since then, according to reliable sources, the prison authorities have not allowed her any medical care. They have also punished her with occasional spells in solitary confinement, and denied her family visits, sufficient food and clean clothes. Su Su Nway was put in solitary confinement for three days after she took part in a ceremony in Kale Prison to mark Martyrs' Day on 19 July 2009 which commemorates the assassination of General Aung San (father of the NLD leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi) and other leaders of the Burmese independence movement. She had also been put in solitary confinement in October 2008 as punishment for starting a hunger strike the previous month, to protest at not being allowed to see her family.

Casefile of Zayar Thaw

Youth activist Zayar Thaw was sentenced to six years' imprisonment on 20 November 2008. A leading member of the youth activist group Generation Wave, he had been arrested on 12 March 2008, and convicted on 20 November of "forming an illegal organization" and illegal possession of foreign currency. Generation Wave mobilizes students and young people to peacefully protest against the military government through poster campaigns and distributing anti-government leaflets and banned video recordings, such as the Hollywood film Rambo IV, released in January 2008, which involves an attack on the country's army. Generation Wave maintains that in order to effect political change in Myanmar, pressure must come from within the country, from ordinary citizens, not just from the international community. The authorities charged Zayar Thaw under a vaguely worded law whose sweeping provisions can be interpreted as making it illegal to set up any kind of organization. He was beaten during interrogation. The authorities also charged him later with possessing foreign currency: when he was arrested he had been carrying Singaporean dollars, Malaysian ringgit and Thai baht to a total value of less than US$20. His six-year sentence is the maximum penalty for the two charges. Speaking to journalists from Burmese exile media organizations in Thailand in November 2007, Zayar Thaw said, "We cannot depend on international pressure alone. We cannot have changes unless there is internal pressure that will force the ruling junta to change." After he was arrested he was held in Insein prison, in his home town, Yangon, but two weeks after he was sentenced he was moved 790 miles (1260 km) to Kawthaung prison, in the far south of the country. It is now difficult for his family to visit him here.

Casfile of U Gambira    

Buddhist monk and activist U Gambira was arrested on 4 November 2007 in the search for the organizers of the major anti-government demonstrations that began in August 2007. The authorities brought the protests to an end with a violent crackdown in late September 2007. The laws he has been charged under include three security laws that have been used arbitrarily to criminalize peaceful political dissent. They are Section 17/1 of the Unlawful Associations Act, Section 17/20 of Myanmar's 1962 Printers and Publishers Registration Act and Section 505(b) of the Penal Code. On 18 November 2008, U Gambira was sentenced to 12 years' imprisonment by a special court inside Insein Prison. This was swiftly followed by two further sentences: on 20 November he was sentenced to 15 years in jail and then on 21 November he was given an additional 12 years with hard labour. Exact details of the sentences remain unclear but as of November 21, U Gambira has received a total of 68 years' imprisonment. U Gambira is still in poor health and has now been transferred from Khamti prison to Kale prison (also in Sagaing Division). U Gambira recently staged a protest in Khamti Prison demanding a face-to-face meeting with Myanmar's leader, Senior General Than Shwe. It is unclear whether he was transferred to Kale prison because of his continued poor health, or in response to the protest he staged while in Khamti prison.

 Casefile of U Ohn Than  

Veteran protester U Ohn Than was arrested on 23 August 2007 for staging a solo protest outside the US embassy in Myanmar's largest city, Yangon. He was protesting peacefully against the military government, dressed in a prisoner's uniform to symbolise his belief that all people in Myanmar are prisoners in their own country. Throughout the protest he held up a placard calling for national and international action to solve the political problems in Myanmar, including a request for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to intervene, and a call to the country's armed forces to disobey their superiors and help overthrow the military government. He was arrested by men in civilian clothes, and taken to Botahtaung Township police station in Yangon. U Ohn Than is serving a life sentence for peacefully exercising his right to freedom of expression. He was jailed after a trial that was grossly unfair. He was moved to other prisons three times, the third being Khamti prison, Sagaing Division, in the north of the country, where he is still held. Khamti prison is in a malarial area and prisoners are vulnerable to infection. In June 2008 Amnesty International learned that U Ohn Than was at an advanced stage of cerebral malaria which if left untreated is almost always fatal. He appears to have received treatment for this, but has suffered from high blood pressure and kidney stones. U Ohn Than is well known for his solo protests, which he has carried out despite repeated reprisals from the authorities. He has previously spent at least 14 years in prison for exercising his right to freedom of expression. He was first arrested for his part in the 1988 peaceful student demonstrations against military rule and sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. He was released in 1995 after serving seven years. He was arrested again in 1996 for distributing leaflets encouraging people to hold peaceful pro-democracy demonstrations and was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment. After each of these protests U Ohn Than was charged under Section 5/j of the Emergency Provisions Act (1950), a vaguely worded law frequently used to criminalize political dissent in the name of "national security." When he was at liberty, U Ohn Than continued to protest against the government and was frequently arrested and then released without charge, sometimes after several months in custody.

Casefile of U Khun Htun Oo  

U Khun Htun Oo is one of the most senior political representatives of the Shan, the largest of Myanmar's ethnic minorities. He is serving a 93-year prison sentence for taking part in a discussion of the military government's plans for transition to democracy. U Khun Htun Oo is chairman of the opposition political party the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD). In 2005 he had taken part in a private meeting with eight other senior representatives of different political groups, over a meal, to discuss the authorities' plans for transition to democracy. They held the meeting in the capital of Shan State, Taunggyi, on 7 February, which is Shan National Day. According to the government, Shan political representatives at the meeting had given advice to members of armed opposition groups who had agreed ceasefires with the government, on how to approach the National Convention, which was the first stage in the authorities' "seven-point roadmap" for political transition from military to civilian rule. The National Convention was a process set up to provide the guiding principles for the writing of a new constitution. It excluded many important political groups, and it was against the law to make any criticism of the process. The authorities denied the group access to their families, some of them for up to nine months. They were tried behind closed doors in Yangon's Insein Prison, in proceedings that lasted several months which fell far short of international fair trial standards: they were not allowed lawyers, or at least not lawyers of their choice.

U Khun Htun Oo was arrested on 9 February 2005 and sentenced on 3 November 2005 to 93 years' imprisonment with hard labour, on two charges on the penal code, high treason and "inciting disaffection towards the Government," and also under laws that allow the authorities routinely and arbitrarily to restrict freedom of speech and association. At least three other senior political representatives of the Shan ethnic minority group were sentenced the same day, and they too received extraordinarily lengthy prison terms. One of them, General Hso Ten, was given a 106-year sentence. He chaired both the Shan State Peace Council (SSPC), which represents various ethnic Shan armed opposition groups who agreed ceasefires with the authorities during the 1990s, after decades of fighting for greater autonomy, and the United Nationalities League for Democracy, a coalition of political parties representing non-Burman ethnic groups in Myanmar. Burman is the dominant ethnic group in the country. After the nine men were sentenced, the authorities sent them to prisons very far from their homes, without telling their families where they were being sent. U Khun Htun Oo is being held in Puta-O Prison in Kachin state, where conditions are known to be very harsh. U Khun Tun Oo is in poor health. He has received inadequate treatment for his diabetes and high blood pressure. According to a 10 July 2009 report by the Thailand-based Shan Herald News Agency. U Khun Tun Oo had swollen legs due to lack of exercise and medical treatment.  He is being held in Puta-O Prison in the northern state of Kachin. He is a prisoner of conscience.

Casefile of Min Ko Naing  

Veteran pro-democracy movement leader Min Ko Naing was sentenced on 11 November 2008 to 65 years' imprisonment for his role in the major anti-government protests of August and September 2007. The sentence was handed down in a closed-door hearing in Maubin Prison in the south-western Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) Division. With him are 22 members of the 88 Generation Students group, each of whom has also received a 65-year sentence for their part in the 2007 protests. The 88 Generation Students group was co-founded by Min Ko Naing in 2005 to renew the pro-democracy activities of those who took part in the mass uprising against military rule in 1988. After his sentencing, Min Ko Naing was moved to Kengtung Prison in Shan State, in the north-east of the country. The prison is approximately 700 miles away from his family's home, in the country's largest city, Yangon. Min Ko Naing is a prisoner of conscience. He is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. Min Ko Naing was transferred to Kengtung prison, in Shan State, on 15 November 2008. He is in poor health as a result of harsh prison conditions. His eye condition has worsened. His hands are numb and difficult to move. The new prison, which is in the north-east of the country, is cold and damp, and this is also understood to be adversely affecting his health. Very little medical treatment is available at the prison. As a founding member of the 88 Generation Students group, Min Ko Naing has been singled out for harsh treatment. He is allowed out of his cell far less than other prisoners.

Casefile of Zarganar  

Popular comedian, actor and director Zarganar, an outspoken critic of Myanmar's military government, was sentenced on 21 November 2008 to 45 years' imprisonment by a special court in Yangon's Insein Prison. He was arrested on 4 June 2008 for his public criticism of the government's response to the humanitarian crisis that emerged in the wake of Cyclone Nargis, which hit Myanmar in May 2008. He still faces other charges for which he could receive further sentences. After it emerged that the Myanmar government was obstructing international aid that was to be distributed to the devastated Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) Delta and the surrounding areas, Zarganar began to lead efforts to raise and distribute aid from private donors. Despite assurances from the authorities that private donors would be given free access to cyclone affected areas, Zarganar and at least 21 others were arrested for their participation in the voluntary aid effort. On 4 December 2008, Zarganar was transferred from Yangon's Insein Prison to Myitkyina Prison in Kachin State in northern Myanmar. On 13 February 2009 a divisional court in Myanmar's main city, Yangon, reduced Zarganar's 59-year prison sentence by 24 years. The three 15-year sentences he had received under the vaguely-worded Electronics Act were reduced by eight years each, meaning Zarganar now has to serve 35 years in prison for providing assistance to victims of Cyclone Nargis.

Casefile of Myo Min Zaw and Ko Aye Aung

 Student activists Myo Min Zaw and Ko Aye Aung were arrested on 14 September 1998 for distributing leaflets and organizing student demonstrations in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon. Both men were leading members of the banned All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU). Myo Min Zaw and Ko Aye Aung are serving sentences totalling 52 years and 45 years respectively. They were reportedly tortured during interrogation. Both men are prisoners of conscience detained solely for the non-violent expression of their beliefs. Myo Min Zaw and Ko Aye Aung were arrested at a teashop in Kyanktada Township in Yangon Division on 14 September 1998. They were alleged to have taken part in or organized demonstrations of between 150 and 500 students during August and September 1998 and to have distributed leaflets about student concerns. Their arrests came during a period of several months in 1998 when hundreds of students were rounded up during demonstrations calling for improvements to the educational system in Myanmar, and for the release of political prisoners. Letters to the public signed by Myo Min Zaw appealing for support were widely distributed prior to the rallies. At the time of their arrest, the main opposition party in Myanmar, the National League for Democracy (NLD), had announced that it would form a parliament of MPs elected in the 1990 elections, in which the party won the majority of seats, but to whom the military authorities have never transferred power. At a press conference on 8 October 1998, the government stated that they were "able to uncover a plot" by Myo Min Zaw to "create disturbances in support of the NLD demand to convene parliament and to object to the ongoing university and college examinations". In particular, they referred to a student demonstration that Myo Min Zaw organized at the busy Hledan intersection in Yangon on 24 August 1998. Myo Min Zaw was accused of distributing "seditious pamphlets" at that rally. After their arrest, Myo Min Zaw and Ko Aye Aung were reportedly tortured during interrogation. They were denied legal representation and the right to speak in their own defence during their trial, which took place in Yangon's Insein Prison. The fairness of the trial was further compromised by the authorities having given a press conference shortly after their arrest, in which the authorities claimed that the demonstrations were intended to create unrest. At the end of the trial, Myo Min Zaw was sentenced to 38 years' imprisonment, subsequently increased to 52 years in 1999; Ko Aye Aung's original sentence of 14 years' imprisonment was increased, after a second interrogation, to 24 years and then again to 45 years. The hefty sentences they received were the result of several charges under different vaguely worded security laws which have been routinely and arbitrarily used by the authorities to silence political dissent. As is the case in other convictions of political prisoners, their sentences have been applied cumulatively, rather than being served concurrently.

Myo Min Zaw is being held in Putao prison in Kachin State in northern Myanmar which is up to a week's travel away from his family in Yangon. Prisoners in Myanmar routinely rely on family members to supply medicines and supplement their food, which is made extremely difficult when prisoners are held a long distance from their family home. Whilst in detention Myo Min Zaw has suffered from gastric pain and a skin disease that has affected his fingers and nails.

Ko Aye Aung is being held in Kale prison in Sagaing division in northern Myanmar, which is approximately 600 miles away from his family in Yangon. Kale Prison is said to be in an area where malaria and typhoid are very common and prisoners are vulnerable to infection. Political prisoners in Myanmar are often sent to prisons in remote parts of the country to deprive them of family contact. In 2002, Ko Aye Aung took part in a hunger strike to protest the lack of medical treatment in prison. There has been no further information on Ko Aye Aung's situation since.

Casefile of U Win Htein  

U Win Htein, a senior assistant to the National League of Democracy (NLD) party leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, is serving a 14-year prison sentence. He was imprisoned in 1996 for organizing the collection of information about agricultural productivity that the government deemed to be sensitive, and for helping three foreign journalists report on prison conditions for political prisoners in Myanmar. He is a prisoner of conscience, imprisoned solely for the peaceful exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and association. He is at risk of torture and other ill-treatment. As part of a government amnesty, he was freed on 23 September 2008. He was rearrested the following day, and taken to Katha Prison in Sagaing, in the north of the country, over 1,000km from his home in the former capital, Yangon. The authorities have given no reason for re-arresting him. Since then he has been returned to solitary confinement, and it is not known why he was re-arrested or how much longer he will remain imprisoned. He has previously spent more than five-and-a-half years in prison for his political activities, from 1989 to 1995. He was tortured during his first term of imprisonment and has been in solitary confinement throughout his time in prison. U Win Htein suffers from numerous health problems, including heart disease and a persistent stomach pain, whose cause has never been diagnosed.

Casefile of 1988 Generation Student Group  

Activists Htay Kywe, Mie Mie and Zaw Htet Ko Ko were arrested in the hunt for the people behind the major anti-government protests that began in August 2007, which were brought to an end by a violent crackdown by the authorities in late September. They are now facing a range of politically motivated charges. Amnesty International considers them to be prisoners of conscience. They are at risk of torture.

Zaw Htet Ko Ko has been suffering from stomach pain and has lost a significant amount of weight. He has received some medical treatment for his problem, but it is not clear whether the treatment is sufficient or appropriate. He also has high blood pressure. He is being held in Kyaukpyu Prison, in the western state of Rahkine, over 1,000 km away from his family in Yangon. Zaw Htet Ko Ko is serving 11 years in prison, with hard labour, for his involvement in the 2007 peaceful anti-government protests.

Mie Mie was sentenced to 65 years in jail by a special court in Yangon's Insein Prison on 11 November 2008. According to reports in the exile Burmese media, after hearing her sentence, Mie Mie shouted "We will never be frightened". In November 2009 Mie Mie was transferred to Katha prison, Sagaing Division, in the north-west of the country. This is 800 miles (1290km) from her home in Yangon, and it is now much more difficult for her family to visit her. The decision to move Mie Mie was made despite her continuing poor health. At the beginning of November her husband told exile media groups that she was suffering from spondylosis and arthritis.  

Htay Kywe, sentenced to 65 years by a special court in Maubin Prison, Ayeyarwaddy Division, was transferred on 15 November 2009 to Buthidaung Prison, in Rakhine State. As a founder-member of the 88 Generation Students group, he has been singled out for harsh treatment. He is known to have been tortured since he was moved to Buthidaung Prison. He has been confined to a cell measuring eight feet by ten feet, and allowed out less than other prisoners. He has not been allowed to bathe regularly, and has developed scabies.