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December 2006
The Right Honourable Stephen Harper
Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa (ON) K1A 0A2
Dear Prime Minister,
In June, Burma’s military rulers released 34-year-old Su Su Nway after she spent nine months in Rangoon’s notorious Insein prison. Her crime? Challenging their use of forced labour in court and winning an historic ruling against this long-standing violation of human rights endured by more than 20 million people in Burma.
In recognition of her selfless courage and determination, and in the name of human rights in Burma, Rights & Democracy is proud to present its 2006 John Humphrey Freedom Award to Su Su Nway. Rights & Democracy has been presenting the John Humphrey Freedom Award every year since 1992, for exceptional achievement in the field of human rights and democratic development.
In 2005, Canada’s Parliament committed to take action against the systematic abuse of human rights in Burma. The Conservative Party, the Bloc Québécois and the New Democratic Party voted in favour of this motion, which included comprehensive economic measures against the military regime and concrete support for Burma’s democratic institutions. These institutions, which include Burma’s government in exile, the National Coalition Government of the Union of Burma (NCGUB) and the Members of Parliament Union (MPU), as well as other institutions such as the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) and The Burma Fund (TBF) have large needs with respect to their operational budgets and are dependent on foreign government funding.
We therefore ask the Canadian Government to:
- Provide, as other foreign governments, political and financial support to the democratic institutions of Burma.
- Impose economic sanctions against Burma’s military regime.
- Work towards a binding resolution on Burma at the Security Council.
Su Su Nway and the people of Burma are counting on Canada to promote democracy and human rights in Burma.
Thank you in advance for your consideration of this request.
Yours sincerely,
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