Burma: prominent activists sentenced
Event- Country
- Myanmar
- Initial Date
- Aug 25, 2014
- Event Description
Two well-known activists have been sentenced to three months in prison for violating Burma's controversial Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act, after staging a rally without prior permission from local authorities. Win Cho and Wai Lu, who have both faced multiple charges and prison terms under the controversial statute, were convicted of organising an unlawful demonstration on 26 March 2014 against a sudden electricity price hike in Rangoon. The ruling was handed down by Rangoon's Kyauktada Township court on Monday, according to their lawyer, Robert San Aung. Win Cho, a prolific community organiser and member of the Myanmar Social Development Network, has been charged dozens of times for his role in protests over land rights, economic hardship and other causes common across Burma. Shortly after the energy price demonstration in March, Win Cho was jailed for his involvement in an unrelated protest two months earlier, when he was joined by hundreds of farmers demanding constitutional reform and the establishment of a farmers' union. He and fellow activist Nay Myo Zin were swiftly jailed, serving a total of 84 days in Insein Prison. The two were released on 25 June after serving out their full three-month sentences. Wai Lu, the other activist sentenced on Monday, was hit with an additional one-month sentence for his role in another demonstration over the eviction of central Burma's Moehti Moemi gold miners. The small-scale mine operators lost their jobs and homes when the government granted a mining concession to a major conglomerate in June 2012. After the work freeze, more than 100 displaced miners sought refuge in a nearby monastery where they faced a series of eviction threats and were subject to a early-morning raid in March at which about 50 people were arrested. Monday's sentencing was the latest in a long string of jail terms for peaceful protestors since the reform process began. The country's assembly laws have been oft-criticised for granting sweeping powers to authorities to arbitrarily detain activists. Among the most contentious edicts is part of Section 18 (often mislabelled as "Article 18?) of the Right to Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act, as it requires the permission of local authorities for all public gatherings. Claims abound that permission is discriminately denied under the broad terms outlined in the law. Amendments made to Section 18 earlier this year have been called a "disappointment" by rights monitors, who argue that while the changes reduce sentences, the legislation still endangers the principle of freedom to assemble, which is enshrined in Article 534(b) of Burma's Constitution.
- Impact of Event
- 2
- Violation
- (Arbitrary) Arrest and Detention
- Judicial Harassment
- Rights Concerned
- Freedom of assembly
- Right to property
- Source
- Monitoring Status
- Not active
- Event Location
Latitude: 16.7745552
Longitude: 96.1619784
- Event Location
- Summary for Publications
On 25 August 2014 prominent activists Win Cho and Wai Lu were sentenced to 3 months in prison for assembling without the authorities' permission under Section 18 of the infamous Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Act. Win Cho, a community organiser and member of the Myanmar Social Development Network who has worked on land rights and economic injustice, and Wai Lu, who has been involved in environmental and labour rights issues, have both served numerous sentences in the past for violating Section 18. In this instance, they were sentenced for having staged a protest on 26 March 2014 against an abrupt electricity fee hike in Rangoon. Wai Lu was sentenced to an additional month in prison for his involvement in a protest against the eviction of small-scale miners from the Moehti Moemi gold mine.