Human Rights in Burma

Anna Roberts, the executive director of Burma Campaign UK, said that it is shameful that the international community is taking such a “rose tinted” view of what is going on in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, now tending to focus on trade and investment policies while remaining largely silent on human rights. According to Roberts, despite a public perception of improvements, Myanmar still has one of the worst human rights records in the world. She said that since former General Thein Sein became president, human rights abuses have actually increased, with higher numbers of reports of rape by the Myanmar Army and security forces, hundreds of political prisoners still in jail and almost all of the nation’s repressive laws still in place. Roberts said that while there has undoubtedly been an increase in “civil liberties” in urban centers, things have not changed greatly on the ground; and for many, conditions have actually deteriorated, particularly for members of Myanmar’s ethnic and religious minorities.