The International Federation for Human Rights, Ligue des droits de l'Homme - France, Altsean-Burma and Info-Birmanie have jointly sent an open letter to Alain Juppé, Minister of Foreign Affairs of France, before his upcoming visit to Burma.

Paris-Bangkok, 6 January 2012 - The Burmese government is continuing its public relations game which has delivered little substantive change by refusing to honor previous promises to release all political prisoners, said the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma). This week it declared an “amnesty” that comprised the release of only a handful of political prisoners and prison term reductions that did not significantly bring most prisoners closer to freedom from arbitrary detention.

Tens of Thousands Still Isolated From Assistance, Abuses Continue

(New York, December 21, 2011) – The Burmese government should make a long-term commitment with humanitarian agencies to provide relief to Burma’s war-torn Kachin state, Human Rights Watch said today. Since June 2011, an estimated 50,000 ethnic Kachin have been displaced due to fighting between the Burmese army and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), and many are in great need of humanitarian assistance.

Progress in Rhetoric and Policies Should be Matched by Implementation

(New York, November 4, 2011) – Positive actions by Burma’s new government should not obscure the serious human rights problems persisting in the country one year after the November 2010 elections, Human Rights Watch said in a briefing paper released on November 3, 2011.