What is AAPP? http://www.aappb.org/Since the 1988 popular democracy movement was crushed in a ruthless crackdown by the military regime, thousands of people have been arrested, tortured and given long prison sentences for their beliefs and political activities. Moreover, even after political prisoners are released, they continue to face horrible treatment. The military uses all available means to intimidate and harass former political prisoners in order to prevent them from conducting political activities. When extraordinarily sensitive occasions take place in the country-such as the anniversary of the 1988 pro-democracy uprising-former political prisoners are usually re-arrested, interrogated and detained for an unlimited amount of time without reason. The military regime also uses many different tactics to attempt to isolate former political prisoners from society. The main weapon of the junta to marginalize ex-political prisoners is to deny them economic and educational opportunities. For these reasons, many former political prisoners are forced to live in exile. Many former political prisoners who previously gave assistance to their fellow political prisoners wanted to continue these activities. In order to be effective and efficient in performing these activities, and to honor student leader Min Ko Naing who was only recently released after serving nearly 16 years behind bars, former political prisoners established AAPP on the 11th anniversary of Min Ko Naing’s arrest.
What We Do: 1. Assist families of political prisoners to visit their loved ones. 2. Support prisoners by providing necessities such as food and medicine. 3. Monitor conditions in prisons. 4. Publicize arrests, conditions and life stories of imprisoned political activists and artists. 5. Advocate in accordance with international bodies, provide information to Amnesty International, International Committee of the Red Cross, Human Rights Watch and so on. 6. Assist former political prisoners with their mental and physical rehabilitation from torture and isolation.
Objectives: 1. To report on the military regime’s oppression of political prisoners who are presently detained in various prisons. 2. To encourage the support of international governments and organiza- tions in order to pressure the Burmese military regime to prevent the further persecution of political prisoners. 3. To secure fundamental human rights for political prisoners, and to provide them with basic necessities such as food and medicine. 4. To protect the political prisoners upon their release from prison from harassment and intimidation by the military regime, including when they are looking for employment, continuing their studies, associating with friends and colleagues, and especially to protect them from persecution if their political activities are resumed. 5. To aid in the reconstruction of the former political prisoners’ lives, includ- ing both their mental and physical well-being.
Steps to Improve Prison Conditions: 1. Physical and mental torture in all its forms should cease to exist. 2. Prisoners should not be subjected to lengthy periods of solitary confinement. A maximum period for solitary confinement should be imposed and enforced. 3. Sanitation projects should be implemented inside prisons to improve the general health situation. 4. Adequate and nutritious food and sufficient clothing should be pro- vided to all prisoners. 5. Access to adequate medical treatment should be available to all prisoners. 6. Political prisoners should not be transferred to remote prisons so that their families cannot visit on a regular basis. 7. Prisoners should be immediately released when their sentence is finished. This should be strictly enforced. 8. Access to a fair and public trial should be available. 9. Prisoners should have access to reading and writing materials and the opportunity to use them.
What You Can Do: • Make a donation to support AAPP’s work. • Put pressure on companies that are dealing with the military junta in your re- spective country to cut ties with Burma. • Boycott tourism to Burma and products made in Burma imported to your region. • Tell friends and family about torture victims and the situation in Burma and ask them to support the work of Amnesty International and AAPP. • Demand the release of all political prisoners. • Condemn arbitrary arrest and all forms of torture.
The AAPP along with the Forum for Democracy in Burma, have begun a global petition campaign:
There are over 2,100 political prisoners languishing in prisons all over Burma. Free Burma’s Political Prisoners Now aims to collect 888,888 signatures before 24 May 2009, the legal date that Daw Aung San Suu Kyi should be released from house arrest. This is a united global campaign working with over a hundred groups from around the globe. The petition calls on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to make it his personal priority to secure the release of all political prisoners in Burma, as the essential first step towards democracy in the country. Please sign the petition at http://www.fbppn.net/
HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO!
1. Sign the Petition
2. Get your friends, families, and colleagues to sign.(Join our pages on Facebook and Youtube as well)
3. Download the campaign kit (to the left) and get those in your community involved. Tell them about the situation in Burma and the courageous actions of Burma’s political prisoners.
4. Tell the FBPPN Campaign Committee what you are doing so that we can share with others about the global movement for Burma’s political prisoners. Email http://www.fbppn.net/info@fbppn.net
WHY THIS CAMPAIGN IS SO IMPORTANT
Daw Aung Suu Kyi says, “We are all prisoners in our own country.” Political prisoners are not criminals. They have courageously spoken out on behalf of those who have been silenced. The release of all political prisoners is the essential first step towards freedom and democracy in Burma. There can be no democratic transition without them. They must be allowed to freely participate in any future democratic political process.
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