There was a time when the British government put a lot of pressure on the military regime to free political prisoners but now ...
Dear John
Despite Aung San Suu Kyi promising to “not arrest anyone as political prisoners” once in government, hundreds of people are being arrested and imprisoned for political reasons. Currently, a total of 601 political activists and journalists are either in jail or awaiting trial.
There was a time when the British government put a lot of pressure on the military regime to free political prisoners, but now they are watching silently as Aung San Suu Kyi is keeping political prisoners in jail.
Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government has complete control over whether or not political activists face trial and whether political prisoners remain in jail. However, rather than exercising that power, she has made the decision to keep political prisoners in jail.
She should be facing significant international pressure for keeping political prisoners in jail and using repressive laws. It is time to ask the British government to take the lead in securing the release of all political prisoners in Burma.
Please write to the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, urging him to step up public and private pressure on Aung San Suu Kyi to ensure that all repressive laws in Burma are repealed, and all political prisoners are released immediately and unconditionally.
