The U.S. Government (USG) has repeatedly condemned the suppression of democracy and the widespread violation of fundamental human rights that have occurred under the current regime in Burma, deploring, in particular, the pervasive use of forced labor by both government and military authorities. In its effort to address and correct practices of forced labor in Burma, the USG has invoked a variety of political, economic, and other policy measures.

I. U.S. Policy Measures to Increase Pressure on Burma

Since the SLORC unlawfully seized power in 1988, the United States has pursued a steady course of action consisting of economic, political, and military policies designed to support a transition to democratic rule and to document and bring international attention to persistent human rights abuses, including the use of forced labor, in Burma. These efforts include the following:

Economic Actions

• Suspending bilateral economic aid.
• Withdrawing Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits.
• Denying investment facilitation through the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.
• Denying credits from the Commodity Credit Corporation.
• Denying Export-Import Bank assistance.
• Restricting the importation of oil and gas.
• Banning new investments in Burma by U.S. persons by Presidential Order.
• Encouraging other countries to withdraw GSP benefits.⁽¹⁾
• Successfully opposing assistance from the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) to Burma.⁽²⁾
• Urging other governments to maintain the suspension of much of their bilateral economic aid program, including large scale development assistance.

Diplomatic and Other Actions

• Downgrading diplomatic representation in Rangoon from Ambassador to Charge d'affaires.
• Restricting visas for Burmese nationals who formulate, implement, or benefit from policies impeding Burma's transition to democracy.
• Instituting an arms embargo against the GOB.⁽³⁾
• De-certifying Burma as a narcotics cooperating country, which requires the USG, by law, to vote against assistance to Burma by international financial institutions.
• Engaging in multilateral diplomacy to encourage ASEAN, Japan, Korea, China, the EU and other nations to encourage progress by the GOB on the issues of forced labor and the transition of power to a democratically elected government.
• Encouraging other countries such as the EU, Canada and Japan to join in the arms embargo.
• Supporting the efforts of the U.N.'s special envoy for Burma.
• Endorsing U.N. General Assembly resolutions on Burma.⁽⁴⁾
• Endorsing U.N. Commission on Human Rights resolutions on Burma.⁽⁵⁾
• Supporting a series of ILO findings and actions and supporting the adoption of an emergency resolution on Burma.

II. U.S. Denunciation of Burma in Multilateral Fora

Since the Department released its Report on Labor Practices in Burma in September 1998, the Administration has continued to condemn the GOB's suppression of democracy and its persistent human rights violations in a variety of multilateral fora, including the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), U.N. Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR), and the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA). The Administration has utilized a variety of multilateral fora to express condemnation of the current regime in Burma and lead worldwide efforts to bring about change in that country and to document and bring international attention to on-going human rights violations.

A. Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

At a press conference the day before the 6^th meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright made it clear that, despite the reluctance of ASEAN members to criticize one another, she intended to raise the issue of Burma. She stated, "it is essential within this particular context to make sure that it is understood that what is going on in Burma does in fact pose a threat to the stability of the region and therefore an appropriate subject for discussion."⁽⁶⁾

During the meeting of the ASEAN Regional Forum on July 26, 1999, Secretary Albright criticized Burma's repressive policies and supported the role of the U.N. in encouraging the GOB to begin dialogue with democratic opposition parties. She stated that:

Burma continues to pose a threat to regional stability because of the government's failure to prevent wide-scale narcotics production and trafficking activities, and because its repressive policies have created strife and caused the outflow of refugees.

The United States urges Burma to shift direction and begin a dialogue with the democratic opposition, including Aung San Suu Kyi, and other representative groups. We support the UN role in encouraging this, and are disappointed that Special Envoy DeSoto has not yet been able to return to Burma, despite several requests over the past six months. We call upon the

Burmese authorities to allow such a visit as soon as possible.⁽⁷⁾

B. United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)

With the strong backing of the United States, the 53rd Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted Resolution 53/162, "Situation of human rights in Myanmar," on February 25, 1999. The Resolution stated that it was "[g]ravely concerned at the continuing and consistent violations of human rights in Myanmar [Burma], as reported by the Special Rapporteur," and it further deplored several specific continuing human rights violations in Burma, including forced labor, forced relocations, and denial of freedom of association.⁽⁸⁾

Using language that was later adopted by the U.N. Commission for Human Rights, the UNGA strongly urged the GOB to "ensure full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedom of association.... to put an end to... forced labour and forced relocations."⁽⁹⁾ It further urged the GOB to "fulfil its obligations as a State party to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), and to the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and to implement the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry of the International Labour Organization regarding the implementation of the Forced Labor Convention,"⁽¹⁰⁾ and to fulfil its obligations with regard to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.⁽¹¹⁾

C. United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR)

The United States strongly supported the United Nations Commission on Human Rights Resolution 1999/17, "Situation of human rights in Myanmar," which was adopted on April 23, 1999. The United States delegation in Geneva worked to obtain the passage of the Resolution, which expressed grave concern with "widespread and systematic use of forced labour... and the failure of the Government so far to implement the [Commission of Inquiry's] recommendation that it ensure the cessation by the authorities, and in particular the military, of such practices."⁽¹²⁾

The Resolution also deplored the widespread disrespect of the rule of law as well as numerous continuing human rights violations in Burma, as reported by the U.N. Special Rapporteur, including "systematic programmes of forced relocation... and the widespread use of forced labour, including for work on infrastructure projects and as porters for the army"⁽¹³⁾ as well as the "continuing violations of the rights of children, in particular through the lack of conformity of the existing legal framework with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, through conscription into forced labour programmes, through their military and sexual exploitation, and through discrimination against children belonging to ethnic and religious minority groups."⁽¹⁴⁾

Finally, the Resolution strongly urged the GOB to "ensure full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including freedoms of expression, association, movement and assembly... and to put an end to... forced labor and forced relocations."⁽¹⁵⁾ It also strongly urged the GOB to "fulfil its obligations as a State party to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) and to the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87) of the International Labour Organization and to cooperate with the International Labour Organization, in particular by implementing the conclusions of the Commission of Inquiry."⁽¹⁶⁾

III. ILO Resolution on Forced Labor in Burma

On June 16, 1999, President Clinton addressed the ILO's 87th International Labor Conference in Geneva, Switzerland. In his speech to the Conference, he singled out the Government of Burma for its flagrant violations of human rights and continued defiance of the ILO's fundamental values. He stated that:

Today, one member State, Burma, stands in defiance of the ILO's most fundamental values and most serious findings. The Director-General has just reported to us that the flagrant violation of human rights persists, and I urge the ILO Governing Body to take definite steps. For Burma is out of step with the standards of the world community and the aspirations of its people. Until people have the right to shape their destiny, we must stand by them and keep up the pressure for change.⁽¹⁷⁾

President Clinton is the first U.S. President to address the ILO in Geneva since its creation in 1919, and his presence underscored the U.S. commitment to labor rights around the globe. The President's decision to single out Burma for denunciation at this important and historic moment illustrated the high priority that he places on ending the human rights and worker's rights abuses occurring in Burma.

Furthermore, the President's address, with its condemnation of Burma, occurred just one day before the International Labour Conference was scheduled to vote upon an emergency resolution addressing forced labor in Burma. The U.S. delegation took a leading role in supporting this Resolution. During the discussion of the Resolution at the International Labor Conference, the Government delegate from the United States lent strong support to the Resolution, stating that:

We have before us a most grave, most serious and most troubling issue -- the widespread use of forced labor in Burma, a widespread and continuing use that stands in clear and repeated defiance of the most urgent appeals and recommendations of every supervisory procedure of this Organization. ...

Yesterday, in his address to this Conference, President Clinton clearly placed on the record my Government's support for the efforts the ILO, and our Director-General, have already taken to insist on compliance by Burma.

We also, of course, strongly support the resolution introduced by the Workers and Employers. It seems to us that the reasons for the very strong views about this matter felt by the Organization are to be found in the conclusions and recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry report submitted to us last year. ...

Let me cite ... the last paragraph from the Commission of Inquiry: "This report reveals a saga of untold misery and suffering, oppression and exploitation of large sections of the population by the Government, military and other public officers. It is a story of gross denial of human rights to which the people of Myanmar have been subjected particularly since 1988 and from which they find no escape, except fleeing from the country. The Government, the military and the administration seem oblivious to the human rights of the people and are trampling them with impunity. Their actions gravely offend human dignity."⁽¹⁸⁾

This Resolution is unprecedented in the history of the ILO - it does not simply denounce the situation and activities of a member State but significantly restricts all contact between Burma and ILO. ⁽¹⁹⁾ The resolution withdraws ILO technical cooperation or assistance to Burma, except for direct assistance in implementing the recommendations of the COI Report and withdraws future invitations to attend ILO meetings, symposia, or seminars, except for meetings with the sole purpose of securing compliance with the recommendations of the COI Report. These actions are to remain in force until Burma has implemented the recommendations of the ILO Commission of Inquiry, and the situation in Burma will remain on the agendas of subsequent Governing Body and International Labor Conference meetings. Some press accounts reported the Resolution as a de facto expulsion of Burma from the ILO.⁽²⁰⁾

1. The European Union suspended Burma's GSP benefits for industrial and agricultural products in December 1996, and Canada suspended GSP tariff preferences for imports of Burmese origin in August 1997.

2. The USG has interpreted a 1977 law requiring the U.S. to oppose IFI assistance "to any country found to have a consistent pattern of gross violations of human rights" to apply to Burma.

3. The European Union has also banned transfers of military and arms equipment, and there are no EU military attachés in Burma.

4. The most recent was U.N. General Assembly, Resolution A/RES/53/162 (25 February 1999).

5. The most recent was U.N. Commission on Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, "Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar," (23 April 1999).

6. Madeleine K. Albright, Statements at press conference, Singapore, 25 July 1999.

7. Madeleine K. Albright, Intervention at the 6^th ASEAN Regional Forum, Singapore, 26 July 1999.

8. United Nations, General Assembly, "Resolution adopted by the General Assembly 53/162: Situation of human rights in Myanmar," 53^rd session of the General Assembly (Geneva: United Nations, 25 February 1999) N. pag.

9. U.N. General Assembly, Resolution 53/162, paragraph 10.

10. U.N. General Assembly, Resolution 53/162, paragraph 14.

11. U.N. General Assembly, Resolution 53/162, paragraph 13.

12. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, paragraph 3(c).

13. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, paragraph 4(a).

14. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, paragraph 4(e).

15. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, paragraph 7(b).

16. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Resolution 1999/17, paragraph 7(j).

17. William J. Clinton, Address, 87^th Session of the International Labour Organization International Labor Conference, Geneva, 16 June 1999.

18. ILO, Provisional Record of the 21^st sitting, 27/10.

19. Article 33 of the ILO Constitution states, "In the event of any Member failing to carry out within the time specified the recommendations, if any, contained in the report of the Commission of Inquiry, or in the decision of the International Court of Justice, as the case may be, the Governing Body may recommend to the Conference such action as it may deem wise and expedient to secure compliance therewith."

20. Communications International, News No. 6 (June 1999).

IV. Conclusion

The Administration has repeatedly condemned the suppression of democracy and the widespread violation of fundamental human rights that have occurred under the current regime in Burma and has deplored, in particular, the pervasive use of forced labor by both government and military authorities. In an effort to support a transition to democratic rule and to encourage an end to persistent human rights abuses, including the use of forced labor, in Burma, the Administration has used a variety of political, economic, and other policy measures. Such measures include economic sanctions, withdrawal of aid, an arms embargo, and a ban on investment in Burma.

The Administration has also brought persistent and high level denunciations of the GOB in a variety of multilateral fora, including the ILO, Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the U.N. Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR), and the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA). The United States has utilized these fora to express condemnation of the current regime in Burma and led worldwide efforts to support change in that country, as well as to document and bring international attention to the gross violations of human rights in Burma.

On June 16, 1999, President Clinton addressed the ILO's 87th International Labor Conference in Geneva Switzerland. In his speech to the Conference, he singled out the Burmese regime for its flagrant violations of human rights and continued defiance of the ILO's fundamental values. The President's address underscored the U.S. commitment to labor rights around the globe, and illustrated the high priority that the United States places on ending the human rights and worker's rights abuses in Burma.

The President's denunciation of Burma in his address was also significant because it occurred the day before the International Labor Conference was scheduled to consider an emergency Resolution addressing forced labor in Burma. The adoption of such a Resolution is unprecedented in the history of the ILO - it does not simply denounce the situation and activities of a member State but significantly restricts all contact between Burma and ILO. Some press accounts reported the Resolution as a de facto expulsion of Burma from the ILO.