Burmese Seek NZ Support for Sanctions Against Military Regime

A group of refugees from Burma will tomorrow deliver a letter to the Prime Minister urging the Government to act to restore democracy in their home country. Council of Trade Unions president Ross Wilson will join the delegation of 30 Burmese, who are coming down from Auckland to deliver the letter at Parliament.

The Burmese military regime has been holding a national convention for the past month to draw up a new constitution. This is going ahead without the participation of the National League for Democracy (NLD) which overwhelmingly won the country's election in 1990 but has been prevented by the military from taking office.

The NLD has refused to take part because its leader, Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, remains under house arrest and party members are in jail.

"The constitutional convention is a sham," Ross Wilson said. "Burmese people suffer continued oppression, trade unionists are jailed and killed and thousands work under forced labour.

"The delegation will be asking the Government to urge the UN for comprehensive economic and financial sanctions against the regime, for the UN to recognise the legitimately elected NLD, and for the regime to be expelled from the UN just as South Africa under apartheid was expelled."