[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 116 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 116

            Providing for free and fair elections in Burma.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 26, 2015

  Mr. Graham (for himself, Mr. Menendez, and Mr. Rubio) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                               Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
            Providing for free and fair elections in Burma.

Whereas the Union Election Commission of Burma announced that the country will 
        hold general elections in the final quarter of calendar year 2015;
Whereas Burma's history with general elections has been characterized by 
        controversy, conflict, and interference instigated by the military of 
        Burma (the Tatmadaw), including in May 1990 and November 2010, and in 
        the April 2012 by-elections;
Whereas the Tatmadaw refused to transfer power to the National League for 
        Democracy (NLD), an opposition political party led by Daw Aung San Suu 
        Kyi, following the May 1990 elections in which the NLD won 392 of 492 
        seats, and used the flawed 2008 Constitution of Burma to undermine 
        elections in November 2010;
Whereas stated intentions of the Government of Burma to negotiate a Federal 
        union with ethnic leaders and groups is not matched by the ongoing 
        Tatmadaw offensives in Kachin and Northern Shan States;
Whereas, on March 5, 2015, and March 10, 2015, the Government of Burma responded 
        to peaceful student protests in Rangoon and Letpadan with brutal 
        violence and detained over 120 peaceful protestors;
Whereas the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary-General on 
        Sexual Violence in Conflict stated on January 27, 2015, ``I . . . urge 
        the Government to put a final end to impunity for conflict-related 
        sexual violence that is particularly targeting ethnic minority areas.'';
Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights 
        in Myanmar stated on January 16, 2015, ``I remain particularly concerned 
        at the failure of measures to ensure accountability of military 
        officials, including [for] sexual and gender based violence in conflict 
        zones.'';
Whereas the Tatmadaw continues to wield unchecked political and economic power 
        and influence in Burma, as evidenced by the consumption of over 23 
        percent of the national budget; the set-aside of one-quarter of the 
        seats in parliament which gives the Tatmadaw veto power over legislative 
        and constitutional reforms; and control of the country's largest 
        business conglomerates, including in the natural resource sector;
Whereas the 2008 Constitution of Burma preserves and protects the power and 
        influence of the Tatmadaw through Articles 417, 418, 420, and 425, which 
        provide the President of Burma with authority to declare a state of 
        emergency ``due to acts or attempts to take over the sovereignty of the 
        Union by insurgency, violence and wrongful or forcible means''; to 
        transfer legislative, executive, and judicial powers to the Commander-
        in-Chief of the Defense Services ``to enable him to carry out the 
        necessary measures to speedily restore its original situation in the 
        Union''; for such Commander to ``restrict or suspend as required, one or 
        more fundamental rights of the citizens in the required area''; and for 
        such Commander to extend the state of emergency for two periods of six 
        months each;
Whereas other provisions in the 2008 Constitution of Burma are contrary to 
        democracy and the rule of law, including Article 59(f), which prohibits 
        anyone from being President who has children born outside of Burma; 
        Article 354, which limits certain freedoms that contradict laws 
        ``enacted for Union security, prevalence of law and order, community 
        peace and tranquility or public order and morality''; and Article 436, 
        which subjects constitutional amendments to a 75-percent vote threshold 
        in parliament (thereby confirming the Tatmadaw's veto power);
Whereas the NLD Central Executive Committee released a statement on January 13, 
        2015, expressing concern with the stall of democratic transition and 
        reforms in Burma, and identifying the following conditions as 
        prerequisites for free and fair general elections: constitutional 
        amendments ``in line with the desire of the people''; government 
        involvement that is free from bias; fair and credible enforcement of 
        election laws and regulations by the Union Election Commission; and 
        cessation of discrimination and bias by the government to political 
        parties;
Whereas the Commander-in-Chief in Burma General Min Aung Hlaing stated on 
        January 21, 2015, regarding the planned elections in Burma, ``When 
        things become really out of control, if the President says the military 
        needs to step in, in that region or state, the military will step in 
        when a state of emergency is declared.'';
Whereas a state of emergency and military administration was declared on 
        February 17, 2015, in Kokang Self-Administered Zone due to renewed armed 
        conflict;
Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights 
        in Myanmar stated on January 19, 2015, ``. . . there are signs that 
        since my last visit, restrictions and harassment on civil society and 
        the media may have worsened . . . If Myanmar is serious about 
        transitioning to democracy, it must be serious about allowing persons 
        affected by its actions to express their frustrations without being 
        punished.'';
Whereas the Government of Burma responded to the various concerns raised by the 
        Special Rapporteur with accusations of interference in Burma's internal 
        affairs, and pointedly failed to criticize slanderous comments made by a 
        Buddhist nationalist monk who called the Special Rapporteur a ``bitch'' 
        and ``whore'';
Whereas the United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
        Samantha Power stated in Louisville, Kentucky, on January 12, 2015, 
        ``Burma is still a long way from being a rights-respecting democracy. 
        The civilian government is still subordinate to the military, and the 
        Constitution continues to give the military the broad authority to 
        dismiss Parliament and veto any constitutional amendment.'';
Whereas Ambassador Power further stated, ``Attacks against the Rohingya and 
        other Muslim groups have even increased . . . Yet virtually no one has 
        been held accountable, and the humanitarian situation continues to 
        deteriorate.'';
Whereas the Government of Burma, under the direction and leadership of President 
        Thein Sein, submitted draft legislation to parliament that seeks to 
        stigmatize and discriminate against religious minorities in Burma 
        through coercive population control, marriage restrictions, and anti-
        conversion methods that violate established international human rights 
        norms and instruments to which Burma is a party;
Whereas Ambassador Power reaffirmed, ``Our tools include incentivizing continued 
        progress, shining a bright light on the government's shortcoming, and 
        imposing targeted sanctions on individuals who stand in the way of 
        change.'';
Whereas President Barack Obama stated during his visit to Burma on November 14, 
        2014, that the United States expects elections in Burma ``to take place 
        on time. We do not want to see delays, because it's time for the voice 
        of the people of Burma to be heard in a fair, free, and transparent 
        manner . . . the constitution amendment process needs to reflect 
        inclusion rather than exclusion, that there are certain provisions in 
        the Burmese constitution that objectively don't make much sense.''; and
Whereas internationally recognized standards of free and fair elections include: 
        the right of adult citizens to register and vote in elections, without 
        discrimination; equal opportunity for individuals to stand as 
        candidates, form political parties, and conduct campaign and civic 
        education activities free from interference and intimidation; the fair 
        and impartial conduct of elections, including accountable voter 
        registration processes and transparent resolution of election disputes 
        by independent election commissions and judiciaries; and an electoral 
        environment that is free from fear, intimidation, and violence: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) endorses the aforementioned internationally recognized 
        prerequisites for free and fair general elections in Burma and 
        finds them consistent with those articulated by the National 
        League for Democracy in its January 13, 2015, statement;
            (2) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State 
        to--
                    (A) publicly support meaningful efforts to reform 
                the 2008 Constitution of Burma, with the full and 
                unfettered participation of the people of Burma and in 
                a manner that promotes and protects the democratic 
                development of Burma and safeguards against arbitrary 
                and capricious interference by the Tatmadaw;
                    (B) support free and fair elections in Burma, 
                including by taking bilateral and multilateral steps, 
                as necessary, to ensure that the Tatmadaw and its 
                affiliates do not influence the outcome of such 
                elections (including through a declaration of a state 
                of emergency in order to influence or postpone such 
                polls) and that President Thein Sein and other ruling 
                government officials do not engage in the use of 
                official resources (including international assistance) 
                for electioneering; and
                    (C) express solidarity with the United Nations 
                special mechanisms that are investigating and 
                protesting against violations of human rights in Burma, 
                and to express concern regarding the Government of 
                Burma's refusal to work cooperatively with such 
                mechanisms;
            (3) calls upon the United States Government, in partnership 
        with other international donors, to ensure that the Government 
        of Burma and the Union Election Commission function in an 
        independent, fair, and impartial manner throughout the 
        preparation and conduct of elections in Burma, and that the 
        Tatmadaw publicly affirms in advance that it will honor the 
        results of such elections;
            (4) expects the President to delay further steps toward 
        normalization of relations with Burma, including immediately 
        suspending all military-to-military engagement with the 
        Tatmadaw, should the Government of Burma, including the 
        Tatmadaw and any of its affiliates, undermine the prospects for 
        free and fair elections in Burma;
            (5) expects the President to take additional actions to 
        sanction specific individuals within the Government of Burma 
        whom the President determines undermine free and fair elections 
        in Burma, including through the denial of visas and freezing of 
        assets of such individuals, as appropriate;
            (6) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State to 
        take action to ensure that ethnic groups in Burma are not 
        coerced, in any way or by any means, into ceasefire agreements 
        with the Government of Burma;
            (7) calls upon the Secretary of State to work with like-
        minded regional and international governments to ensure that 
        the general elections in Burma meet international standards of 
        free and fair elections, including by ensuring that 
        international and domestic monitors have full and unimpeded 
        access to all aspects of the electoral process; and
            (8) calls upon the Secretary of State to publicly and 
        forcefully condemn human rights abuses committed by the 
        Tatmadaw and to demand credible and independent investigations 
        and prosecutions of any and all allegations of such abuse, 
        including with respect to--
                    (A) the January 19, 2015, rape and murder by the 
                Tatmadaw of two Kachin volunteer schoolteachers in 
                Northern Shan State;
                    (B) the December 22, 2014, murder of Daw Khin Win, 
                a nonviolent protestor at the Letpadaung mine site;
                    (C) the November 19, 2014, killing of 23 cadets in 
                Laiza, Kachin State, by the Tatmadaw's shelling;
                    (D) the October 4, 2014, murder of Ko Par Gyi in 
                Mon State, a freelance journalist and former body guard 
                of opposition political leader Aung San Suu Kyi; and
                    (E) the September 13, 2012, fatal shooting by the 
                Tatmadaw of 14-year-old Ja Seng Ing in Hpakant 
                Township, Kachin State.
                                 <all>