[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 161 (Thursday, September 17, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5710-S5711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

  SENATE RESOLUTION 701--URGING THE GOVERNMENT OF BURMA TO HOLD FREE, 
FAIR, INCLUSIVE, TRANSPARENT, PARTICIPATORY, AND CREDIBLE ELECTIONS ON 
                            NOVEMBER 8, 2020

  Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Cramer, Mr. 
Durbin, Mrs. Blackburn, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Wyden, Mrs. Gillibrand, and 
Mr. Markey) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 701

       Whereas the Union Election Commission of Burma announced 
     that the country will hold general elections on November 8, 
     2020;
       Whereas Burma's previous elections were characterized by 
     controversy, conflict, and disenfranchisement instigated by 
     the military of Burma (the ``Tatmadaw''), including in May 
     1990, November 2010, the April 2012 special elections, and 
     November 2015;
       Whereas the ongoing Tatmadaw offensives in Rakhine, 
     southern Chin, Kachin, and northern Shan states continue to 
     cause significant displacement of ethnic groups, creating 
     substantial challenges for the Union Election Commission to 
     generate a verified comprehensive voter list and set up 
     polling stations in conflict affected areas;
       Whereas provisions in the 2008 Constitution of Burma 
     allocate 25 percent of parliamentary seats to the military, 
     conferring exceptional powers to the Tatmadaw and thereby 
     affording the Tatmadaw considerable power to suppress basic 
     rights, including freedoms of expression, assembly, and 
     association;
       Whereas constitutional amendments proposed by the Union 
     Parliament's Charter Amendment Committee that aimed to 
     democratize the Burmese Constitution and ensure equal rights, 
     including voting rights, for all citizens of Burma were 
     defeated by military lawmakers, further enabling the military 
     to exercise outsized power and influence the country's 
     electoral processes;
       Whereas the National League of Democracy political party 
     has repeatedly failed to uphold and protect the rights of 
     ethnic and religious minorities since coming to power in 
     2015;
       Whereas, as of March 31, 2020, during the first four years 
     of Aung San Suu Kyi's civilian government, over 500 lawsuits 
     against more than 1,000 individuals have used Burma's legal 
     system to repress peaceful expressions critical of the 
     Tatmadaw, civilian government, and Aung San Suu Kyi, 
     resulting in the imprisonment of journalists, such as Reuters 
     reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, ethnic activists, and 
     student protestors;
       Whereas the Political Parties Registration Law of 2010 
     limits the right to form and join political parties only to 
     full citizens, thereby severely curtailing the political 
     participation of religious and ethnic minorities, including 
     Rohingya, those of Chinese and Indian descent, internally 
     displaced populations across Rakhine, Kachin, and Shan 
     states, and Burmese refugees in Thailand, Bangladesh, and 
     elsewhere in the region, many of whom had citizenship 
     documents canceled and who face multiple hurdles in gaining 
     citizenship documentation;
       Whereas the Government of Burma instituted a blackout, that 
     is still ongoing as of September 1, 2020, of mobile internet 
     services and restricted internet service quality in Rakhine 
     and Chin States, beginning in June 2019, thereby inhibiting 
     the ability to hold free and fair elections in these areas 
     and further exacerbating difficulties in aid distribution and 
     access to potentially life-saving information since the onset 
     of COVID-19;
       Whereas the Government of Burma continues to curtail 
     freedom of the press and civil society--which are critical 
     foundations for free and fair elections--as evidenced by 
     government directives to block independent and ethnic media 
     sites, and the anticipated restrictions by the Union Election 
     Commission on voter education and election observation 
     activities;
       Whereas Burma's 2015 election saw the disenfranchisement of 
     significant segments of the population, particularly of 
     Rohingya ethnicity, but also including those of Chinese and 
     Indian descent, Muslims, and other internally displaced 
     persons;
       Whereas ongoing conflict in 2015 was used to justify the 
     cancellation of elections in 7 townships and more than 400 
     ward and village tracts, mostly in Kachin, Shan, and Kayin 
     states;
       Whereas Burma's 1982 citizenship law stripped Rohingya of 
     their Burmese citizenship and subsequent policies rendered 
     them stateless and disenfranchised, despite having the right 
     to vote as recently as 2010 and ability to serve in 
     parliament as recently as 2015;
       Whereas in 2017, the Tatmadaw commenced a genocide against 
     Rohingya civilians in Rakhine state, causing over 740,000 
     Rohingya refugees to flee into Bangladesh, joining over 
     200,000 who had been previously displaced in prior waves of 
     anti-Rohingya violence, resulting in more than 1,000,000 
     Rohingya refugees not present in Burma for the election;
       Whereas the Government of Burma has not created conditions 
     conducive to repatriation and political and electoral 
     participation of Rohingya refugees and has not made progress 
     on the most crucial of the 88 recommendations of the Rakhine 
     Advisory Commission identified by Rohingya refugees as 
     prerequisites to voluntary repatriation, including freedom of 
     movement, provision of civil documentation, and a transparent 
     pathway to restoration of full citizenship;
       Whereas the Tatmadaw's senior generals have been sanctioned 
     by the United States Government for perpetrating gross human 
     rights violations and are subject to ongoing investigations 
     into their conduct by both the

[[Page S5711]]

     International Criminal Court and the International Court of 
     Justice; and
       Whereas the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the 
     Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar stated on July 13, 2020, 
     ``The people of Myanmar deserve a free and fair election this 
     November and this includes respect for the right to vote 
     regardless of one's race, ethnicity or religion, freedom of 
     expression and assembly, and access to information and a free 
     press. It will also require that steps are taken now to 
     assure that those in conflict areas will be able to exercise 
     their rights.'': Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) recognizes the importance of free, fair, inclusive, 
     transparent, participatory, and credible elections in Burma 
     and that the 2020 elections mark a critical juncture in 
     Burma's democratic process;
       (2) stands with the people of Burma in their ambition for 
     sustainable peace, a genuine democracy, and the realization 
     of fundamental human rights for all;
       (3) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State 
     to--
       (A) support Burma's democratic transition, including by 
     emphasizing the importance to that transition of this 
     election as well as of the Government of Burma undertaking a 
     credible and sustainable process of genuine national and 
     ethnic reconciliation;
       (B) support free, fair, inclusive, transparent, 
     participatory, and credible elections in Burma, including by 
     working to ensure that the Tatmadaw and its affiliates do not 
     interfere with vigorous public debate or the mechanism of the 
     electoral process and that other government officials do not 
     use official resources for electioneering;
       (C) call for a ceasefire in all Burmese states and 
     localities to ensure that conflict is not used as an excuse 
     to deny people the right to vote;
       (D) support the right to vote for internally displaced 
     persons, refugees, and other Burmese communities outside of 
     Burma, with specific attention to the disenfranchised 
     Rohingya people;
       (E) condemn any action taken by the government, political 
     parties, military, or Union Election Commission to limit 
     civil society participation in the election, including 
     prohibitions on voter education and election observation, or 
     otherwise restrict civil society or humanitarian space in the 
     lead up to the election or in the post-election period;
       (F) ensure that United States-based social media companies, 
     including Facebook, not allow their platforms to be used as 
     vehicles for spreading misinformation or advocating violence 
     or voter intimidation to suppress voter participation; and
       (G) ensure that the Department of State's 2020 Country 
     Report on Human Rights Practices includes an extensive 
     evaluation of the Burmese election, including an assessment 
     of inclusivity, participation, and interference;
       (4) calls upon the United States Government, in partnership 
     with the international community, to ensure that the Union 
     Election Commission functions as an independent electoral 
     management body that establishes a regulatory framework that 
     fosters fair, open, and transparent electoral processes, and 
     that the Tatmadaw publicly affirms that it will honor the 
     results of such elections;
       (5) calls upon the Secretary of State and the Administrator 
     of the United States Agency for International Development to 
     work with like-minded regional and international 
     organizations, such as the International Foundation for 
     Electoral Systems, the International Institute for Democracy 
     and Electoral Assistance, the Asian Network for Free 
     Elections, People's Alliance for Credible Elections (PACE), 
     and the Carter Center, to ensure that the general elections 
     in Burma meet international standards of free and fair 
     elections, including by seeking full and unimpeded access to 
     all aspects of the electoral process for international and 
     domestic observers; and
       (6) calls on the President to consider sanctioning 
     individuals within the Government of Burma, the Tatmadaw, and 
     among military associated businesses and ultranationalist 
     groups, whom the United States Government determines 
     undermine free, fair, inclusive, transparent, participatory, 
     and credible elections in Burma or the safety of such 
     elections.

                          ____________________