Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to amend general business notice of motion No. 750 standing in my name today, relating to human rights and electoral conditions in Burma.

Leave granted.

I move the motion as amended:

That the Senate:

(a)

notes that:

(i)

the 5 March 2010 report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar documents ‘a pattern of gross and systematic violation of human rights which has been in place for many years and still continues’,

(ii)

the Special Rapporteur states that ‘the possibility exists that some of these human rights violations may entail categories of crimes against humanity or war crimes under the terms of the Statute of the International Criminal Court’,

(iii)

the Special Rapporteur recommends that ‘UN institutions may consider the possibility to establish a commission of inquiry with a specific fact finding mandate to address the question of international crimes’,

(iv)

on 9 March 2010 Burma announced the election laws for the forthcoming election based on the 2008 constitution that:

(a)

excludes persons serving prison terms and public servants from standing for election,

(b)

may prevent the National League for Democracy (NLD), headed by Aung San Suu Kyi, and winners of the country’s last election, from registering if Aung San Suu Kyi remains a party member, and

(c)

annuls the results of the 1990 election, which saw the NLD win more than 80 per cent of the vote, and

(v)

on 10 March 2010 the United States of America (US) Assistant Secretary of State, Mr Kurt Campbell, said that the election laws were ‘disappointing and regrettable’, and the US State Department spokesperson, Dr Philip Crowley, said ‘given the tenor of the election laws that they put forward, there’s no hope that this election will be credible’; and

I seek leave to make a very brief statement as to the intent of the motion and the amendment.

Alan Ferguson (SA, Deputy-President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Leave is granted for two minutes.

Scott Ludlam (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the Senate. This motion, as senators may be aware, is congratulating the government, which is something that happens all too rare in this place for obvious reasons. In this case, quite unambiguously, the government has taken quite an important lead internationally on Burma’s foreign policy. The Greens and the Burmese pro-democracy movement in exile and within that country have been calling for a very long period for an investigation into possible options for the establishment of a United Nations commission of inquiry into war crimes and crimes against humanity in Burma. Overnight, the Australian government has indicated that it will support possible options for such a commission of inquiry. That is to be welcomed unconditionally. We have been calling for this move for quite some time. In the UN Human Rights Commission, a report was tabled overnight. The progress report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar noted :

... a pattern of gross and systematic violation of human rights that has been in place for many years.

               …            …            …

Given the gross and systematic nature of human rights violations in Myanmar over a period of many years, and the lack of accountability, there is an indication that those human rights violations are the result of a State policy that involves authorities in the executive, military and judiciary at all levels.

The government needs to take prompt and effective measures to investigate these facts. I am pleased to be standing in the chamber today to acknowledge that the government has taken that step. These moves are all too rare. It puts us in a position of taking international leadership. I commend this motion to the Senate.

Question agreed to.