Mission Statement |
"By
vigorously opposing all unjust and oppressive laws,
and by helping restore the principle of the Rule of
Law, the Burma Lawyers' Council aims to contribute to
the transformation of Burma where all the citizens enjoy
the equal protection of law under the democratic federal
constitution which will guarantee fundamentals of human
rights." |
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Objectives of the BLC |
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Promote
and assist in the educating, implementating, restoring,
and improving basic human rights, democratic rights, and
the rule of law in Burma. |
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Assist in
the drafting and implementating a constitution for Burma,
and in associated matters of legal education; and |
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Participate
and cooperate in the emergence of a Civil Society in Burma.
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Strenght of the BLC |
The
majority of the Executive Committee members are experienced
in legal field and also key participants in other vital
organizations fighting for democracy and human rights
in Burma. The BLC is the only organization, which can
contribute to the protection of human rights from a
legal perspective, in the democratic movement of Burma.
The BLC also endeavours to practise collective, consensus
based leadership and decision making, which may be a
useful model to other less democratically inclined organisations.
The academic training that BLC members have undergone
gives the group considerable skills in assimilating
information, analysis, rationalising situations etc.
In addition the group receives considerable legal support
within and without Burma. |
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Target Population |
The
BLC is Working for the entire grass
roots population of Burma (famers, soldiers, workers,
civil service administrative staff, the staff and proprietors
of small enterprises etc.) with a particular emphasis
on the legal needs of women. However practical, strategic
considerations meant that the BLC is working
through the middle class prolitically progressive
population, private employers in large and medium size
enterprises, intellectuals and academics, civil servants,
political leaders and the second line leaders of the
opposition. |
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Major Activities |
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Legal
research and Documentation |
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Legal
research and documentation are BLC's daily core activities.
They are the instruments and basic to all BLC's work
within a variety of contexts. Such daily activities
include the provision of training on particular issues,
input into the formulation of public education campaigns,
the provision of advice to a particular group, or the
representation of an individual whose rights are being
violated by governmental authorities. |
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A
recognised forum for legal issues pertaining to Burma |
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As
the only Burmese Law organization, the BLC is committed
to fulfilling its responsibilities to the movement for
the restoration of democracy in Burma. Its long-term
strategy is being realized by assuming a co-ordinating
and leadership role in providing a forum for everyone
both within and without Burma who are involved and interested
in the legal and human rights aspects, of the struggle
for democracy in Burma. The tri-annual journal on "Legal
Issues on Burma" remains the primary strategic
weapon in informing the international community on a
variety of legal issues specifically relating to Burma,
such as conflict resolution, transition justice, constitutionalism,
rule of law, human rights abuses. Articles for the journals
are invited and received from a wide variety of sources
including academics, politicians, practising lawyers,
and NGO workers. |
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Burma's
Constitution |
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The
Burmese military regime seeks to include unelected members
of its military in a system of government, through a
constitution it has prepared in a sham National Convention,
whereby such unelected military personnel will have
a permanent and dominant position in the legislature,
executive and judiciary of a future "democratic"
government. A second draft of the constitution is now
being prepared, based on the consultations and the comments
on the first draft. The majority of the members of the
constitutional drafting committee of the NCUB, consists
of the executive of the BLC. The BLC devotes considerable
time and resources to public awareness and education
on the constitution-drafting process, to help the people
of Burma gain basic constitutional knowledge. The BLC
is currently the only organization with a consistent
program of education on constitutional knowledge. The
constitution is a major topic and is regularly addressed
in BLC publications in English, and entirely in the
"Journal of Constitutional Affairs" in Burmese,
which is also published three times in a year. |
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Legal
Assistance Programs |
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In
the past year BLC has begun to undertake the provision
of direct legal assistance to particular individuals
and groups, and we have begun planning for systematic
analysis of Burma's legal system, its strengths and
weaknesses. |
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Study
and Analysis of the Judicial System in Burma |
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Most
commentators on Burma agree that the judicial system
is not independent of the regime and is a basic tool
used for political oppression, and is corrupt. However,
it is rare to see a detailed analysis of particular
aspects of the judicial system, that is being used as
a tool for oppression or corrupt. This lack of specific
information, also unfortunately results in the inability
to make specific and concrete challenges to the independence
and the state of the judicial system in Burma. The closed
environment and resistance to reforms, leaves little
understanding of the standard universal norms, procedures,
and administrative requirements for a fair, impartial,
and effective judicial system. It is hoped that a thorough
analysis (based on information on hand) of Burma's judicial
system - undertaken with academic rigor, will enable
both outside interests and the people themselves to
apply pressure on the regime, to reform the specific
failings and the weaknesses in the judicial system. |
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Assisting
with Improvements to Ethnic Judicial Systems |
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In
Burma's border region, there are numerous ethnic areas
where control is exercised effectively by the ethnic
groups' own organizations. The military regime's laws
and procedures are not applicable or relevant to the
people, who live in these remote areas that are traditionally
governed by local laws, that are applied by their own
organizations. This is said to be a fairer system, as
the military's court system is plagued by corruption
administering justice, the local organizations have
attempted to resolve many of the legal issues arising
within these communities, by applying local laws through
their own legal systems. |
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Advocacy
and Strategic Planning |
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The
BLC continues to promote human rights and democracy,
as they go hand and hand. Without democracy and the
application of democratic practices, the BLC believes
that human rights protection can never become a reality.
Where authoritarian regimes have been in total control
for a long period of time, it will not be easy to immediately
change the whole system of a country. In such as situation,
the oppressed people should be encouraged to seek ways
and means to alleviate their sufferings, in relation
to particular issues. This will allow them to move towards
democracy step by step, by promoting human rights through
the resolving of one issue after another. By sharing
knowledge on advocacy and strategic planning amongst
the people and the grassroots leaders, the participation
of the grassroots people can then be systematically
secured. |
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Background |
| After
the military seized power in Burma in 1962, and after
the students' uprising on 7 July, the pro-democracy
resistance movement against the military, consisted
mainly of students who were committed to the path of
armed resistance, and the townspeople of different levels
of society, who were also committed to resisting the
military- through various means at their disposal. In
this society, the lawyers formed an integral part of
the pro-democracy resistance movement.
In the Burma Socialist Programme Party (BSPP) era (1962-1988),
where all private enterprise was nationalised and banned,
the youth who sought to avoid employment as government
servants in the military led BSPP, planned their alternative
private professional employment, which resulted in a
number of them studying law, and entering the legal
profession.
The Lawyers in private practice, consisted of persons
who's sole purpose for entering the legal profession
was to secure a livelihood, and those actively sought
to oppose the oppressive legal system and its laws,
and to represent and assist the people who were suffering
adversity, due to the oppressive legal system and its
laws. In the legal profession, there were a large number
of senior Lawyers who regularly represented the people
who were arrested and prosecuted for their dissident
activities against the military regime, and in doing
so these Lawyers took an active stand against the military
regime, and risked their own liberty.
During the BSPP era, Burma Bar Council and all lawyers'
associations in the whole country have never at any
time cooperated, or supported the activities of the
BSPP.
During 1988, emergence of the Four Eights' mass movement,
senior Lawyers of Burma Bar Council joined hands with
the students and the people and actively took part in
the uprising, and issued statements and declarations
in support of the movement for democracy. Burma Bar
Council's declarations and statements were a driving
force for the lawyers all over the country to participate
in the people’s uprising. The lawyers' associations
in cities big and small, embraced the declarations and
the statements of the Bar Council, joined the students
and the people in their respective towns and districts,
and actively took part in the uprising.
During the demonstrations, extensive references were
made to the chapter "The positive aspects of democracy"
in the book "Our Union of Burma" written by
Dr Maung Maung in 1959, by the Lawyers' Association-
when conducting its campaign of dissent and agitation
against Dr Maung Maung, a legal academic who was then
the President of Burma and who protected the military
rule- resulting in an uprising that spread throughout
the nation. Due to the Lawyers' active involvement in
the Four Eights Uprising, the State Law and Order Restoration
Council (SLORC) after seizing power arrested and tortured
Lawyers throughout the country. Prominent in such arrests
and sending reports to the British Broadcasting Corporation,
and U Htun Tin, a Supreme Court Senior Lawyer and one
of the leaders of the National League for Democracy
(NLD) Party. Due to the SLORC military junta's substantial
pressure, the activities of individual Lawyers and the
voice of the Lawyers' associations in Burma were suppressed
and silenced. With the aim of reactivating the activities
of the Lawyers and Lawyers' Associations and to challenge
and fight the military dictatorship before the law,
the Burma Lawyers' Council was founded in the revolutionary
area.
The Burma Lawyers' Council was established by Lawyers,
who have actively opposed the military dictatorship
and arrived in the revolutionary areas before and after
the Four Eights' Uprising, and also Lawyers who have
for various reasons ended up in overseas countries.
The current political situation in Burma and overseas
created the need for its formation to continue the lawyers'
struggle, and from March 1994, a group of Lawyers working
together became instrumental in forming the first Executive
Council of the Burma Lawyers' Council on 20 October
1994, and a declaration was issued in this regard. It
is Council’s aim to contact and communicate overseas
Legal associations, and legal academic to obtain their
advice, assistance and cooperation. It is also the aim
of the Council to assist the democratic forces to the
best of its ability in all legal matters, when such
requests for assistance are made to the Council.
In Burma under
the oppressive military dictatorship system, the unfair
and oppressive laws, and the system of justice, the
common people are denied their basic rights under the
Rule of Law. It is the Burma Lawyers' Council's aim
to vigorously oppose all such unfair and oppressive
laws, and to restore the basic principles of the Rule
of Law. We believe that only when the basic principles
of the Rule of Law are put into practice and adhered
to; it will assist and support the emergence of a modern,
advanced, peaceful, and a new democratic Union in Burma.
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Contact Us |
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Bangkok
Office : |
Burma
Lawyers' Council
P.O. Box 14, Ngam Wong Wan Post
Office, 11001, Nonthaburi, Thailand,
E- Mail : blcsan@ksc.th.com |
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for
additional information about our branches click
here |
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