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Mr. Jens StoltenbergThe Prime Minister of NorwayP.B. 8001 Dep0030 OsloNorwayDate: December 22, 2010
Dear Mr. Prime Minister,
We are Burmese dissidents overseas struggling for freedom and democracy in Burma since 1988. For decades, Norway has been one of the leading critiques of the military regime in Burma and supporters of the democratic forces in the country. The strong commitment is mainly due to Norway's emphasis on human rights and to the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi in 1991. Norway has belonged to a group of like-minded countries which have been advocating the strongest possible phrasing of resolutions in the UN. It had placed particular emphasis on the need to include elements such as a strong, condemnation of Burma's human rights violations, requests for the release of political prisoners, a call for a dialogue between the junta, and the democratic opposition's right to a legitimate place in the country's political life.
Norway is the first EU nations calling for implementation of international sanctions or the threat of such sanctions against Burma, and also has introduced several unilateral measures against Burma in response to the deteriorations of democracy and human rights in the country.
In her speech with regard to Norway's Burma Policy: Opportunities and Means on December 9 1997, the Honorable Minister for International Development and Human Rights, Ms. Hilde F. Johnson had addressed the Norway government’s commitment on democratization Burma. Norway supported the role of the National League for Democracy and its legitimate role as a majority, governing party after its landslide victory in 1990 elections. She had also outlined that the instruments of Norway's Burma policy can be divided into four main categories: Firstly, public criticism of the Burmese regime in the context of human rights and democracy; Secondly, active efforts to achieve international sanctions against the regime; Thirdly, implementation of unilateral Norwegian measures if the basis for international sanctions is lacking; Fourthly, political and economic support for the Burmese democratic forces.
Since 1995 the Norway government had issued a statement advising private Norwegian companies in general not to invest in Burma as long as the present situation continues, it also included advice to private companies to avoid trade with Burma.Council on Ethics adopted by the Ministry of Finance on 1 March 2010 pursuant to Act no. 123 of 21 December 2005 relating to the Government Pension Fund, section 7 clearly stated on Section 2. (3) The Ministry of Finance may, on the advice of the Council of Ethics, exclude companies from the investment universe of the Fund if there is an unacceptable risk that the company contributes to or is responsible for:
a) serious or systematic human rights violations, such as murder, torture, deprivation of liberty, forced labour, the worst forms of child labour and other child exploitation;b) serious violations of the rights of individuals in situations of war or conflict;c) severe environmental damage;d) gross corruption;e) other particularly serious violations of fundamental ethical norms.
In addition, we were greatly appreciated with the Norway Government’s position on human rights situations in Burma and its cozy relationship with the democratic oppositions including our leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.
However, we have learnt that the government of Norway now is complicit in serious human rights abuses in Burma committed in connection with projects by companies using money from a Norwegian investment fund, according to the organization Earth Rights International written in Irrawaddy online news media (irrawaddy.org) and the Norway base media dvb.no.
A report issued on Wednesday by the US and Thailand-based human rights and environmental organization describes how the Norwegian Pension Fund-Global, the world's second largest sovereign wealth fund, has invested US $4.7 billion in 15 companies operating in Burma and which are alleged to be guilty of grave human rights abuses.
The report also criticizes the Norwegian government's Council on Ethics, alleging that it wasn't doing enough to make sure companies operating in Burma were keeping to ethical guidelines established in 2004.
The organization says the Council wrote to the Norwegian Ministry of Finance in 2007, stating that “if a company had an agreement with the Burmese authorities to construct new pipelines in Burma that alone would be grounds for a company's exclusion from the Fund, due to the high risk of negative human rights impacts.”
Pointing out that at least seven companies in the Fund's portfolio were now involved in new pipeline construction in Burma—with investments in the five involved in the Yadana and Yetagun projects alone amounting to $3.6 billion—EarthRights International senior consultant Matthew Smith said: “The Council's inaction on the Fund's holdings in these companies puts the Norwegian people in an inconvenient position of complicity in grave human rights abuses in Burma. “The Norwegian people's money is invested in corporate human rights abuses while the ethical guidelines go unapplied. The ethics are broken but not beyond fixing.”
Earth Rights International said the Council on Ethics had until now recommended the Norwegian Ministry of Finance to exclude only one company from the Fund—Dongfeng Motor Group Ltd., a Chinese company that sells equipment to Burma. And, the report can be viewed on http://www.earthrights.org/sites/default/files/documents/Broken-Ethics.pdf in details for your information.
Oxymoronically, Than Shwe junta is getting stronger by the help of Norway to oppress the oppositions and to continue waging wars against the ethnic minorities. The prisoners of conscience in total of 2200 are still remained in the jails and some of them are dead in the prisons by the abandonment. The looming of the new dictatorship via sham elections is about to doom the country. The existence of our leader and a Nobel Peace Laureate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is at stake. The floods of the ethnic Karen refugees into its territory daily due to the ongoing wars by the junta have made neighboring Thailand at unease. The rumors of the imminent wars against KIO ethnic group
are getting louder in the nation. The human rights violations in Burma are still mounting. Sadly, Than Shwe junta has finally gained more and more confident to do whatever it wants by the feeding of Norway and others.
However, in our honest assessment, Norway government would definitely hold on its principle of respecting human rights and maintain its sympathy over the fifty five million people of Burma struggling for freedom and democracy for so long. We also understood the nature of capitalism that sometime runs into a collision course between the government and trade in business nature at some point. Nonetheless, traditionally strong democratic country like Norway will always find a way to sort it out such complication swiftly for sure. In our case, we honestly believe that it is the time for the Norway Government to intervene in this matter to prevent further damage that has already hurt the reputation and ethics of Norway, which values human rights so much.
Sincerely,
Co-opreative Organizations
1 ) Overseas National Students' Organization of Burma ( H.Q ) Denmark
Tay Za Thura
General Secretary
E-mail : [email protected]
2 ) Burmese Democratic Community ( Netherlands )
Ko Myat Thiha
Political Dept
E-mail : [email protected]
3 ) International Foundation for Burma National Congress ( USA ) ( I.F.B.N.C )
Ko Htun Hlaing
Director ( Political Action Committee )
E-mail : [email protected]
4 ) National League for Democracy ( L.A ) Netherlands
Ko Hla Myint Naing
Chairman
E-mail : [email protected]
5 ) Overseas National Students' Organization of Burma ( Branch ) Sweden
Ko Toe Win
Political Dept
E-mail : [email protected]
6 ) Burma Democratic Concern ( BDC ) United Kingdom
Ko Myo Thein
Director
E-mail : [email protected]
7 ) Burma Bureau Germany
Ko Sonny Aung Than Oo
Foreign Affairs
E-mail : [email protected]
8 ) Overseas National Students' Organization of Burma ( Branch ) Thailand
Ko Than Phay
Secretary
E-mail : [email protected]
9 ) All Burma Monks Representative Committee ( India )
Ashin Thavara
General Secretary
E-mail : [email protected]
10 ) Burma's National Reconcilation Action Committee ( Norway )
Ko Aung Htun
Hunger Strike Action Committee
E-mail : [email protected]
