Release Burmese Artist Leading Cyclone Relief

Alert Issued: June 19, 2008

UPDATE: On August 7, 2008, Zarganar was charged by a special Burmese court in the Insein jail, where he is being held, with including creating public unrest and unlawful association. The charges are directly related to his work providing aid to cyclone victims.

On June 4, 2008, famous Burmese comedian and renowned human rights activist Zarganar was detained by ten officials from Burma's State Peace and Development Council at his Rangoon home. Zarganar's arrest came just hours after he appeared in a BBC report about public anger over the military junta's handling of humanitarian aid to cyclone victims.

In the month since Cyclone Nargis brought devastation to the Irrawaddy delta, Zarganar has mobilized hundreds of Burmese volunteers to bring aid to 42 devastated villages. Zarganar's continuing arbitrary detention by the Burmese junta is in violation of international law and directly threatens such relief efforts.

Demand that the Burmese government immediately release human rights defender Zarganar in conformity with both international and domestic law. Burma must also stop hindering the work of private citizens trying to bring relief to victims of the cyclone.

Sample Letter:

General Than Shwe
Naypyidaw

Your Excellency:

I am writing to express my deep concern about information I have received that Zarganar, an artist who was involved in the effort to bring relief to the victims of Cyclone Nargis, was arrested at his home on June 4, 2008. Reports detail that the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) searched his home, and confiscated his computer as well as money that was destined for victims of the cyclone. I understand that he has been kept in detention in a secret location since his arrest even though no charges have been publicly brought against him. I urge you to release Zarganar immediately, and to cease other efforts to intimidate human rights defenders.

Zarganar is a peaceful human rights activist, a poet, and a comedian with a long history of social work, whose activities are protected by international human rights laws and standards. After Cyclone Nargis hit the Irrawaddy delta and the Yangon Division, Zarganar collected money and organized several hundred volunteers to bring food and other much needed supplies to more than 42 villages in the most difficult areas to access. This type of private relief efforts has been explicitly authorized by the Natural Disaster Prevention and Protection Committee (NDPPC) and cannot constitute a legal basis for arrest. News that another public figure, Zaw Thet Htwe, a prominent sportswriter also involved in the relief effort, was arrested last Friday is deeply disturbing as it indicates that government authorities are trying to prevent relief from reaching populations in need.

Zarganar has been arbitrarily arrested and detained by government authorities several times in the past. His latest arrest and detention without apparent charges constitute yet another violation of his fundamental human rights. Zarganar is but one of the human rights and political activists currently held in your government's prisons.

I ask your government to inform Zarganar's family of his whereabouts and to either bring credible charges against him or immediately release him in conformity with both international and domestic law. While Zarganar and others remain in detention, I ask your government to guarantee that the conditions of their detention conform to basic international standards as defined under the U.N. Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the U.N. Body of Principles for the Protection of all Persons Under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment. These documents enshrine the basic standards needed to protect the rights of detainees, including the rights of prisoners to regular correspondence and family visits.

I further urge your government to stop hindering the work of private citizens who try to bring relief to the victims of the cyclone.

Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. I will continue to monitor these cases closely.