Amnesty International Needs your Help To Pressurise the Military Regime in Burma

Amnesty International is calling on people to pressurise the Burmese military junta in the wake of the crackdown on peaceful demonstrations. As Amnesty points out, the military regime has been responsible for countless human rights violations over the years, including:

* The holding of more than 1,160 political prisoners in deteriorating prison conditions. Detainees include most senior opposition figures

*The use of torture and other cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, especially during interrogation and pre-trial detention

*The use of child soldiers and forced labour

*Laws that criminalise the peaceful expression of political dissent

*People frequently being arrested without warrant and held incommunicado

*Judicial proceedings against political detainees that fall short of international fair trial standards

*Defendants being denied the right to legal counsel and prosecutors relying on
confessions extracted through torture

Amnesty has also created a template email/letter that can be sent to Burma's Foreign Minister urging for the release of any prisoners taken as a result of the demonstrations. To find out more, click here.