Myanmar: UN rights experts express alarm at adoption of
first of four ‘protection of race and religion’ bills
GENEVA (27 May 2015) – A group of United Nations human
rights experts today expressed alarm at the enactment of the Population Control
Healthcare Bill in Myanmar, the first of four in a package of bills that seek
to ‘protect race and religion’. The bills are highly discriminatory against
ethnic and religious minorities as well as against women.
“These bills risk deepening discrimination against
minorities and setting back women’s rights in Myanmar,” said the UN Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee. “At a time
when thousands of Rohingya are already fleeing the country by boat, this sends
precisely the wrong signal to these communities.”
On Saturday, State media reported that the President of
Myanmar had signed the Population Control Healthcare Bill. While the stated
objectives of the Bill are to improve living standards, alleviate poverty,
ensure quality healthcare and develop maternal and child health, its provisions
are extremely vague and lack any protection against discrimination, the
independent experts noted. Under the newly adopted law, certain areas can be
designated for special health care measures, including birth spacing.
“Any coercive requirement for birth spacing with the aim
to ‘organise’ family planning would constitute a disproportionate interference
in the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and could amount to a
violation of women’s human rights,” said the UN Special Rapporteur on the right
to health, Dainius Pûras, noting that the Bill allows township groups to
‘organise’ married couples to practice 36-month birth spacing between
pregnancies. “Women should be able to choose freely and responsibly the number
and spacing of their children.”
The experts underlined that inclusive policies and
approaches that focus on a voluntary regulation of population can act as
effective safeguards to ensure respect for women’s human rights, and
sustainable economic and social development. Such policies should provide women
with access to health services, including family planning and free
contraception; nutrition; education, including sex education; and employment.
“Evidence shows that attempts to impose strategies aimed
at ‘controlling population growth’ often disproportionately target marginalized
and minority groups and can have discriminatory, coercive and punitive effects
that go against basic rights and freedoms, particularly those of women,” the
experts added.
The rights experts also expressed serious concern about
the other three bills currently being considered by Parliament: the Religious
Conversion Bill, the Myanmar Buddhist Women’s Special Marriage Bill and the
Monogamy Bill.
The Special Rapporteur on minority issues, Rita Izsák,
cautioned that “these bills particularly discriminate against ethnic and
religious minorities and have the potential to fuel existing tensions in the
country.”
The Religious Conversion Bill establishes a
State-regulated system for religious conversion, involving justification,
registration, interview, study and approval. “The right to conversion has the
status of unconditional protection under international human rights law,” the
Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Heiner Bielefeldt, said.
“States must respect everyone’s right to conversion as an essential component
within freedom of religion or belief by removing administrative obstacles.”
The Myanmar Buddhist Women’s Special Marriage Bill seeks
to protect Buddhist women marrying non-Buddhist men. “The Bill discriminates
against women by restricting the right to marry for Buddhist women and placing
restrictions only on Buddhist women who wish to marry outside their faith,”
said Emna Aouij, who currently heads the Working Group on discrimination
against women.
In practice, the Bill discourages interfaith marriages
between Buddhist women and men of other faiths by imposing disproportionate
penalties on non-Buddhist men. Moreover, under the Bill, a cohabiting couple
where the female partner is Buddhist and the male is not, is de facto deemed ‘married’.
If one or both parties do not wish to marry, they may be forced into marriage
by a Court, which interferes greatly with the right to enter into marriage only
with free and full consent.
The Monogamy Bill criminalizes polygamy and prohibits extramarital
affairs. The Bill is redundant since the Penal Code already prohibits polygamy.
While the ban on polygamy is in accordance with international human rights
requirements, the Bill adopts a restrictive and discriminatory approach to
regulate marriage. It makes specific references to ‘non-Buddhist persons’ and
omits other forms of marriage discriminatory to women, including early and
forced marriages.
“Enforcement of laws criminalizing adultery often leads
to discrimination and violence against women. Experience shows that, in
practice, adultery legislation imposes disproportional criminal liability on
women,” Ms. Aouij added.
The independent experts called on the Government of
Myanmar to discard all four laws, which will violate Myanmar’s obligations
under international human rights standards. The experts reiterated their
availability to provide assistance and technical advice on legislation and
other measures affecting basic rights and freedoms in Myanmar.
“In this election year, Myanmar must ensure that its laws
comply with fundamental human rights
provisions and help rather than hinder progress towards a more tolerant,
pluralistic and inclusive society,” the Special Rapporteur on Myanmar
concluded.
ENDS
The UN human rights experts are part of what is known as
the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the
largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights, is the general name
of the independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms of the Human Rights
Council that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in
all parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis;
they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are
independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual
capacity. For more information, log on to:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Welcomepage.aspx
Learn more about the mandates:
Religion and belief:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/FreedomReligion/Pages/FreedomReligionIndex.aspx
Discrimination against women:
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/Women/WGWomen/Pages/WGWomenIndex.aspx
UN Human Rights, country page – Myanmar: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/AsiaRegion/Pages/MMIndex.aspx
For more information and media requests, please contact
Caroline Avanzo (+41 22 928 9208 / cavanzo@ohchr.org)
For media inquiries related to other UN independent
experts:
Xabier Celaya, UN Human Rights – Media Unit (+ 41 22 917
9383 / xcelaya@ohchr.org)
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