Nov 16, 2007 12:15 am US/Eastern
Envoy To Reveal Myanmar Death Toll
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) ―
A U.N. investigator said Friday his five-day mission to Myanmar enabled him to determine the numbers of people killed and detained in the government's September crackdown on protesters, but that he would not immediately reveal the details.
U.N. human rights envoy Paulo Sergio Pinheiro said he would report the figures only after drafting a formal report on his trip for the United Nations.
"I'm compiling the documents. In two weeks I will have this number," Pinheiro told reporters in Bangkok, where he flew Thursday from Myanmar.
Myanmar's military government has said 10 people were killed when troops opened fire on crowds of peaceful protesters Sept. 26-27. Diplomats and dissidents say the death toll was much higher.
Pinheiro was sent by the U.N. to investigate allegations of abuse in connection with the crackdown and to try to get into the country's prisons to pin down the precise numbers of those killed and detained.
During his five-day stay, he was allowed to meet with several prominent political prisoners and said that the authorities had provided him with a list of all detainees and their conditions.
The government has acknowledged detaining nearly 3,000 people who took part in the protests but says it has released most of them. Many prominent political activists, however, remain in custody.
"Of course, I am happy that large numbers of people have been released, but I have my concerns about the situation of those who have not been released," Pinheiro said in Yangon on Thursday.
Before leaving the country, Pinheiro was taken to Yangon's infamous Insein Prison, where he met with labor activist Su Su Nway, who was arrested Tuesday.
Pinheiro also met with 77-year-old journalist Win Tin, held since 1989, and members of the 88 Generation Students group, who have been especially active in nonviolent anti-government protests in recent years. Pinheiro did not reveal details of their conversations.
He said he had requested a meeting with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under house arrest, but it had not been granted by the government.
He added, however, that he was satisfied with the cooperation he had received from the government, and noted that U.N. special envoy for Myanmar Ibrahim Gambari, who visited a week earlier, had been allowed to meet Suu Kyi.
Buddhist monks led the recent movement until it was brutally crushed. The authorities began their crackdown by raiding several monasteries in Yangon in the middle of the night and hauling monks away.
Pinheiro had also visited Insein Prison on Monday, but was only given access to officials.
Insein has held numerous political prisoners over the years. Many former inmates describe torture, abysmal conditions and long stretches in solitary confinement.
Pinheiro's trip was otherwise dominated by meetings with junta officials. He had been given access to several detention centers in Yangon in addition to Insein, but was not allowed to meet any prisoners.
Despite worldwide criticism, the junta was reported to have continued its crackdown during Pinheiro's visit.
Su Su Nway, who had been on the run for more than two months, was arrested Tuesday morning in Yangon as she tried to place a leaflet near a hotel where Pinheiro was staying, said exiled Myanmar dissidents in Thailand.
U Gambira, a monk who helped spearhead the pro-democracy demonstrations in Yangon, was arrested several days ago, said Stanley Aung of the Thailand-based dissident group National League for Democracy-Liberated Area.
Pinheiro said he did not get to meet with U Gambira.
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