Yangon (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Myanmar will allow the UN Human Rights observer, Paulo Sergio Pinheiro, to visit the country, after having denied him access for over 4 years. Burma’s Foreign Minister, Nyan Win, has written to the United Nations suggesting the visit take place early November.
On November 17th the Asean summit, of which Myanmar is a member, will open. The member states have been vocal in their criticism of the violence used against Buddhist monks and democratic activists and have asked the military junta to halt all repression and find a political solution to the protests.
Pinheiro was sent to Myanmar 7 years ago by the UN as an independent observer for Human Rights, but he has not been allowed to return since 2003. On October 2nd the UN condemned the repression and in the immediate aftermath called for investigations and said that Pinheiro was ready to leave “as soon as Myanmar’s government gave permission”.
Louise Arbour, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, has said that is important to establish the exact dimensions of the repression “and what happened to those who protested”. She added that it is still unknown how many victims and how many detained there are, “and how many are still in prisons, as well as their condition”.
