Dhaka: Leading Burmese student group in exile, the Students and Youth Congress of Burma, has appealed to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to release 34 Arakanese and Karen freedom fighters, who have been languishing in Indian jails since 1998.
The appeal was made by the Thailand-based student group on the 11th anniversary of the group's arrest by the Indian government. The 34 freedom fighters were arrested on February 11, 1998.
In their appeal, the group said they would like to bring to the attention of the Prime Minister the situation of the 34 Burmese freedom fighters, languishing in an Indian jail for the last 11 years. They also pointed out that Burma has been under military dictatorship for the past 47 years and any form of dissent against the military government is usually ruthlessly suppressed.
They further added that they were aware of India's support in the past for the Burmese people's movement for the restoration of democracy and appreciated the same. They urged the Government of India to maintain the democratic values it stands for and live up to the trust and expectations of the people of Burma, by helping to restore democracy, peace, and justice in Burma.
The group recalled that India was also the first neighbouring country that had extended support to the Burmese democratic movement after the 1988 uprising. India also recognized Daw Aung San Suu Kyi's peaceful and non-violent struggle and had conferred the "Jawaharlal Nehru Award for International Understanding" on her in 1993.
The leaders of the group of detained freedom fighters were also engaged in talks with the Government of India through Lt. Col. V.J.S Grewal for a base in India in 1995, and after two years of negotiations they were invited to come to Landfall Island in the Andamans. However, upon their arrival in Landfall Island on February 10, 1998, 36 of the Burmese freedom fighters were arrested and six were assassinated.
Of the 36 Burmese nationals initially arrested, two went missing from the Andaman Jail. The others were kept for nine years in Port Blair and later transferred to Presidency Jail in Kolkata, where they continue to be imprisoned.
The student group appealed to the Indian Government to immediately release the 34 Burmese freedom fighters from jail and allow them to seek asylum in India. They also urged the Indian government to put pressure on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to grant the 34 Burmese freedom fighters refugee status immediately.
