protesting the construction of a cement factory and road expansion project by Myint Investment Company.81 46. Proposed amendments to the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law passed by the Upper House of Parliament in 2018 would further limit the exercise of the right to peaceful assembly,82 imposing criminal penalties on those who provoke, persuade, or urge others to join protests and requiring advance disclosure of sources of funding for protests. 83 A campaign by civil society resulted in the proposal being delayed, but there are concerns that it will be returned to Parliament before the 2020 elections.84 47. As noted above, those joining peaceful assemblies have also at times been prosecuted under provisions of the Penal Code. In September 2018, two human rights defenders were sentenced to two years’ imprisonment for ‘provocation’ and ‘incitement’ under sections 153 and 505(b) of the Penal Code after joining a protest in support of the arbitrarily detained child soldier Aung Ko Htwe. 85 In September 2018, Tin Maung Kyi was charged under section 505(b) of the Penal Code for a protest that called on the international community to prosecute the Myanmar military.86 48. Police forces have resorted to the use of force to disperse protests on several occasions. In March 2017, police fired rubber bullets at a group protesting the impacts of the Letpadaung copper mine in Sagaing Division, injuring at least 10. 87 In January 2018, police opened fire on protesters in Mrauk-U, Rakhine State, killing at least seven.88 On 12 February 2019, authorities fired rubber bullets into a crowd that had gathered to protest the erection of a statue of General Aung San, causing injuries to several people.89 In May 2019, 17 people were wounded by rubber bullets fired by police after protesting the construction of a coal-powered cement factory in Mandalay Division’s Patheingyi Township. 90 49. Recommendations: • • • Amend the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law to bring it into line with international law, including by removing content-based restrictions on protests and criminal liability for failure to notify authorities in advance of protests, and withdraw the proposed amendments to the Law. Immediately and unconditionally release all those arbitrarily detained for their exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and drop all outstanding charges. Cease the use of unlawful and disproportionate force against peaceful protesters and ensure prompt, independent, thorough, and effective investigations into the unlawful and disproportionate use of force against protesters by the authorities. Zarni Mann, ‘Court Refuses Bail for Elderly Trio Detained Over Land Protest’, Irrawaddy, 26 September 2018, available at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/court-refuses-bail-elderly-trio-detained-land-protest.html. 82 ARTICLE 19, ‘Myanmar: Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Bill’, 16 May 2016, available at: https://www.article19.org/resources/myanmar-peaceful-assembly-and-peaceful-procession-bill/. Translation of Bill of Amendment of the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law by Free Expression Myanmar, available at: http://freeexpressionmyanmar.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Peaceful-Assembly-and-Peaceful-Procession-Law-draftamendment-2018-EN.pdf. 83 Human Rights Watch, ‘Dashed Hopes’, 31 January 2019, available at: https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/01/31/dashedhopes/criminalization-peaceful-expression-myanmar; Free Expression Myanmar, ‘5 Violations That Need Addressing in Protest Law Amendment’, 28 February 2019, available at: http://freeexpressionmyanmar.org/5-violations-that-needaddressing-in-protest-law-amendment/. 84 Ibid. 85 Lawi Weng, ‘Activists Jailed for a Year for Protesting on Behalf of Ex-Child Soldier for Tatmadaw’, Irrawaddy, 12 September 2018, available at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/activists-jailed-year-protesting-behalf-ex-child-soldiertatmadaw.html. 86 Amnesty International, ‘Activist Charged for Peaceful Anti-Military Protest’, 5 November 2018, available at: https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/ASA1693362018ENGLISH.pdf. 87 Amnesty International, ‘Myanmar: Investigate police use of force against protestors at troubled mine’, 28 March 2017, available at: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/asa16/5983/2017/en/. 88 Amnesty International, ‘Myanmar: Investigate police killings of Rakhine State protesters’, 17 January 2018, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/01/myanmar-investigate-police-killings-of-rakhine-state-protesters/. 89 ARTICLE 19, ‘Myanmar: End crackdown on protesters in Kayah State’, 12 February 2019, available at: https://www.article19.org/resources/myanmar-end-crackdown-on-protesters-in-kayah-state/. 90 Zarni Mann, ‘17 Injured as Police Break up Protest Against Cement Factory Project in Mandalay’ Irrawaddy, 15 May 2019, available at: https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/17-injured-police-break-protest-cement-factory-projectmandalay.html. 81 11