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13391/1/08 REV 1 (Presse 270) 1
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COUCIL OF
THE EUROPEA UIO
EN
Brussels, 25 September 2008 13391/1/08 REV 1 (Presse 270) P 122/08
Declaration by the Presidency on behalf of the EU following the release of U Win Tin
The European Union welcomes the release of U Win Tin, the Burmese journalist and founder member of the National League for Democracy, after 19 years' imprisonment.
The European Union reiterates its call for the release of all political prisoners in Burma, and Aung San Suu Kyi in particular, and for a genuine dialogue with the opposition to begin, with a view to national reconciliation and a democratic transition in Burma.
The European Union hopes that this release will be followed by further gestures by the Burmese authorities, showing a real willingness to meet the expectations of the international community, in both political and human rights terms, as formulated by, among others, the Security Council and the General Assembly of the United Nations.
13391/1/08 REV1 (Presse 270) 2
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The Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia* and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and Association Process and potential candidates Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and the EFTA countries Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Armenia and Georgia align themselves with this declaration.
* Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.
