MANILA — In many countries in Southeast Asia – most notably in Myanmar but also elsewhere – parliamentarians and ex-parliamentarians continue to be subject to multiple forms of human rights violations, according to the latest annual Parliamentarians At Risk report from ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR), launched today in Manila, the Philippines.

“Parliamentarians’ ability to safely conduct their mandate and to speak and act on behalf of their constituents, are important ways for power to be checked and democracy to be strengthened. Today, our collective voice will send a clear message that an attack against one parliamentarian is an attack against the democratic institution of parliament itself,” said APHR Chair and member of the Indonesian House of Representatives Mercy Barends. “We stand in solidarity with them, ensuring that the voices of those who are silenced are not forgotten, and calling for an end to the violations of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

In 2023, parliamentarians in Southeast Asia continued to face threats and harassment. Myanmar remains the worst country when it comes to jailing members of parliament (MPs), with all 74 of those detained in the region being held there.

A total of 73 of the lawmakers from the National League for Democracy (NLD), and only one was from another party, the Mon Unity Party, a fact that demonstrates the political nature of the arrests, since it is MPs from the NLD – which resoundingly won the 2020 election – that are overwhelmingly targeted. Many of the ousted parliamentarians are continuing their work in hiding, either inside Myanmar or abroad, because if found by the military they are at risk of detention, torture, and even death. Some have seen their family members harassed and their properties seized by the military.