GENEVA: The most disturbing indicators of the human rights situation in Myanmar are the absence of basic freedoms and the prolonged imprisonment of political dissidents, who in some cases have been behind bars for 14 or 15 years , said United Nations expert Paulo Sergio Pinheiro.

The UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar (as it is officially known under the military junta) said, "There are no basic freedoms" in the Asian country, and called for the immediate release of political prisoners.

The report Pinheiro presented on Friday to the UN Commission on Human Rights estimates there are 1,300 political prisoners in Burma and states that arrests have continued this year.

Pinheiro's latest mission to Burma took place in November 2003. A request for another visit was denied by the country's military authorities with the argument that it would overlap with other delegations from multilateral organizations.

Rangoon was referring to a March 1-4 visit by Malaysian Razali Ismail, special representative of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, and the mission sent by the International Labour Organization (ILO).

Razali visited Burma as part of the mandate from the UN General Assembly to facilitate national reconstruction and democratization in the country, which has been in the hands of military governments since July 1988.

The ILO, meanwhile, has been assessing the military government's response to reports that forced labour continued to take place inside its borders.

Pinheiro's mandate, meanwhile, comes from the UN's highest human rights authority - the Commission - and forms part of the country-specific proceedings, which in this year's six-week sessions also involve Burundi, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo and the occupied Palestinian territories.

He told IPS that just a few days ago the Rangoon authorities had communicated their willingness to receive him. "We are discussing mutually convenient dates," he said.

The UN special rapporteur received information from envoy Razali about the military junta's plans to convene a national convention in the latter half of 2004 to draft a constitution.

Pinheiro said he is taking them at their word, adding, "They have started the process, they are going ahead."

In this apparent process of democratization, the Brazilian human rights expert underscored the importance of the Bangkok Initiative, an international forum of support for national reconciliation in Burma, which last December won a commitment from Rangoon to organise the national constitutional convention.

"The Bangkok Initiative is a positive thing... but I hope that its members will help me to demonstrate to the Myanmar authorities that it is very convenient to include human rights requirements in the plan," Pinheiro said.

The plan for transition to democracy, dubbed the "roadmap", was announced in August 2003 Prime Minister Khin Nyunt.

If the political transition moves forward, "and basic freedoms begin to be implemented," Pinheiro says he sees no reason to oppose restoring foreign assistance for the country.

He says it would be a mistake to wait for the consolidation of democracy before helping the country.

"If this process goes on, I think that the obstacles for engaging, helping, supporting" Myanmar will disappear. "The main concern is the rights of the population." I would highly recommend cooperation, "If the government demonstrates that it is willing to engage," said the special rapporteur.-Dawn/The InterPress News Service.