A/HRC/19/67 33. According to information received, some of the prisoners were placed in solitary punishment cells while others were told to prepare their belongings for transfer to another prison. Following a meeting with the Director-General of the Prisons Department on 25 May, some of the prisoners reportedly ended their hunger strike and protest, and 13 prisoners who had been in solitary confinement were returned to their cells. On 27 May, however, following a meeting with officers from the Special Investigation Department at which anti-Government slogans had been shouted, it was reported that a number of the prisoners were again put in solitary confinement and that all demands had been rejected. In its response to the above-mentioned appeal, dated 2 August 2011, the Government rejected the allegations that seven female prisoners had participated in the hunger strike. 34. According to media reports from around the same period, prisoners in Kale prison had also commenced a hunger strike to protest against the Government’s lack of response to a letter sent on prison conditions. On 26 October 2011, 15 political prisoners in Insein prison reportedly began another hunger strike to protest against the denial of the right to sentence reductions, a right apparently provided for in the Myanmar jail manual. The prisoners were denied drinking water for several days and some were confined to cells normally used for prison dogs as punishment. Family visits were also reportedly denied. The prisoners’ demand was rejected and the hunger strike ended on 7 November. On 10 November, another hunger strike was started by six political prisoners in the prison hospital calling for improved medical care and the right to sentence reductions. 35. Members of the national human rights commission conducted visits to Myitkina prison on 9 December, Insein prison on 27 December, and Hlay-Hlaw-Inn Yebet labour camp on 28 December. They interviewed three prisoners and concluded that reports of prisoners being denied water and being held in “dog cells” as punishment were “untrue”. The commission did, however, observe that the number of prisoners held in Insein prison far exceeded its maximum holding capacity and that the issue of prison congestion was “an important source of grievances that should be addressed in a timely fashion”. 36. During his meeting with prisoners of conscience at Insein prison, the Special Rapporteur was also informed that conditions had generally improved. He received information, however, about continuing ill-treatment by prison officials and the continuous transfers of prisoners to facilities in remote areas, often without their prior notification and without proper notification of family members. 37. The Special Rapporteur notes that the Ministry of Home Affairs is preparing a revised Prisons Act to reform prison laws dating back to 1894. A draft was being submitted to the Attorney-General in sections, and the International Labour Organization (ILO) was consulted. The Government should ensure that the revised Prisons Act complies with international standards, particularly the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Body of Principles for the Protection of All Persons under Any Form of Detention or Imprisonment and the United Nations Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners and Non-Custodial Measures for Women Offenders (the Bangkok Rules). He also urges the Government to consult with relevant international organizations such as OHCHR and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and to allow the latter full access to prisons and to resume visits to prisoners according to its global standard procedures. C. Other issues relating to civil and political rights 38. The freedoms of opinion and expression, assembly and association are essential for the functioning of democracies and are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in international human rights treaties to which Myanmar is a party. The 2008 Constitution also provides for freedom of expression, opinion and assembly. On 11 October 2011, the new Labour Organization Law was promulgated, allowing for the formation of 9