A/HRC/4/14 page 20 1,200 political prisoners and intellectuals, such as Win Tin, the 76-year-old poet and journalist who has been in prison since 4 July 1989, would also become assets for a meaningful political transition. As Nelson Mandela so eloquently said, “Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into contracts. Your freedom and mine cannot be separated.” 84. The Special Rapporteur takes note with great satisfaction of the recent release of political prisoners, including the five “88 generation” student leaders arrested last September. He expresses the hope that other prominent political prisoners will benefit from the amnesty granted in early January 2007. 85. After six years serving this mandate, the Special Rapporteur believes it is important for Member States to support effective initiatives to deal with common concerns of society in Myanmar and in the region. Joint initiatives on issues of common concern such as the environment, economic growth and development, educational modernization, medical research and engineering and technology which could prove to be paths to progress should be explored. All these initiatives must have as their goals to encourage an effective democratic transition and to promote the improvement of the standards of living and the protection of human rights of the people of Myanmar. 86. The Special Rapporteur would like to conclude by reaffirming what he said to the Human Rights Council in September: humanitarian assistance cannot be made hostage to politics. Any decision on humanitarian assistance must be guided solely by the best interests of children, women, people living with disabilities, those affected by diseases and minority groups. It would be a terrible mistake to wait for the political normalization of Myanmar to help the population and to empower communities and their representatives. VI. RECOMMENDATIONS 87. The Special Rapporteur’s recommendations made in earlier sections of the present report, as well as in his previous reports, remain valid in view of the prevailing situation in Myanmar. For the last time, the Special Rapporteur would like: (a) To appeal to the Government of Myanmar to free all political prisoners and put an end to harassment and persecution of NLD members and representatives of ethnic groups; (b) To encourage the Government of Myanmar to resume, without further delay, dialogue with all political actors, including NLD and representatives of ethnic groups, to complete the drafting of the Constitution; (c) To recommend that, given the magnitude of human rights abuses, the Government of Myanmar subject all officials who commit these acts to strict disciplinary control and punishment and put an end to the culture of impunity that prevails throughout the country; (d) To call upon the Government of Myanmar to put an end to the criminalization of the peaceful exercise of fundamental freedoms by human rights defenders, victims of human rights abuses and their representatives;