and ongoing ethnic and religious persecution ever since General Ne Win overthrew the democratically elected government in 1962. The predominant religion in Myanmar is Buddhism, however, the Chin people are largely Christian due to American missionary work in the 19th and 20th century. This has led to continuous attempts at forced assimilation. There have been recorded numerous crimes against humanity in Myanmar's western Chin state, committed mainly by the Tatmadaw (members of the Burmese Army) and police; however, other agents of the military government and the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) are also involved. Despite continued persecution, little has been done on the part of the Chin people to speak out due to fear of reprisal, restrictions on travel, and the press imposed by the Burmese military regime. In their oppression of the Chin people, the Tatmadaw consistently violate the rule of law. The Chin people have been subject to forced labor, torture, arbitrary arrests, unlawful detention, and extrajudicial killings. Such treatment has incited a mass exodus of refugees who have left to neighboring nations such as India, Thailand, and Malaysia, even though doing so will risk further torture, detention, or even death. India is the most common destination for Chin refugees, given its close proximity, yet Mizoram (the state in India with the largest Chin population) does not give them full refugee protection and they have no legal status there. Extrajudicial killings The right to life is a non-derogable (not revocable under any circumstances), as outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The articles in the ICCPR are binding on member states that have ratified the ICCPR, however, Myanmar is one of few states that have neither signed nor ratified it. Article 3 of the UDHR states that everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of a person and article 6 of the ICCPR states that every human being has the inherent right to life and no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his or her life. Myanmar has also ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and article 6 states that parties to the Convention must recognize that every child has the inherent right to life. Despite these international instruments prohibiting extrajudicial killings, they still occur to the Chins in Myanmar. Extrajudicial killings are committed by the SPDC and the