The use of ‘section 18’ – also known as the Peaceful Assembly and Peaceful Procession Law – to punish and restrict activist’s highlights the lack of rule of law in Burma…[H]uman rights group…Assistant Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP)…[calls for] immediate judicial reform…Under section 18 protestors first need to ask permission to assemble, and if permission is refused, the authorities are legally free to arrest anyone who goes ahead without permission...There are currently 128 people awaiting trial for charges under section 18 as of September 2013. Many of those arrested…are prominent local activists who are protesting against large development projects, which have been tied to forced relocation, land confiscation, and environmental damage…