Myanmar

Three members of the satirical poetry troupe Peacock Generation were among over 23,000 prisoners released in a general amnesty on Myanmar New Year, 17 April 2021. Arrested on 22 April 2019, they were serving between five-and-a-half and six-year prison sentences under a series of “incitement” and “online defamation” charges in connection with their satirical performances criticizing the Myanmar military.

Responding to reports that South Korean steel giant POSCO will end the steel venture its Myanmar subsidiary shares with military-owned conglomerate MEHL, Amnesty International’s Business and Human Rights Researcher Montse Ferrer said: 

“POSCO’s decision to cut this tie is the latest blow to Myanmar’s military, which continues to impose its rule through murder and heinous human rights violations. Since staging a coup in February, the military has reportedly killed around 700 people, including dozens of children.  

“Given the scale of POSCO’s operations in Myanmar, this announcement is a major step forward. It increases the military authorities’ isolation, and adds to the growing pressure on other companies to end their business links with MEHL.  

Responding to the adoption of a resolution on Myanmar by consensus at the UN Human Rights Council, Amnesty International’s Representative to the UN in Geneva, Hilary Power, said: 

“Speaking with one voice today, the UN Human Rights Council has sent a clear and unequivocal message to the Myanmar military that they must halt their violations, and to businesses with ties to military-owned companies in Myanmar that they must end those partnerships immediately. 

“UN member states have tasked the UN human rights office to investigate the economic interests and business ties of the Myanmar military, and report back to the Human Rights Council with a comprehensive report and recommendations.  

“Now it remains for the UN Security Council to move beyond statements of concern, and take the long-overdue action needed to halt violations and hold perpetrators to account.  

Responding to reports of killings by Myanmar armed forces on 3 March 2021, the deadliest day since the 1 February coup, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Research, Emerlynne Gil, said: 

“Everything points to troops adopting shoot to kill tactics to suppress the protests, and with silence from the military administration, there is a growing consensus that this has been authorized by the government.  

“Amnesty has previously implicated Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the coup leader, in crimes against humanity. The harrowing scenes now unfolding across Myanmar shows mounting evidence of more textbook brutality under his command. Everything we know about the Tatmadaw’s command structure, and the absence of any calls for restraint from his office, raises questions that must be answered.

“For years, the Tatmadaw has acted with impunity in ethnic minority areas, but to see them deploy the same tactics on-camera, in cities, is an alarming new development.  

Ahead of the UN Security Council’s emergency closed meeting on Myanmar today, Amnesty International’s Deputy Director of Advocacy Sherine Tadros said: 

“What we are witnessing in Myanmar didn’t just suddenly happen. You cannot leave perpetrators of grave crimes under international law on the loose and then act surprised when they trample human rights again. 

“Yesterday, an emboldened military took years of international inaction as a quiet signal that they could oust the civilian government and embark on a spree of baseless arrests without any real consequences. 

Amnesty International has gathered new evidence of indiscriminate attacks on civilians in Rakhine State, amid serious escalations in the ongoing armed conflict between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA). 

This evidence is based on firsthand testimony, photographs and video obtained from inside Rakhine State, and analysis of satellite imagery as well as media reports and civil society sources. Witnesses’ names have been changed. 

“There are no signs of the conflict between the Arakan Army and the Myanmar military abating – and civilians continue to bear the brunt,” said Ming Yu Hah, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Campaigns. 

“The Myanmar military’s utter disregard for civilian suffering grows more shocking and brazen by the day. The UN Security Council must urgently refer the situation in Myanmar to the International Criminal Court.” 

By Ro Mehrooz, a Rohingya refugee living in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Follow Ro in Twitter @romehrooz

Human rights are incomparable and cannot be prioritized. Nothing is as important as health and starvation can lead to death. Our younger generation is already being exploited into trafficking, drugs and unwanted activities without access to education.

For now, we can prioritize issues that are urgent. As COVID-19 is devastating countries around the world, it is no surprise that the virus has reached the refugee camps. We need proper healthcare management and food supply to stay alive. These are issues that can affect our people sooner than others.

There should be widespread testing in the camp to tackle the spread of COVID-19. This will only be possible when people are assured about their well-being and not frightened by coercive quarantine and stigmatisation about their illness. Information should be accessible and transparent.