Burma Campaign UK
The British government is reportedly pressuring Myanmar’s former ambassador to leave his official London residence a year after he was ousted by the military regime for criticising the coup, reports the Telegraph. Mark Farmaner, the director of Burma Campaign UK, said that his past behaviour “should not detract from the fact that he is the …
A Myanmar junta court sentenced prominent democracy activist Ko Mya Aye to two years’ imprisonment under hate speech charges, reports the Irrawaddy. Ko Mya Aye, the former 88 Generation student leader and now a Federal Democratic Force leader, was among the first people whose homes were surrounded and detained at gunpoint on February 1, 2021, …
Hundreds of ESG funds run by some of the world’s biggest money managers have a combined $13.4 billion stake in companies that supply weapons and technology to the Myanmar military, reports Yahoo!finance. A new report by Inclusive Development International and ALTSEAN-Burma found 344 funds that had links with the military as of November. The funds, …
As the US, European Union and others hit Russia with crippling economic sanctions in response to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, the Wall Street Journal reports that they are facing demands to go hard against another regime: Myanmar’s military junta. In the past year, Washington and Brussels have taken steps to cut off army leaders and …
Burma Campaign UK has added 28 more companies to the ‘Dirty List’ of companies linked to the military, human rights violations, or environmental destruction in Myanmar, reports Mizzima. The additions mean there are now 116 companies on the list. “Even genocide and a military coup has not been enough to persuade these companies to cut …
55 British Parliamentarians from nine different political parties and Independent MPs have joined the call for aviation fuel sanctions against the Burmese military, reports Mizzima. “The British government has led on sanctions since the coup, systematically identifying sources of revenue for the Burmese military and introducing targeted sanctions. Sanctions now need to be introduced on …
When junta supporters and the Myanmar military were removed from Facebook after last year’s coup, they switched to the less regulated Telegram social network, which is based in Russia, reports Radio Free Asia. Military authorities now use Telegram both to disseminate junta propaganda and for intelligence from supporters who list the profiles, activities and locations …
Serbia has continued to supply arms to the Myanmar military since the coup, reports the Irrawaddy, despite the fact that those weapons are being used to attack and kill civilians, including children. Tom Andrews, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, identified Serbia, along with China and Russia, as …
Human rights advocates are urging governments to impose sanctions against supplying aviation fuel to Myanmar as its security forces carry out air strikes against opponents of the army-led administration, reports the Independent. Burma Campaign UK said it is calling for sanctions on Myanmar companies involved in supplying jet fuel to the military and on foreign …
The EU became the first to impose sanctions on the state-run Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), one of the junta’s largest cash-cows, reports Germany’s Deutsche Welle. Mark Farmaner, the director of Burma Campaign UK, told DW that “one of the biggest impacts of these EU sanctions may be that they embarrass the US into …
The European Union has expanded sanctions, reports Al Jazeera, to include the state-owned Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise, a joint venture partner in all offshore gas projects in Myanmar, including the Yadana gas field. Total Energies and Chevron recently pulled out of the Yadana project. Burma Campaign UK welcomed the latest announcement, noting it was …
Big international companies are leaving Myanmar’s energy sector controlled by the military council, reports BBC Burmese. After the US’s Chevron and France’s Total announced that they will withdraw from a major gas project in Myanmar, Malaysia’s Petronas and Japan’s Mitsubishi have also announced they will sell their shares. International observation teams said that the natural …
A growing number of families have been forced to disown their own children for their support of Burma’s pro-democracy movements, reports Newsweek, after the army announced that it would raid family homes, take over the properties of its opponents and arrest people giving shelter to protesters. These public denunciations are all part of the military …
Burma Campaign UK has welcomed new British government advice on business risk in Burma which warns British companies not to be involved in the supply of aviation fuel to the Burmese military, reports Mizzima. “It is very good to see the British government warning British companies not to be involved in the supply of aviation …
Taiwan shipping giant Evergreen Marine has said it would no longer send its ships to dock at a military-owned port terminal in Myanmar, reports Mizzima, as a growing number of companies cut ties with junta-linked businesses. Junta-linked companies run three ports in commercial hub Yangon, according to Burma Campaign UK. In 2020 global shipping giant …
Evergreen Marine, a Taiwanese company which is the world’s fourth largest cargo shipping company, has informed Burma Campaign UK that it will no longer use the Burmese military-owned Hteedan Port Terminal in Yangon, reports Hellenic Shipping News. The company has now been removed from Burma Campaign UK’s ‘Dirty List’ of companies linked to the Burmese …
Notices in state-owned newspapers announcing families have cut ties with their anti-coup relatives have become a frequent occurrence in Myanmar, reports the South China Morning Post. It follows the junta targeting families of opposition activists, with the army saying it would seize properties and arrest anyone sheltering protesters. “Family members are scared to be implicated …
The UN special envoy to Myanmar, Noeleen Heyzer, has been widely rebuked for suggesting that pro-democracy activists should negotiate a power-sharing agreement with the country’s military, reports the Guardian. Almost 250 civil society organisations including Burma Campaign UK published a statement condemning the comments, warning they risked emboldening the military to commit “grave crimes with …
Streets emptied and shops shuttered across Myanmar as people defied junta orders to go about their business with a silent strike on the first anniversary of the military coup, reports France 24. Following Washington’s lead, Britain imposed sanctions against Attorney General Thida Oo, Supreme Court Chief Justice Tun Tun Oo and Anti-Corruption Commission chairman Tin …
A closed military court in Myanmar has sentenced a lawmaker from Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party and a prominent democracy activist to death, India’s Devdiscourse reports. “The Burmese military has handed out death sentences to prominent activists, Ko Jimmy & Zeyar Thaw. This may be the latest attempt by the …
Aung San Suu Kyi has been sentenced to four more years in prison on charges of illegally importing and possessing walkie-talkies and violating coronavirus restrictions, reports Canada’s CBC News. “Throwing a plethora of criminal charges at Aung San Suu Kyi … reeks more of desperation than confidence,” said Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK. …
Rights groups and NGOs are criticising the US and France for their failure to sanction the Myanmar regime and block revenue from gas extraction, reports Mizzima. American oil giant Chevron, and French oil giant Total, are part of a consortium of companies operating the Yadana gas field in Burma. Before the surge in global gas …
At least 35 civilians including children and mothers were burned alive in their cars and massacred by junta troops on Christmas Eve while fleeing a clash in Kayah state, reports Sweden’s Global Bar Magazine. Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma Campaign UK, tweeted in response to the UN Relief Chief’s call for the authorities to investigate: …
Critics are urging the EU to impose fresh sanctions on the military junta after the sentencing of Aung San Suu Kyi, reports Germany’s Deutsche Welle. Suu Kyi’s sentencing “is just the latest in a long list of reasons why the EU should impose more targeted sanctions on the military,” said Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign …