Campaign News

The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has asked for a ruling on jurisdiction which could allow an ICC investigation into the deportation of Rohingya to Bangladesh, based on Bangladesh being a signatory of the Rome Statute. Burma Campaign UK welcomes this step by the prosecutor. It is clear that some of the most serious …

Great support at NASUWT teachers’ trade union conference in Birmingham this weekend. Delegates supporting our campaign to bring Burma’s generals to justice call for Boris Johnson to back Burma’s referral to the International Criminal Court.

Karen News reports on the open letter from 21 civil society organisations urging the EU to take a stronger stand on the Rohingya crisis. Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, explained: “We are highly concerned that … the continuing lack of a concrete response sends the wrong message to the Myanmar Army and the …

Burma and Bangladesh are planning to send tens of thousands of Rohingya who fled to Bangladesh back to Burma. Rohingya in Bangladesh haven’t been consulted about the deal, but most say they don’t want to return until it’s safe. Rohingya won’t be allowed to return to their villages, which have been destroyed. Instead they are …

The agreement between Burma and Bangladesh to repatriate Rohingya refugees is like expecting 1940s Jews to return to Nazi Germany, says Sky News. Mark Farmaner from Burma Campaign UK told Sky News: “Bangladesh and Burma are effectively playing ping pong with the Rohingya, while the rest of the international community stands by. They will be …

On his visit the pope appealed to Burma’s leading Buddhist monks to combat prejudice and intolerance, but left out any specific reference to the Rohingya. “You don’t counter racism and prejudice by backing down to it,” Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, told the Atlantic. “Already nationalists are gloating about the pope not using …

Papal advisers counseled the Pope not to speak about the Rohingya on his visit for fear of a backlash against the 650,000 Catholics in Burma, reports the Voice of America. But human rights advocates urged him to speak out. Mark Farmaner, head of Burma Campaign UK, said on Twitter: “If the pope doesn’t use the …

CNN reports that after meeting Pope Francis during his visit to Burma, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said all faiths in the country are able to worship freely. Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, is quoted: “Min Aung Hlaing is the biggest obstacle to improving human rights, democratic reform, peace, modernization, and improving health …

Pope Francis visits Burma and Bangladesh next week amid international outrage over what the US describes as the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya Muslim minority, reports the Voice of America. In an interview with VOA News, Mark Farmaner, Burma Campaign UK’s director, explains: “If he uses the word Rohingya, some of the Buddhist nationalists might …

Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, criticised the deal between Burma and Bangladesh to repatriate Rohingya refugees who have filled out their personal details on forms. He described the deal as a way of “buying time”, since sluggish bureaucracy in both countries means that it could take years to cross-check refugees’ identities. “When people …

Commenting on The Irrawaddy’s reporting on the Rohingya crisis, New York’s Daily Beast says the Yangon-based paper, which receives funding from USAID, has parroted Burmese government propaganda. “Decades of hard work building the reputation of The Irrawaddy has been undermined by the editor in chief deciding to abandon journalistic independence and come down on the …

“On several issues she’s part of the problem”, Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, told MPs. Giving evidence to the International Development Committee, Mark Farmaner is quoted in the Guardian: “She has kept political prisoners in jail. Although she hasn’t the power to stop their arrests, she has the power to release them – including …

In testimony to the House of Commons International Development Committee, Burma Campaign UK’s director said Aung San Suu Kyi was complicit in the persecution of the Rohingya. Mark Farmaner said her “near heroine status” should now be re-evaluated, drawing attention to what he called her “authoritarian tendencies” and her decision not to repeal repressive laws. …

Commenting on the US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s forthcoming visit to Burma, Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, said the Trump administration has done “very little to pressure either the government or the military in Burma over the Rohingya crisis,” and the visit will send important signals one way or the other. “Failing …

Frontier Myanmar reports on Burma Campaign UK’s decision to revive the ‘Dirty List’ of human rights violators. Anna Roberts, executive director, told Frontier Myanmar “The new list will mainly focus on companies involved with the military, as the military are responsible for most human rights violations in the country, and blocking democratic reform. We hope …

Beyond some sanctions, little action has been taken toward accountability, reports TIME. Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, says the lack of international action over the crisis has essentially given Min Aung Hlaing a green light for murder. “You have to hand it to Min Aung Hlaing,” Farmaner tells TIME, “he is a very …

As the US joins the EU in taking action against the country’s military leadership and considering targeted sanctions, Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, says neither have gone far enough. He told the Irrawaddy it was “very disappointing” that the EU decided not to impose any sanctions on the military, “only suspending invitations to senior military …

“The Bogalay massacres of Karen villagers in October 1991 are as much a part of Burma’s history as the 88 uprising”, writes Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma Campaign UK, for Karen News. “It may not have had the same nationwide political repercussions, but it is too significant an event to pass by year after year …

Aung San Suu Kyi used her State of the Union speech to finally break her silence on the escalating conflict in the Rakhine State, reports ASEAN Today. However, her address was a mixture of excuses and misinformation and offered little comfort or encouragement to the persecuted Rohingya communities. The report quotes Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma …

The EU is to cut back ties with Burma’s military in response to the brutal security force crackdown on Muslim Rohingya areas of Rakhine State, reports the Financial Times. “Only to suspend invitations to some Burmese military officers to visit Europe is an absolutely pathetic response to ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya,” said Mark Farmaner, …

The European Union has done absolutely nothing to pressure Burma Army head Senior-General Min Aung Hlaing and his military to stop its campaign of what the United Nations has described as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing” against the Rohingya, writes Mark Farmaner of Burma Campaign UK, in the Democratic Voice of Burma. Calling for …

Burma’s military has launched an internal investigation into the actions of its soldiers in Rakhine state, from where hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims have fled in recent weeks, reports the Independent. “This isn’t an investigation, it’s a public relations effort,” said Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK. “It does appear that the government …

Bangladesh has offered Rohingya refugees shelter, says an AidEx writer for the Diplomatic Courier, but aid organizations face challenges such as restrictions by the Bangladeshi government and difficult logistics. Burma Campaign UK’s Director Mark Farmaner said: “While Bangladesh has understandably been praised for allowing refugees in, they have not given official refugee status to them. …