Campaign News

The exiled National Unity Government’s first Rohingya representative branded the execution of four human rights activists “prison murders”, reports i News. Wai Hnin Pwint Thon, senior advocacy officer at Burma Campaign UK, had known one of the four, Ko Jimmy, all her life as he was a close friend of her father, also a jailed …

After long campaign by rights groups, Puma Energy decided to withdraw from Burma, reports the Karen media/news company Salween Press. Zoya Phan, Campaign manager at Burma Campaign UK said, “Puma Energy is leaving Burma. It means our campaigns play crucial role to pressure foreign companies as well as Burmese military junta. Pressure on companies providing …

Aung San Suu Kyi and her economic advisor, Australian economist Sean Turnell, have been sentenced to three years behind bars on espionage charges, reports United Press International. In total, Suu Kyi has been sentenced to more than 20 years’ imprisonment since being arrested in the February 2021 coup. Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, …

The British government has announced that in principle it will support the referral of Myanmar to the International Criminal Court (ICC) weeks after the US made a similar announcement, reports Mizzima. “This is a significant and welcome step by the British government, building on their recent announcement that they would join the Rohingya genocide case …

In a programme on how practical it is to get the Rohingya back home from Bangladesh, BBC Burmese interviews Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma Campaign UK. “The Rohingya refugees have no good options at all”, says Mark Farmaner. “The government of Bangladesh should be engaging with the NUG (National Unity Government), and also engaging more …

A leaked document reveals that three Chinese energy companies appealed to the Burmese junta for help importing liquified natural gas from the Russian government, reports Frontier Myanmar, as the regime’s economic policies wreak havoc on the energy sector. “The desperate and convoluted steps these companies are taking to try to keep operating is another example …

Karin Valtersson, Burma Campaign UK’s Campaigns Officer, writes in Labour Hub calling for the new Foreign Secretary to sanction aviation fuel, to increase resources for the sanctions process and to increase humanitarian aid to Burma. She writes “The new Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly MP, should make it one of his priorities in office to put …

Vicky Bowman, the British Ambassador to Myanmar from 2002-2006, and her husband, artist Htein Lin, were arrested by local authorities on 24 August, reports the Byline Times. According to Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, since the 2021 coup “the military has been in a fight for its domestic survival” and “will do anything …

Burma Campaign UK’s Karin Valtersson was at Vale Earth Fair in Guernsey this Bank Holiday weekend. A great event and supporting the work of Burma Campaign UK for more than 20 years. Thank you to everyone involved! Karin Valtersson speaking at Vale Earth Fair

VIcky Bowman is among several foreigners who have been arrested in Burma, reports the New York Times. Mark Farmaner, Burma Campaign UK, called Ms. Bowman’s detention “shocking and surprising news … Vicky is no friend of the Burmese military, but she has been careful not to make public comments attacking the military. She has opposed …

The Myanmar military’s recent arrest of a former British ambassador is an example of “hostage diplomacy,” activists and opposition politicians say. The detention of the ex-diplomat came as Britain moved to further isolate the Southeast Asian regime, reports the Washington Post. Military leaders are “in a fight for their survival,” said Mark Farmaner, director of …

Myanmar’s military junta has detained Britain’s former ambassador to the country, as well as her husband, a prominent artist, reports the Guardian. The arrests of Bowman and Htein Lin were likely planned by the military for some time, said Mark Farmaner, the director of Burma Campaign UK. “The military feel themselves to be kind of …

Britain’s former ambassador to Burma could be jailed for five years after she was arrested by the country’s ruthless junta, reports the Express. Mark Farmaner, the director of Burma Campaign UK, called Ms. Bowman’s detention “shocking and surprising news.” Hours after Ms Bowman’s arrest, Britain announced that it was imposing new economic sanctions against companies …

Local and foreign criticism has been coming out on Dr. Noeleen Heyzer’s first visit to Myanmar with the position of United Nations Special Ambassador. So, is it really necessary to have a UN special diplomatic position? BBC Burmese interviews Anna Roberts, executive director of Burma Campaign UK, about yet another UN Special Envoy being used …

New UN Special Envoy Noeleen Heyzer has made her first visit to Burma, reports Luxembourg’s RTL Today. Rights groups said they had little optimism her visit would persuade the military to end its bloody crackdown and engage in dialogue with opponents of its coup. “UN envoys have visited when the military told them to, stayed …

David P Kramer of Free Burma Campaign (SA) has written to South Africa’s Business Day newspaper, saying SA’s government does not care at all about the country’s links to executed Myanmar activists. He wrote to South Africa’s government when the four Burmese activists were sentenced to death, highlighting the friendship between Ko Jimmy and anti-apartheid …

Myanmar’s military authorities have executed four democracy activists accused of helping carry out “terror acts”, reports Sky News. The executed men included democracy-figure Kyaw Min Yu, better known as Jimmy, and former politician and hip-hop artist Phyo Zeya Thaw. Burma Campaign UK said it was “deeply saddened” to learn of the news. “This is a …

Representatives from Burma’s Military Council joined Putin allies such as China, India and Iran at the annual International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg, as the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to fewer attendees from the Western group. Is Burma becoming a strategic ally for Russia? If Russia supplies Burma with fuel, electricity, and a communications …

Myanmar’s defense minister, under sanctions from the United States, Britain and other countries for abuses committed by his country’s military, has been welcomed to an annual meeting with his counterparts in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). More than 600 civic groups inside and outside Myanmar had issued an appeal to the ministers not …

Burma Campaign UK told the Voice of America (VOA) that some Asian and European countries are lowering the level of diplomatic relations in the Burmese military council’s diplomatic sphere, and that the National Unity Government (NUG) is increasingly accepted as the official representative of the Burmese people. Asian and European governments, including the UK, are …

At least 28 airstrikes hit near the Thai-Myanmar border yesterday, reports the Thai Enquirer, as the military junta conducts airstrikes close to the Thai border. The Karen Human Rights Group said the footage obtained from the Thai side of the border appears to show air raids targeting a civilian area and reveals a drone conducting …

Burma Campaign UK has added 56 more companies to its ‘Dirty List’, reports Mizzima, where there is evidence of links to the Burmese military, human rights violations or environmental destruction. Fifteen Russian companies have been added to the list. “Countries like the USA, Japan and South Korea have arms embargoes but still allow their companies …

At least 25 national and international rights bodies and civil society organisations, including Burma Campaign UK, have made an urgent call for the government to support the community-led learning facilities in Cox’s Bazar’s Rohingya refugee camps, reports Bangladesh’s Daily Star. About 30 community-led schools have been shut down or dismantled by the authorities since December …