ND Burma
ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.
Recent Posts
- Myanmar military still bombing towns despite earthquake crisis, rebels say
- PRESS STATEMENT: CIVIL SOCIETY CALLS FOR DISASTER RELIEF FOR EARTHQUAKE SURVIVORS AND AFFECTED COMMUNITIES IN MYANMAR
- AAPP Launches its New Report on Justice, the Judiciary and the Weaponization of Law to Repress Civilians in Burma
- Junta offensives leave 4 dead, thousands displaced in northwest Myanmar
- Open letter: Special Envoy’s conflicts of interest signal urgent need for investigation and complete end of mandate
Myanmar junta bombs rebel wedding, at least 10 killed
/in NewsMyanmar’s air force bombed a wedding party for two pro-democracy fighters on Tuesday, killing at least 10 people, members of the anti-junta force in the Magway region told Radio Free Asia.
It was not immediately clear if the bride and groom, both members of an insurgent People’s Defense Force, or PDF, in Myaing township were among the casualties, they said.
“They bombed the PDF wedding. They did it during refreshments in the monastery. It was a direct hit,” said one resident of Son Kone village where the attack occurred in the mid-morning.
“The jet flew around there twice. There are many casualties and injuries,” said the resident, who declined to be identified for security reasons.
Another resident, who also requested not to be named, told RFA that most of the dead were villagers “who were cooking for the wedding party.”
“The bride and groom were acquainted with the locals, and they were helping in refreshment. So, most of the victims were these locals who helped cook for their wedding. We are still looking for the injured.”
Other residents said the air force “dropped 500-pound bombs twice” in the area, and that the attacks “targeted oil fields” in Son Kone.
RFA called Magway region’s junta spokesperson, Myo Myint, for information on the attack but he did not respond by the time of publication.
However, pro-military accounts on the Telegram messaging app said that an attack had been launched on the wedding party and there were many casualties.
Attack on the heartland
Son Kone is about 140 kilometers (90 miles) southwest of the city of Mandalay, in a central heartland area that has seen a surge of violence since the military ousted an elected government in 2021.
Anti-junta activists from the majority Burman community have formed PDFs, which are loyal to the parallel National Unity Government in exile, to battle to end military rule in alliance with ethnic minority insurgent groups, some of which have been fighting for self-determination for generations.
The jet that attacked the wedding took off from the Meiktila Air Base, about 140 kilometers to the southeast, in neighboring Mandalay region, said a member of the Myaing PDF, of which both the bride and groom were soldiers.
“The monastery is destroyed,” said the PDF member, who declined to be identified for security reasons. “About 10 people have been killed and there are a lot of wounded.”
At least 1,000 residents of Son Kone and the nearby villages of Kyet Su Aint and Na That fled to safety during the attack, sources told RFA.
A military helicopter was circling the area in the afternoon and villagers had yet to return to identify those killed, they said.
Some 20,000 civilians fled from their homes in Magway’s Pwintbyu township, to the south of Myaing, early this month during days of heavy fighting between rebels and junta troops, residents said.
According to data compiled by RFA, 1,769 were killed nationwide in 2024 by junta airstrikes and heavy artillery.
RFA News
Press Statement: Argentine Court’s arrest warrants are welcome progress towards justice
/in Member statements25 February 2025
On 13 February 2025, a Federal Criminal Court in Argentina ordered arrest warrants for 25 Myanmar military leaders and civilian government officials, including junta chief Min Aung Hlaing, former President U Htin Kyaw, and State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. We, Progressive Voice, welcome the Court’s decision.
We understand that the Court’s decision is a part of its ongoing investigation into genocide and crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya in Myanmar from 2012 to 2018. We welcome this impartial and independent decision, which marks a critical moment in the long and challenging pursuit of justice for the Rohingya: This is the first time that arrest warrants have been ordered in relation to the Myanmar military’s genocide against the Rohingya in 2017.
Further, we understand that these arrest warrants are not determinative of guilt or responsibility for these international crimes, but instead aim to summon the 25 named individuals to testify before the Court as part of its investigation. We believe these individuals will be treated in accordance with standards of international justice, including the affordance of due process and the opportunity to present evidence in their defense.
We firmly believe that impartiality is fundamental to achieve justice and accountability, not only for the Rohingya but for all people of Myanmar. We call on the Argentine government to request Interpol to issue Red Notices for the 25 named individuals to initiate their extradition to Argentina.
For more information, please contact:
Khin Ohmar, Chairperson, Progressive Voice; info@progressive-voice.org
OPEN LETTER: UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL MUST TAKE CONCRETE ACTION TO SUPPORT THE MYANMAR PEOPLE’S EFFORTS TO BUILD A RIGHTS-PROTECTING FUTURE
/in Press Releases and StatementsTo: Member and Observer States of the UN Human Rights Council
CC: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar
20 February 2025
Open letter: UN Human Rights Council must take concrete action to support the Myanmar people’s efforts to build a rights-protecting future
Your Excellencies,
We—the undersigned 121 Myanmar, regional, and international civil society organizations (CSOs)—call on the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to adopt a meaningful and robust resolution, during the UNHRC’s 58th regular session, that protects the human rights of the Myanmar people, supports their ongoing efforts to build federal democracy, impedes the military junta’s capacity to conduct airstrikes and other atrocities across the country, and advances accountability through all possible avenues.
We welcome the UNHRC resolution adopted on 4 April 2024, which recognizes the junta’s escalating violence against civilians and its increasing violations of international law. We further welcome that the crisis in Myanmar remains high on the Council’s agenda. We recognize, nonetheless, that the resolution falls short in adequately addressing the extreme severity of the human rights and humanitarian crisis in Myanmar—now in its fifth year.
Of utmost concern is the Myanmar military junta’s reported plan to hold an election this year or next year—in spite of the absence of any legitimacy or legal basis to do so, as well as its lack of effective control of Myanmar’s territory. This sham election represents the junta’s exit strategy from its failed coup, aimed to silence the people’s will for federal democracy, claim power, and once again legitimize and normalize military tyranny in Myanmar. The junta has already begun deploying its violence against civilians in order to hold its sham election—by, for example, using armed personnel to intimidate civilians into participating in its sham census last year. The UNHRC must unequivocally reject the junta’s plans for this sham election. The Council must put a spotlight on and take steps to prevent the deployment of violence and other coercive tactics used to force people into participating in this farcical exercise.
Today, the people of Myanmar—through the National Unity Government (NUG), the National Unity Consultative Council, and federal units including ethnic councils—are building federal democracy from the ground up, including by establishing local government administrations; developing policies on transitional justice, gender equality, and minority rights; and providing public services, including healthcare and education. These efforts are all in pursuit of an inclusive and peaceful Myanmar where protection of human rights and access to justice are a reality for all people and all communities. We urge the UNHRC to demonstrate its recognition of and support for the Myanmar people’s tireless efforts and immeasurable sacrifices to build inclusive federal democracy in the face of the military junta’s relentless violence. We further urge the UNHRC to recognize and support the efforts of the NUG, as the legitimate interim government of Myanmar, together with the people of Myanmar to establish inclusive federal democracy in the country.
For the past four years, the military junta has deliberately carried out widespread and systematic atrocities, including, but not limited to, airstrikes, extrajudicial killings, massacres, sexual and gender-based violence, arson attacks, mass arbitrary arrests, and torture against civilians throughout Myanmar. Since its failed coup attempt, the junta has arbitrarily arrested at least 28,600 people; killed more than 6,200, including more than 2,200 by airstrikes; and committed more than 310 massacres. According to the UN, more than 3.5 million people are internally displaced as of 17 February 2025. Since the coup attempt, an estimated 142,800 people have fled from Myanmar to other countries in the Asia-Pacific region as of 31 December 2024. These statistics are most likely a gross underestimation of the true magnitude of displacement.
Over the last two years in particular, the junta has escalated its airstrikes on civilian communities and infrastructure, bombing internally displaced person (IDP) camps, schools, hospitals and other medical facilities, and places of worship and other religious sites. In 2024, the junta conducted 2,504 airstrikes—averaging nearly seven airstrikes per day, and representing a nearly 104% increase compared to its total airstrikes in 2023. On 31 December 2024, the junta launched two airstrikes on an IDP camp in Loikaw Township, Karenni State, killing multiple civilians, including women and children. Over the last two months, the junta has begun using paramotors to attack and killcivilians, targeting their villages and homes—resulting in more than a dozen deaths since December 2024.
In this context, we welcome the UNHRC’s rightful recognition, in last year’s resolution, of the serious human rights and humanitarian implications of the junta’s airstrikes and other atrocity crimes. However, as the junta continues to increase its aerial attacks on civilians with complete impunity, we strongly urge the UNHRC to call for a comprehensive global arms embargo and targeted sanctions on aviation fuel as a necessary step to save lives in Myanmar. The reality remains that any transfer, sale, or diversion of arms, munitions, aviation fuel, and other military equipment to the junta is aiding and abetting its war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other crimes under international law. With Myanmar people’s lives in increasing danger, we have repeatedly called for the international community to sanction the supply of aviation fuel for military purposes and impose a global arms embargo in order to diminish the military junta’s capacity to bomb civilian communities nationwide. It is incredibly disheartening that our calls continue to go unheeded, with media reports indicating that Russia and China have supplied the Myanmar military with combatant drones over the past year.
We further welcome the UNHRC’s continued emphasis on regular monitoring and reporting on the situation in Myanmar, including by the High Commissioner’s forthcoming report on “pathways to fulfil the people of Myanmar’s aspirations for human rights protection, accountability, democracy and a civilian government,” as well as the continuing mandate of the Special Rapporteur. These are essential to keeping the situation in Myanmar in the international spotlight and urging the international community to take more concrete action.
Nevertheless, the need remains for the Council to strengthen efforts to ensure justice and accountability without further delay. With the utmost urgency, the UNHRC must lead the call for the referral of the situation in Myanmar to the International Criminal Court (ICC) or the establishment of a criminal prosecutorial body on Myanmar by the UN General Assembly or the UN Security Council. Furthermore, we urge the Council to welcome the declaration submitted by the NUG in 2022 under Article 12(3) of the Rome Statute at the ICC accepting the Court’s jurisdiction over international crimes committed in Myanmar since 1 July 2002.
We further urge the UNHRC to call for UN Member States, agencies, and mechanisms to provide financial, political, and technical support for ongoing universal jurisdiction efforts, including in Argentina. We also call on Member States, in particular States Parties to the Rome Statute, to take concrete action to advance justice and accountability by referring the crisis in Myanmar to the ICC under Article 14 of the Rome Statute, as called for by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar.
In a critical step towards accountability and objective documentation of the situation in Myanmar, the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) removed the accreditation status of the junta-controlled Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) from its global human rights network as of 31 December 2024. The MNHRC’s removal—which follows almost four years of consistent efforts by local, regional, and international civil society—reflects its complicity in the junta’s widespread and systematic human rights violations, in blatant non-compliance with the Paris Principles. We call on the UNHRC to recognize GANHRI’s decision regarding the MNHRC as a significant development towards a rights-protecting future in Myanmar.
We remain disappointed and alarmed by the UN’s deference to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), including its failed Five-Point Consensus (5PC), as a realistic pathway to addressing the crisis in Myanmar. ASEAN’s misguided reliance on the failed 5PC, despite the junta’s blatant disregard thereof, only emboldens the junta to continue its violence against the Myanmar people—eroding any confidence in ASEAN to stop the junta’s campaign of terror, protect human rights, provide humanitarian aid, and save lives. ASEAN’s ongoing engagement with and support for the junta has also allowed the proliferation of transnational organized crime within and across Myanmar’s borders, threatening the security and stability of the region and putting people around the world at risk. The UN can no longer hide behind ASEAN as a substitute for taking direct, concrete action to protect the Myanmar people. The UNHRC must strongly recommend and assist ASEAN to move beyond the 5PC in order to achieve a Myanmar people-led and people-centered solution to the crisis.
The UNHRC must fully support the Myanmar people’s efforts in laying the foundations of bottom-up federal democracy and their “aspirations for human rights protection, inclusivity, accountability, democracy and a civilian government.” We call for increased international support for justice initiatives, including for the Council to seek all possibilities for the establishment of a special tribunal to prosecute crimes committed in Myanmar.
For further information, please contact:
Signed by 121 civil society organizations, including two organizations that have chosen not to disclose their names:
Download PDF in English I Burmese.
Human rights and transitional justice
/in Other Human Rights ReportsReport of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for
Human Rights*
In the present report, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human
Rights (OHCHR) identifies examples of good practices and lessons learned related to
transitional justice processes in the context of sustaining peace and sustainable development,
notably Sustainable Development Goal 16, drawn from regional consultations and research
carried out pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 51/23. The examples of good
practices are victim-centred, inclusive, gender-responsive and innovative, and contribute to
an early, tangible or transformational impact on victims and affected communities. Many
have been developed by victims’ associations and grass-roots organizations, notably those
led by women, and contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The objective of the report is to convey the good practices presented during the
regional meetings, which are particularly applicable in challenging and adverse contexts in
which preconditions for transitional justice are absent. In those contexts, a series of initiatives
can lay the ground for future transitional justice processes and harness their transformative
potential for peace and development.
Based on the good practices and lessons learned, the report contains
recommendations, including to maximize the impact and ensure the sustainability of good
practices through their expansion, the adoption of similar measures and the provision of
dedicated support and complementary measures, as part of a holistic approach to transitional
justice that promotes truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence.
အတိတ်မှ ဆိုးရွားသည့် အကြီးအကျယ် လူ့အခွင့်အရေးချိုးဖောက်မှုများ ထပ်မံမဖြစ်ပွားစေရေးအ တွက် အာမခံခြင်း (Guarantees of non-recurrence)
/in Cartoon Animationအသွင်ကူးပြောင်းရေးကာလတရားမျှတမှု (TJ) ၏ လုပ်ငန်းစဥ် တခုမှာ အတိတ်မှ ဆိုးရွားသည့် အကြီးအကျယ် လူ့အခွင့်အရေးချိုးဖောက်မှုများ ထပ်မံမဖြစ်ပွားစေရေးအတွက် အာမခံခြင်း (Guarantees of non-recurrence) ဖြစ်သည်။ အတိတ်မှ ဆိုးရွားကြမ်းကြုတ် ရက်စက်မှုများ ထပ်မံမဖြစ်ပွားစေရေးအတွက် ဖွဲ့စည်းပုံအခြေခံဥပဒေ အပါအဝင် မတရား ဖိနှိပ်သည့် ဥပဒေများ၊ တရားဥပဒေစိုးမိုးရန် တာဝန်ရှိသည့် ရဲတပ်ဖွဲ့၊ အကျဥ်းဦးစီးဌာနကဲ့သို့ ဌာနဆိုင်ရာ အဖွဲ့အစည်းများ ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း၊ နိင်ငံတော် ကာကွယ်ရေးအတွက် တာဝန်ရှိသည့် စစ်တပ်ကဲ့သို့ လက်နက်ကိုင် တပ်ဖွဲ့များ ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်းများကို ဆောင်ကြသည့် “အဖွဲ့အစည်းဆိုင်ရာ ပြုပြင် ပြောင်းလဲရေး” (Institutional Reform) လုပ်ငန်းများဖြင့် ဆောင်ရွက်ကြသည်။
အဖွဲ့အစည်းဆိုင်ရာ ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း သည် TJ လုပ်ငန်းစဥ် ၄ ခုအနက်မှ အနာဂတ်အတွက် ရည်ရွယ်၍ ဆောင်ရွက်သည့် လုပ်ငန်းလည်းဖြစ်သည်။ အဆိုပါ လုပ်ငန်းစဥ်များအား အကြမ်းအားဖြင့် အောက်ပါအတိုင်း တွေ့ရသည်။
၁။ ဖွဲ့စည်းပုံအခြေခံဥပဒေအသစ် ရေးဆွဲခြင်း
၂။ ပညာရေးစနစ်အတွက် ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း
၃။ တရားစီရင်ရေးစနစ် ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း
၄။ ကာကွယ်ရေး၊ လုံခြုံရေးတပ်ဖွဲ့များ ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း (SSR/DDR)
၅။ ရဲတပ်ဖွဲ့နှင့် အကျဥ်းထောင်စနစ် ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း
၆။ ရွေးကောက်ပွဲဆိုင်ရာ ဥပဒေကို ပြုပြင်ပြောင်းလဲခြင်း
၇။ မတရားသည့် ဥပဒေများ ဖျက်သိမ်း၍ လူ့အခွင့်အရေးအတွက် အာမခံသည့် ဥပဒေ များ ပြဌာန်း ခြင်း
Asia: The International and Regional Community Must Act on Myanmar’s Four-Year Crisis under Junta Rule
/in News1 February 2025 – Four years since the military’s failed coup in February 2021, the people of Myanmar’s resistance against the junta’s brutal rule has not only persisted but intensified. The Transitional Justice Asia Network (TJAN), a regional hub of transitional justice experts which includes the Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma (ND-Burma) as one of the founding members, unequivocally condemns the junta’s continued and escalating violence. We reaffirm our unwavering solidarity with the people’s resistance as they bravely fight for freedom and democracy.
As documented in joint report by ND-Burma and the National Unity Government (NUG) of the government-in-waiting, the past four years have been a display of horrors: arbitrary arrests, indiscriminate airstrikes, systematic burning of homes and villages, and the use of heavy weaponry against civilian populations. “The situation in Myanmar is rapidly deteriorating and beyond critical,” states Han Gyi, Coordinator of ND-Burma. “The people urgently need support to protect their rights and ensure their safety. It is essential to recognise and commend the resilience of individuals from all walks of life who have united in their collective struggle to dismantle the dictatorship.”
Various diplomatic approaches have failed to stop the atrocities as the military junta continues to demonstrate a complete disregard for international norms and agreements. The ASEAN 5-Point Consensus, agreed upon in April 2021, has proven ineffective due to the junta’s blatant disregard, leaving the Myanmar crisis without a people-led and people-centered solution. The 2022 executions of pro-democracy activists, the ongoing forced conscriptions, and the relentless persecution of the Rohingya – including their forced recruitment into the junta’s army – all underscore their contempt for human rights and the rule of law. A recent report by Asia Justice and Rights and partners CSOs in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand details the appalling conditions faced by the Rohingya refugees in the region, highlighting their vulnerability to exploitation, discrimination, and the constant threat or violence.
This year marking a critical juncture, where accountability for the junta’s atrocity crimes is of utmost important. The ICC Prosecutor’s application for an arrest warrant for junta leader Min Aung Hlaing for crimes against humanity against the Rohingya—committed in Myanmar and, in part, in Bangladesh—is a welcome step, but it must be followed by concrete action. The international community must pursue all avenues for justice, including strengthening support for the ICC investigation, exploring universal jurisdiction initiatives in national court, and imposing targeted sanctions against those responsible for atrocities.
With Malaysia assuming the ASEAN Chair in 2025, there is a timely opportunity for regional leadership in mitigating the crisis. We urge Malaysia to take decisive action immediately by cutting diplomatic ties with the junta, implementing robust targeted sanctions, and actively engaging with the National Unity Government (NUG) as the legitimate representation of the Myanmar people. Malaysia must leverage its chairmanship to ensure full ASEAN cooperation with the ICC and to explore all available international and regional mechanisms to hold the junta accountable. Hence, ASEAN must take decisive action to elevate its dialogue and forge a stronger, more strategic partnership with civil society across the region.
“The people of Myanmar are demonstrating incredible courage and resilience in the face of unimaginable violations,” emphasises Galuh Wandita, Executive Director of AJAR. “As human rights defenders across Asia, we must amplify their voices and redouble our efforts to advocating for genuine accountability and dismantle the systemic violence endured by its ethnic minorities. The international community must move beyond statements of concern and take concrete action to protect the people of Myanmar and support their aspirations for a just and democratic future.”
Transitional Justice Asia Network (TJAN)
Asia Justice and Rights — KontraS Aceh (Indonesia) — Network for Human Rights Documentation-Burma (Myanmar) — Suriya Women’s Development Centre (Sri Lanka) — Alternative Law Groups (Philippines) — Cross-Cultural Foundation (Thailand) — May 18 Memorial Foundation (South Korea) — Advocacy Forum-Nepal (Nepal) — Asosiasaun Chega! Ba Ita (Timor-Leste)
Ajar