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Commend bravery, condemn betrayal

April 17, 2025/in News

LETTER | The Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma (ND-Burma) commends the extraordinary bravery of Malaysian rescue personnel, the Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (Smart), who undertook humanitarian missions in earthquake-stricken Sagaing Region, Myanmar. Operating in areas plagued by insecurity and militarised repression, their courage and commitment to saving lives stand as a […]

MYANMAR: HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONDEMNS THE JUNTA, RESPONDS TO THE EARTHQUAKE, AND CALLS TO END SALE AND SUPPLY OF ARMS AND JET FUEL

April 4, 2025/in Press Releases and Statements

4 April 2025 Myanmar: Human Rights Council condemns the junta, responds to the earthquake, and calls to end sale and supply of arms and jet fuel UN Security Council must follow up urgently to address the crisis The consensus adoption of the latest resolution on Myanmar at the 58th session of the UN Human Rights […]

Commend bravery, condemn betrayal

April 17, 2025/in News

MYANMAR: HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONDEMNS THE JUNTA, RESPONDS TO THE EARTHQUAKE, AND CALLS TO END SALE AND SUPPLY OF ARMS AND JET FUEL

April 4, 2025/in Press Releases and Statements

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Commend bravery, condemn betrayal

April 17, 2025/in News

Operating in areas plagued by insecurity and militarised repression, their courage and commitment to saving lives stand as a powerful act of regional solidarity and moral clarity.

Despite significant restrictions imposed by the military junta, their successful rescue efforts remind us of what true humanitarianism looks like.

However, while we applaud the selfless actions of these individuals, we are deeply alarmed and disappointed by the diplomatic trajectory taken by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who is reportedly planning to meet with junta leader, Min Aung Hlaing, under the pretext of humanitarian coordination.

Such an act risks legitimising a regime that continues to commit widespread atrocities – including indiscriminate aerial bombings, mass killings, and forced displacement – even during Myanmar’s traditional New Year.

Far from pursuing peace, the junta has intensified its war against the people. To meet with its chief architect, without consulting or including legitimate stakeholders from Myanmar’s pro-democracy movement, would be nothing short of a betrayal.

This approach flagrantly disregards Asean’s own Five-Point Consensus, especially the first point, which calls for an immediate cessation of violence. Not only has this condition never been met, but the military junta has also openly defied it.

Yet, instead of accountability, we see gestures of recognition and dialogue that embolden the perpetrators and further isolate the democratic forces on the ground.

More troubling still is Asean’s apparent outsourcing of its regional responsibility – mandated by the United Nations and supported by the international community – to a private individual, former Thai prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra.

Such actions are irresponsible and unethical. Myanmar’s crisis is not a business opportunity, nor can peace be brokered through personal relationships or economic self-interest. Thaksin’s history of close ties with Myanmar’s military elite makes his involvement all the more problematic and unacceptable.

A broad coalition of Myanmar’s legitimate democratic actors and ethnic resistance organisations – including the National Unity Government (NUG), Karen National Union (KNU), Chin National Front (CNF), and others – has strongly opposed this direction.

These groups have urged Asean and the international community to:

Refrain from delivering humanitarian aid through the junta, which controls only 22% of the country and routinely weaponises assistance;
Ensure that aid is neutral, inclusive, and impartial and delivered through mechanisms involving the NUG and ethnic resistance organisations;
Reject the junta’s proposed elections as a sham exercise in military entrenchment;

Recognise that Myanmar’s sovereignty today is shared—the junta cannot speak for a population it brutalises.

Malaysia’s current direction undermines decades of work for peace and justice in Myanmar. It also sends the wrong message to the people of Myanmar, other Asean nations, and those around the world who look to Malaysia as a moral and principled actor in regional affairs.

We urge Anwar and Aseam leaders to reassess this flawed and dangerous approach. Do not reward atrocity with diplomatic recognition. Do not hand over the fate of an entire nation to backroom deals and private interests.

Stand with the people of Myanmar, who continue to resist tyranny at tremendous cost. Their courage deserves more than token sympathy – it demands principled action.

Malaysiakini

MYANMAR: HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL CONDEMNS THE JUNTA, RESPONDS TO THE EARTHQUAKE, AND CALLS TO END SALE AND SUPPLY OF ARMS AND JET FUEL

April 4, 2025/in Press Releases and Statements

4 April 2025

Myanmar: Human Rights Council condemns the junta, responds to the earthquake, and calls to end sale and supply of arms and jet fuel

UN Security Council must follow up urgently to address the crisis

The consensus adoption of the latest resolution on Myanmar at the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council reflects the international community’s collective condemnation of the Myanmar military junta’s relentless campaign of violence and atrocities. While the resolution represents progress in international efforts to hold the Myanmar military junta accountable for its crimes, it also underscores critical gaps in the global response to Myanmar’s worsening human rights and humanitarian crisis.

Condemnation of Junta’s Atrocities

The resolution unequivocally condemns the military junta for its escalating violence against civilians, including indiscriminate airstrikes and artillery attacks. It holds the junta responsible for Myanmar’s deepening crisis and for its atrocities, which have left millions in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and displaced over 3.5 million people inside the country. It leaves no doubt that the military junta has absolutely no international legitimacy and is the root cause of Myanmar’s deepening human rights and humanitarian crisis.

The resolution expresses deep concern over the junta’s ongoing human rights violations—including extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, torture, sexual violence, and the destruction of civilian infrastructure—that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law. It calls for an immediate cessation of all forms of violence and urges the military to release all arbitrarily detained persons.

Furthermore, the resolution highlights the plight of marginalized groups, particularly the Rohingya community, who continue to face systematic persecution and discrimination in their homeland of Rakhine State. It stresses the importance of addressing root causes of ongoing violence against Rohingya in Rakhine State and ensuring conditions necessary for their voluntary, safe, dignified, and sustainable return.

Obligations under the Arms Trade Treaty

In a notable development, the resolution “recalls obligations of State Parties to the Arms Trade Treaty in relation to international humanitarian law and international human rights law” under Articles 6 and 7 regarding the prohibitions of arms transfer authorization and assessment of arms export.

This key call by the Council reiterates the fact that any and all transfer, sale, and diversion of arms, munitions and other military equipment is not merely a matter of business transactions between states but an international obligation of UN Member States to ensure these arms do not contribute to human suffering, conflict, or violations of international law.

Impacts of Earthquake

The resolution addresses the devastating impacts, destruction, and casualties caused by the earthquake on 28 March 2025. We welcome the Council’s call for the provision of “principled humanitarian aid” to all in need, “including through organizations already operating in affected areas, in line with the humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality, and independence.”

As Myanmar faces yet another catastrophe amidst the already dire humanitarian crisis caused by the junta’s campaign of terror, we call the Council’s attention to the press statement by over 265 Myanmar, regional, and international organizations. It is imperative that disaster emergency relief be channeled through local community groups and frontline responders in collaboration with legitimate Myanmar stakeholders and civil society organizations.

Given the history of aid exploitation and weaponization by the Myanmar military and its airstrikes even in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake, we underscore the crucial importance of preventing manipulation of aid by the junta for political or military gain.

At this critical time, the UN Security Council must convene an emergency meeting and intervene to protect affected communities and ensure that aid reaches those with the direst need, in particular through adopting a resolution under Chapter VII.

Shortcomings in International Action

Despite these strong condemnations, the resolution falls short in several key areas.

Transfer, sale, and diversion of arms, munitions and other military equipment: The resolution acknowledges the serious human rights and humanitarian implications of the continuous “sale, diversion and unregulated or illicit transfers of arms and jet fuel.” However, watered-down language as a result of concessions made to achieve consensus, the resolution merely calls for the cessation of “the illicittransfer and diversion of arms, munitions and other military equipment,” failing to recognize the need to end all sale and transfer of arms and weapons to end the ongoing violence.

The failure to take action to impose a comprehensive global arms embargo or sanctions on aviation fuel for military purposes may amount to aiding and abetting the military’s continuing international crimes. As recently as yesterday, the Myanmar military launchedairstrikes on Sagaing Region and Kachin State, breaching its hours-old ceasefire declaration.

Reports by UN experts, in addition to reports by civil society, have documented transfer of arms, aviation fuel, and military equipment from and through UN Member States—namely China, Russia, India, Singapore, and Thailand—to Myanmar since 2018 including following the Rohingya genocide, and in particular since the coup attempt. Acting on the Council and General Assembly resolutions that repeatedly call for prevention of the flow of arms to Myanmar, the international community must take urgent measures to cut the supply to and access of the junta to arms and aviation fuel without delay or risk complicity in its mass atrocity crimes.

ASEAN: We are disappointed by the Council’s continued support for “the central role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations” (ASEAN) in addressing the escalating crisis in Myanmar despite its failure to make any progress in this regard over the past four years.

ASEAN’s efforts, in particular its Five-Point Consensus and insistence on the so-called “inclusive dialogue”, have been ineffective and often harmful to Myanmar people’s struggle for a human rights-centered future. To date, ASEAN has failed to recognize and address the Myanmar military as the root cause of the ongoing crisis with serious consequences for regional stability and human security. It is yet to meaningfully and officially engage with legitimate stakeholders such as the National Unity Government (NUG), ethnic revolutionary organizations, and Myanmar civil society. Furthermore, as opposed to the supposed aim of resolving the crisis, many ASEAN Member States are implicated in the transfer of arms and military equipment to the Myanmar military, contributing to the exacerbation of the crisis.

ASEAN and the UN are accountable to the people of Myanmar regarding matters of their own country. The UN’s delegation of its responsibilities to the Myanmar people to ASEAN will only prolong the Myanmar military’s mass atrocity crimes and intensify civilian casualties and suffering. This underscores the obligations of the UN and the wider international community to end its irresponsible reliance on ASEAN and to assume leadership in addressing Myanmar’s crisis.

Calls for Urgent Action

Four years since the attempted coup, Myanmar remains engulfed in violence and suffering. The will and commitment of its people to resist the military remain steadfast as they continue their struggle for federal democracy and justice. The Human Rights Council must mobilize Member States to heed their calls to implement a full ban on arms and aviation fuel sales and transfer to the junta and ensure accountability through international mechanisms such as referrals to the International Criminal Court.

The international community must move beyond rhetoric and take decisive action to end impunity for atrocity crimes in Myanmar. Only then can there be hope for peace, justice, and a future built on respect for human rights.

For more information, please contact:

Han Gyi, Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma; office@ndburma.org
Khin Ohmar, Progressive Voice; info@progressive-voice.org
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development; communication@forum-asia.org

Spring Revolution

Civil Society Position Paper on ASEAN’s Goal of a Myanmar-Owned and -Led SolutionDecember 18, 2024 - 12:11 pm
Recommendations to ASEAN and Its Member States (1) Move beyond the 5PC to achieve a Myanmar people-led and people-centered solution to the crisis in Myanmar. ASEAN’s “Myanmar-owned and -led” approach must be backed by genuine political will that aligns with and supports the collective aspirations of the people of Myanmar. (2) Cease all pressure on […]
The Airstrikes after the journey to the China of the Junta Military LeaderDecember 10, 2024 - 1:28 pm
Operation 1027 was a coordinated military attack against the junta on October 27th, 2023. It was carried out by the Northern Brotherhood, which includes the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army. Several months later, the Three Brotherhood Alliance held three meetings to negotiate with China on January 11 […]
Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 15 to 21, 2024)September 27, 2024 - 8:26 am
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Sep 15 to 21, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Shan State, Chin State, Rakhine State, and Kachin State from September 15th to 21st. The Military Junta committed arresting, occupying the properties, threatening by using power, and […]

Multimedia

GenocideSeptember 2, 2025 - 9:42 am
Crimes Against HumanityJune 16, 2025 - 7:55 am
International Humanitarian Law Cartoon AnimatonApril 29, 2025 - 8:37 am
အတိတ်မှ ဆိုးရွားသည့် အကြီးအကျယ် လူ့အခွင့်အရေးချိုးဖောက်မှုများ ထပ်မံမဖြစ်ပွားစေရေးအ တွက် အာမခံခြင်း (Guarantees of non-recurrence)February 10, 2025 - 9:58 am

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.

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