- ALTSEAN-BURMA
Special Reports
SPECIAL BRIEFER
26 Feb 2024
Junta imposes enforced conscription in desperate move to offset losses
- Junta imposes enforced conscription in desperate move to offset losses
- The 2010 “People’s Military Service Law”, targets men aged 18-35 and women aged 18-27, requires them to serve up to five years.
- The junta sets a 5-year jail term for objectors and evaders.
- Panicking civilians are leaving or are seeking to leave the country.
- ASEAN and other states have failed to respond decisively to the move, which will prolong armed conflict, and spark fresh waves of refugees fleeing the country.
SPECIAL BRIEFER
9 Feb 2024
Economic collapse: Results of the junta’s violence, greed & incompetence
- In 2023, the MMK averaged MMK 3300 per USD, at only 40% of its value before 1 Feb 2021.
- Rice price on the rise – up 253.8%; palm price oil skyrocketed 363.2% leaving people struggling to survive.
- Junta commits atrocities armed by USD 1 billion international supply chain.
- Min Aung Hlaing uses crony financial institutions as personal piggy bank
- Inflation persists at 20%.
- Conflict revives a harmful old cash crop:
Burma takes top spot from Afghanistan
in opium production.
SPECIAL BRIEFER
2 Feb 2024
INTERNATIONAL RESPONSES: FROM SLOW ACTORS TO OUTRIGHT ENABLERS
- ASEAN bans junta from high-level meetings, splits members with failed Five-Point Consensus.
- UN refuses to acknowledge junta, Russia and China block UN action against junta
as security threat. - 6 countries and EU sanction 163 junta members and 70 entities, leave loopholes.
No government has hosted 10-times-sanctioned Min Aung Hlaing, except Russia.
SPECIAL BRIEFER
29 January 2024
EROs, EAOs, and Resistance Governance Since the Attempted Coup
- Long-standing Ethnic Resistance Organizations (EROs) continue to run governance structures across Kachin, Karen, Arakan, and Northern Shan States.
- The National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC) and the National Unity Government (NUG)’s Central Command and Coordination Committee (C3C) and Joint Command and Coordination (J2C) continue to coordinate anti-junta resistance efforts.
- Locally-led federal units being built in at least 5 states, regions, and Self-administered Zones. thousands of Rohingya to flee once again.
- Resistance troops now control 39 out of 330 townships; and are rapidly increasing their influence
SPECIAL BRIEFER
13 DECEMBER 2023
Deepening Genocide: Junta Repression of Rohingya After the Attempted Coup
- The illegal junta has arbitrarily detained at least 3,841 Rohingya, including children, simply for “travelling without official permission”.
- Legal frameworks such as the 1948 Union Citizenship Act and 1982 Citizenship Law continue to deny Rohingya citizenship and reject their legitimate claims to indigeneity.
- Junta repatriation efforts and dire conditions in camps are forcing thousands of Rohingya to flee once again.
- Women and children are fleeing camps in growing numbers. More than 50% of recent arrivals by boat in Indonesia were women and children. Nearly 20% of new arrivals were unaccompanied children.
SPECIAL BRIEFER
30 NOVEMBER 2023
ILLEGAL MILITARY JUNTA’S WAR ON CIVILIANS & THE ENVIRONMENT UNDERMINES CLIMATE RESILIENCE
- The junta’s war on civilians, the National Unity Government (formed by elected MPs), and other groups resisting the coup have disproportionately affected indigenous and rural communities.
- As of 31 October 2023, junta has arrested 25,363 people, including many environmental defenders.
- The regime displaced 20,000 people to construct a Chinese-backed fossil fuel project in 2021.
- In March 2021, the junta killed 19 people and injured 28 others during several airstrikes on the Salween Peace Park in Karen State, an award-winning, indigenous-led environmental initiative.
SPECIAL BRIEFER
25 AUGUST 2023
CYCLES OF VIOLENCE AND DISPLACEMENT: ROHIGNYA AFTER THE ATTEMPTED COUP
FACTSHEET
15 FEBRUARY 2023
BURMA/MYANMAR: SUSTAINED NATIONWIDE RESISTANCE BLOCKS ILLEGAL JUNTA FROM GAINING CONTROL
FACTSHEET
7 NOVEMBER 2022
BURMA/MYANMAR: ILLEGAL JUNTA THREATENS PEOPLE & PLANET
- During a decade of quasi-civilian rule and economic liberalization, the NLD government was able to put some safeguards in place and increase accountability. Since the coup, however, these significant—albeit insufficient—gains have been obliterated.
- In April 2021 the junta launched multiple airstrikes on the Salween Peace Park, one of the richest forest ecosystems in Southeast Asia.
- Those who speak out against the junta’s plunder are threatened, arrested, and even killed.
- Since the coup attempt, the junta has hosted 12 timber auctions, raising over USD 5 million. It has held three gem fairs, the first of which raised USD 18 million.
FACTSHEET
28 OCTOBER 2022
BURMA/MYANMAR: THE CHALLENGES INDONESIA WILL INHERIT AS ASEAN CHAIR
One of the biggest challenges that Indonesia will face as ASEAN Chair 2023 is how it ensures effective leadership to secure significant progress on the ongoing political and human security crisis in Burma/Myanmar. Under Brunei’s chairmanship, ASEAN proved itself incapable of responding swiftly to the Burma crisis. One and a half years after the adoption of the Five-Point Consensus (FPC), the bloc still seems to lack common ground regarding the FPC’s implementation. In its upcoming 2023 chairmanship, Indonesia should trade the FPC for a more progressive and pragmatic plan with clear timelines and enforcement mechanisms in the best interest of the Burma people.
FACTSHEET
11 MAY 2022
INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO UKRAINE SITUATION HIGHLIGHTS SLUGGISHNESS ON BURMA/MYANMAR
The international community’s response to the invasion of Ukraine is stunning evidence of what is possible given sufficient political will. The failure of the international community—particularly powerful governments of the global north—to ramp up actions to halt the junta will hurt tens of millions of people and strengthen accusations of double standards in civilian protection. International actors must take measures to stop suffering and restore democracy in Burma.
FACTSHEET
26 APR 2022
DIRE HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY: THE URGENT NEED TO ADDRESS HUMAN SECURITY CONSEQUENCES OF JUNTA VIOLENCE
- According to UNHCR, 614,000 people have been displaced since the coup attempt, adding to over one million people displaced by pre-existing armed conflict and abuses. These populations, further affected by ongoing attacks and blocks on humanitarian aid, are in desperate need of protection, shelter, food, water, medicine, and other aid.
- It is imperative for ASEAN members to facilitate cross-border aid, partnering with like-minded countries and organizations, in the interests of regional human security and ASEAN’s credibility.
FACTSHEET
10 MARCH 2022
ASEAN ON BURMA/MYANMAR: AN INCREASINGLY POOR EXCUSE FOR UN SECURITY COUNCIL INACTION
The international community has deferred responsibility for addressing the situation in Burma to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). However, without sufficient leverage, ASEAN has failed to progress its Five-Point Consensus (FPC), aimed at halting hostilities, starting political dialogue, and providing humanitarian aid. It is urgent that the UN Security Council and the international community coordinate a range of targeted sanctions and actions in order to deprive the junta of the means to attack civilians and commit other grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions. These actions are required to generate sufficient leverage to back diplomatic efforts for a political resolution and achieve implementation of the FPC.
FACTSHEET
7 FEBRUARY 2022
BURMA/MYANMAR JUNTA DESTROYS THE ECONOMY
Since 1 Feb 2021, the junta’s destructive efforts to gain territorial and political control have destroyed Burma’s economy, with unemployment and poverty spiraling out of control. Its disastrous management caused a major crisis in the banking and electricity sectors. Widespread boycotts on military products and bills led to a 35% decrease in fiscal revenue. The MMK lost over half its value. Foreign investment dropped by 22%. The regime turned to natural resource extraction for much-needed foreign revenue. In February 2021, International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and the US government froze over USD 12 billion, depriving the junta of these funds.
FACTSHEET
5 FEBRUARY 2022
JUNTA GUARDS POWER BY JAILING POLITICAL OPPONENTS
In the past year, the junta has abused the judiciary and attacked the rule of law in Burma by arresting, detaining, charging, and sentencing activists and political opponents. It is imperative that the junta release these people, as well as all other people it has arbitrarily detained, and remove all charges and/or convictions against them.
See p.2 for table of political targets sentenced; see p.4 for table of people sentenced to death.
FACTSHEET
1 FEBRUARY 2022
BURMA/MYANMAR: SANCTIONS PILING UP BUT NOT YET GOOD ENOUGH
It is imperative that governments and other bodies extend sanctions to effectively cut the flow of weapons and money to the junta in order to secure the protection of civilians. Civil society and Burma’s NUG government continue calls for sanctions on Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), which represents an enormous source of revenue for the junta, fueling its atrocity crimes. On 31 Jan, Canada, the US, and the UK added sanctions providing for the freezing of funds or economic resources belonging to the sanctions targets. In addition, the US sanctions bar Americans from doing business with the targets. See the table on pp.2–4 for the full list of sanctions by Canada and the US, UK, and EU.
FACTSHEET
20 JANUARY 2022
URGENT INTERNATIONAL ACTION NEEDED TO ADDRESS JUNTA’S CRIMES
The UN Security Council must take concrete action to address the junta’s increasingly frequent and severe attacks on civilians in Burma. During the first 11 months of the junta’s attempted coup, there were 7,686 armed clashes and attacks on civilians, a 715% increase from the same period in 2020. The violence was comparable to Syria, and greater than in Afghanistan, Yemen, or Iraq. The widespread and systematic nature of junta troops’ massacres and other atrocity crimes suggest that they reflect orders from the junta’s highest levels.
BRIEFER
12 DECEMBER 2021
OCTOBER UPDATE: BURMA/MYANMAR’S MILITARY JUNTA CRIPPLES ECONOMY
The illegal military junta’s ongoing destructive efforts wreaked further havoc on the economy. Troubling indicators include: projected economic contraction of 18.4% in 2021, and 48% of the population in poverty by 2022; mass internal displacement, including half the population of Karenni State alone; a 60% drop in the value of the kyat in Sep 2021, driving up the price of fuel (+100%) and rice (+40%); and the loss of at least 1.6 million jobs.
FACTSHEET
3 DECEMBER 2021
CONFLICT RAGES BETWEEN JUNTA AND ARMED GROUPS IN BURMA
The UN Security Council must take action on the crisis in Burma. Since Burma’s military (Tatmadaw) launched its coup on 1 Feb 2021, conflict has escalated to staggering levels, even compared to other places on the Council’s agenda. Between 1 Feb and 26 Nov, there were 6,675 armed clashes and attacks on civilians, a 632% increase from the same period in 2020 (912). This was fewer than in Syria (7,029), but greater than in Afghanistan (6,340) and Yemen (5,432).
BRIEFER
23 NOVEMBER 2021
REPORT CARD #4: NO TIME TO HEAR ICJ, BURMA/MYANMAR BUSY COMMITTING ATROCITY CRIMES
Burma has failed to effectively comply with the Provisional Measures Order issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23 Jan 2020 in relation to alleged genocidal acts against the Rohingya. Instead of implementing measures to protect Rohingya people from war crimes and acts of genocide, Burma’s illegal junta is committing war crimes and crimes against humanity nationwide.
BRIEFER
26 OCTOBER 2021
A COALITION OF THE UNWILLING: ASEAN’S RESPONSE TO THE CRISIS IN BURMA/MYANMAR
The international community has repeatedly called on ASEAN to address the situation in Burma, but ASEAN action has been inadequate and the situation has worsened. Armed clashes and attacks on civilians rose by around 27% after the 24 Apr ASEAN meeting. The junta increased attacks on NLD & NUG members, and charged associates with treason.
ASEAN did nothing to facilitate dialogue between the junta and the civilian NUG. It took over six months to appoint a special envoy to Burma, who has not met with the NUG or facilitated dialogue, his two mandates. It began facilitating humanitarian aid in August through the junta, which has consistently undermined public health response and is both incapable and untrustworthy.
BRIEFER
18 OCTOBER 2021
SUBMISSION FOR THE UN WORKING GROUP ON BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS: TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE IN BURMA, BUSINESS PRACTICE, AND THE 2021 COUP
BRIEFER
28 JUNE 2021
BURMA/MYANMAR'S MILITARY JUNTA CRIPPLES THE ECONOMY
Since seizing power on 1 February, the illegal military junta’s destructive efforts to gain territorial and political control have dragged the economy, already impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, into a crippling, downward spiral.
BRIEFER
24 MAY 2021
REPORT CARD #3: IGNORING ICJ PROVISIONAL MEASURES, BURMA/MYANMAR'S MILITARY TURNS VIOLENCE AGAINST ENTIRE NATION
Burma has failed to effectively comply with the Provisional Measures Order issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 23 January 2020 in relation to its alleged genocidal acts against the Rohingya. Instead of implementing measures to protect Rohingya people from war crimes and acts of genocide, Burma’s illegal junta government is committing systematic atrocity crimes across the entire country.
FACTSHEET
5 MAY 2021
68 AIR STRIKES ON KACHIN AND KAREN STATES WITHIN A WEEK OF THE ASEAN SUMMIT (24 - 30 APRIL 2021)
The illegal junta’s “Consensus” with ASEAN states late last month included a commitment to stopping violence and “exercising restraint”. In seven days the military instead carried out 68 air strikes on Kachin and Karen State – almost ten per day – destroying civilian homes and displacing thousands.
BRIEFER
31 MARCH 2021
COMMITTEE REPRESENTING PYIDAUNGSU HLUTTAW: BURMA/MYANMAR’S LEGITIMATE GOVERNMENT UNTIL PARLIAMENT RESUMES
The Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) is the legitimate interim government of Burma. These 378 MPs—i.e., 76% of elected parliamentarians—stepped up to govern and officially swore themselves in on 4 February, despite the junta’s attempts to detain, incapacitate, or otherwise silence them.
BRIEFER
11 MARCH 2021
COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BURMA/MYANMAR: JUNTA’S ATTACKS ON CIVIL SOCIETY & HEALTH WORKERS ARE KILLING DOMESTIC COVID-19 RESPONSE
BRIEFER
28 JANUARY 2021
COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BURMA/MYANMAR: GOVERNMENT RESPONSE LEAVES PEOPLE IN DIRE ECONOMIC SITUATION
Burma’s response to the pandemic has deepened economic inequalities and pushed vulnerable populations into even more precarious situations. At worst, the military (Tatmadaw) killed civilians, destroyed homes, and blocked humanitarian assistance in ethnic minority zones. At best, financial relief to civilians in non-conflict areas has been paltry.
BRIEFER
20 JANUARY 2021
COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BURMA/MYANMAR: MILITARIZED RESPONSES THREATEN PUBLIC HEALTH
Burma’s experience of the COVID-19 pandemic has been greatly hobbled by decades of underinvestment in the public health system by successive military governments.
Compounding the issue is the Tatmadaw’s ongoing refusal to delegate and relinquish control of a public health crisis to civilian government bodies.
BRIEFER
27 NOVEMBER 2020
REPORT CARD #2: BURMA/MYANMAR'S INSUFFICIENT ACTION ON THE ICJ'S PROVISIONAL MEASURES AND COVID-19
An enormous “second wave” of COVID-19 cases threatens to overrun Burma’s critically underfunded and unprioritized public health system, while the Tatmadaw systematically demolishes ethnic people’s attempts to fight the spread of the virus.
Meanwhile in Rakhine State, Burma’s government has at the eight month mark still failed to take effective action in implementing the ICJ’s Provisional Measures, which will have increase vulnerability to pandemics and conflict for all minority people in the country.
ANALYSIS
27 NOVEMBER 2020
NOVEMBER UPDATE: ATTACKS AND ARMED CLASHES, SHELLINGS AND AIRSTRIKES, AND PROPERTY DESTRUCTION IN BURMA SINCE 23 JANUARY 2020
Between 23 January and 23 November 2020, there were at least 880 armed clashes in civilian areas or direct attacks on civilians by armed actors in Burma. This is a 70.5% increase over the 516 during the corresponding period (23 Jan–23 Jun) in 2017. These took place across 11 of Burma’s 14 States and Regions, as well as the capital territory, and resulted in at least 224 civilians killed and 638 injured.
This excel sheet lists details of every incident, and is meant to complement the briefer “REPORT CARD # 2: Burma/Myanmar’s insufficient action on the ICJ’s provisional measures and COVID-19”.
It uses data provided by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
BRIEFER
28 MAY 2020
REPORT CARD #1: BURMA/MYANMAR'S FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ICJ PROVISIONAL MEASURES
Burma’s Government and military claim that they are taking effective measures to implement the Provisional Measures ordered by the International Court of Justice.
However, at Burma’s first four-month report evidence of systematic, long-term change is very difficult to see. Rohingya people are still subjected to an Apartheid existence in IDP prison camps in Rakhine, and the Tatmadaw continues to wage war against its own people in Burma’s West, North and East.
BRIEFER
15 JULY 2020
MYANMAR UPR: BURMA/MYANMAR'S PEACE PROCESS MUST PRIORITIZE HUMAN RIGHTS ABOVE MILITARY SUPREMACY AND DESTRUCTIVE BUSINESS DEALS
With the close for submissions to the latest round of the Burma/Myanmar Universal Periodic Review (UPR), key recommendations from previous cycles remain unimplemented and civilians across the country remain at severe risk of armed violence and business-linked rights abuses.
BRIEFER
28 MAY 2020
ATTACKS AND ARMED CLASHES, SHELLINGS AND AIRSTRIKES, AND PROPERTY DESTRUCTION IN BURMA SINCE 23 JANUARY 2020
Between 23 January and 13 May 2020 (the last day for which conflict data is available), there were at least 410 armed clashes in civilian areas or direct attacks on civilians by armed actors, across 5 States and 2 Regions of Burma. These incidents took place in the west, center, and east of the country, i.e., Rakhine State, Chin State, Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Shan State, Kayah State and Kayin State.
This excel sheet lists details of every incident, and is meant to complement the briefer “REPORT CARD # 1: BURMA/MYANMAR’S FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ICJ PROVISIONAL MEASURES”.
It uses data provided by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
BRIEFER
28 JANUARY 2020
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ICJ'S PROVISIONAL MEASURES ON MYANMAR WILL BENEFIT ALL PEOPLE IN THE COUNTRY AND IN THE REGION
It is in the Tatmadaw’s interest to pretend that the international cases against it are “Rohingya Issues”. However, full implementation of the ICJ’s “provisional measures”, will benefit all ethnic communities in Burma who suffer from Tatmadaw crimes and human rights violations. It’s time to end impunity and introduce accountability to the Burma Army.
INFOGRAPHIC
22 APRIL 2019
NLD FAILS TO HONOR PLEDGE TO RELEASE POLITICAL PRISONERS
It has become a tradition for the President of Burma to mark the Thingyan (or Water Festival) New Year celebrations with a mass pardon of prisoners, including those detained for political reasons. When the National League for Democracy took power in 2016, it pledged to release all political prisoners by the end of the year and promised not to arrest any more. ALTSEAN’s latest infographic highlights how the NLD has failed to honor this pledge, as 362 political prisoners remain behind bars or are waiting to stand trial following the latest mass pardon on 17 April.
FACTSHEET
11 MARCH 2019
UPR EXPOSES CHINA'S GAPS ON BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS
For China’s most recent Universal Periodic Review, an unprecedented number of civil society organizations submitted reports on the human rights impacts of the state’s business operations around the world. As China continues to increase investment in development projects, particularly via its expansive Belt and Road Initiative, it must take responsibility for abuses committed by its businesses abroad. Read more in ALTSEAN-Burma’s latest factsheet.
FACTSHEET
18 OCTOBER 2018
ONGOING ATTACKS AGAINST CIVILIANS AND A FALTERING PEACE PROCESS
ALTSEAN-Burma, FIDH, and Progressive Voice issue a fact sheet on the major obstacles impeding the Burmese peace process. The military continue to sabotage peace talks through acts of violence and rights abuses against ethnic minority groups, whilst also evading accountability for their crimes
FACTSHEET
18 OCTOBER 2018
BURMA/MYANMAR'S ONGOING REFUSAL TO PURSUE ACCOUNTABILITY: TIME FOR AN ICC REFERRAL
ALTSEAN-Burma, FIDH, and Progressive Voice issue a fact sheet calling for Burma to be immediately referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to halt ongoing human rights violations in the country.
STATEMENT
03 SEPTEMBER 2018
CSOS CONDEMN SENTENCING OF REUTERS JOURNALISTS
ALTSEAN-Burma and FIDH strongly condemn the conviction of Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and call for their immediate and unconditional release. The two men, who were reporting on the Inn Din massacre at the time of their arrest, were sentenced to seven years in prison today under the archaic Official Secrets Act. The conviction marks a serious setback for press freedom and rule of law in Burma.
FACTSHEET
23 AUGUST 2018
DODGING ACCOUNTABILITY AND WHITEWASHING CRIMES
The latest Commission of Enquiry (CoE) is the latest in a long tradition of Burmese Sham internal investigations. This latest development underlines the urgent need to collect, preserve, and analyze evidence of serious international crimes, and identify perpetrators for future criminal prosecutions in accordance with international law.
FACTSHEET
13 JULY 2018
TWO ASPECTS OF THE RAKHINE CRISIS
What impact has the development of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) had in worn torn Rakhine State? And why has the military budget increased astronomically under the civilian government of the National League for Democracy?
FACTSHEET
13 JULY 2018
ASEAN'S FAILINGS IN BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) significantly lags behind its African and American regional counterparts in the realm of stakeholder engagement and access to justice, thereby undermining the region’s capacity to mitigate and remedy human rights impacts as a result of business activities.
REPORT
08 DECEMBER 2017
SHADOW NBA ON BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS IN BURMA
A joint report from the International Corporate Accountability Roundtable (ICAR) and ALTSEAN-Burma, providing among the most comprehensive studies ever taken into the relationship between business and human rights in Burma/Myanmar.
FACTSHEET
11 APRIL 2017
ACTION NEEDED TO HALT ONGOING MILITARY RAMPAGE
Sr Gen Min Aung Hlaing declared the military’s firm commitment to “the stability, unity and development of the country and monitoring to ensure that (the country) can walk firmly on the multi-party democracy path chosen by the people.” Despite such declarations, the Tatmadaw’s behaviour has consistently undermined the peace process, rule of law and human rights.
BRIEFER
13 NOVEMBER 2015
BURMA/MYANMAR POST-ELECTION OUTLOOK: TRIALS FOR TRIUMPH
Results announced on 14 November confirmed the overwhelming victory of the National League for Democracy (NLD) in the 8 November elections, which decided 75% of seats in Burma’s National and Regional Parliaments. While the military will retain its allotted 25% of parliamentary seats, the NLD now holds an overall majority in the National Parliament, giving it the power to form Burma’s next government and select a president.
BRIEFER
06 NOVEMBER 2015
LAND CONFISCATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN BURMA SINCE 2011: UPROOTING REFORMS
Land confiscation in Burma causes forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, sending many into severe poverty. Here we provide a nationwide outlook on this destructive and rampant practice.