46th regular session of the UN Human Rights Council

Item 4: Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar

Oral Statement Delivered by Khin Ohmar

On behalf of the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)

Thursday, 11 March 2021

Madam President, we welcome the Special Rapporteur’s report

We make this statement in solidarity with the people of Myanmar. Their relentless, brave and peaceful protests against the military coup have been met with unprovoked brutal and indiscriminate violence and lethal force with assault rifles, semi-automatic machineguns, and snipers with the sole aim to kill.

Since the coup, at least 60 people including women, children and medical practitioners have been killed, and more than 2000 people have been arbitrarily detained, and hundreds more injured. At least 3 cases of sudden death with signs of torture and at least 3 cases of torture in detention have been reported. The junta has blocked the access to social media, imposed regular internet shutdowns, banned 6 media outlets and arrested 36 journalists. The junta has also begun destroying evidence of its brutality including by confiscating mobile phones and raiding media offices.

As a peaceful protester from the 1988 nationwide pro-democracy uprising, in which the same military killed hundreds of peaceful protesters, I implore you to listen to the people of Myanmar, the civil disobedience movement and the generation Z. Results of the November 2020 elections and nationwide peaceful protests against this illegal coup d’état are clear and unequivocal demonstrations that the military junta does not represent the people of Myanmar. There cannot be a true resolution to this crisis with compromises to appease the military.

The UN and the world watched as the same military committed genocide against the Rohingya and war crimes and crimes against other ethnic communities. Failure to hold them accountable for those horrific crimes emboldened the military and created conditions for the current crisis. We call on the UN Security Council and the international community to impose global arms embargoes and targeted sanctions against the military, its businesses and associates. Most urgently, the Security Council need to dispatch a delegation to monitor the situation and prevent further atrocities. Myanmar people’s lives depend on it.

Thank you.

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For a PDF version of this statement, click here

This post was originally published on FORUM-ASIA.