The Diplomatic Envoy

Myanmar

February 2023International News

Myanmar Military Government Extends State of Emergency and Delays Elections

On February 4, the military junta in charge of Myanmar imposed martial law in several strongholds of anti-military resistance, Al Jazeera reports. In the numerous townships affected by the new measures, the citizens of Myanmar will be tried for various charges from treason to spreading fake news.

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2022International NewsAsia

Myanmar Military Vows to ‘Annihilate’ Resistance

Myanmar’s military vowed to crack down on opposition forces as the nation celebrated its Armed Forces Day, reports Al Jazeera. The leader of Myanmar, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, claimed that his forces would ‘annihilate’ civilian opposition groups and urged ethnic minorities away from supporting militia groups that oppose the Tatmadaw, the country’s military-led government. However, one civilian resistance group, the National Unity Government, prompted people to take part in a ‘Power Strike’, turning off their lights and TVs during the parade broadcast ABC News reports. 

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2022Asia

Hearings on Rohingya Genocide Resume in Highest UN Courts

February 21 marked the beginning of preliminary arguments at the International Court of Justice regarding the genocide of Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine state of Myanmar, according to The Associated Press. Myanmar is currently being represented by military leaders, most of whom came into power after overthrowing the country’s previous leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.

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February 20222022International NewsAsia

Myanmar Marks One Year Since Military Takeover

February 1marked one year since Myanmar’s  military staged a coup to oust democratically elected leader Aung Sann Suu Kyi, less than a decade after its transition into a democratic nation. The U.N. Security Council released a statement regarding the one-year anniversary, calling for those still detained to abe released, including the country’s former president Win Myint, reports U.S. News. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and long-time supporter of democracy, remains detained as well. 

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2021April 2021International NewsAsia

Myanmar Protest Escalate; UN Envoy Warns of Civil War Threat

Myanmar’s military crackdown on protestors is sending shock waves throughout the Asian nation. The UN Special Envoy for Myanmar urged the UN Security Council to consider “potential significant action” in Myanmar to prevent the country from falling into a civil war. The organization also called for a complete reversal of the February 1 military coup and the restoration of the country’s democratically elected government. CNN reports that at least 550 people have been killed by Myanmar’s military in the aftermath of the coup.

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2021March 2021International NewsAsia

Journalists Released from Detention in Myanmar

Associated Press journalist Thein Zaw and BBC journalist Aung Thura, among other media personnel, were released recently from detention in Myanmar. Their release comes after mounting pressure from the international community to release all journalists and cease the media crackdown. Since the February 1 coup that saw the overthrow of its democratically-elected government, a military government controls Myanmar which has cracked down on independent press coverage of protests resisting the new government, ABC News reports.

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2021March 2021International NewsAsia

India Threatens to Deport Rohingya Refugees to Myanmar

Authorities in Jammu detained over 200 Rohingya refugees in early March and are threatening to deport them to Myanmar, the state from which they are fleeing. India claims that the refugees are considered “illegal immigrants” and explains they are in the process of deporting the detainees back to their home country, despite the continued severe violence against Rohingya Muslims in the region.

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