HRN has submitted an oral statement to the 48th Human Rights Council session for a September 22 meeting on Myanmar’s human rights violations since the coup last February. The statement calls on the military to end all human rights violations and restore the democratically elected government, and on the international community to recognize the National Unity Government and implement sanctions and other forms of appropriate pressure against the military.
A video of the statement is below, and below that is a transcript of the statement, which is also available from the following link in pdf format: HRC48_OS_Myanmar-transcript.pdf
(Note that for technical reasons, the statement was ultimately not aired for the HRC meeting.)
Transcript of Oral Statement on Myanmar
Human Rights Now is deeply concerned over the continuing human rights crisis in Myanmar since the military coup, and we express our solidarity with the democratically elected government.
Reports indicate that the junta has committed numerous crimes against humanity. According to the AAPP, more than 1,100 people have been killed by the junta since the coup, more than 85 of them children and more than 110 of them shot in the head. Out of more than 8,260 people arbitrarily arrested, over 6,600 remain in detention, more than 80% of them forcibly disappeared to unknown locations; and many formerly detained persons have reported being tortured. There are also reports of the use of sniper rifles and live ammunition against unarmed protestors, widespread sexual violence, and continuing attacks on ethnic groups.
The junta has also suppressed civil and political rights through bans on public assemblies of more than five people, unjustified curfews, internet shutdowns, arbitrary searches of private residences, and mass surveillance.
We call on Myanmar’s military to end all human rights violations and restore the democratically elected government. We also request the Security Council to refer the Myanmar situation to the International Criminal Court to ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable, and the international community to recognize the National Unity Government and to implement targeted sanctions, arms embargoes, financial restrictions, and other appropriate means of pressure against the junta.
Thank you.