Firms in US, Europe, Asia helping Myanmar junta make arms despite sanctions: Report

By SM Najmus Sakib

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - At least 13 companies in the US, Europe, Asia and North America have been supplying raw materials and technology to Myanmar junta to manufacture weapons despite western-led sanctions, says a new report.

Former top UN human rights officials said in the report that the Myanmar junta uses the weapons for human rights atrocities, mainly those who oppose the military-run government.

The report, prepared by the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M) on Monday, identifies companies domiciled in Austria, France, China, Singapore, India, Israel, Ukraine, Germany, Taiwan, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States.

The companies were supplying raw materials, parts and components, end-items, and high-precision Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machines and associated technology to the Myanmar military’s Directorate of Defense Industries (DDI) commonly referred to as KaPaSa, said SAC-M report.

The firms supplied for the sustained production – both licensed and unlicensed – of weapons currently in its arsenal.

The report titled “Fatal Business: Supplying the Myanmar Military’s Weapon Production” said weapons produced in Myanmar have been used and continue to be used by the military to commit widespread human rights violations that amount to the most serious crimes under international law.

Since the junta government took office in military insurgency in February 2021, it allegedly killed more than 2,730 people and arrested more than 17,200 others to create an environment of fear and those who oppose the junta government.

“Foreign companies are enabling the Myanmar military – one of the world’s worst human rights abusers – to produce many of the weapons it uses to commit daily atrocities against the Myanmar people,” said Yanghee Lee of SAC-M, and a former UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar.

“Foreign companies and their home states have moral and legal responsibilities to ensure their products are not facilitating human rights violations against civilians in Myanmar. Failing to do so makes them complicit in the Myanmar military’s barbaric crimes,” Lee continued.

The report finds that critical raw materials are imported from China through the China State-owned company China North Industries Group Corporation Limited.

Available data indicates that many of these parts and components come from companies based in India and China. SAC-M has identified machines manufactured by companies legally domiciled in Austria, Germany, Japan, Taiwan and the US.

SAC-M has also identified various software programs made by companies legally based in France, Israel and Germany currently being used at KaPaSa factories for operating some of the CNC machines.

Singapore functions as a strategic transit point for potentially significant volumes of items – including certain raw materials – that feed the Myanmar military’s weapon production.

“States must investigate and, if necessary, initiate administrative or legal proceedings against companies whose products we have identified as enabling the DDI to produce weapons used by the Myanmar military in its indiscriminate attacks on civilians. Foreign companies that profit from the suffering of the Myanmar people must be held accountable,” said Chris Sidoti of SAC-M, also a former member of the UN Independent international fact-finding mission on Myanmar.

The report said that the companies may also be failing to uphold their international responsibilities to respect human rights under the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

“UN member states should do everything in their power to restrict the Myanmar military’s access to those supplies to protect the Myanmar people, including by adopting targeted sanctions against the KaPaSa, its leadership and its network of brokers,” said Marzuki Darusman of SAC-M and a former chair of the UN independent international fact-finding mission on Myanmar.