Firms in Europe, US helping Myanmar junta make arms
At least 13 companies in the US, Europe, Asia and North America have been supplying raw materials and technology to Myanmar junta to make 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 arms 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 arms currently in its arsenal.
The report titled 'Fatal Business: Supplying the Myanmar Military's Weapon Production' said arms 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 Myanmar 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 army- one of the world's worst human rights abusers- to produce many of the arms 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.
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.
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