Julie Bishop. File
| Photo Credit: Photo Credit: https://www.un.org

The United Nations (UN) special envoy for Myanmar warned that the Southeast Asian nation is in crisis, with conflict escalating, criminal networks “out of control” and human suffering at unprecedented levels.

Julie Bishop told the U.N. General Assembly’s human rights committee on Tuesday (October 29, 2024) in her first report since being appointed by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres last April that “Myanmar actors must move beyond the current zero-sum mentality.”

A collective effort towards peace in Myanmar

The Army in Myanmar ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and suppressed widespread nonviolent protests that sought a return to democratic rule, leading to increasing violence and a humanitarian crisis.

In the past year, three powerful ethnic armed militias have gained territory, keeping the government’s ruling military increasingly on the back foot in fighting that has forced hundreds of thousands of civilians to flee their homes. According to the U.N., three million people are displaced across Myanmar and some 18.6 million need humanitarian assistance.

Ms. Bishop called for an end to the violence, stressing that “There can be little progress on addressing the needs of the people while armed conflict continues across the country.” The former Australian Foreign Minister said she has engaged with the government, including Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing in Myanmar’s capital, Naypyidaw, as well as Opposition representatives, ethnic armed organisations, women’s groups, human rights defenders and numerous countries. She gave no details about the meetings.

She said she has engaged with the current, previous and incoming ASEAN chairs in Vientiane, Laos; Jakarta, Indonesia; and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The U.N. envoy said she has also visited Myanmar’s neighbours China and Thailand and will soon visit India and Bangladesh, “continuing to urge neighbouring countries to leverage their influence.” She said she will also return to Naypyidaw but gave no time frame. She gave no details about any of the meetings.

At the recent summit between the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, known as ASEAN, Ms. Bishop said Secretary-General Guterres backed strengthened cooperation between the U.N. envoy and the ASEAN chair “on innovative ways to promote a Myanmar-led process.” This includes “effective implementation” of a five-point ASEAN plan Myanmar’s rulers agreed to in April 2021 but have done little to fulfill. It calls for the immediate cessation of violence, a dialogue among all concerned parties mediated by an ASEAN special envoy, provision of humanitarian aid and a visit to Myanmar by the association’s special envoy to meet all concerned parties.

“Any pathway to reconciliation requires an end to violence, accountability and unfettered access for the U.N. and its partners to address vulnerabilities among the marginalised, including Rohingya, ethnic communities and particularly women and youth,” Ms. Bishop said.

But instead she pointed to rising civilian casualties and the rule of law “so severely undermined that transnational crime emanating from Myanmar is proliferating.”

“The sheer scale of arms productions and trade, human trafficking, drug manufacture and trafficking, and scam centers means Myanmar now ranks highest among all member states for organised crime,” she said. “The criminal networks are out of control.” Ms. Bishop backed Mr. Guterres who stressed the urgency of forging a path toward a democratic transition and return to civilian rule.

“I share his concern regarding the military’s stated intention to hold elections amid intensifying conflict and human rights violations,” she said.

Ms. Bishop warned that “the Myanmar conflict risks becoming a forgotten crisis. The regional implications of this crisis are evident, but the global impact can no longer be ignored,” she said.

A video grab shows Kim Aris displaying an old photo of his mother and Myanmar’s ousted, detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
| Photo Credit: AP

The younger son of ousted Myanmar leader Aung Sang Suu Kyi has said he’s increasingly worried about his imprisoned 78-year-old mother’s health and about Myanmar’s violent political crisis, which he calls “desperate.”

“I’d just really like to have some form of contact with her so that I know that she’ OK, because at the moment she has no access to her legal counsel,” Kim Aris said on September 13 in a video interview with The Associated Press from his home in London.

Explained | The legal battles of Aung San Suu Kyi since the 2021 coup in Myanmar

“She has no access to her personal doctors. She’s not allowed any visitors, as far as I’m aware. She’s not even allowed to mingle with the other prisoners, which means she’s basically under a form of solitary confinement.” Ms. Suu Kyi was arrested in 2021 when the Army seized power from her democratically elected government. She has since been prosecuted and convicted on more than a dozen charges for offenses her supporters say were concocted to keep her out of politics. She is serving a prison term of 27 years.

The military takeover triggered massive public resistance that was brutally suppressed, triggering a bloody civil war that has killed thousands of people.

Mr. Aris, 46, said he has tried to keep out of the spotlight for decades, seeking to avoid any political activism and “just trying to keep my head down and get on with my family life.” “I’ve always tried to avoid speaking to the media and (have been) avoiding social media all my life. But the situation in Burma at the moment is absolutely desperate,” he said, referring to Myanmar by its former name. “The fact that I’ve not been allowed to communicate with my mother at all for over two and a half years now” is another reason he is speaking out,” he said.

“So now I’m doing all I can to try and help the situation and bring awareness of this situation to the wider world,” he said. He is getting active on social media and said he plans a campaign to “bring awareness and funding for humanitarian purposes” Mr. Aris said he has heard that his mother has been extremely ill and has been suffering from gum problems and was unable to eat. “She was suffering from bouts of dizziness and vomiting and couldn’t walk at one stage.” Mr. Aris said his information comes from independent Myanmar media and social media.

“Britain’s Foreign Office and the International Red Cross have tried and failed to learn more on his behalf,” he said. He has tried reaching out to Myanmar’s military government, including its embassy in London, “but I don’t get any response from them. They wouldn’t even answer the door to me.” It’s not the first time Suu Kyi has faced confinement. She spent nearly 15 years under house arrest under a previous military government starting in 1989, a year after co-founding her National League for Democracy party. But almost all of that time was at her family home in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, and she was not completely isolated.

“At that time, it was in her own home, and she was allowed visitors. At times, I was allowed to spend time with her under house arrest. And we were allowed to send her care packages and letters and have communication with her. Now, for the last two and a half years, we have had none of those basic human rights.”

“I realise that there are so many natural disasters and humanitarian crisis all over the world now and it’s hard for everybody to be exposed to that every day. We all need to try and do our bit to try and help everywhere that we can. And Burma is one country where we can change things very easily,” Mr. Aris said.

“If only 2% of what has been given to the Ukrainian forces had been given to the resistance forces in Burma, the situation would be very different now,” he said. “So I hope that people around the world can rally and try and help the people in Burma so that we can end this needless bloodshed.”