Published on February 27, 2023
Political Development
- On February 24, 2023, the junta resumed passport services in the country after the service were suspended in December of 2022.
- In early February, the junta appointed Than Swe as the new junta foreign minister. He replaced Wunna Maung Lwin. Than Swe was the former ambassador to the United Nations and United States during the previous military governments.
- On February 20, 2023, former State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi urged members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) to collaborate with young people involved in the resistance movement. She delivered this message through a lawmaker who was present in one of her court hearings in Naypyitaw.
Situation on the Ground
- As of February 24, 2023, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) reported that 3,030 individuals have been killed. AAPP also said that 19,866 individuals have been arrested and 16,005 individuals are still detained by the Burmese military since the coup.
- 47 out of 330 townships in Burma are under martial law as of February 23, 2023. Executive and judicial authorities are transferred to the regional military commander in these areas for the duration of the martial law.
- NUG jailed ten members of a PDF in Shan State for killing their former colleagues.
- Junta’s airstrikes in Saigaing since February 21, 2023, displaced thousands of civilians.
International Response
- On February 23, 2023, various groups condemned the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) for inviting the Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) to participate in its annual meeting on March 14-16. The groups stated that the MNHRC has only been complicit in human rights violations caused by the junta.
- On February 23, 2023, the US condemned the junta’s arrest of Kachin Baptist leader Reverend Hkalam Samson. The reverend was detained in December last year and faced a court hearing on the violation of counterterrorism law on February 21.
- On February 20, 2023, Chinese special envoy Deng Xijun visited the China-Burma border to meet with representatives of seven EAO groups. Observers noted that the envoy’s visit may indicate an attempt at persuading the groups to “reach some form of ceasefire” with the junta.
- Leaked documents suggest that sanctioned junta companies are evading sanctions to import fuel and palm oil as well as to obtain foreign currency.