Published on September 28, 2022
- Political Developments
- Local media reported that a final verdict will be made on Dr. Sean Turnell’s case on September 29, 2022. He faces 14 years in prison if convicted of violating the country’s Official Secrets Act.
- On September 20, 2022, the military junta’s spokesperson Zaw Min Tun announced that supporting pro-revolutionary forces and organizations can be punishable by anywhere from two years in prison to a death sentence.
- On September 19, 2022, the military junta filed charges against a Rakhine politician and former Arakan National Party member, U Pe Than, following an interview where he discussed the increased military presence in the Rakhine State.
- On September 16, 2022, the National Unity Government (NUG) rejected Save the Children’s statement which called on the military junta and resistance forces to not use schools as war zones.
- On August 26, 2022, a junta court charged pro-democracy leader Ko Wai Moe Naing with a violation of Article 122 of the Penal Code. If convicted, he could face a death sentence.
- U Myo Myo Kyaw, an elected NLD lawmaker in Kachin State, died while in the custody of the junta. He was arrested in August 2022 and taken to an interrogation center where he was allegedly tortured.
- Ground Situation
- As of September 27, 2022, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a Burmese human rights advocacy organization, reported that 2,322 individuals have been killed. AAPP also reported that 15,662 individuals have been arrested and 12,519 individuals are still detained by the Burmese military since the coup.
- On September 16, 2022, a junta airstrike on a local school in Sagaing Region’s Depayin Township killed 11 children and injured many.
- On September 16, 2022, a mortar shell, fired from Burma, exploded in Bangladesh and killed a Rohingya teenager, and injured 6 individuals. The Daily Star, a Bangladeshi newspaper, identified the victim as 18-year-old Iqbal Hossain Bari. The Bangladesh foreign ministry once again summoned the junta’s envoy, Aung Kyaw Moe (for the fourth time since August 2021) to “protest against border incursions.”
- In recent weeks, children have been killed by the junta’s artillery. Some of these victims include two seven-year-olds in Northern Rakhine and one nine-year-old in Kachin State.
- More than 10,000 civilians from Sagaing Region’s Khin U Township were displaced by the junta’s military offensive after September 20, 2022.
- The junta is facing challenges in recruiting military personnel as casualties and defections increase. Even with high monetary rewards and attractive incentives for officers to recruit, the junta is struggling to fill its rank as armed resistance persists.
- Assassinations and killings of junta personnel and administrators by resistance forces continue. In Yangon, Ohn Thwin, a retired high-ranking junta officer and former Burmese Ambassador to the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and South Africa, was shot dead by local resistance forces. On September 21, 2022, an armed junta administrator in Mandalay Region’s Taungtha Township was killed in a clash with local resistance forces.
- International Responses
- On September 22, 2022, US State Department Counselor Derek Chollet shared the United State’s plan to seek more pressure on the junta through the UN, including a Security Council resolution currently in “the very early stages.” The statement follows his talks with NUG and EAO leaders and the State Department’s contribution of $1 million to the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM).
- On September 20, 2022, Japan’s Defense Ministry announced that it will no longer accept new junta personnel for its training program. Japan had previously accepted four officers and four cadets since the coup, but will discontinue the training starting in 2023—stating that “it’s not appropriate” to continue military cooperation with the junta.
- On September 20, 2022, UN Secretary-General António Guterres strongly condemned the junta’s attack on a school in the Sagaing Region that killed 13 people, including 11 children. Guterres reiterated international humanitarian laws that “combatants must not direct attacks against civilians, including children.”
- On September 19, 2022, Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah met with representatives from the National Unity Government (NUG), making Malaysia the first ASEAN country to officially meet with parallel civilian government officials. Taking place shortly before the UN General Assembly, Saifuddin discussed the situation in Burma and expressed solidarity with the NUG and the people of Burma.
- On September 16, 2022, the UN Human Rights Office released a report urging states to cut the junta’s access to arms and revenue. The report reiterates the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar (FFM) that recommended economically isolating the Tatmadaw. The report points to the current shortcomings of this measure and suggests more sanctions, in consultation with “civil society and the democratic movement”, including the NUG.
- Others
- The junta is exploring ways to control remittance by Burmese expatriates by transferring money through designated banks at their official exchange rate.
- The junta’s Ministry of Health reported in mid-September that at least six people have died and 2,457 people have contracted COVID-19 in September.