English News and Press Release on occupied Palestinian territory and 3 other countries about Protection and Human Rights; published on 19 May 2021 by GCR2P
Final Call News
Anti-coup protesters display pictures of deposed Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi in Yangon, Myanmar, March 2. Police in Myanmar repeatedly used tear gas and rubber bullets against crowds protesting Febuary’s coup, but the demonstrators regrouped after each volley and tried to defend themselves with barricades as standoff s between protesters and security forces intensified. (AP Photo)
The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) has demanded a halt to the violence and killings gripping Myanmar stemming from a military coup staged in early February. The leaders of South East Asian countries met in a special summit with the coup leader to address turmoil ravaging the troubled country once known as Burma.
Atrocity Alert No. 249: Myanmar (Burma), DR Congo and Nigeria
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ASEAN MUST UPHOLD ITS RESPONSIBILITY TO PROTECT THE PEOPLE OF MYANMAR
As anti-coup protests continue, during a 19 April interview the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, said that, “according to the responsibility to protect [R2P], the international community… has a responsibility to do what it can to protect the lives of innocent people in countries that are unable or unwilling to do so, or are in fact attacking them.” He stressed that it was “definitely appropriate” for the international community to act in accordance with the R2P principle and that Myanmar was “exactly the situation” where we “have a responsibility to protect.”
Atrocity Alert No. 248: Myanmar (Burma), Ethiopia and Syria
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UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS WARNS MYANMAR COULD BECOME THE NEXT SYRIA
On Friday, 9 April, at least 82 civilians were killed by Myanmar’s security forces in the city of Bago, about 90 kilometers (56 miles) northeast of Yangon. During their assault on anti-coup protesters in the city, the security forces used assault rifles, heavy machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades and mortar fire. There were also reports that medical personnel were prevented from tending to the wounded.
That same day Myanmar state television reported that 23 people, including captured protesters, had been sentenced to death following closed trials in a military court. According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 715 people have been killed by the security forces since 1 February and more than 3,070 are currently detained for resisting the military coup.