Yangon Strike Forces Send Open Letter Urging EU and ILO to Stand with the People
On March 12, eleven Yangon-based strike forces jointly sent an open letter to European Union (EU) member governments and member states of the International Labour Organization (ILO), urging them to stand with the people of Myanmar to protect the justice and rights of working people.
The open letter, titled "Calling for Action Against the Coup Military Forcibly Enslaving Citizens and Stripping Them of Their Democratic Rights and Freedoms", says the Myanmar military not only fails to respect the recommendations of the ILO Commission of Inquiry but is violating them even more severely. It urges the EU and ILO member states to stand with the people of Myanmar and decide to achieve these points at the upcoming ILO Governing Body meeting from March 10 to 21.
Because the military has been committing a range of inhumane crimes since the terrorist junta's coup, the ILO Commission of Inquiry issued ten recommendations to be implemented as early as October 4, 2023.
Ground strike forces, local farmers, peasants and workers in other regions across the country connected with the General Strike Coordination Body (GSCB), which is made up of strike forces, have also been protesting with "ILO implement Article 33 on Myanmar Now 2025" placards, calling for immediate action against the junta under Article 33 of the ILO Constitution.
Article 33 provides that measures can be taken if a member state violates international labour standards.
Related updates
ASEAN, the UN and International Engagement on Myanmar in October
October was a period when Myanmar's affairs were once again discussed on the world political stage, with the ASEAN Summit and the UN General Assembly. Below is a summary report of international developments on Myanmar during October.
AA Responds That Drug Allegations Are Merely Political Attacks
On March 19, the United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA) responded that reports in the military's mouthpiece newspapers of March 18 and 19, claiming that AA economic officer Ye Win (a.k.a. Kyaw Soe Lin) and his wife Ma Thida Myint were involved in a drug seizure worth 96 billion kyat, have nothing to do with its organization and are merely a malicious political attack.
NUG declares non-recognition and dissolution of the military regime's Human Rights Commission
The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission, established by the military junta, is not an independent, impartial, and respected body. Instead, it operates in line with the junta’s interests and opposes the Paris Principles. Therefore, the National Unity Government (NUG) announced on February 13 that it does not recognize this body and considers it dissolved.
Magwe forces send a letter to Singapore urging action against Interra Resources
An open letter containing the four requests, signed by 20 civil society organizations, the People's Defense Committee, and the Union, was sent to the Singapore government and the Singapore Stock Exchange Group on February 13. It included Interra Resources, which has been selling fuel to be used in the war crimes committed by the Myanmar military junta, which has been requested to immediately cease its supply of oil to the Myanmar military group and to delist from the Singapore Stock Exchange, among other demands.
