Myanmar's UN envoy calls on international community to toughen sanctions against military

Myanmar’s permanent envoy to the United Nations has called on the international community to impose more sanctions on the country’s military over reports of increased violence against the protesters. Kyaw Moe Tun, who was removed by the military as Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN last month, said the international community should come together as one to impose sanctions on the architects of the coup, adding “it should be coordinated, targetted, and tougher”. 

The military removed Moe Tun as the ambassador to the United Nations after he wrote a letter to the General Assembly, calling for action against the junta, which conducted the coup and imposed a state of emergency for one year. The military charged him for “high treason” and appointed his deputy Tin Maung Naing as the new ambassador to the UN. However, Tin Maung Naing resigned the next day, following which Moe Tun wrote a letter to the UN Secretary-General, saying he is the “legitimate representative” of the democratically-elected government of Myanmar. 

What happened on February 1?

Myanmar’s military conducted a coup on February 1, overthrowing the government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The military arrested State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, President Win Myint and several other members of the National League for Democracy (NLD) party hours before the newly-elected parliamentarians were scheduled to take the oath of office. 

What is the motive behind the coup?

The military accused the government of engaging in illegal activities, including election fraud and corruption. However, experts suggest that the military orchestrated the coup because it feared that Suu Kyi’s government would reduce the number of seats reserved for the Army in the national parliament after winning the 2020 election with a landslide. Suu Kyi had earlier promised to slowly end the reservation for the military, which takes 25% of the total seats in the parliament. 

What followed the coup?

Tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest against the military, demanding the restoration of democracy in Myanmar. After security forces failed to bring the widespread protests under control, the junta ordered use of force against peaceful demonstrators, killing more than a hundred people since February and arresting over thousand others. The military has also detained several human rights activists, pro-democracy advocates, journalists, and politicians since the coup occurred earlier last month.

(With inputs from ANI, Image Credit: AP/@TOSTEVINM/Twitter)