BANGKOK (AP) — Companies from at least 13 countries have helped Myanmar build its capacity to produce weapons that are being used to commit atrocities following a military coup in 2021, experts have found independent internationals.
The report released by the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar on Monday details how the country has stepped up its arms production since the military took over on February 1, 2021, sparking mass public opposition.
The army’s takeover of elected civilian leaders reversed nearly a decade of progress toward democracy after 50 years of military rule. After security forces used lethal force against peaceful protesters, opponents of the military regime took up arms. Some UN experts have called the situation a civil war.
The Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners documented more than 2,700 civilians who died in the violence, including 277 children, while more than 13,000 people were detained. The true number is thought to be much higher.
Companies in the United States, Europe, Asia and the Middle East support the military supply chain, the report says, urging these companies to ensure they are not facilitating human rights abuses .
The growth of the domestic arms industry comes as some countries have imposed arms embargoes or sanctions against individuals and companies involved in arms trade or manufacture.
In October, the US Treasury imposed sanctions on Aung Moe Myint, a businessman close to the military who it says facilitates arms deals on its behalf. His brother, Hlaing Moe Myint, and the trading company they founded, Dynasty International Company Ltd., were also targeted. One of its directors, Myo Thitsar, has also been named for sanctions.
In November, the United States imposed sanctions on suppliers of military aircraft, citing deadly airstrikes against civilians.
Myanmar has no private arms manufacturers, so these companies are run by the Ministry of Defense and the Directorate of Defense Industries, according to the report.
Local factories can always rely on licensed technologies and overseas supply chains, technical support and other support, sometimes sending equipment to Singapore and Taiwan for upgrading and maintenance, he said.
In a statement, Council expert Chris Sidoti urged governments to investigate and, where warranted, take action against companies that allow Myanmar’s military to manufacture weapons used in “indiscriminate attacks on civilians”.
“Foreign companies that profit from the suffering of the people of Myanmar must be held accountable,” said Sidoti, a human rights lawyer and member of the United Nations Myanmar fact-finding mission from 2017 to 2019. .
A report released last year by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights outlined some of those links, citing companies in Russia, China, Ukraine, Israel, Singapore and the Philippines.
The risk that imports of arms, military aircraft and other armaments will be interrupted by embargoes or sanctions is one of the main factors behind the accumulation of the domestic manufacturing industry. weapons. The army is now self-sufficient in the manufacture of small arms and light weapons, the report says.
Myanmar’s weapons manufacturing capability includes a wide variety of items ranging from assault rifles and machine guns to mortars, anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, missiles and missile launchers, and artillery and defense systems aerial, he added.
Landmines and naval mines are among other products made in Myanmar, the report says, citing people who have worked in the industry as well as photos of weapons on display at a defense and security exhibition in Bangkok which presented these products.
The arms factories, known as “KaPaSa”, short for the local name of the Directorate of Defense Industries, use components such as fuses, optical sights and detonating caps imported from India and China. They also feature computer numerical control, or CNC, milling, grinding and other machinery made in Austria, Germany, Japan, Taiwan and the United States, according to the report.
The exact number of these factories is unclear, but analysis of satellite images and other information has identified dozens of such facilities.
Much of the technology used in the arms industry was transferred to civilian use before the military took control, toppling the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
But more research is needed on the complex web of suppliers, technology licensors and other details of weapons manufacturing, the report said.
Myanmar has endured decades of armed conflict between the central government and ethnic minorities seeking greater autonomy, mainly in border regions.
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