![UN rights chief urges states to push Myanmar’s military leadership to halt repressive campaign](https://www.jurist.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/03/Sittwe_Myanmar_Capitol.jpg)
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Tuesday urged states to take impactful measures to make Myanmar’s military leadership stop its repressive campaign, stating she feared Myanmar was headed to a “full-blown conflict.”
On February 1, there was a military coup d’état in Myanmar. During this time, many civilian political leaders, including\ Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, were detained in military raids conducted hours before the parliament was to convene. The military declared a state of emergency and took over the government for a period of one year.
This coup has led to peaceful protests, including by law students, to defend democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. The protests have been met with violence by Myanmar military forces.
More than 3,080 individuals have been detained so far, and there have been reports that 23 individuals were sentenced to death following secret trials. Hundreds of people have been forced into hiding, and thousands of internal migrants have left urban centers. Because of the conflict, millions of people have been left without a livelihood, basic services, and food security.
Myanmar junta forces reportedly used heavy weapons, including rocket-propelled and fragmentation grenades, against protesters in Bago over the weekend, bringing the death toll to 82. Security forces also reportedly prevented medical personnel from helping the wounded and charged individuals a fine to claim the bodies of the killed. In Kachin, Shan, and Kayin states, the military has used airstrikes that have killed and displaced civilians.
On Tuesday, Bachelet likened the situation to that of Syria in 2011, where peaceful protests were also met with disproportionate and unnecessary force. She urged neighboring states to provide humanitarian access to those in need and to provide temporary protection to those fleeing from the violence.
Bachelet said: “Statements of condemnation, and limited targeted sanctions, are clearly not enough. States with influence need to urgently apply concerted pressure on the military in Myanmar to halt the commission of grave human rights violations and possible crimes against humanity against the people.”