Joint Statement
Date 20th January 2022

Biden and Macron need to sanction Myanmar gas revenue to increase pressure on Myanmar military

We, the undersigned Rohingya worldwide organisations, urge President Biden of the United States of America and President Macron of France to urgently introduce sanctions on gas revenue in Burma. Gas extraction projects which involve American Chevron and French Total provide hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to the Burmese military annually. This money helps pay for the military’s crimes including killing of children and indiscriminate bombings of villages.

So far both President Biden and President Macron have blocked sanctions on the gas industry, protecting the profits of American and French companies ahead of the lives of Burmese people. This urgently needs to change.

It is almost one year since the military coup in Burma on 1 February 2021. The US, EU, UK and Canada have imposed a number of sanctions on sources of income for the Burmese military, include on timber and gems, but gas production, which is one of the military’s biggest revenue sources, has so far gone untouched.

We Rohingya had to witness the genocide of our people go largely unpunished by the international community. This lack of accountability led the Burmese military to believe they could get away with the military coup. They are now attacking people all over Burma, killing children, burning villages and torturing with impunity. 300,000 people have had to flee their homes since the coup. It all echoes what the Rohingya has had to suffer at the hands of the military, and we are standing in solidarity with our fellow brothers and sisters across Burma. They are bravely resisting the military one year on from the coup, and paying for this with their lives. The international community needs to do everything they can to support them. We cannot let the Burmese military get away with impunity anymore.

Waging war costs money, and sanctions on gas revenue would stop the military getting their hands on hundreds of millions of dollars which currently help fund their crimes against the Burmese people, which amounts to crimes against humanity.

We urge President Biden and President Macron to stand with all the people of Burma in their resistance to the military coup by introducing sanctions on gas revenue.

Signatories: 

·    Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO)
·    Australian Burmese Rohingya Organisation
·    British Rohingya Community in UK
·    Burmese Rohingya Association Japan (BRAJ)
·    Burmese Rohingya Community in Denmark
·    Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK)
·    Canadian Burmese Rohingya Organisation
·    Canadian Rohingya Development Initiative
·    European Rohingya Council (ERC)
·    Free Rohingya Coalition (FRC)
·    Los Angeles Rohingya Association
·    Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation in Malaysia
·    Rohingya Action Ireland
·    Rohingya American Society
·    Rohingya Community in Norway
·    Rohingya Culture Centre Chicago
·    Rohingya Human Rights Initiative
·    Rohingya Human Rights Network (Canada)
·    Rohingya Refugee Network
·    Rohingya Women Development Network (RWDN)
·    Swedish Rohingya Association

Media Contacts: 

Tun Khin: +447888714866
Nay San Lwin: +4917662139138
Dr. Hla Myint: +61423381904