Myanmar

The UN human rights chief has criticised the junta for sentencing more than 130 people to death in closed door trials, which it called a violation of the right to a fair trial

The acting president of the National Unity Government said that it would only consider a dialogue with the junta if it stopped killing its civilians, withdrew from politics and scrapped the 2008 constitution. He called for the same support that the world has given the Ukraine

Russian military chiefs met with the junta on 29 Nov in Naypyitaw, with Russia promising to provide counter-terrorism training and modern weapons and technology

The Mekong Institute is conducting a roadshow, funded by South Korea, in five UNESCO heritage sites in Mekong countries - Ayutthaya (Thailand), Luang Prabang (Laos), Hue (Vietnam), Bagan (Myanmar), and Siem Reap (Cambodia) - as part of its Sustainable and Smart Tourism Development Project in the Mekong Region. The three-year project aims to introduce “smart tourism tools, techniques, and technologies through learning exchanges, structured learning visits, information-sharing, and adaption of best practices”

Myanmar will remove its restriction for an on-arrival RDT test for fully vaccinated travellers from 1 Dec. Non-vaccinated travellers must still show a negative RT-PCR within 48 hours of arrival time at check in, and test on arrival. The government noted that the easing was due to the low positivity rate from international travellers

The junta have extended its COVID measures until 31 Dec 2022

The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism reported that Myanmar saw 144,122 foreign travellers enter from Apr-Oct 2022, +99.48% YoY

Only 402 political prisoners were released under the prisoner amnesty last week, and many of those who were released were to due to be released within the next 3 months

The junta and Russia have signed an MoU around a nuclear power plant for Myanmar

ANZ Bank will leave Myanmar by early 2023 due to “rising operational complexities”

The National Unity Government of Myanmar has called on ASEAN to exclude the junta from all of its meetings, and said that it is ready to work with the bloc

The junta’s defense minister has been excluded from the ASEAN Defense Ministers meeting

The National Unity Government (NUG) has urged the wider community to exert more pressure on the junta to release all political prisoners, following the 6,000 prisoners granted amnesty on 16 Nov. Some of those granted amnesty included Sean Turnell, Vicky Bowman and Toru Kubota. The ASEAN Envoy called it a gesture of “goodwill” and is still planning to visit Myanmar in the next few weeks, but many commentators see it as a way for the junta to release some of the pressure it is under

Amnesty International has called on Thailand to demand that the Thai government helps to stop the violence in Myanmar

The Malaysian caretaker foreign minister has said that if the junta hold elections in 2023, they must have the agreement of all stakeholders

The Myanmar Tourism Marketing Association will hold its Myanmar Tourism Mart virtually from 28-30 Nov for the first time since the pandemic. Its invitation called the travel mart an expression of the “hope and positivity” there is for Myanmar’s tourism industry

The chair of the Union of Myanmar Tourism Association has noted that prospective travellers are concerned for their safety due to the country’s political instability, with some foreign travellers cancelling their trip after reports of 3 women being killed during a pilgrimage to the Golden Rock pagoda in Kyaikto township. He also noted that other issues that the tourism industry is facing is that tourists are having difficulty transferring money to Myanmar to pay for their trips due to sanctions. The managing director of Myanmar Voyages International Tourism Co Ltd estimated that domestic tourism is currently only making up 3% of international tourism’s previous levels, with tourists only really travelling on national holidays

Northeast Frontier Railway in India has reported that it has completed a survey for laying railway tracks from Moreh in Manipur to the borders of Myanmar, and it will be completed in 2-2.5 years

The UN has said that the junta must act “immediately” to restart the democratic transition of the country

ASEAN leaders have issued a 15-point statement on ASEAN following the annual summit, which said that it will “engage all stakeholders soon”, as well as calling for a “concrete, practical and measurable indicators with a specific timeline” for peace. The junta criticised the move to engage with other parties in Myanmar, saying that it “strongly objects to and condemns the attempts by Aseam member states to engage with those unlawful and terrorist organisations through any means and forms”. Humanitarian groups have condemned ASEAN’s response as not being strong enough

Indonesia has proposed to ASEAN leaders to enforce a ban on representatives of the junta from all the bloc’s functions, something which was debated “at length” at the ASEAN summit

The US and EU have expanded sanctions to Sky Aviator Company and is director for operating in the defense sector. The EU also launched a 5th round of sanctions on 19 more individuals and entities due to the “continuing escalation of violence and grave human rights”