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- The United Kingdom and Canada have joined the list of countries to impose sanctions on Myanmar generals, following a military coup on February 1, 2021
- The U.K. is imposing asset freezes and travel bans against three Myanmar generals, while Canada has blacklisted nine senior military officials
- The sanctions come a week after the U.S. imposed sanctions against Myanmar military officials, their business ties and their families
- Australia, Japan, India and New Zealand have all called for democracy to be restored in Myanmar, which is also called Burma
- The February coup has interrupted Myanmar’s ongoing transition from an army-run state to a democratic country
- Government reforms to shift power in the country from armed forces to civilians began in 2011 after the Myanmar military held power for 50 years
The United Kingdom and Canada have joined the list of countries to impose sanctions on Myanmar generals, following a military coup on February 1, 2021.
The U.K. is imposing asset freezes and travel bans against three Myanmar generals who had a key role in the government overthrow, while Canada has taken action against nine senior Maynmar military officials.
“The U.K. condemns the military coup and the arbitrary detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political figures,” United Kingdom Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said.
“We, alongside our international allies, will hold the Myanmar military to account for their violations of human rights and pursue justice for the Myanmar people,” he said.
Today the UK has sanctioned further individuals responsible for serious human rights violations against the people of Myanmar during the coup. We are clear we will act to hold those who violate human rights accountable. We stand with the #Myanmar peoplehttps://t.co/EG27nYGbOE
— Dominic Raab (@DominicRaab) February 18, 2021
The move from the U.K. and Canada comes a week after U.S. President Joe Biden announced sanctions against not only the military leaders responsible for the coup but also their businesses interest and family members.
The U.S. sanctions also target the Myanmar military’s access to roughly $1 billion worth of government funds currently being held in the U.S.
This week, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken supported the U.K. and Canada sanctions against the Myanmar military.
The United States welcomes sanctions by @FCDOGovUK and @CanadaFP on those responsible for the coup in Burma. We urge the international community to send a unified message to promote accountability. The Burmese military must restore the democratically elected government.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) February 18, 2021
Japanese, Australian and Indian governments have also spoken out against the Myanmar military’s actions and called for democracy to be restored in the nation. New Zealand has suspended all political and military ties with Myanmar, which is also known as Burma, following the coup.
The military overthrow
In early February, Myanmar’s military seized power in the nation after orchestrating a coup against the country’s democratically-elected government.
The army conducted raids across the country to detain high-ranking political leaders, including the country’s first State Counsellor, Aun San Suu Kyi.
The military’s Commander in Chief, Min Aung Hlaing, took power over Myanmar and declared a State of Emergency that will last for one year.
Those in charge of the coup claim Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) party was only ever given control of the country in the first place because of election fraud. This claim has been disputed by several international governments.
The NLD took power in a landslide election victory in November, which represented the country’s growing successful transition from a military-run country to a democratically-elected government.
Government reforms to shift power in the country from armed forces to civilians began in 2011 after the Myanmar military held power for almost 50 years.
