Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The coup in Myanmar is still in the news. From the latest reports quoted BBC Internationalthe West, including Indonesia’s close neighbors, has contributed to helping the country’s military junta make weapons.
This was emphasized by a number of former high-ranking UN officials in the latest report by the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar. The military, they argued, could fight against its own people thanks to supplies from a number of companies, from at least 13 countries.
There are indeed Western-led sanctions to isolate Myanmar. But the report notes that some UN member states continue to sell weapons to the military.
What is even surprising is that the companies come from the United States (US), France, India, Japan to Israel. There are also neighbors of Indonesia, Singapore and Australia.
“These companies supply the Myanmar military with raw materials, training and machinery,” said Yanghee Lee, who served as the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights, in the report, published Monday (16/1/2023).
“Myanmar has never been attacked by a foreign country… And Myanmar has not exported any weapons. Since 1950, Myanmar has been making its own weapons to use against its own people,” he added.
One of the proofs is the weapon used to massacre pro-democracy groups in Sagaing. The massacre reportedly also killed children.
“Some of the equipment used to manufacture the weapons is believed to have come from Austria. High-precision machines made by Austrian supplier GFM Steyr are used in several locations,” the report said again referring to the manufacturing of the gun barrels.
“When the machines needed maintenance, they were shipped to Taiwan, where GFM Steyr technicians reportedly restored them before being returned to Myanmar… But it is unclear whether the Austrian company’s technicians were aware that they were working on things to be used in Myanmar,” the report added.
Apart from Australia, the following details the “involvement” of a number of countries in the production of weapons for this Myanmar coup:
1. The raw materials used come from China
2.Copper and iron from China and Singapore
3. Electrical fuse and detonator components from India and Russia
4. Machine guns come from Germany, Japan, Ukraine and the US
5.The software is from Israel and France.
“Singapore appears to be functioning as a transit hub… with Singaporean companies operating as intermediaries for both Myanmar military buyers and external suppliers,” the report specifically stated.
However, there has been no confirmation from the company or country mentioned.
The Myanmar coup itself took place in February 2021. This removed Aung San Suu Kyi from the seat of government. Thousands of people were reportedly detained and died. Until now, the military junta has continued to crack down on the opposition camp.
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