Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise added to the latest round of
sanctions after years of campaigning.
Myanmar security
forces have been accused of worsening human rights abuses since the coup more
than a year ago with Western countries imposing sanctions [File: AP Photo]
22
Feb 2022
The European Union has expanded sanctions imposed on
Myanmar after last year’s coup to include a state-owned oil and gas company
that is a lucrative source of income for
the military, as well as several top officials.
The measures announced on Monday mean 65 officials and
10 companies have now been targeted in asset freezes and visa bans by the EU
since the military seized power on February 1 last year.
KEEP
READING
.‘Important opportunity’: Myanmar Rohingya genocide case to
resume
.Australia and UK deepen security ties amid China worries
.Myanmar military committed war crimes in Karenni state:
Report
.Myanmar military marks 75th Union Day, announces prisoner
amnesty
Among the companies sanctioned was the state-owned
Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE), which is a joint venture partner in all
offshore gas projects in Myanmar, including the Yadana gas field with Total
Energies and Chevron. Last month, Total and Chevron said they were leaving Myanmar because of
worsening human rights abuses committed by the military.
The sanctioned individuals included the ministers for
investment, industry and information, officials at the election commission and
senior members of the military.
“The European Union is deeply concerned by the continuing escalation of violence
in Myanmar and the evolution towards a protracted conflict with
regional implications,” the bloc said in a statement.
“Since the military coup, the situation has continuously
and gravely deteriorated.”
It repeated calls for “an immediate cessation of all
hostilities, and an end to the disproportionate use of force and the state of
emergency”.
The sanctions on MOGE come after a long campaign by
human rights groups within Myanmar and around the world, who argued that
sanctioning MOGE would cut off a significant source of the military’s funds.
About 50 percent of Myanmar’s foreign currency comes from natural gas revenues,
with MOGE expected to earn $1.5bn from offshore and pipeline projects in
2021-2022, according to a Myanmar government forecast.
“It is vital… that the European Union enforce these
measures effectively, and that energy companies now withdrawing from Myanmar do
so in a way that doesn’t further benefit the junta,” John Sifton, Asia advocacy
director for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
“The European Union must implement these measures in
ways that ensure that energy companies’ shares in oil and gas operations are
not simply transferred or relinquished to junta-controlled entities – an
outcome that would only enrich the junta further,” he said.
The London-based Burma Campaign welcomed the
announcement, noting it was the first time sanctions had been imposed by
the EU that were not in
response to a specific atrocity.
“These sanctions are significant and welcome,” Anna
Roberts, the executive director of Burma Campaign UK, said in a statement. “By
targeting the oil and gas sector the EU has leapfrogged the USA, targeting one
of the main sources of revenue for the military. The USA, which has broader
sanctions powers than the EU, must follow.”
The coup has plunged Myanmar into turmoil. Mass protests
have turned into regular skirmishes between the military and using force
against those opposed to the coup leaving more than 1,500 people dead,
according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a local
monitoring group.
Some anti-coup protesters have also formed armed units
and joined forces with ethnic armed groups to battle the military.
SOURCE: AL
JAZEERA AND NEWS AGENCIES
No comments:
Post a Comment