Pro-democracy activists have urged the Australian government to crack down on domestic companies involved in Myanmar’s mines, saying these firms are funding human rights abuses and environmental destruction carried out by the country’s military junta. In statements marking the anniversary of the February 2021 coup that overthrew the Southeast Asian country’s elected government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, advocacy groups Justice For Myanmar (JFM) and the Sydney-based Myanmar Campaign Network (MCN) criticized what they describe as the “inadequate” pace of Australian government sanctions against Myanmar’s state-owned industries. Britain recently imposed fresh sanctions on military units and enterprises involved in what it said were “serious human rights violations” and civilian repression in Myanmar. The listed entities include Mining Enterprise 1 (ME1) and Mining Enterprise 2 (ME2), both connected to the junta’s security forces. “The U.K. has finally joined the U.S., EU and Canada in sanctioning ME1 and ME2,” MCN campaign manager Tasneem Roc told Mongabay, “and Australia should be joining them.” “These countries should coordinate to target the entire network of individuals and entities in the mining sector, and other natural resource sectors, leaving no loopholes,” Roc added. According to Roc, mining in Myanmar is lucrative and historically marred by “human rights violations, corruption, exploitation, environmental degradation and conflicts.” A JFM report, titled “Mines Against Humanity” and published to coincide with the anniversary of the 2021 coup, detailed Australian-linked companies’ deep ties to the trade, from extraction to prospecting, exploration and related services. It identified 10 Australian-owned or…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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