The United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is marking the one-year anniversary of a military coup in Myanmar with a message of solidarity with the people of that country and their democratic aspirations.
February 1st marks exactly 12 months since Myanmar’s military overturned the democratically elected civilian government and arbitrarily detained its members including President Win Myint and State Counsellor Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Aung San Suu Kyi has since been convicted of three criminal charges and sentenced to four years in prison :
The Secretary General’s statement says that in the past year there has been an intensification in violence, a deepening of the human rights and humanitarian crises, and a rapid rise of poverty in Myanmar.
Guterres also pointed to multiple vulnerabilities of all people across Myanmar and its regional implications which he said required an urgent response.
The country now remains in a state of low-level resistance against the military junta that has seen some 1 500 people killed by security forces and almost 9 000 detained.
UN mediation efforts continue towards an enabling environment for inclusive dialogue as it again urged respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.
