Myanmar

On 19 June, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Burmese democratic leader will turn 80 in prison, where she has been held since the military coup in February 2021. Despite her enforced silence, her son Kim Aris tells AsiaNews how his mother continues to be a source of hope for her people. In recent months, he has organised solidarity initiatives to raise funds and keep attention focused on the crisis.

While the eyes of the world are on the negotiations between China and the United States, Chinese-backed ethnic militias control new unregulated rare earth deposits. Beijing's priority is clear: to secure control over strategic resources, including through growing interventionism that is fuelling the country’s civil war and causing serious environmental damage.

The Trump administration’s immigration restrictions have had a devastating impact on people from Myanmar’s, disproportionately affecting refugees and students. Many of them, who have waited years in refugee camps, are now seeing their dreams of a better life in the United States dashed, while the new policies threaten to set a dangerous precedent for other countries.

This comes at the urging of ASEAN countries. While the exiled opposition reports at least 300 civilians killed by the military since last March’s earthquake, the junta is massing troops in the Mandalay region to retake Chinese-backed gas pipelines from the rebels. Potential floods in refugee camps due to the monsoon season raise concerns.

Myanmar’s military recently attacked the Bangkok IDP Camp, on the border between Shan and Kayah States. Schools and several shelters in the camp have been hit over the past year, part of a deliberate strategy of violence to weaken resistance to the regime.

The declaration adopted at the ASEAN summit, proposed by current chair Anwar Ibrahim, outlines a series of goals for 2045 aimed at strengthening the role of the regional organisation. A renewed appeal was made to Myanmar to extend the ceasefire and open up space for genuine dialogue. A meeting has been requested with Donald Trump over tariffs. At the same time, trilateral cooperation with China and the Gulf countries is gaining momentum.

In Rakhine, the Arakan Army – like the military junta – is forcibly recruiting men and women, exacerbating the civil war and aggravating the humanitarian crisis. Meanwhile, Rohingya face continued abuses after fleeing abroad. India is accused of arbitrarily detaining refugees and illegally pushing some back at sea, while fuelling the stigmatisation of Muslim refugees at home.

The exiled National Unity Government slammed the summary killing of members of a local defence force by the Assam Rifles in Manipur, a state in north-eastern India affected by ethnic violence for the past two years. Indian authorities claim the dead were “armed extremists" and that they seized a trove of weapons. Myanmar’s resistance movement calls for an investigation into the incident and the suspension of fence construction along the Indo-Myanmar border.

A day after Buddhists marked Vesak Poya, a fundraiser was held in Colombo, attended by 80 Myanmar monks . Muslims, Hindus, and Christians also joined the show of solidarity. After the earthquake in Myanmar, many Sri Lankans raised funds and collected aid for the more than 400 monks studying in the country after their families and donors could no longer support them. For Fr Rohan Silva, the student monks need a helping hand, like Sri Lankans did after the 2004 tsunami.

The ruling junta, the Rohingya issue that emerged during Pope Francis' visit in 2017, the riches of the territory and the violence of the military. Lights and shadows of a nation born in the same year as the cardinal. The call to fight ‘hatred and division’, the moderate face in domestic politics and attacks on Beijing for violations of rights and religious freedom, as in the arrest of Cardinal Zen.

UN agencies estimate that around 17 million people have been affected in some way by the earthquake, with the death toll standing at 3,700. Fears for the rainy season now approaching. Official statements on the ceasefire have been disregarded: hundreds of bombings have taken place in recent weeks. Fundraising continues, promoted by the PIME Foundation.

The pontiff was among the few voices in the world to constantly remember this Southeast Asian country torn apart by a war that has now lasted for more than four years. In 2017, at a time of great political and economic openness, Francis visited Myanmar, bringing hope to believers of all religions. A memorial Mass was held for him in Yangon cathedral yesterday.