Press Release: Diplomatic Briefing on Current Developments in Myanmar

The "Diplomatic Briefing on Current Developments in Myanmar" was held at MRTV building in Yangon on Thursday, 9th September 2021. The Union Minister of Information, the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs, the Deputy Minister of Health, and the Union Election Commissioner briefed diplomats and representatives of UN agencies on a wide range of various issues.

Union Minister of Information H.E. U Maung Maung Ohn clarified the developments and events that had led to the transfer of State responsibility to the Tatmadaw. He then set out the objectives and future workplans of the Provisional Government of the Union of Myanmar, and some aspects of the government's ongoing work. In particular, he highlighted the repatriation of migrant workers and citizens who had sought refuge in neighbouring countries and were facing difficulties.

Before the third wave of COVID-19, 1,086 Myanmar citizens stranded in Malaysia and 70 citizens in India had been brought back in Tatmadaw navy vessels, while during the third wave, the government had repatriated 74,955 Myanmar citizens from China, Thailand and the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

These citizens  included National League for Democracy (NLD) supporters who had fled the country due to misinformation fed by the National Unity Government (NUG). The Union Minister thanked countries and organizations that had donated vaccines and medical supplies for Myanmar to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, notably, India, China, Russia, Cambodia and ASEAN.

Member of the Union Election Commission (UEC) U Khin Maung Oo presented the findings of the current UEC's investigations into the voting processes and documentation before, during and after the 8th November 2020 general elections. The investigations revealed a series of illegal processes and violations of the law before, during, and after the elections. This had led to 11,305,390 names in the voter lists that were potentially fraudulent, representing 29.54% of the total eligible voters.

In the voter lists of the 8 November 2020 general elections, investigations revealed the following: (i) 4,869,427 so-called voters without any citizenship identity card, (ii) 295,405 so-called voters who appeared in the voter list three times and above but with the same citizenship identity card number, in the same township, (iii) 3,596,206 so-called voters included in the voter lists twice with the same citizenship identity card number, also within the same township, (iv) additional duplications of citizenship identity card numbers for 1,091,776 so-called voters revealed by cross-checks among different townships, (v) yet more duplications of citizenship identity card numbers for 1,417,598 so-called voters revealed by cross-checks among different regions and states, (vi) 20,566 so-called voters of age 100 years and above, (vii) 14,412 voters of age under 18 years. Moreover, there were 1,424,391 missing ballot papers and 438,850 excess ballot papers that were never on the voter list.

The combined outcome of illegal vote rigging activities, illegal procedures and these key findings had then led to the annulment of the results of the 2020 General Elections. The current UEC was now engaged in preparing for free and fair elections in accordance with the 2008 Constitution and prevailing laws.  The Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Major-General Soe Tint Naing structured his briefing into five parts.

First, evidence was presented that the NUG, the Committee Representing Pyithu Hluttaw (CRPH) and the People's Defense Forces (PDF) were in reality the same.

Second, statistics were provided on the acts of terrorism by the CRPH/NUG and PDF. Of the 933 people killed by the PDF, only 2% were members of the security forces. Victims included children, including an eight-month old infant and nine-year-old boy, monks, school teachers, village administrators, and those who did not support the NLD Party.

Third, he presented evidence that NLD Hluttaw representatives of the NLD and NLD members had either financed the terrorist operations or conducted the violent acts themselves. Given the evidence of the brutal acts against innocent civilians committed by the NUG/CRPH/PDF, organizations and governments should reflect whom they would define as terrorists, if not the NUG.

Fourth, he spoke about counter-terrorism, protests, and rule  of law.  Myanmar has a code of conduct implemented by its security forces for dealing with protests and riots. The security forces have detailed records of all protests and violent incidents and such evidence shows that the estimates by the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) of 1,051 deaths are grossly inaccurate and inflated. In reality, the Ministry's statistics show that 385 people died in incidents involving security forces. For every death, the police conduct systematic inquests. As for the remaining deaths claimed by the AAPP, no verification can be made.

Fifth, the Provisional Government of Myanmar is cooperating with relevant UN and ASEAN organizations to combat terrorism and following the UN Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. Myanmar has signed the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) as well as the ASEAN Convention Against Terrorism, and is abiding by the provisions of those conventions.

Deputy Minister of Health Dr. Aye Tun highlighted the challenges encountered in the fight against the third wave of COVID-19, such as doctors and nurses who had participated in the civil disobedience movement and the closedown of hospitals as a result. Despite such challenges, the Government rapidly scaled up efficient and effective measures to control and manage the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a result, some measure of success had been achieved, including increased availability of medical oxygen and reduced test positivity rates (from 40% in mid-July to currently 9%). From January 27th to September 4th, more than 2.6 million population had been vaccinated twice, while more than 2.1 million had received their first dose.

He also emphasized that vaccination was administered to the eligible members of the ethnic armed organizations who had signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, as well as to Bengali communities in Rakhine.  The Ministry of Health is negotiating with GAVI COVAX facility to obtain more than 4 million doses of Pfizer vaccine and over 2.2 million doses of Sinovac vaccine.

The Briefing concluded with a summary of the issues provided by the Union Minister and Deputy Ministers.