What’s Happening in Myanmar, and What Can the U.S. Do to Help?
On February 1, 2021, the Tatmadaw, the official armed forces of Myanmar, led a coup to seize power in Myanmar. Since then, the Tatmadaw is suspected of killing protestors of the coup to maintain their power in the country. This occurrence is not the Tatmadaw’s first display of misplaced violence, though.
In 2016 and 2017, the Tatmadaw committed genocide against the Rohingya population in Myanmar and killed thousands of people. To avoid persecution, many Rohingya sought refuge in neighboring Bangladesh. Currently, there is still a large number of Rohingya in both Myanmar and Bangladesh, still at the risk of being targeted by the Tatmadaw.
The international community has responded minimally and poorly to the crisis. Although some countries and sources have used the term “genocide” the describe the crisis in Myanmar, many have hesitated to use the term to avoid mislabeling the situation. The Tatmadaw’s actions, however, are a complete ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people through killing and should therefore be globally recognized as genocide.
Similar to the Rohingya genocide, the current attacks by the Tatmadaw on its citizens is a dire situation that the international community has a responsibility to interfere with.
The international community must address the human rights crisis in Myanmar at a level beyond simply acknowledging and condemning the Tatmadaw’s attacks against its own people. The U.S. can impose a comprehensive global arms embargo on Myanmar to combat the Tatmadaw’s killing of peaceful protestors. The major suppliers of Myanmar’s arms are China, Russia, and India.
By imposing an arms embargo on Myanmar, the international community would be taking direct, tangible steps to end the Tatmadaw’s killing spree. The arms embargo is also a strong step towards isolating Myanmar, which regularly relies on foreign aid.
Also, all foreign companies should divest and sever ties with all businesses linked to Myanmar’s military. This step would further isolate Myanmar and cut off the Tatmadaw from foreign resources.
Clearly, the U.S. and the international community are not doing enough to address the human rights atrocities occurring in Myanmar, and they should be doing more.
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