Summary

The present report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar is submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 37/32. The report builds on previous Special Rapporteur reports to identify progress and challenges in human rights issues, and makes recommendations for the furtherance of human rights of all people in Myanmar.

I. Introduction

1. The present report, submitted pursuant to Human Rights Council resolution 37/32, covers developments in Myanmar since the previous report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, to the Human Rights Council in March 2018 (A/HRC/37/70), oral update presented to the Council in June 2018 and report to the General Assembly in September 2018.
2. Despite the Government of Myanmar having withdrawn cooperation with the Special Rapporteur, she continues to seek to engage and assist it with addressing human rights issues. In this spirit, she requested a visit to the country in January 2019 however this was denied, with the Government saying that her visits were counter-productive to the people of Myanmar. Continuing nevertheless to find opportunities for dialogue with the Government, she sent a list of questions to which she has not received a response.
3. By reason of her denial of entry to Myanmar, the Special Rapporteur conducted visits to Thailand from 14 to 19 January and Bangladesh from 19 to 25 January. She expresses thanks to the Governments of both countries for facilitating the visits. In Thailand, she met with the Government, United Nations and civil society organisations working on human rights issues in Myanmar. In Bangladesh, she met with Government officials in Dhaka and Cox’s Bazar. She visited the refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar where she met refugees, civil society organisations and United Nations agencies and organisations who are part of the Inter Sector Coordination Group. She visited the island of Bhashan Char where the Bangladesh Government plans to relocate refugees from Cox’s Bazar. She met with the United Nations Resident Coordinators for Myanmar and Bangladesh and had a teleconference with the United Nations Country Team for Myanmar and a briefing with the United Nations Country Team for Bangladesh.

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