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Open Letter from Myanmar People to Civil Society Organizations and Political Parties of India

July 25th, 2022  •  Author:   183 Civil Society Organizations and Individuals  •  8 minute read
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25th, July 2022

Since February 2021 coup, the Myanmar military has been terrorizing its people to instill fear as a strategy for its rule. For over a year, it has deployed all kinds of cruel oppressive methods including the use of the horrendous tactic of rape as a weapon to contain and control the people who resist its rule in favor of democracy. Yet they have failed in doing so as the people have responded with sheer determination that “they shall not rule” and have united to successfully establish their own democratic government further reducing the status of the military to an illegitimate organization and a mere terrorist armed group.

We, the people of Myanmar, have engaged in a resistance movement to put an end to the military’s violent oppression and gross human rights violations including crimes that amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide that have been going on for decades. We have risked and lost our homes and lives in this fight to uproot the dictatorship and establish a federal democratic country.

Since February 2021, the fascist military organization has killed over 2,000 civilians; unlawfully arrested, tortured, or detained over 14,000 democratically elected political leaders[1], civil society members and activists; and displaced over one million people[2]. Moreover, due to the military’s intentional and inhuman act of violence targeting civilians, the people have been suffering from anxiety, terror, and mental and physical violence, in addition to other disasters such as hunger. More details can be learned in the information attached with this letter.

The multidimensional crisis in Myanmar is not an internal affair of our country. Its impact extends beyond its borders. This is a political struggle between “democracy and military dictatorship” and a collaborated attempt to undermine and diminish a democratic movement with the backing and corporation of the like of China, Russia and other pro-military junta countries. The outcome of ongoing Myanmar’s democracy movement will undoubtedly have an impact on other democracy supporters around the world.

Similar to India and other countries fighting for democracy and human rights, we have, for many decades, been facing general oppression on farmers, workers as well as on religious, ethnic and social groups and many more to a point where widespread corruption and repeated collapse of electoral democracy practices have forced us to risks our homes and lives to engage in a resistance movement, which has gained momentum, to end the brutal military dictatorship once and for all.

However, to date, The Government of India as Myanmar’s world’s biggest democratic neighbor have not stood up for Myanmar’s people in their struggle for democracy. Worse, it has provided arms and political legitimacy to Myanmar’s fascist military regime. India’s security forces have also engaged in increased arrests of members of Myanmar’s democratic forces. Furthermore, while many other democratic countries have imposed economic sanctions on Myanmar’s military, The Government of India continues to operate its business projects inside Myanmar in collaboration with the military regime enabling the flow of blood money to them.

In April 2022, India’s new ambassador Shri Vinay Kumar, who was appointed in November 2021, said that India would support and collaborate with the Myanmar junta’s election commission for the next election to be held in Myanmar under the control of criminal Myanmar fascist military that has been killing civilians and engaged in mass arson attacks daily. This is an act of support to perpetrators of international crimes and blatant ignorance of the suffering of the Myanmar people.

We the people of Myanmar, strongly believe that “India people’s solidarity is the key to Myanmar’s democracy movement” and as we maintain good faith in people-to-people collaboration, we have created and operated India for Myanmar campaign to acquire support from the people of India. Therefore, we respectfully urge civil society organizations and political parties of the people of India to take the following actions to support the Myanmar people.

  1. Show and express your support for democracy and the people of Myanmar.
  2. Pressure The Government of India to stop providing political legitimacy and arms to Myanmar’s fascist military.
  3. Pressure The Government of India to impose economic sanctions on Myanmar’s military.
  4. Help and support displaced people and refugees from Myanmar and pressure The Government of India to provide humanitarian assistance to them.

We believe that with the corporation and support from the people of India, we will be able to successfully advocate for the Government of India to take the action mentioned above. We would like to express our profound gratitude to all people of India who, through the recognition and support for the fight of Myanmar people, have advanced democracy and human rights values spreading them from India to Myanmar and to the rest of the world.

The above letter is signed by the following 116 civil society organizations, students’ unions, political coalitions, and nationwide strike committees. The other 67 organizations and individuals signed in anonymously due to security risks. In total (183) national and regional Organizations working for Myanmar raised their collective voice to the Civil Society Organizations and Political Parties of India.

Contacts for the Open Letter:

  1. Salai Dokhar +919-362-212819 (Call), +959-756-208376 (Signal)
  2. Thinzar Shunlei Yi +959-795-574775 (Signal)
  3. John +959-445-995371 (Signal)

[1] https://aappb.org/?lang=en

[2] https://reliefweb.int/report/myanmar/myanmar-humanitarian-update-no-19-28-june-2022

  1. A-Yar-Taw People Strike
  2. Action Committee for Democracy Development
  3. Action Committee of Basic Education Students
  4. All Arakan Students and Youths’ Congress (AASYC)
  5. All Burma Federation of Student Unions (Monywa District)
  6. All Kachin Youths Union (AKYU)
  7. Alliance of Students’ Union – Yangon (ASU-Yangon)
  8. Anti-Dictatorship in Burma – DC Metropolitan Area (ADB-DCMA)
  9. Anti-junta Forces Coordination Committee (ACFCC -Mandalay)
  10. Arakan CSO Network
  11. Arakan Humanitarian Coordination Team- AHCT
  12. Asonehti Ponekan Mae Yangon Strike
  13. Athan – Freedom of Expression Activist Organization
  14. Basic Education General Strike Committee (BEGSC)
  15. Basic Education Worker Unions – Steering Committee (BEWU-SC)
  16. Blood Money Campaign
  17. BURMESE COMMUNITY IN FRANCE
  18. CDM Medical Network (CDMMN)
  19. Chin Relief Funding Program -CRFP
  20. Chin Youth Organization- Matupi
  21. Chindwin (West) Villages Women Strike
  22. Citizen of Burma Award (New Zealand)
  23. Civil Information Network (CIN)
  24. Civil Society Organizations Coordination Committee (Monywa)
  25. Coalition Strike Committee – Dawei
  26. CRPH & NUG Supporters Ireland
  27. CRPH Funding Ireland
  28. CRPH, NUG Support Team Germany
  29. CRPH/NUG Support Group India
  30. Dawei (Ashaetaw) Women Strike
  31. Dawei Youths Revolutionary Movement Strike Committee
  32. Democracy Movement Strike Committee – Dawei
  33. Democracy, Peace, and Women’s Organization
  34. Democratic Youth Council
  35. Depayin Women Strike
  36. Educational Initiatives
  37. Ethnic Youth Group (Mandalay)
  38. European Karen Network (EKN)
  39. Former Political Prisoners and New Generation Group – Monywa
  40. Free Rohingya Coalition
  41. Gangaw Women Strike
  42. General Strike Collaboration Committee (GSCC)
  43. General Strike Committee of Basic and Higher Education (GSCBHE)
  44. Generation (မျိုးဆက်)
  45. India For Myanmar
  46. Kachin Human Rights Watch – KHRW
  47. Kachin State Civilian Movement
  48. Kachin Student Union
  49. Kalay Township Strike Force
  50. Kalay Women Strike
  51. Karen Swedish Community (KSC)
  52. Kuki Students’ Democratic Front – KSDF
  53. Kuki Students’ Organization (Myanmar)
  54. Kuki Women’s Human Rights Organization
  55. Labor Alliance (LA)
  56. Latpadaung Region Strike Committee
  57. LGBT Alliance
  58. LGBT Alliance Myanmar (Kalay Region)
  59. LGBT Alliance Myanmar (Kyaukse Region)
  60. LGBT Community Yangon
  61. LGBT Union Mandalay
  62. Magway People’s Revolution Committee
  63. Mandalay Engineer Group (MEG)
  64. Mandalay Medical Family (MFM)
  65. Mandalay Women Strike
  66. Mandalay-Based University Students’ Unions (MDY_SUs)
  67. Minority Affairs Institute – MAI (Myanmar)
  68. Monywa LGBT Strike
  69. Monywa People’s Strike Steering Committee
  70. Monywa Women Strike
  71. Monywa-Amyint Road Strike Leading Committee
  72. Monywa-Amyint Road Women Strike
  73. Myanmar Alliance for Transparency and Accountability – MATA
  74. Myanmar Banker Union – MBU
  75. Myanmar CDM Association
  76. Myingyan Civilian Movement Committee
  77. National League for Democracy (Monywa Township)
  78. Network for Advocacy Action
  79. Network for Human Rights Documentation-Burma (ND-Burma)
  80. Network of University Student Unions – Monywa
  81. NRFF – New Rehmonnya Federated Force
  82. OCTOPUS (Youth Organization)
  83. Progressive Voice – PV
  84. Pyay Township Coalition Strike Committee
  85. Reliable Organization
  86. Representative Committee of University Teacher Associations (RC of UTAs)
  87. Representing The Arrested People Strike
  88. Samgha Samagga Mandalay
  89. Second Tap Root Organization
  90. Sisters 2 Sisters
  91. Sitt Nyein Pann Foundation
  92. Sound of Struggle Myanmar (SOS MYANMAR)
  93. Student Union Representatives Committee – SURC
  94. Support group for Democracy in Myanmar (The Netherlands)
  95. Tamu District Indigenous Organization (TDIO)
  96. Tanintharyi People’s Voice
  97. Taze Women Strike
  98. Thakhin Kodaw Mhine Peace Network (Monywa)
  99. Thayat Chaung Women Strike
  100. The 88 Generation Peace and Open Society (Monywa)
  101. Twitter Team for Revolution
  102. University Students’ Unions Alumni Force
  103. We Love Motherland-MM(Malaysia)
  104. Wetlet Revolution Leading Committee
  105. Wetlet Township Women Strike
  106. White Coat Society Yangon (WCSY)
  107. Women Advocacy Coalition – Myanmar (WAC-M)
  108. Women Alliance Burma (WAB)
  109. Yadanabon University Students’ Union (YDNBUSU)
  110. Yangon Women Strike
  111. YG Network
  112. Yinmarpin (east) and Salingyi (North) Villages Strike Committee
  113. Youth Development Institute (YDI)
  114. Youth Network – Tanintharyi
  115. Youths Union
  116. Youths Union (Pathein)

And 67 anonymous Civil Society Organizations and Individuals.


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