The Cost of Cruelty
“It feels like one easy decision by the US president is quietly killing so many lives.”
The suspension of United States foreign aid has inflicted immense suffering on millions in already dire situations worldwide. Myanmar’s vulnerable communities, both within the country and along its borders, are experiencing devastating consequences of this reckless and unconscionable decision. To prevent further suffering and save lives, it is vital that the US resume its foreign aid and ensure assistance and support reach those who need it most.
Following an Executive Order signed on 20 January 2025, the US State Department ordered a sweeping freeze on nearly all foreign assistance for 90 days. US-funded aid programs worldwide are being forced to lay off staff, shut down, or otherwise abruptly halt operations. This freeze cripples critical humanitarian work, abandoning vulnerable communities and depriving them of essential support amidst growing crises around the world.
Communities throughout Myanmar and its border areas—particularly marginalized and disenfranchised groups such as refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs)—have already been suffering immense destruction and distress since the attempted coup in 2021. At least 3.5 million people have been forcibly displaced across the country by the military junta’s violence and atrocity crimes—a figure likely understated by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The aid freeze has exacerbated already desperate conditions, severing access to essential healthcare, halting education, and threatening food security—risking starvation and death for millions of Myanmar’s people in its wake.
The impact is also profoundly felt along Myanmar’s borders, where over a million people have sought refuge in neighboring countries such as Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, and Thailand. The US Government has effectively forced the closure of seven clinics in refugee camps along Thailand-Myanmar border, leaving over 80,000 refugees without vital healthcare services. Patients requiring serious medical attention are being sent home without treatment, including pregnant women and those with chronic diseases. Saw Nah Pha, a tuberculosis patient from the Mae La refugee camp, told the New York Times, “It feels like one easy decision by the US president is quietly killing so many lives.” Tragically, at least one refugee suffering from paralysis and reliant on oxygen has died after being told to leave the hospital due to lack of treatment. Surely he would be the first among many.
This pause in aid has had devastating impacts on civil society organizations across Myanmar—not only on immediate humanitarian needs but also long-term democratic aspirations. Many CSOs, especially those operating in active fighting zones, rely heavily on foreign funding to sustain affected communities’ lives and livelihoods, protect human rights, and build and foster their country’s democracy. By halting aid, the US Government exacerbates and prolongs the humanitarian and human rights crisis, while also weakening Myanmar’s already at-risk civic space. This treacherous order aggravates the considerable threat to the democratic movement and the promotion and protection of human rights in Myanmar—and, indeed, worldwide. If not soon reversed, this decision will have lasting impacts, aiding the growth of tyrannies and dictatorships, contrary to US values.
Since the attempted coup in 2021, Myanmar’s people have shown incredible courage, commitment, and resilience in their struggle to end the military junta’s war of terror and its illegal bids at power. Frontline humanitarians are making tremendous sacrifices to save and sustain the lives of millions of displaced people. International aid has been essential—and at times lifesaving—not merely in keeping people alive but as a cornerstone for promoting and achieving their aspirations for a federal democratic future free from military tyranny.
The US Government’s Executive Order to halt foreign aid is both cruel and deeply inhumane—utterly unconscionable and an affront to democracy and human rights worldwide. With this action, the US has abandoned vulnerable populations to further suffering and possible starvation and death, while at the same time undermining the Myanmar people’s efforts to build a federal democracy that upholds human rights, justice and equality. The Executive Order should be seriously reconsidered and reversed immediately to prevent further harm to vulnerable communities in Myanmar and across the globe. In addition, it is time for true alliances of democracy and principled humanitarian actors to step up and ensure that humanitarian support and human rights work continue. It is the world’s collective responsibility to protect human rights and save lives.
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[1] One year following the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, the former military junta changed the country’s name from Burma to Myanmar overnight. Progressive Voice uses the term ‘Myanmar’ in acknowledgement that most people of the country use this term. However, the deception of inclusiveness and the historical process of coercion by the former State Peace and Development Council military regime into usage of ‘Myanmar’ rather than ‘Burma’ without the consent of the people is recognized and not forgotten. Thus, under certain circumstances, ‘Burma’ is used.
Resources from the past week
Statements and Press Releases
Myanmar: Four years after coup, world must demand accountability for atrocity crimes
By 46 Organizations
By Asia Justice and Rights
AAPP and DIGNITY Launch Groundbreaking Report on Post-Imprisonment Challenges in Burma
By Assistance Association for Political Prisoners and DIGNItY
Airbus: Tell AVIC to Choose Between Business with Burmese Military or with Airbus
By Burma Campaign UK
Four Years On: Myanmar’s Muslims Are Still Waiting for Justice
By Burma Human Rights Network
Four Years Since The Coup: Atrocities Continue In Burma
By Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK
By Chin Human Rights Organization
U.N. Member States: Take Urgent Action to End Mass Atrocities in Myanmar
By Fortify Rights
Four years since the military takeover in Myanmar: no justice for brutal atrocities
By Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar
စစ်တပ်မှအာဏာသိမ်းပြီး လေးနှစ်အကြာ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတွင် ရက်စက်ကြမ်းကြုတ်မှုများအတွက် တရားမျှတမှုမရှိသေး
By Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar
Singapore-listed Interra Resources supplying Myanmar junta with oil, fuelling war crimes
By Justice For Myanmar
By Justice For Myanmar
By Justice For Myanmar
By Justice For Myanmar
By Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
By Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma
Myanmar’s Resistance-Led Nation-Building Has Begun: The International Community Must Fully Support
By Special Advisory Council for Myanmar
By Special Advisory Council for Myanmar
UK announces additional humanitarian funding for Myanmar
By United Kingdom (Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office)
Secretary-General Calls on All Conflict Parties in Myanmar to Exercise Maximum Restraint
By United Nations Secretary-General
Myanmar on the brink as conflict fuels hunger
By World Food Programme
Reports
Burma Coup Watch for the Month of December 2024: Junta census exposes its own loss of control
By ALTSEAN-Burma, Asia Democracy Network, Asia Forum for Human Rights and Development, Burma Human Rights Network, Initiatives for International Dialogue, International Federation for Human Rights, Progressive Voice, US Campaign for Burma and Women’s Peace Network
Struggle for Survival: Resilience in The Face of Prison’s Aftershocks
By Assistance Association for Political Prisoners and DIGNITY
Capturing and Controlling Towns: The Trajectory of Revolution
By Myanmar Peace Monitor and Burma News International
မြို့သိမ်းခြင်း၊ မြို့ထိန်းခြင်းနှင့် တော်လှန်ရေး၏ ဦးတည်ရာ
By Myanmar Peace Monitor and Burma News International
Defending Democracy: Four Years Since the Failed Coup in Burma
By Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma
Progressive Voice is a participatory, rights-based policy research and advocacy organization that was born out of Burma Partnership. Burma Partnership officially ended its work on October 10, 2016 transitioning to a rights-based policy research and advocacy organization called Progressive Voice. For further information, please see our press release “Burma Partnership Celebrates Continuing Regional Solidarity for Burma and Embraces the Work Ahead for Progressive Voice.”
