Burma Junta Strips Shadow Government Members, Activists of Citizenship

A protester holds a sign in support of the National Unity Government (NUG) as others make the three-finger salute during a demonstration against the military coup in Yangon, Burma, in Sanchaung township on April 27, 2021. STR/AFP via Getty Images

The Burmese junta has revoked the citizenship of 11 opposition members and activists who have reportedly fled the country, the military regime’s information ministry has announced.

The citizenship termination targeted three Burmese activists and eight members of the National Unity Government (NUG), a parallel government formed in April 2021 by ousted lawmakers and anti-coup activists.

Their citizenship was revoked under Section 16 of the 1982 Burma Citizenship Law because of their having “left the country illegally” and committing acts that “could harm [national] interests,” the ministry said in a March 5 statement.

Other people who conduct the same offenses will be identified and prosecuted, according to the statement, which didn’t elaborate on the acts that were regarded to jeopardize national interests.

Aung Myo Min, minister of human rights for NUG, took to social media to express his dissatisfaction with the termination of his citizenship, calling it a “joke.”

“Ceasing citizenship of Cabinet members by terrorist military junta is just a joke! Nothing can stop our love to our country,” he wrote on Twitter.

Zin Mar Aung, NUG’s foreign minister, also addressed the situation on Twitter, saying the military junta “do not have the rights to strip people’s citizenship away.”

“Just because coupmakers pretending to be a government and strip away my citizenship does not make me love Myanmar less,” she said, noting that the NUG will continue to fight for the people of Burma.

The military regime ousted an elected civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1, 2021, sparking protests and clashes between the army and ethnic minority insurgents in Burma, also known as Myanmar.

Engineers hold posters with an image of deposed Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi as they hold an anti-coup protest march in Mandalay, Burma, on Feb. 15, 2021.  AP Photo

At least 1,500 individuals have been killed since the military seized power. A total of 11,787 others were arbitrarily detained for opposing the military through peaceful protests and online activities, 8,792 of which remain in custody. At least 290 people have died as a result of torture, according to the U.N.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said there were reports of the military regime’s “clearance operations” targeting villagers, as well as indiscriminate attacks through airstrikes and the use of heavy weaponry in populated areas.

The United States announced last week that it would invite a “nonpolitical” representative of the junta to this month’s Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.

“The regime has failed to make meaningful progress on ASEAN’s five-point consensus and should be held accountable,” a U.S. State Department spokesperson said.

ASEAN has barred the junta from attending any meetings and adopted a five-point consensus on Burma, including ending violence in the country, facilitating constructive dialogue with all parties concerned, and a visit by an ASEAN delegation to Burma to assess the situation.

Reuters contributed to this report.