This petition was submitted during the 2019-2024 parliament

Petition Urge the UN to intervene in Myanmar with a peace keeping force

The Government should urge the United Nations to rapidly send a peace keeping force to Myanmar to protect the people of that country from the violence and repression currently being metered out by the military dictatorship that has taken control.

More details

Reports from Myanmar show that the military dictatorship are prepared to use lethal force against its own population. Everyday we see increasing numbers of deaths and injuries carried out by the self-imposed dictatorship. If the military and police forces in that country are not forced to exercise restraint then the situation is likely to get rapidly worse. We cannot allow the situation to develop into a full scale civil war, or genocide, or ethnic cleansing. Firm decisive action is required now.

This petition is closed This petition ran for 6 months

10,232 signatures

Show on a map

100,000

Government responded

This response was given on 17 June 2021

The UK has led a strong international response, including through our G7 Presidency and our leadership role at the UN Security Council. We will continue to explore all avenues to resolve this crisis.

Read the response in full

We share your deep concern about the events unfolding in Myanmar and are monitoring the current situation closely. The UK Government condemns the military coup in Myanmar, violence against the people of Myanmar, and the detention of members of the civilian government and civil society, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint.

We are deeply concerned by the appalling violence inflicted on the people of Myanmar by the Myanmar Security Forces, including against children. The violent crackdown on peaceful protestors must end. My thoughts go out to all those who have been killed and injured whilst protesting for democracy. People’s right to peaceful protest should be respected. We urge the military to exercise utmost restraint and respect human rights and wider international law.

The UK has led a strong, coordinated international response, including through our G7 Presidency and our leadership role on Myanmar at the UN Security Council. On 10 March, the UK secured a Presidential Statement at the UN Security Council, which condemned the violence against peaceful protestors. On 4 February, we also convened a UN Security Council Press Statement. We co-led a Special Session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) on 12 February securing a consensus resolution on the coup. We secured a strong resolution at HRC46 on 24 March, passed again by consensus. Further, we secured G7 statements on 3 and 23 February. On 5 May, we secured G7 Foreign and Development Ministers’ Meeting Communiqué that condemned the coup in the strongest terms and called on the military to restore Myanmar to the path to democracy. This was reiterated in the Communiqué from the G7 Leaders’ Summit on 13 June.

A UN peacekeeping operation would require UN Security Council authorisation. We do not believe that the necessary support exists in the Council at present. As a champion of democratic governance, the UK is working hard to keep the Myanmar crisis on the Security Council’s agenda. We will continue to press for firm and decisive action at the Security Council, and elsewhere. We will continue to use all the tools at our disposal to encourage dialogue, find a peaceful resolution to the crisis, and restore democracy.

We have now sanctioned the two key military conglomerates Myanmar Economic Holdings Ltd (MEHL) and Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC). On 17 May, the UK also imposed sanctions on Myanmar Gems Enterprise, a State Owned Enterprise responsible for all gems activity in Myanmar. We will continue to work to directly target the military’s financial interest. These sanctions follow the designation, in February, of nine senior military individuals, including the Commander in Chief, for their role in serious human rights violations during the coup. We are working closely with partners on further targeted and coordinated action to ensure the military is held to account.

We have provided £500,000 of additional funding to the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar to bolster their capacity to collect and preserve evidence of serious human rights violations.

We have welcomed ASEAN’s efforts to resolve the crisis, and ASEAN’s ‘five point consensus’, including on the need for the immediate cessation of violence and the commencement of constructive dialogue among all parties concerned. We are committed to constructively supporting ASEAN’s efforts, including the work of the ASEAN Special Envoy.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

MPs examine the Government’s response to the ongoing military and humanitarian crisis in Myanmar

The House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee is holding an inquiry into the Government’s response to the ongoing military and humanitarian crisis in Myanmar.

The aim of this inquiry is to provide time-sensitive recommendations that will strengthen the UK Government’s efforts to mediate and limit further violence in Myanmar.

Read the announcement of the inquiry here: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/1219/the-myanmar-crisis/news/154943/foreign-affairs-committee-launches-new-inquiry-into-crisis-in-myanmar/

Last month the Committee heard from voices from inside Myanmar, including Minister of International Cooperation, National Unity Government of Myanmar, alongside other prominent activists, and experts on the UN and civil society providing.

Find out more about this session: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/1219/the-myanmar-crisis/news/155378/foreign-affairs-committees-myanmar-inquiry-to-hold-evidence-session/

Read transcripts of the session: https://committees.parliament.uk/event/4566/formal-meeting-oral-evidence-session/

Further announcements about this inquiry will be published here: https://committees.parliament.uk/work/1219/the-myanmar-crisis/

What is the Foreign Affairs Committee?

The Foreign Affairs Committee is a cross-party group of MPs known as a 'select committee' which scrutinises the policy, administration and spending of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The Committee is independent of the Government.

Find out more on their website:
https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/78/foreign-affairs-committee/

You can get updates on their work by following the Committee on Twitter @CommonsForeign:
https://twitter.com/CommonsForeign

Find out how select committees work:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2RDuDs44c