Preemptive statement

Cases
Location of case in SG report
2023-084-001
Relevant SG report
Year of the report
2023
Country Geolocation

Latitude: 21.916221

Longitude: 95.955974

Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
Myanmar (Burma)
From Region
UN body that raised the case prior to the SG report
  • UN General Assembly
  • UN Human Rights Council: UN Human Rights Council - General
Type of record
Preemptive statement made to ensure no reprisals will occur
Was the victim a foreign national?
No
Was the victim a minor?
No
Type of rights defended
  • Unclear in SG Report
Was the victim a civil servant or member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
No
Engagement with UN body
  • UN Special Procedures: country
  • UN Special Procedures: thematic
  • UN Special Procedures: UN Special Procedures - General
  • OHCHR: OHCHR - General
  • UN Envoy
Type of attempted engagement
  • Meeting with UN officials during country visit / with locally present UN officials
  • Submission of information to UN
  • Unclear
Location of mentioned reprisals
Myanmar
Reprisal information
  1. In a context of increased violence and a decimated civic space in the country,64 multiple United Nations entities noted risks of reprisals against and barriers to those who engage with them, including increased surveillance on civil society organizations as well as Internet shutdowns.65 They urged that victims, witnesses and survivors who cooperate with the United Nations be able to do so without fear of retribution. Names and details of those concerned are withheld due to fear of reprisals.
  2. In December 2022, the General Assembly adopted a resolution noting with grave concern the ongoing restrictions on humanitarian access in all conflict areas across Myanmar and urged the granting of full, unrestricted and safe access to all humanitarian actors and all United Nations mandate holders and human rights mechanisms, and relevant United Nations agencies to independently monitor the situation, and to ensure that individuals can cooperate without hindrance with these mechanisms and without fear of reprisal, intimidation or attack (A/RES/77/227, OP10).
  3. In its 2023 report to the Human Rights Council, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights noted limitations to its documentation work for a number of reasons, including military-imposed localized and long-term internet shutdowns and continuous risks of reprisals by military authorities. Documentation of crimes of sexual and gender-based violence is particularly challenging due to security and safety concerns of survivors and concrete risks of reprisal (A/HRC/52/21, AEV para. 35).
  4. In March 2023, the Human Rights Council adopted a resolution calling for full, unrestricted and unmonitored access for all United Nations mandate holders and human rights mechanisms, including by ceasing Internet shutdowns and restrictions on information essential for accountability, and to ensure that civil society organizations, human rights defenders, lawyers, victims, survivors, witnesses and other individuals have unhindered access to and can communicate with the United Nations and other human rights entities without fear of reprisals, intimidation or attack (A/HRC/RES/52/31, OP26).
Types of reprisals suffered
  • Surveillance
  • Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
Alleged/likely perpetrators
State actors
Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
No
Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
Yes
Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
No
Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
No
Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
Yes