46th Session UNHRC: Intervention by Ms. Anne Heckendorff (Research Analyst EFSAS)
18-03-2021, Geneva (Virtual)
Text and video of Ms. Anne Heckendorff's Intervention on General Debate Item 5 (Human rights bodies and mechanisms) during the 46th Session of the UN Human Rights Council.
Video of Ms. Anne Heckendorff's Intervention on General Debate Item 5 during the 46th Session of the UNHRC
"Madam President,
Last month, more than 50 million people in Myanmar were subjected to an illegal power grab by a military that has a long record of grave human rights violations.
The breakdown of democratic values and the rule of law constitutes a severe setback not only to Myanmar’s internal peace and development, but potentially also for the stability of the broader region.
Renewed insurgency, the build-up of terrorist hubs in Myanmar’s periphery and subsequent cross-border refugee movements are likely scenarios as ethnic minority groups with decade-long experiences of marginalization are deprived of political means to voice their grievances. Bangladesh and other South Asian States already struggle to provide shelter to more than a million Rohingya refugees, whose hopes to be able to return to Myanmar anytime soon are now more distant than ever.
In order to conceal the dismal state of democracy within their own borders, some States called this illegal coup a mere cabinet reshuffle, thereby preventing a unified response from the international community.
This is disappointing, and an insult to the thousands of protesters risking their lives every day in order to defend their rights.
I call upon this council to prioritize its mandate of ensuring that nations cooperatively secure peace, stability and human rights over considerations for the political and economic biases of some of its members.
Madam President,
I urge this council to re-establish the trust of the people of Myanmar in this UN Human Rights Body and its mechanisms.
Thank you".
