UNSC Adopts First-ever Resolution on Myanmar: In 74 years, the U.N. Security Council has finally adopted a resolution on Myanmar to call for an end to the bloodshed and to demand that the military junta free all political prisoners, including the country’s deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Ms. Kyi, 77, has been a prisoner since the army toppled her government almost two years ago and violently cracked down on dissent.
December 2022 Current Affairs Quiz
What More About This Development:
The 15-member council has long been split on how to deal with the Myanmar crisis with China and Russia arguing against strong action. They both abstained from the vote, along with India. The remaining 12 members voted in favor.
Need of This Resolution:
- Suu Kyi and former president Win Myint are among the inmates who have been arbitrarily detained, and the resolution calls for their immediate release. It also demands an immediate end to all forms of violence and asks for all parties to respect human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law.
- It also urges “concrete and immediate actions” to implement a peace plan agreed upon by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and calls for the military administration to “uphold democratic institutions and processes and to pursue constructive dialogue and reconciliation in accordance with the will and interests of the people”.
UNSC & Myanmar:
Over the decades, Myanmar’s military has dedicated considerable resources to avoiding the passage of a resolution in the UNSC, very often relying on China to exercise the veto that it enjoys as a permanent member of the body. Due to the vetoes of China and Russia, the UNSC was unable to adopt a draught resolution on Myanmar in 2007. After the Myanmar military attacked Rohingya villages in the west of the country in late 2018, the U.K… Made another attempt to pass a resolution, but China and Russia refused to engage in the resolution, and it decided not to table the draft for a vote.
