By People’s Spring
U Kyaw Moe Tun, Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations (UN), said the junta’s Foreign Ministry statement about his position was a clear sign of how desperate the junta had become.
After the junta staged its coup in 2021, U Kyaw Moe Tun chose to align himself with pro-democracy resistance forces rather than pledge allegiance to the generals in Naypyidaw.Over the past five years, the junta has made various attempts to remove him as Myanmar’s representative to the UN. Most recently, on September 13, the junta’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement claiming that U Kyaw Moe Tun had illegally seized his position.
U Kyaw Moe Tun said the junta had hired individuals to assassinate him. After the attempt failed, the junta continued to pursue various efforts and schemes aimed at removing him from Myanmar’s seat at the United Nations.
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“The junta has tried different ways, including lawsuits, to put pressure on me and stop my office from operating. I’ve already spoken about that. I also briefly answered questions before about the spending needed to keep my office running, so I don’t have anything more to add. But if you look at what it is doing now, it clearly shows just how desperate the junta is,” he told People’s Spring.
U Kyaw Moe Tun was appointed Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the UN in 2020 under the civilian government led by Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, which had been elected in accordance with Myanmar’s democratic system. Following the 2021 coup, he publicly condemned the military’s seizure of power in a speech at the UN, embarrassing the junta, and declared his support for the people of Myanmar.
Over the past five years, Ambassador U Kyaw Moe Tun has used the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and related meetings to draw international attention to the situation in Myanmar, the junta’s brutal attacks and human rights abuses against the people since the coup, its inhumane acts, and the numerous crimes it has committed under international law while enjoying impunity.He has also highlighted the perils faced by the people of Myanmar.
Last week, the UN held the opening ceremony and first plenary meeting of the 81st session of the UNGA at its headquarters in New York, with the Myanmar delegation led by U Kyaw Moe Tun attending. On the same day, the UN established its Credentials Committee to review the credentials of representatives from member states.
At around the same time the UN established the Credentials Committee, the coup regime’s Foreign Ministry announced that U Kyaw Moe Tun had already been removed from his position as Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the UN. The junta also said he had been charged with high treason against the state and rebellion and that an arrest warrant had been issued for him.
The junta further threatened that it is working through diplomatic channels and has contacted the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) and the United States National Central Bureau (USNCB) in an effort to arrest U Kyaw Moe Tun, whom it labelled a fugitive.
The junta also alleged that U Kyaw Moe Tun has been directly communicating with and representing the resistance-run National Unity Government (NUG) and Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), both of which it has designated as terrorist organizations. The junta added that U Kyaw Moe Tun was abusing the seat he holds at the UN and acting as a direct accomplice in acts of terrorism.
In connection with these alleged acts, the junta has charged U Kyaw Moe Tun under Section 122(2) of the Penal Code for high treason against the State, Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act, Section 6(1) of the Public Property Protection Act, Section 124-A of the Penal Code, the Counter-Terrorism Law and Section 66(d) of the Telecommunications Law. The offenses are punishable by the death penalty or life imprisonment.
After U Kyaw Moe Tun publicly declared at the UN on February 26, 2021, that he completely rejected and condemned the coup, a junta-aligned arms broker approached a member of his security team and attempted to arrange his assassination.
However, in August of that year, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) foiled the assassination plot, and both conspirators were arrested.
