Open Letter from 319 organizations to Disinvite Min Aung Hlaing & Exclude Myanmar military junta from BIMSTEC

TO:

Government of Thailand

Prime Minister

H.E. Paetongtarn Shinawatra

Minister for Foreign Affairs

H.E. Maris Sangiampongsa

Governments of BIMSTEC Member States

Ministers for Foreign Affairs of

Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka

BIMSTEC Secretariat

General Secretary

H.E. Indra Mani Pandey

29 March 2025

Dear BIMSTEC Leaders,

Re: Call to disinvite Min Aung Hlaing and exclude Myanmar military junta from BIMSTEC

In the lead-up to the BIMSTEC Summit, scheduled for April 3 to 4 in Bangkok, we the undersigned 319 organisations, write this open letter to call on the Government of Thailand and the leadership of BIMSTEC to take a stand against the illegal military junta and its commission of international crimes by:

1. Barring the Myanmar junta head Min Aung Hlaing from the BIMSTEC Summit;

2. Excluding all other military junta representatives and their appointees from all BIMSTEC meetings and events.

�Since its coup attempt on February 1, 2021, the military has committed massacres, indiscriminate airstrikes, artillery shelling, sexual and gender-based violence, mass torture and mass arson. It has arbitrarily arrested over 28,900. Each year, the military junta has increased the frequency of its air strikes as well as the number of civilians killed and injured. The Myanmar military has conducted 4,631 airstrikes, including on internally displaced persons (IDP) camps, clinics, schools, and religious sites—a serious international crime that violates international humanitarian law. These include the use of fire bombs, which are prohibited in civilian areas. From their airstrikes alone, over 2,603 civilians have been killed and over 4,184 injured. As a result of these crimes, over 3 million people are now internally displaced. The military junta meets the criteria for a terrorist organisation under both Myanmar national law and as defined in international law.

The Myanmar military’s atrocities amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. These are being committed by the same military that stands accused of genocide and other international crimes against the Rohingya before the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court and in the universal jurisdiction case in Argentina. The federal criminal court in Argentina under universal jurisdiction recently ordered arrest warrants for 25 Myanmar individuals for their alleged roles in genocide and crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya, including junta head Min Aung Hlaing and other senior military officials.

The Myanmar military junta is not, by any definition, a government and therefore has no legitimacy to represent the people of Myanmar in any BIMSTEC meetings or activities, regardless of the level of the meeting or the junta representative.

When foreign governments and international organisations engage with the military junta as though it were a government, and/or enable the junta’s appointees and associates to network with the international community, this causes significant harms for the people of Myanmar, including:

* Emboldening the military junta and thereby increasing violence against civilians;

* Decisions being made illegitimately on behalf of Myanmar people;

* Legitimising the military junta and assisting their illegal attempts to appear as a government;

* Assisting the military junta to build relationships and gain access to funds and resources; and

* Ultimately, assisting the military junta in its war against the people of the country

Anyone providing legitimacy or facilitating the flow of funds and resources to the military junta risks being complicit in the junta’s ongoing atrocity crimes. Thus, it is extremely important to avoid facilitating any potential diplomatic and financial relationships between the Myanmar military junta and others through international meetings and networks.

Other intergovernmental organisations including ASEAN and the United Nations have already taken actions against the Myanmar military junta. For example, ASEAN has decided not to allow the Myanmar junta to assume the rotating leadership in 2026 and has excluded the junta from foreign ministers’ meetings and summits. The ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting (ADMM) has excluded the junta’s defence minister from summits. The Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia boycotted an ADMM air force chiefs meeting hosted by the military junta. Singapore boycotted ADMM-Plus counter-terrorism training sessions hosted by the Myanmar military junta and Russia. All of these actions have been welcomed by the people of Myanmar.

Yet, further serious action is urgently needed. Your decision to exclude the illegal military junta from your upcoming visit and meetings would be in line with the United Nations’ decision to avoid allowing military junta members to represent Myanmar in the General Assembly. This request also echoes the concerns raised by the United Nations Special Rapporteur for the situation of human rights in Myanmar who recommends that ASEAN must not allow Myanmar military junta personnel to participate in any ASEAN meetings. He also calls on ASEAN Member States to: “not attend if the invitations to the junta military personnel are not rescinded.” Further, the Special Rapporteur urges that “Member States who support human rights, democracy, and the aspirations of the people of Myanmar publicly reject the SAC’s false claim as a legitimate government.”

We await your response with anticipation. Meanwhile, we will continue to monitor whether your actions support the people of Myanmar or the brutal and illegitimate military junta.

Sincerely,

This letter is endorsed by 319 organisations representing Myanmar, regional and international civil society, including the 285 organisations listed below and 34 organisations which have chosen not to disclose their names.

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