According to Burmese media reports, the Burmese military regime seized the bank accounts of the Soros Open Society Foundation, and the military issued arrest warrants for 11 staff members of the Open Society Foundation of Burma. It also announced that legal action would be taken against the foundation.
Photo: Aung San Suu Kyi with George Soros in New York in September 2016. Soros for a meeting
According to independent Burmese media outlet The Irrawaddy, the military regime has seized billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundation (OSF). Soros’ Open Society Foundation (OSF) bank accounts in Burma and announced it would take legal action against the foundation for allegedly violating restrictions on the activities of such organizations.
On Monday, the military-controlled Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) announced that it had issued arrest warrants for 11 staff members of the Open Society Foundation in Myanmar, including its head and deputy head, for allegedly providing financial support to the Civil disobedience movement (CDM), which opposes the military government.
The regime also claims that the world’s largest private funder of justice, democratic governance and human rights deposited $5 million (7.04 billion kyats) with the Myanmar Small and Medium Enterprises Development Bank (SMED) in 2018 without the approval of the Central Bank of Myanmar’s (CBM) Foreign Exchange Management Department.
The foundation was also accused of illegally withdrawing $1.4 million from its account at the Myanmar SME Development Bank within a week of the Myanmar military takeover, when the civil disobedience movement among civil servants across the country was gaining momentum.
The junta also took control of the Open Society Foundation’s assets in KBZ Bank (Kanbawza), AYA Bank (Ayeyarwady), CB Bank (Co-operative) and Myanmar SME Development Bank, totaling $3.81 million and 375 million kyats in accounts at the four private banks, according to Myanmar Radio and Television.
The military said it has begun controlling all funds flowing illegally to the Open Society Foundation of Burma, which it says violates the law that sets rules and regulations for Burmese organizations.
The military said it will take legal action against the Myanmar SME Development Bank for allowing the Open Society Foundation to deposit $5 million and withdraw $1.4 million without the approval of the Central Bank of Myanmar.
On March 12, the Central Bank of Myanmar notified all international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to report all financial transactions involving international organizations or foreign individuals since April 1, 2016, and to provide relevant bank account information. The order indicates that the military regime intends to investigate the financial transactions of organizations since the National League for Democracy (NLD) took office in early 2016.
The regime said that between 2014 and 2017,George. Soros met with ousted Myanmar State Councillor Aung San Suu Kyi four times, after which the Open Society Foundations office in Myanmar opened. It said Alexander Soros, vice chairman of the Open Society Foundations, met with Aung San Suu Kyi six times between 2017 and 2020.
Military-aligned groups, including the Union Solidarity and Development Party, accuse Soros of manipulating Myanmar’s politics by supporting civil society organizations in the country.In 2017, U Soe Thant, a lawmaker who served as a minister in the presidency under the U Thein Sein government, objected to ministerial appointments by the NLD government on the grounds that the appointed minister had not disclosed his previous work for the George Soros Foundation.
The Open Society Foundation said it provides more than 100 grants a year, mostly to grassroots civil society organizations, including exiles, ethnic media and educational organizations.
After the coup, the military regime launched an investigation into the finances of the Daw Khin Kyi Foundation, a charity founded by Aung San Suu Kyi.
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