Burma’s military police used force to disperse demonstrators.
The U.S. government announced sanctions against Myanmar’s state-run gem company on August 8 to cut off an important source of funding for the junta as it brutally suppresses pro-democracy demonstrations.
The U.S. Treasury Department says it will freeze all assets of the Myanmar Gems Enterprise and prohibit any transactions with the company.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the United States is determined to work with allies to restore democracy in Burma and to promote accountability to the military government.
He said the U.S. will use targeted sanctions against the entity to send a clear signal to the Burmese military that the U.S. will continue to increase pressure on the regime’s revenue sources until it stops the violence.
Blinken also said the U.S. will continue to pressure the Burmese military until it releases all illegal detainees and lifts martial law, curfews and internet communications restrictions across the country to allow Burma to return to the path of democracy.
The violent crackdown by the Burmese military government has so far resulted in the deaths of some 570 people, including 47 children, and nearly 3,500 people have been arrested, 2,750 of whom have not yet been released.
The situation in Myanmar continues to deteriorate, with at least 11 more protesters killed in a northwestern township on August 8 when anti-junta demonstrators clashed with security forces using homemade firearms, knives and firebombs, according to Radio Television Hong Kong’s website.
In an effort to stop the brutal crackdown by the military government, the U.S. in February imposed sanctions on those responsible for overthrowing Myanmar’s democratically elected government, including the defense minister and three companies in the jade and gemstone sectors. The blacklisted companies, Burma Economic Corporation and Burma Economic Holdings Public Company, are the most prominent conglomerates of the Burmese military, and through their holdings and subsidiaries, the two companies control a wide range of areas in Burma, including beer, cigarettes, telecommunications, tires and real estate.
In addition, on March 4, the U.S. introduced a new round of sanctions to blacklist Burma’s defense and interior-related departments and major military companies, requiring U.S. suppliers to apply for difficult-to-obtain export licenses when exporting specific goods to Burma.
A U.N. spokesman stressed that Burma’s Special Envoy Burgher stood ready to travel to Burma and resume dialogue with the military regime to return Burma to the path of democracy. With the support of the UN Security Council, he said, envoy Bergner hopes to meet with the elected leaders of the jailed government, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. But the Burmese military has so far rejected the demands made by the U.N. envoy to Burma.
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