22 December 2022: The United Nations (UN) Security Council has finally spoken on Myanmar but action is needed, not merely words. The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M) welcomes the long-overdue adoption of a Resolution on Myanmar but expresses deep disappointment at the failure of the resolution to mandate urgently needed action against the Myanmar military to protect the Myanmar people.

The UN Security Council in New York voted yesterday to adopt a resolution on Myanmar, Resolution 2669 (2022). It has finally responded to the overwhelming international rejection of the Myanmar military junta and support for the democratic will of the Myanmar people. But the resolution fails to attribute responsibility to the junta for its persistent commission of human rights atrocities and includes no reference to further measures to be taken by the Security Council should the junta continue its attack on the population of Myanmar.

“We welcome the fact that, at long last, the Security Council has taken action and finally adopted a resolution on Myanmar,” said Chris Sidoti of SAC-M. “But the resolution itself remains far too weak and should have included unequivocal condemnation of the military for its assault on the Myanmar people along with measures to end human rights atrocities and secure justice and peace, through an arms embargo, sanctions and referral to the International Criminal Court.”

The Resolution requests that the UN Secretary-General report orally to the Security Council by 15 March 2023 on UN support on implementation of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Five-Point Consensus (5PC). ASEAN called on the UN to support its efforts in implementing the 5PC last month.

“The Myanmar military is destabilising the region with the brutal campaign of terror that it continues to inflict on the people of Myanmar,” said Yanghee Lee. “Despite the efforts of several Security Council members, the resolution fails to properly address the gravity of the crisis and depth of suffering caused by Min Aung Hlaing and his military; crisis and suffering that continue to grow every day.”

Stronger action by the Security Council was obstructed by permanent members Russia and China, both of which continue to sell arms to the military junta that it uses to commit grave violations of international law. 

“Fear of the veto, which is fundamentally at odds with the whole purpose and principles of the UN when it comes to gross atrocities, rendered the result of this timid action by the Security Council hollow,” said Marzuki Darusman of SAC-M. “The adoption of such a text is therefore no more than ineffective rhetoric. Those who brought about this outcome, that falls far short of expectations, are complicit in the suffering and death of Myanmar people.”

Download the English version of the statement: SAC-M PR UNSC Resolution ENGLISH