Canada has officially announced new sanctions against 13 Myanmar military council officials, including generals, ministers, and deputy ministers, along with three organizations, as declared by the Canadian Foreign Minister on March 8. These sanctions represent an escalation in international pressure against the military council’s continued oppression of Myanmar’s civilians. The sanctions specifically target key figures within the military administration who are directly involved in implementing policies that have led to human rights violations and the suppression of democratic freedoms in Myanmar.
In Papun Township, Karen State, the military council conducted an airstrike on a monastery in Kyauk Kwin village, resulting in the death of the resident monk, Venerable Bhaddanta Visudha, despite there being no active fighting in the area. This incident starkly contradicts the military council’s frequent claims of protecting Buddhism in Myanmar. Local residents reported that the bombing was unprovoked and targeted the religious institution directly. The attack on the monastery highlights the disconnect between the military council’s public statements about protecting Buddhism and their actual actions that harm religious institutions and their inhabitants.
In Nyaung-U Township, Mandalay Region, two military council-appointed administrators, Htun Wai and Pyu Saw Htee Soe Lwin, were reportedly killed in a shooting incident. Both individuals died immediately at the scene. This incident reflects the deteriorating control of the military council’s administrative mechanisms and demonstrates the increasingly unstable security situation across many territories under their authority. The military council continues to face resistance from pro-democracy forces while struggling to maintain territorial control, with such incidents highlighting the growing challenges to their administrative authority in various regions of the country.
