Nearly 290 civil society organizations actively involved in Myanmar affairs have sent an open letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on March 17, demanding an investigation into potential conflicts of interest regarding UN Special Envoy to Myanmar Julie Bishoff’s connections with Chinese businesses. The open letter calls for the immediate suspension of Special Envoy Bishoff’s mandate and requests the UN Secretary-General to directly handle Myanmar affairs. Additionally, the organizations demand that any findings from the investigation into Bishoff be made public.
According to the open letter, Julie Bishoff’s business activities are allegedly linked to mining operations in Myanmar and Chinese state-owned companies. Specifically, the letter points out potential business interests connected to Chinese state-owned Shenghe Resources and China Communications Construction Company, both of which are collaborating with Myanmar’s military regime. These connections could compromise the neutrality, impartiality, and effectiveness of addressing human rights violations in Myanmar. The letter emphasizes that such relationships could further exacerbate the impact on human rights violations occurring within the country.
The open letter also highlights documented evidence showing that the Chinese government has been supporting war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Myanmar’s military regime against its people. This latest demand for investigation follows an earlier call by Justice For Myanmar (JFM) on March 9, requesting the UN to investigate the conflicts of interest between Julie Bishoff and Chinese state-owned companies. The civil society organizations argue that it would be highly unreasonable for the UN to continue entrusting the resolution of Myanmar’s crisis to a Special Envoy with such obvious economic interests that could endanger numerous Myanmar lives. Furthermore, the organizations have also written to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) requesting the immediate revocation of the Special Envoy’s mandate, citing that the current conflict of interest poses a serious threat to the lives, properties, and well-being of Myanmar’s people.
