Nearly 290 civil society organizations working on Myanmar issues have sent an open letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on March 17, demanding an investigation into potential conflicts of interest involving UN Special Envoy on Myanmar Julie Bischof’s connections with Chinese businesses. The letter calls for the immediate suspension of Special Envoy Bischof’s mandate and requests the UN Secretary-General to directly handle Myanmar affairs. The organizations also demand that any findings from the investigation into Bischof be made public.
The open letter highlights that Julie Bischof has connections to mining operations and Chinese state-owned companies in Myanmar. Specifically, there are concerns about her potential business interests with Chinese state-owned companies Shenghe Resources and China Communications Construction Company, which are collaborating with Myanmar’s military regime. The letter emphasizes that these connections could compromise her impartiality and neutrality, potentially impacting her ability to address human rights violations in Myanmar effectively.
The letter also notes that there is documented evidence showing Chinese government support for the Myanmar military regime’s war crimes and crimes against humanity against its own people. Following Justice for Myanmar’s (JFM) initial call on March 9 for a UN investigation into Julie Bischof’s potential conflicts of interest with Chinese state-owned companies, civil society organizations have now reinforced this demand through this open letter. The 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 apparent business interests that could potentially endanger many Myanmar lives.
