Shielded by Russia and China, Myanmar junta turn more brutal

Bloomberg

When Myanmar carried out the death penalty for the first time in three decades by executing four activists in July, China and Russia stayed silent while the US and its allies condemned the junta. Now the regime is on the verge of doing it again.
Seven university students were sentenced to death last month by a secretive military court for their alleged involvement in the shooting of a retired military officer, and their punishment could come any time.
They’re among more than 130 people put on death row since the junta seized control in a coup last year and deposed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose jail term has now been extended to 33 years.
The military has used increasingly brutal tactics to subdue its enemies — even as it further entrenches Myanmar as a pariah state abroad. A rare United Nations Security Council resolution called for an end to violence and the release of all political prisoners.
But with China, Russia and India abstaining from the UN vote, it’s unlikely to have much effect, while the junta sees regimes including North Korea defying international sanctions and testing the will of world powers.
“With India on your side, with China not your enemy — a bit upset with what’s happened, but clearly not out to get Myanmar, with Russia as a strong backer, the world’s looked like a comfortable enough place,” said Richard Horsey, senior Myanmar adviser with the International Crisis Group.
Western sanctions targeting the coup leaders and related business entities, as well as an investor exodus, have harmed the junta’s finances.
But while it presides over an economy in disarray, it retains control of vast economic interests, including lucrative natural gas exports.
Myanmar’s armed groups, meanwhile, remain divided, with different factions fighting across the country. International support has been elusive, with Western aid heading to Ukraine, and diplomatic efforts ineffective.
Major General Zaw Min Tun, lead spokesman for Myanmar’s ruling State Administration Council, did not respond to requests to comment.
“The junta places little value on international consensus or external pressure,” said Hunter Marston, an adjunct research fellow at La Trobe University in Melbourne who has followed developments in Southeast Asia since 2007. “It’s clearly cratered the economy and sees little reason to change course so long as no country is sending in troops to stop it.”
The looming executions point to a regime unable to see beyond immediate challenges as it struggles to hold territory against supporters of Suu Kyi and ethnic armed groups. While the junta oversees key cities, it’s retained stable control of just 17% of the country’s total land area, according to a group of Myanmar experts.
It’s increasingly turned to air strikes to try and secure ground. In October, the US and European nations accused it of inflicting “extraordinary harm” on civilians after killing more than 60 people in an air attack on a concert organised by ethnic rebels.