Well-armed: The UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights released the report detailing how Myanmar had imported RM4.5bil in arms and raw materials to manufacture weapons. — AP
THE government of Singapore will not hesitate to take action against any individual or entity that contravenes its laws, said a Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) spokesman in response to a United Nations report which found that US$254mil (RM1bil) worth of supplies were shipped to the Myanmar military through Singapore-based entities.
The report, by UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews, said there were no indications the Singapore government had approved or was involved in the shipments, which included arms and took place between February 2021 and December 2022.
UN’s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on Wednesday released the report detailing how the Myanmar military had imported at least US$1bil (RM4.5bil) in arms and raw materials to manufacture weapons since the coup in February 2021.
Countries involved in the shipments included Russia, China, India and Thailand, the report said. For Singapore, Andrews found that the shipments were made via 138 unique suppliers.
The report said he provided his detailed findings on shipments involving Singapore-based entities to the Singapore government in early March, including the names of at least 45 entities, their Singapore Unique Entity Number, the items shipped to the military, and the approximate value of the items. Information on the arms- dealing networks associated with the entities was also provided, the report said.
Responding to media queries yesterday, the MFA spokesman said Singapore appreciates the Special Rapporteur’s efforts to provide information to aid investigations into whether any offences were committed under Singapore law.
MFA added that Singapore does not authorise the transfer of “dual-use items which have been assessed to have potential military application to Myanmar where there is a serious risk that they may be used to inflict violence against unarmed civilians”.
Singapore has taken a principled position against the Myanmar military’s use of lethal force against unarmed civilians and has worked to prevent the flow of arms into the country as called for in the UN General Assembly resolution on the situation in Myanmar, said the spokesman.
“In the meantime, the Singapore government remains committed to providing humanitarian assistance to support the people of Myanmar. We will continue to work with Asean member states and the UN to facilitate peace and national reconciliation in Myanmar,” she said.
According to the UN report, a list of the shipments from Singapore-based entities included arms, dual-use military supplies like radio and communication equipment, manufacturing equipment and raw materials.
Under arms shipments, the report listed components for fighter jets, spare parts for helicopters, equipment for electronic warfare and radar equipment.
Other key findings in the report were that 28 suppliers from Russia had shipped US$406mil (RM1.8bil) worth of arms to the Myanmar military, and 41 suppliers from China had shipped US$267mil (RM1.2bil) worth of arms.
According to the UN, about 3,000 civilians have been killed by the Myanmar military since the coup, including more than 200 children.
Andrews, who is a former member of the United States Congress from Maine, said despite this, the military continues to have access to “advanced weapons systems, spare parts for fighter jets, raw materials and manufacturing equipment for domestic weapons production”.
The Myanmar military’s factories are believed to have produced two 250kg bombs that were dropped on Pazi Gyi village in April, killing about 170 people.
“Those providing these weapons are able to avoid sanctions by using front companies and creating new ones while counting on lax enforcement,” he said.
Andrews added that entities operating in Singapore have become critical to the continued operation of the Myanmar military’s weapons factories.
He urged the Singapore government to take action, to stop all facilitation and shipment of materials to the Myanmar military from its jurisdiction and cripple production at KaPaSa factories.
The report also noted that Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan had set out the Republic’s policy on arms and dual-use good sales to Myanmar in Parliament in February. — The Straits Times/ANN
