Thank you so much indeed for having me today! I wish to begin with a resounding message to you all—that the people of Burma are prevailing in this revolution. We can win, we are winning, and we must win. Once again, to remind you: my country is still suffering from an attempted coup, unlawful and unwanted, perpetrated on the people of Burma by a brutal military junta.

This coup has claimed at least 4253 lives, including women and children, leading to the unjust imprisonment of at least 25537, including our elected leaders. More than 2.5 million people have lost their homes, including places of worship, hospitals, and schools. Over 18 million are forced into hunger, and more than 45 million are forced below the poverty line, with several million children losing the right to education. Particular attention must be drawn to the violence against women and girls that the brutal military junta is using as a weapon to terrorize the people of Burma.

The genocidal military generals in Burma have been using rape, torture, and forced displacements as weapons, implementing an evil four-cut policy targeting the most vulnerable—the children and women. They use vaccinations as weapons by cutting vaccinations going to millions of children in Burma and also cutting lifesaving aid going to millions of women. Before the attempted coup in 2021, millions of women in Burma had access to cash transfers in aid for nutritional supplements for pregnant and lactating women, and children received basic vaccines, nutritional supplements, and free textbooks. All of these have been cut off by the brutal junta’s acts of crimes against women and children.

Despite no international support and almost no international attention, the people of my country have said no to the brutal coup. This no is repeated every day in acts of extraordinary bravery: a. General strikes by the people of Burma remain strong. b. CDM by the people of Burma remains unshakable, and people boycott several product links to military junta business. c. Refusal to pay taxes is increasing despite great threats from the brutal junta. d. Ordinary people of Burma turned freedom fighters are resisting the brutal junta every day by putting their lives on the frontline of freedom and the future federal democratic Burma.

In this democratic parliamentarians’ hearing in the UK, I tell you a truth I have learned—that the people of Burma will win. The genocidal military may have taken our elected representatives; they may hunt us down. But we will be free. I was lucky. I escaped Naypyitaw in 2021; otherwise, I might not be in this hearing today. It was a journey of life or death. But many of my friends were left behind, among them was my childhood friend Mr. Mechha, a father of seven young children, killed last month in Lailenpi Town of Chin State by jet fighters’ bombing campaign. Mr. Mechha was simply taking care of the elderly people who could not run for their lives when massive bombs were indiscriminately dropped on the town. The two elderly also died from the trauma of terror. These unbearable crimes against humanity can no longer be  ignored by the international community.

We have gathered evidence confirming at least 160 cases of massacres:

Among them were:

1. Hpruso Massacre: On Christmas Eve, 24 December 2021, thirty-four people, including women, children, and humanitarian workers from Save the Children, were burned alive along with their vehicles by the brutal military junta forces near Moso Village Hpruso Township, Kerenni State.

2. Matupi Massacre: On New Year’s Eve of 2021, brutal junta foot soldiers started their brutal acts of terrorism against the civilians, on 6 January 2022, eleven people, including children and journalists, were brutally massacred in the jungle by the brutal military junta forces in Matupi District, Chin State.

3. Let Yet Kon Massacre: On 16 September 2022, two attack helicopters from air and supported by heavy artillery attacks were carried out by the brutal military junta targeting, Let Yet Kon Village School, killing seven children as young as six years old and critically injuring several teachers, mostly women. The bodies were not returned to families but cremated by brutal junta forces in order to hide their crimes against humanity.

4. A Nang Pa Massacre: On 23 October 2023, three jet fighters of the brutal junta carried out aerial bombardment targeting local music concerts in A Nang Pa village in Phakant Township in Kachin State, killing over 80 people, including children, women, musicians, and artists. The critically injured were denied medical treatments.

5. Pa Zi Kyi Massacre: On 11 April 2023, the two jet fighters of the brutal junta, followed by attack helicopters and ground heavy battlefield weapons, attacked a public gathering in Pa Zi Kyi Village, Kantabalu Township of Sagaing region, killing at least 157 civilians, including dozens of children and women, and many more were critically injured.

6. Khuafo Massacre: On 30 March 2023, the brutal military junta carried out air strikes in Khuafo village of Thantlang Township, Chin State, killing eight villagers, including four children and women, critically injuring eleven villagers, and destroying village church and houses.

7. Munglai Hkyet IDP Camp Massacre: On 9 October 2023, the brutal military junta carried out air strikes followed by a heavy artillery attack in Munglai Hkyet Village targeting the IDP Camp and killing 30 Internally Displaced People, fifteen were children as young as 2 months old, and fourteen were women.

8. Waibula Massacre: On 10 April 2023, the brutal military junta carried out air strikes in Waibula Town in Falam Township of Chin State, targeting a school and killing eight civilians, including students, women teachers, and pastor. 

9. Wuilu Massacre: On 15 November 2023, the brutal military junta carried out air strikes in Wuilu village, Matupi District of Chin State, killing eleven villagers, out of which eight victims were children and including their mother, and critically injured another four villagers.

10. Kyar Paing Massacre: On 2 December 2023, a few weeks ago, the brutal military junta carried out another horrific massacre, torturing and burning alive nine villagers of Kyar Paing village, Moyan Township in Sagain Region.

Despite these grave human rights violations, international crimes , crimes against humanity and war crimes perpetrated against them by the genocidal military junta, the people of Burma remain strong and their committed to federal democracy is unshakable. They are winning and indeed we are winning big for freedom:

a. Through this nationwide struggle for freedom from the terror of inhumanity, brutality and cruelty of the genocidal military generals in Burma, we have gained new territory—nearly 60% of the country’s territory is now under the control of the people of Burma, and we are receiving thousands of defectors—more than 16,000 foot soldiers of junta have refused to fight their brutal masters in Naypyitaw and defected to the people’s embrace programs.

b. Through economic measures: in this regard, I applaud His Majesty’s Government for the way they have used sanctions to go after the sources of wealth that keep the junta’s war machine alive. The military is running out of money like never before.

c. Through international isolation: again, I welcome the UK government’s efforts to stop the junta from achieving recognition at the UN and elsewhere.

d. Through alliance-building across our ethnicities: with much preparation and coordination, at least 21 towns in Burma—have been liberated from the hands of brutal junta forces, and more than 300 military bases belonging to the brutal military junta have been captured along with massive battlefield weapons.

e. Through the work of our National Unity Government, which has become the most inclusive Government in the history of Burma, National Unity Consultative Council (NUCC), Committee Representing Pyitaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), and Ethnic Revolutionary Organizations (EROs), we have achieved historic National Unity, derived from our diversities, and reached Burma’s future federal democratic political roadmaps ratified in the Federal Democracy Charter (FDC) of Burma.

You know our history. You know the terrible violence that was perpetrated against the Rohingya in 2012 and 2017. You may know that similar violence, less terrible but lasting many decades, has been imposed upon many other ethnicities in Myanmar, including my own. But this brutal coup has brought us together. We are committed now as we have never been before, across ethnic and religious divides, to a common program:

a. We will defeat this junta, and we will not allow the military to do this again.

b. We will create together a federal Democratic and inclusive future for our country in which all people can live together in peace and prosperity, and achieved their great potentials regardless.

c. We will welcome the free and voluntary return of the Rohingya, we have made position clear. 

d. We will create a new army subject to civilian control which has been already ratified in FDC.

I tell you again, we are winning. The people of Burma are winning. The brutal military is weaker now than it has ever been.This is the tipping point. Now is the time to embrace democratic will of the people of Burma and support for building federal democratic New Burma. And so I ask you, friends of freedom and friends of my country, all friends of Burma to join us in this victory.

What can the UK do? I will tell you, many things:

a. Continue to apply financial and economic pressure: the military junta is governed by a passion for foreign currency, and the UK can and must help us in this element of our struggle. You have done much, but there is more. I call especially today for more effort to sanction jet fuel and to cut the junta off from the oil and gas supplies that it relies on for its income. The US and EU have already sanctioned MOGE. The UK must follow suit.

b. You must continue to apply diplomatic pressure, through UNSC, where you are the penholder nation for my country, and elsewhere. We look to the UK, with its strong history with us, to be our champion in places where our voice is not heard.

c. You must give our National Unity Government every opportunity to succeed: you do not recognize us as the legitimate government, and in this regard, you stand against the people, not with them. I ask that this issue be treated with real seriousness, and that you grant us the privilege of speaking to you as equal representatives of the people.

d. You must help us meet the humanitarian emergency. We know how to help our people and are grateful for the support of the British people for us. We will need more.

e. Please help especially the women and the girls who suffer so much at military hands. I know this is a priority in your new White Paper on Foreign policy. Do not allow the women of my country to remain victims. Help them to become strong again. We have established the first-ever Ministry of Women, Youth, and Children in my country. We need your help in this regard. And we will need the UK, with whom we share so much history, to help us in the reconstruction of our country. This is a tipping point. The people of Burma will struggle and they will die for freedom.

We will not surrender nor give up. Please be with us, the UK and Burma together. We can make history.

Sincerely,
Dr. Sasa
Union Minister
Ministry of International Cooperation
National Unity Government of Myanmar