#BloodMoneyMyanmar: Press Conference in Paris (Dec. 1st)
Ten months after the military coup in Myanmar –
new elements on TotalEnergies’ complicity in the military’s atrocities
The press conference is over. To summarize the most important aspects the below recap was created.
Some videos which were part of the press conference:
Invitation
Press Conference
Wednesday December 1, 2021 at 2 p.m. (Paris Time)
At CICP (green room – 1st floor)
In an open letter to be published on December 1st at the initiative of the Blood Money Campaign (BMC) x Global Myanmar Spring Revolution (GMSR) more than 720 civil society organizations and unions challenge TotalEnergies on its complicity in atrocity crimes, and of the French company’s support of army crimes, and respond to the company’s unacceptable defence of the status quo.
Monthly payments for TotalEnergies’ Yadana gas project are one of the junta’s main sources of foreign income, reaching over US $ 400 million annually. By making and facilitating payments to accounts controlled by a criminal junta that is not recognized as the Government of Myanmar, TotalEnergies is breaking the country’s laws, its contracts and its human rights obligations. Yet it is fuelling a desperate criminal regime, which seeks to hold itself in place through terror but continually failing to control the country.
While December 1, 2021 will mark the 10 months of the attempted military coup, the Burmese people know they are at a pivotal time in their fight against the junta and for democracy. Burmese civil society demands accountability from TotalEnergies and calls on it to suspend all payments made to the junta whose crimes amount to crimes against humanity according to the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar. A report also documents calls from staff of Total and its subcontractors to stop revenues to the junta. The petition initiated by GMSRxBMC has already collected more than 224,000 signatures. The call of civil society is also that of Myanmar’s National Unity Government: it is high time that TotalEnergies follows the call of the Myanmar people.
December 1 also sees the 10th Annual UN Forum on Business and Human Rights, which takes stock of 10 years of the United Nations “Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.” TotalEnergies undertook to comply with UNGP’s principles, instead it is marking the anniversary by funding and facilitating the Myanmar military’s atrocity crimes.
The conference will be moderated by Sophie Brondel of Info Birmanie, a former lawyer on International Human Rights Law, Criminal Law & Minority Rights,
in presence of:
- Ro Nay San Lwin, Activist and co-founder of Free Rohingya Coalition, Human Rights Defender
- Ben Hardman, Lawyer, Myanmar Legal & Political Advisor, EarthRights International
- Thanegi Preuss, Activist, 1988 pro-democracy revolutionist, CRPH / NUG Support Team (Germany)
The following experts and activists will attend by video-conference and will remain available to answer questions:
- Khin Ohmar, Human Rights Activist, founder of Progressive Voice Myanmar
- Debbie Stothard, founder of ALTSEAN Burma, Advocate & Trainer for Women’s Leadership, Business & Human Rights
- Mon Zin, An Advocate for Global Myanmar Spring Revolution, Blood Money Campaign & Women Activists Myanmar (WAM)
- Ko Ye, Blood Money Campaign, Natural Resources, Mineral & Fossil Fuels Activist
- TotalEnergies Worker’s Representative
A press kit will be given to the journalists attending, including testimonials from TotalEnergies employees in Myanmar.
Press contact:
In Person attendance:
Sophie Brondel, Info Birmanie coordinator, +33 (0)7 62 80 61 33
sophie@info-birmanie.org
RSVP Virtual attendance:
Registration for zoom link to join: https://bit.ly/pcgmsrbmc
Blood Money Campaign contact, bloodmoneycampaign21@gmail.com
Global Myanmar Spring Revolution, globalmmspringrevolution2222@gmail.com
Phone: +61 (0) 426 795 509
Facebook event page: https://fb.me/e/2W2XyWfuF