US, EU Impose Sanctions on Myanmar’s Junta Leaders

KOMPAS.com - The United States and the European Union imposed sanctions on Myanmar’s military leaders who are linked to last month’s military coup, as anti-coup protesters staged protests again, despite the regime’s violent and increasingly deadly pushback.

The European Union issued a freeze on assets and a visa ban for the military’s commander-in-chief, Min Aung Hlaing, as well as nine other senior military officers and the head of the country’s election commission.

An EU statement said the sanctions are part of the bloc’s “robust response to the illegitimate overthrowing of the democratically elected government and the brutal repression by the junta against peaceful protesters.”

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Meanwhile, the US Treasury Department sanctioned Myanmar's police chief and an army special operations commander Monday, saying they were responsible for using lethal force against demonstrators. The United States has already placed sanctions on Myanmar's top coup leaders.

There were no reports of an immediate response from the junta to the growing list of punitive actions taken by the international community.

“The Burmese security forces’ lethal violence against peaceful protesters must end," said Andrea Gacki, director of the US Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.

The sanctions came as hundreds of Myanmar demonstrators marched before dawn Monday along the main road in Mandalay, many of them doctors, nurses, students, and other medical personnel wearing white coats, repeating a similar demonstration carried out the day before.
Scores of motorists in the commercial capital of Yangon honked their horns in response to a call on social media, according to Reuters.

Also read: Indonesia Redoubles Efforts to Resolve the Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar has been in turmoil ever since the military jailed de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other members of the civilian government on February 1. At least three people were killed Sunday in violent clashes between police and civilians, including two in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city and a major hub of opposition.