In the wake of the February 2021 coup in Myanmar, foreign companies in the country have faced a number of challenges in deciding whether to continue to do business in the country or to leave.
Rights groups have stepped up campaigns to “name and shame” companies that they claim are helping aid or abet the Myanmar junta.
This week, Burma Campaign UK has added 28 more companies to the ‘Dirty List’ of companies which they claim are linked to the Myanmar military, human rights violations, or environmental destruction in Myanmar. The additions mean there are now 116 companies on the NGO’s list.
“Even genocide and a military coup has not been enough to persuade these companies to cut their links to the Burmese military,” said Mark Farmaner, Director of Burma Campaign UK.
New companies added include Japanese companies such an KDDI Corporation, Daiwa House, and the Japan Bank for Overseas Co-operation for their involvement in projects on military-owned land.
Two more American tech companies have been added, Sectigo/Sitelock, and OnlineNIC, for hosting or providing services to Burmese military websites. They join Alphabet/Google and Apple, which host apps for military companies.
Telegram, the messaging service, has also been added for hosting military channels and allowing hate speech and doxing.
Companies added come from 12 countries, 8 from Japan, 8 from Vietnam, 3 from USA, and one each from Russia, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, China, Canada, UAE, Turkey and Thailand.
The NGO says that all companies were written to in advance of being placed on the list, to give them the opportunity to correct any incorrect or out of date information and to end their involvement and avoid being placed on the list.
The new edition of the ‘Dirty List’ was first published in 2018 and has been regularly updated since then. Many companies have cut their links to the Burmese military or projects linked to human rights violations to avoid being placed on the list or after being placed on it. Companies removed from the list include EDF, Maersk, Evergreen, Western Union and Infosys.
“The Burmese military has committed genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity, doing any form of business with them is completely unacceptable,” said Mark Farmaner. “The Dirty List exposes the role companies all over the world are playing in helping to finance the military and supply it with arms.”
The 28 companies added are:
Azia Shipping Company
Binh Minh International Sunrise Shipping JSC
BKH Shipping
Chowgule Group
CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd
COSCO
Daiwa House Group/Fujita Corporation
Duong Giang Co Ltd
Eastern Dragon Shipping Company
Harvest Bobo Investments
Honeywell
Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC)
Japanese Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corporation (JOIN)
KDDI Corporation
Mono Next
Nissen Kaiun
OnlineNIC
Pegasus Shipping & Investment Co Ltd
PHC Shipping Co
Sargem Denizcilik Gem Acenteligi Ticaret
Sectigo/Sitelock
Sumitomo Corporation
Tasaki
Telegram
Tokyo Tatamono Co
Tucows
Viet Thaun
Vietfracht
