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WASHINGTON: An Israeli-Canadian lobbyist hired by Myanmar’s junta will receive $ 2 million to “help explain the real situation” of the army’s coup to the United States and other countries, documents submitted to the US Justice Department show.
More than 60 protesters have been killed and 1,900 people have been arrested since February 1, when Myanmar generals seized power and detained civilian leaders, including State Councilor Aung San Suu Kyi.
Ari Ben-Menashe and his firm, Dickens & Madson Canada, will represent the Myanmar military government in Washington, in addition to lobbying Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Israel and Russia, and international organizations such as the United Nations, according to a consultancy. agreement.
The Montreal-based firm “will help design and implement policies for the beneficial development of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, and will also help explain the real situation in the country,” the agreement reads.
Anti-coup protesters stand behind a line of women’s clothing hung across a road to deter security personnel from entering the protest area in Yangon, Myanmar, on March 9, 2021. (AP Photo)
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The settlement was submitted to the Justice Department on Monday as part of compliance with the US Foreign Agent Registration Act and posted online.
A spokesman for the Myanmar military government did not respond to Reuters phone calls seeking comment.
In a tone that has been met with widespread skepticism, Ben-Menashe told Reuters that he had been tasked with convincing the United States that Myanmar generals wanted to get closer to the West and move away from China.
He said the generals wanted to resettle Rohingya Muslims who fled a military assault in 2017 in which the United Nations has accused those same generals of overseeing a genocide.
“It is highly unlikely that he could convince the United States of the narrative he proposes,” said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.
Protesters hold up banners and display a three-finger resistance sign on a main road during a demonstration in Mandalay, Myanmar, on Monday, March 8, 2021. Large protests have taken place daily in many cities and towns in Myanmar. (AP Photo)
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Other documents submitted by Ben-Menashe showed that an agreement was reached with the board’s defense minister, General Mya Tun Oo, and that the government would pay the company $ 2 million.
Mya Tun Oo and other top generals have been sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury and the Canadian government, so the paperwork says the payment will be made “when legally permitted.”
Lawyers told Reuters that Ben-Menashe may be in breach of sanctions.
“To the extent that you are serving sanctioned parts of the United States without authorization, that would appear to be a violation of American law,” said Peter Kucik, former senior sanctions adviser to the US Treasury.
The US Department of the Treasury declined to comment.
Protesters hold portraits of deposed Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi during an anti-coup rally in Mandalay on March 5, 2021. (AP Photo)
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Ben-Menashe told Reuters that he had received legal advice that he would need licenses from the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the Canadian government to accept the payment, but that he would not violate the law by lobbying for the board.
“There are technicalities here, but we will let the lawyers and OFAC deal with it,” he said, adding that his lawyers were in contact with Treasury officials.
NO AGREEMENT FROM THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the UN Security Council did not agree on a statement that would have condemned the coup in Myanmar, called for restraint by the military and threatened to consider “further measures”, although diplomats said the conversations would likely continue.
During an initial offer to finalize the text, China, Russia, India and Vietnam suggested amendments to a British draft late on Tuesday, diplomats said, including removing the reference to a coup and threatening to consider further action.
Such statements from the 15-member body are agreed upon by consensus.
Police and protesters clash in a protest in Myanmar’s commercial capital, Yangon. (Photo: AFP / STR)
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The Security Council issued a press release last month expressing concern about the state of emergency imposed by the Myanmar military and calling for the release of all those detained, but fell short of condemning the coup due to opposition from Russia and China. .
“Each member state has a role to play individually and collectively. Collectively, we are always looking for a strong voice and firm action from the Security Council,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters on Tuesday.
The draft Security Council statement, seen by Reuters on Tuesday, called for “the military to exercise maximum restraint, emphasizes that it is closely monitoring the situation and declares its willingness to consider possible additional measures.”
Sister Ann Rose Nu Tawng said she begged the authorities “not to shoot or torture the children.” (Photo: AFP / Brochure)
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An independent UN human rights researcher in Myanmar and New York-based Human Rights Watch have called on the Security Council to impose a global arms embargo and targeted economic sanctions on the junta.
But in an effort to preserve the unity of the council in Myanmar, diplomats said it was unlikely that sanctions would be considered anytime soon, as China and Russia would likely oppose such measures, who, along with the United States, France and Great Britain, they are veto powers of the council. .
The draft statement, which the council began discussing after a closed-door briefing on Friday on the situation, strongly condemned “the use of violence against peaceful protesters.”
It has also expressed “deep concern over violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms, including restrictions imposed on medical personnel, civil society, journalists and media workers, and calls for the immediate release of all those detained. “.
