EU sanctions 10 Myanmar junta officials, 2 businesses

BRUSSELS/YANGON • The European Union yesterday imposed sanctions on 10 Myanmar junta officials and two conglomerates linked to the military over the Feb 1 coup and its ensuing bloody crackdown on protesters, European officials said.

"The military regime is continuing its course of violence and manoeuvring the country into a dead end. That is why we are increasing the pressure to bring the military to the negotiating table," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said, after virtual talks with his EU counterparts.

"In addition to the listing of individuals, two economic conglomerates that are attributed to the military are also affected."

European diplomats said the two companies hit with asset freezes and visa bans were the Myanmar Economic Corp (MEC) and Myanmar Economic Holdings (MEH) that dominate sectors including trading, alcohol, cigarettes and consumer goods.

The officials targeted are mostly members of the ruling State Administration Council seen as responsible for undermining democracy in the South-east Asian nation, diplomats said.

The measures - which will go into force when they are published in the EU's official journal - come after the bloc hit junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and 10 other senior officials with sanctions last month over the military's seizure of power from elected civilian leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi two months ago and its bloody suppression of the protests that followed.

Western powers are seeking to increase pressure on Myanmar's new leadership by targeting its key moneymakers.

The United States and Britain have already imposed sanctions on MEC and MEH, and Washington has hit Myanmar's state gem company as well.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the coup, triggering a massive uprising that the junta has sought to quell using lethal force.

The military has ramped up its attempts to crush dissent following mass demonstrations, with at least 737 civilians killed by the security forces since Feb 1 and the press increasingly under attack.

Some 3,229 people remain under detention, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners activist group.

The Myanmar authorities detained a Japanese journalist in Yangon on Sunday evening, Japan's government said yesterday, adding that Japanese officials were trying to seek his release.

BBC Burmese quoted a witness as saying freelance journalist Yuki Kitazumi was picked up from his home and taken into custody by troops on Sunday night. He was asked to raise both hands and was taken away in a car, it reported.

A Japanese government spokesman described the journalist as a man in his forties, without naming him.

"We are seeking, from Myanmar, his quick release and we are trying to secure the safety of Japanese nationals," Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told a news conference, adding that the government was seeking details on the circumstances surrounding the journalist's detention.

The junta did not respond to calls asking for comment.

Mr Kitazumi runs a media production company, Yangon Media Professionals, and used to be a journalist with the Nikkei business daily, according to his Facebook page and interviews with online media.

He was arrested previously in February while covering the Myanmar protests against the Feb 1 coup, but was released soon afterwards.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS