AFP reports that the Cluster Munition Coalition (CMC), which is active in the prevention of cluster bombs and weapons, has requested that the Burmese military is using cluster bombs, which are banned by the international community.
The CMC said the Burmese military has used cluster explosive weapons several times since the February 2021 coup, and last used them last June.
He also said that the CMC group has received information about the use of this cluster bomb by the Burmese military, as well as photo evidence.
The group also said that the Myanmar military's use of cluster bombs was a violation of international law.
It is very worrying that the Burmese military is producing cluster bombs and using them to cause death and injury to civilians. For whatever reason, these bombs should not be used. CMC researcher Dr. Reshhua Mosa Pansuwan said that all countries of the world should condemn the use of such an internationally banned weapon.
When cluster bombs are dropped from airplanes or rockets, When the launchers were fired, they split into hundreds of small bombs in the air. It will cover a wide area on the ground and explode. After falling to the ground, unexploded bombs remain for years to come.
These bombs, like landmines, are capable of detonating later and fatally injuring people, so their use is banned internationally, according to the news.
Myanmar : More than 5,000 civilians have fled due to air strikes in Kyaukgyi
The Karen National Union (KNU) announced this morning on September 1 that more than five thousand residents of eight villages are fleeing due to airstrikes by the Military Council near the village of Yeocha Pey in Kyaukgyi Township, Nyaunglaypin District, Bago Province.
Due to the air attack, Po Sos, including the village of Yeucha Pey, Blind Karen Eyes wide, consult island It is said that 5662 local residents of eight villages such as Ushiskhin and Nlangotaiywa have been forced to flee to safety.
The KNU also said that after a battle between the Military Council Army and the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) forces near the village of Yeocha Pey, the Military Council Army attacked civilian targets with aerial bombardment.
The KNU's statement also stated that the village of Yeocha Pey is included in the administrative area of Moan Township.
Nyaung Leap District, He said that a local was injured when the Military Council troops opened fire on villages in Shwe Jing Township for two days in a row starting on August 30.
Economic Affairs Minister U Tin Oo, who is authorized to speak in Baguio Province of the military council, said that there are actions for the security of the area in Shwe Jing and Moan Townships, and there are heavy weapons firing, He told RFA that he had not yet heard the status of the airstrike.
During the more than two and a half years of the military takeover, there have been 1,143 clashes in the area of the Karen National Union (KNU) Brigade (3) in Nyaung Lai Pin District, and more than 170,000 civilians have fled their homes, according to the KNU's statements.
Shanghai : Why is China targeting the Central Asian media sector?
In recent years, especially under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, exchanges and cooperation between China and Central Asia in the fields of radio, television and online audio-visual media have been continuously expanded and deepened. In 2022, the China National Radio and Television Bureau held a "Seminar on Cooperation in Radio, Television and Audio-Visual Media between China and Central Asian Countries" and the China Radio and Television Bureau signed a cooperation agreement with Central Asian countries.
According to the Xinjiang newspaper published by China's Uyghur region, the Tiantiantag network, etc., the "China Xinjiang-Central Asia Media Exchange Conference" was held in Urumqi on August 27. The one-week meeting and visit event from August 24 to August 30 was jointly organized by the Information Office of the People's Government of the Uyghur Autonomous Region and the Information Office of the Chinese Production and Construction Corps.
The heads of 21 major news agencies from 4 countries including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan participated in the meeting with major media outlets such as Xinhua, China Media Service, and major Chinese propaganda media in the Uyghur region to discuss strengthening international communication and cross-cultural communication. One of the purposes of the conference is to exchange information, the media is a major source of public information and to exchange news and events of mutual interest between countries. The second is to promote cultural exchange, to disseminate information about intercultural life and cultural heritage, and to promote cultural exchange.
This year also marks the 10th anniversary of China's introduction of the "One Belt One Road" strategy, an international economic integration project. Within the framework of this cooperation, China will actively carry out the translation and broadcasting of TV and radio programs to share the history of China-Central Asia relations and good neighborliness and friendship, and at the same time, more TV and radio programs of the five Central Asian countries will be broadcast in China. began to promote.
According to China's propaganda, Chinese authorities told the heads of intelligence agencies in Central Asia that the prospect of this cooperation, which was carried out on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the joint establishment of the "One Belt One Road" initiative, was broad.
Deepen practical cooperation with the media of China and Central Asian countries: "We will jointly tell the story of the Silk Road, contribute media wisdom and power, and build closer relations with the China-Central Asia community."
Dr. Sean Roberts, a professor of international relations at George Washington University, one of the experts who has been observing the Uyghur situation as well as China's influence in Asian countries, said that the opening of such a conference on media cooperation in countries along the Belt and Road in Urumqi, on August 26, Xi Jinping, BRICS countries It is not a coincidence that the leaders of the BRICS came to Urumqi on their way back from the 15th meeting and gave instructions to strengthen the "Xinjiang policy", and that this actually reveals China's intentions to strengthen its influence by forming an alliance against the accusations of the West.
"Right now, we see that China is deliberately trying to attract other countries through its interests. China has recently held a meeting of leaders of Central Asian countries, and is encouraging other countries to promote development under the Shanghai Cooperation Agreement. All of his recent political strategic activities seem to be in line with efforts to advance relations with BRIC countries. But the influence of the Russian-language media is still strong in South Asia. However, in recent years, as China's economic influence has grown, it has also strengthened its influence in other aspects. In particular, China is well aware of the connection between the Uighurs and other ethnic groups affected by the genocide and the peoples of Central Asian countries, and they know more or less what they are doing in the Uyghur region. "China is moving to improve its image and strengthen its influence to prevent opposition."
Mr. Sean Roberts also expressed his views on why China is looking to strengthen cooperation with the Asian media sector: "The interesting thing about the situation in Central Asia is that the Central Asian people and government are also wary of Russia because they are suspicious of China. At a time when Central Asian countries are so neutral, China is trying to prevent the US and the West from strengthening their influence in Central Asia by expanding its influence. If relations between the US and China deteriorate, these countries will be in an even more difficult situation. Therefore, the United States and Western countries should not neglect to strengthen their influence in Central Asia.
China has been judged by the governments and parliaments of Western democratic countries such as the United States to have committed "genocide and crimes against humanity against the Uyghurs" and is facing a series of trade restrictions, while Southeast Asia, West Asia and Central Asia, which are economically dependent on China, By strengthening economic and development cooperation with countries, it is becoming known from all sides that it is organizing cooperation against international pressure. Can China now have the opportunity to share its long-term cooperative experience with Central Asian media through propaganda power?
China Sumurg Network reported on August 30, quoting Central Asian media representatives who participated in the meeting. Kang Tokabayev, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of the Kazakhstan International News Agency, said: "We are from more than 50 countries around the world, including Xinhua News Agency and China News Service. We have established a cooperative relationship with media companies. Kazakhstan-China media cooperation can greatly promote the better and deeper development of friendly relations between the two countries and strengthen mutual understanding.
Karim Khanjeza, a member of the Kyrgyz Parliament and director-general of Huimin Daily, said: "Kyrgyzstan readers understood the natural scenery of Xinjiang and the lives of ordinary people, Chinese people, through media cooperation between the two countries. "The exchange of information has increased mutual trust."
Amurkhon Tachov, the first deputy general director of the Tajikistan National Television Station, said that he wants to carry out productive cooperation with his Chinese counterparts, implement joint projects, and actively carry out the translation and broadcasting of TV and radio programs.
Ruslan Kenzayev, editor-in-chief of Uzbekistan's People's Speech, said: "Over the past few years, the domestic media has begun to pay more attention to China. "Establishing a closer cooperative relationship between Xinjiang and the media of Central Asian countries will help to deepen the awareness of Xinjiang in Central Asian countries."
However, some of the experienced journalists in the Asian media interviewed by our radio said that the above-mentioned positive speeches of the media from Central Asia, who participated in the China-Central Asia media exchange forum, are not true.
Mr. Akbar Baudunuf, a senior media officer in Kyrgyzstan and editor-in-chief of "Ittifaq" newspaper, said that the statements of people who are aligned with Chinese propaganda as representatives of the Central Asian media sector do not actually represent the aspirations of the Central Asian media sector and the people, and that the Kyrgyz state-run media are only financially indebted to China. Correspondingly, in self-proclaimed democratic Kyrgyzstan, people still trust and value free Western media.
In July of this year, the China-Kazakhstan joint press office was opened, and the history of friendship between Kazakhstan and the Chinese people and the new cooperation in the "One Belt One Road Initiative" began to be promoted.
Kazakh journalist and activist Erbol Davlatbek, who founded the "Motherland Volunteers" organization in Kazakhstan and collects and disseminates information about the victims of the Chinese genocide, said: "The genocidal policy of the Chinese communist regime against the Uighurs and other ethnic groups has spread in Asia. "It is further strengthening the prevention of opposition to China, and is trying to cover up its crimes with information warfare and fake news."
Dr. Henryk Szadziewski, an American expert on the Uyghur issue, said that China's invitation to Central Asian media to Urumqi is part of China's global campaign of self-defense by inviting representatives from pro-Chinese countries and Islamic countries to the Uyghur region. said
"Why is China targeting the Central Asian countries? Of course, the Central Asian countries are adjacent to the Uyghur region, and the ethnic groups living in these areas have a common culture and history. It is very important for China to control the spread of information about its crimes in the Uyghur region and to control the ideas against it. So China is investing in media in these places, cooperating in training journalists, providing press facilities, and while it appears to be benefiting the media sector in Central Asia, it is actually trying to expand its influence for its own benefit.
Mr. Henry added: "Certainly, the Chinese media in the Central Asian media, in their propaganda related to the Uyghur region, are disseminating a completely opposite message to the American and international media. In particular, I think that by expanding its influence in the region, China also aims to gain strength against its competitors such as the United States.