Julie Bishop, the U.N. special envoy for Myanmar, made a report that officially declared that Myanmar is facing severe conflict, widespread organized crime, and a humanitarian crisis following the 2021 military coup. The escalating violence has forcibly displaced millions, and efforts to establish peace remain stalled. Bishop advocates for ASEAN’s and neighboring countries’ support to restore democracy and human rights in Myanmar.

Bishop’s report highlights the worsening crisis in Myanmar, which is undoubtedly rooted in the military’s most recent ploy to maintain complete control over the country. After toppling Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, which worked with them for years, a violent civil war broke out with pro-democracy militias popping up around the country. This conflict has caused dire humanitarian crises to arise when civilians are caught in the crossfire. This, coupled with the increasingly prevalent organized crime pointed out in Lederer’s article and Bishop’s report, clearly demonstrates Myanmar’s extreme instability. 

The humanitarian impact has been enormous and devastating with millions displaced, and significant populations, including women and ethnic minorities, facing heightened vulnerability due to the widespread conflict. This, combined with the military’s stated intention to hold “elections” amidst the violence, is a huge threat to any progress toward legitimate governance. This reflects a classic “zero-sum mentality,” where the military perceives power as mutually exclusive or one’s gain as another’s loss, which leads to zero tolerance for opposition. By refusing to engage in dialogue and denying humanitarian access, Myanmar’s military has a vice grip on the country at the cost of civilian lives and social stability.

This portrayal in the media is important, but with articles like these, large parts of the ongoing conflict and history can unintentionally be glossed over. For example, this article provided a quote from Bishop stating, “Any pathway to reconciliation requires an end to violence, accountability and unfettered access for the U.N. and its partners to address vulnerabilities among the marginalized, including Rohingya, ethnic communities and particularly women and youth.” In this statement, Bishop calls to light what she believes is crucial to reconciliation within Myanmar, but she focuses on large generalizations of groups, calling for vulnerabilities to be addressed within marginalized communities, and then she adds “including Rohingya” as an almost addition to that category. And while, yes, it is absolutely crucial to address the Rohingya crisis, adding them into the larger categorization of current “marginalized groups” within Myanmar almost minimizes the decades of persecution with genocidal intent that the Rohingya have endured. 

With a devastating civil war, I understand why much of the news focuses on the more current issues of the country, but it is important to take a step back and recognize that some groups within the country had been suffering long before 2021. It is becoming increasingly evident that the resolution to conflict within Myanmar will have to include some form of global accountability, but is the world ready and willing to step in? I hope so.