Myanmar investigation accuses global businesses of complicity in Rohingya persecution through military partnership

An Amnesty International investigation has claimed major international businesses are working with a Burmese company which channels revenue to Myanmar’s military, accused of human rights abuses and possible genocide against the Rohingya minority.  

Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL) was founded by the military junta which ruled Myanmar in 1990 and is still owned and run by serving army personnel.  

The company’s revenues are funnelled back into the military on top of its regular budget from the government, Amnesty claims, meaning any foreign firms it collaborates with could be unintentionally funding violence and repression carried out by the security forces in Myanmar.  

Among the companies said to work with MEHL is Kirin, a Japanese drinks firm which sells beer, wine and soft drinks across Asia and North America.  

San Miguel, Coca-Cola and Brooklyn Lager are among the brands Kirin distributes in places from the Philippines to the United States.  

Peter Frankental, Amnesty UK’s business and human rights programme director, said:

“Unsuspecting consumers of craft beers from Kirin’s subsidiaries in the UK will be horrified to realise that they may be in any way contributing funds to Myanmar’s military.”

Also said to be linked to MEHL in business partnerships are POSCO, a South Korean steel giant, Wanbao Mining, a Chinese company, Inno Group, a South Korean property developer, and Pan-Pacific, a South Korean clothes firm.  

All have operations within Myanmar where they partner with MEHL, including Kirin which co-runs breweries.   

The Japanese conglomerate told Amnesty in response to its investigation it would review its relationship with MEHL. Others, such as Pan-Pacific, vowed to stop working with MEHL.  

According to confidential shareholder reports from MEHL which have been leaked to Amnesty, MEHL has transferred about £12bn in dividends from its business operations to the military over the past 20 years.  

Amnesty claims some of the army units listed as receiving the income are those identified as perpetrating massacres and crimes against humanity in Rakhine State, mostly against the Rohingya minority.  

Amnesty International’s head of business, security and human rights, Mark Dummett, said the regularity of payments from MEHL to specific army units suggested they were covering ongoing operational costs.  

“These documents provide new evidence of how the Myanmar military benefits from MEHL’s vast business empire and make clear that the military and MEHL are inextricably linked.  

“This is not a case of MEHL unwittingly financing human rights violations – its entire board is composed of high-level military figures.”

This is not the first time Kirin – the highest-profile company linked to MEHL – has had the spotlight turned on its operations in Myanmar.  

A UN fact-finding mission last year urged foreign businesses to sever ties with more than 140 companies controlled by the Burmese military.  

Its report revealed how a complex web of crony companies run by the military allowed it to fund itself without parliamentary accountability and ensure top generals profit from its operations, including the ethnic cleansing of Rakhine.

Kirin was identified as a critical ally of the Burmese military, not only providing a valuable source of foreign currency in the face of global sanctions, but even making donations to the army.  

In a “progress report” in June, Kirin said it was trying to ensure all its operations were in line with its human rights obligations and had met with MEHL’s management to discuss the 2019 UN report. 

It has appointed the accountants Deloitte to discover where the proceeds from its two breweries run with MEHL went “as a matter of urgency” and was also exploring “alternative structural options for the ownership of the Myanmar joint-ventures”.

“We appreciate the challenges of operating in frontier markets and are constantly working to deepen our understanding of the many complexities and improve our systems,” the firm said in a statement.  

In a statement on Thursday, Kirin said that “it is wholly unacceptable to Kirin that any proceeds from our Myanmar joint-ventures could be used for any military purposes.”