Monthly Overview: A Devastating Year for Civilians in Burma as Displacement Soars amid a Worsening Humanitarian Crisis
January 6, 2025
December 2024
As 2024 ends, documentation by the Human Rights Foundation of Monland (HURFOM) indicates an ongoing deterioration of human rights in Burma. In the target areas of Mon State, Karen State, and the Tanintharyi region, civilians continue to face a barrage of threats to their safety and well-being, including ongoing indiscriminate firing, where women, children, and the elderly are among those who have been killed and wounded.
Arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, landmines, gender violence and destruction of properties are among the many crimes perpetrated by the military junta. Throughout the year, HURFOM released a series of reports spotlighting various areas of concern, including the impacts of the junta’s deeply flawed forced conscription enforcement, the gendered implications of the conflict through the Voice Up series as well as weekly and monthly updates that provided context on the alarming erosion of human rights in HURFOM areas.
Read moreJunta arrests and extorts traders in Tenasserim
January 6, 2025
HURFOM: On December 3rd, 2024, the 557th light infantry battalion arrested four local traders of food and goods who transported rice from Tenasserim Town to Ta Ku village, Tenasserim Township, Tenasserim Division. They demanded ten million MMK for the release of each individual arrested.
Read moreJunta Implements Cybersecurity Law with Severe Penalties for VPN Use and Online Infractions
January 3, 2025
On January 1, the junta officially enacted Cybersecurity Law No. 1/2025 under Article 419 of the Constitution. The law comprises 16 chapters and 88 articles outlining severe penalties for unauthorized VPN use and various online offences, including fines and imprisonment.
The law mandates penalties of up to six months in prison and fines of up to 20 million kyats for those caught using VPNs without approval. It also includes penalties for cybercrimes such as online fraud, illegal gambling, and unauthorized financial transactions, with prison sentences ranging from two to seven years and significant fines.
The junta claims the law aims to protect national stability and authority by preventing cyberattacks and ensuring control over digital spaces. However, local legal experts and rights groups have raised concerns that the law primarily targets free expression and access to information.
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- Five women injured by junta’s artillery and drone attacks in Tenasserim
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