Myanmar Could Be Heading Towards Open Conflict: UN Warns

Michelle Bachelet, the head of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), pointed out that Myanmar is in danger of descending into "open warfare" as the military dictatorship escalates its repression of civilians through actions that could constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity.

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She made this warning during the presentation of her latest report on the human rights situation in Burma, where the military controls power after staging a coup on February 1.

The OHCHR report notes that the Burmese military regime continues to practice mass arrests and use lethal force against the population, in a "human rights catastrophe that shows no signs of abating". Armed groups fighting the dictatorship have also increased their resistance actions, which has caused thousands of displaced people, especially in Kayin, Shan and Kachin states, where the army has unleashed indiscriminate bombings.

Bachelet stressed that although the human rights violations denounced in Burma could constitute crimes against humanity, "the military authorities show no intention of stopping them or of implementing previous recommendations".

Since February, at least 1,120 people have been killed in Myanmar. The bloodiest massacre occurred on March 27, when some 130 protesters, including 17 children, were killed. "Security forces opened fire without warning, and shot at people fleeing or attempting to tend to the wounded," says the OHCHR report, which recorded massacres in 12 out of 15 states on that day.

The dictatorship has made over 8,000 arrests of elected politicians, protesters and journalists. At least 120 citizens were killed in detention as a result of torture and ill-treatment during interrogations.

"The consequences of all this for the country are terrible and tragic, but they can also be profound for the entire region," said Bachelet, who called on the international community to "redouble its efforts to restore democracy and prevent the conflict from escalating before it is too late".