Canada Backs US Sanctions On Myanmars Military - Foreign Minister

Canada Backs US Sanctions on Myanmars Military - Foreign Minister

Canada strongly supports the US sanctions imposed on Myanmars military over alleged human rights abuses, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said in a press release on Friday.

NEW YORK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th August, 2018) Canada strongly supports the US sanctions imposed on Myanmars military over alleged human rights abuses, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said in a press release on Friday.

Earlier in the day, the US Treasury Department said it sanctioned four people from Myanmar and two divisions of the country's army under the Global Magnitsky Act in an effort to stop brutal human rights violations including ethnic cleansing, massacres and sexual assault.

"Canada strongly supports the measures taken today by the United States to sanction perpetrators of atrocities and gross human rights violations committed in Myanmar," Freeland said. "These measures align with Canadas unwavering commitment to protect the human rights of Rohingya and other ethnic groups in Myanmar."

On February 16, 2018 Canada imposed sanctions on a military official who was involved in human rights violations in Rakhine State. In June, Ottawa imposed more sanctions in coordination with the European Union against seven Myanmar nationals for their involvement in military operations in Rakhine State last year.

Rohingya, a Muslim minority in Myanmar, have been fleeing their homes to avoid waves of violence following the government's deployment of police and military units in response to an attack by Rohingya insurgents on security posts in the Rakhine State. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), nearly 700,000 Rohingyas have left the country for Bangladesh since last August for fear of persecution.