3 April, 2025Stop the military attacks and the weaponisation of earthquake disaster relief! We, members of the Council of Global Unions (CGU), stand in solidarity with the people of Myanmar following the devastating recent earthquake. We have been outraged by the Myanmar military junta’s continued attacks, exploitation of a humanitarian crisis, and deliberate obstruction of life-saving assistance through indiscriminate aerial bombings and systematic human rights violations that continued in the most affected areas in the immediate aftermath. We acknowledge the recent announcement by the military government of a temporary ceasefire in operations against armed opposition groups, but this does not go far enough.
Following the recent 7.7 magnitude earthquake, instead of prioritising rescue and humanitarian support, the military escalated aerial bombings on civilian communities, including in Chaung U (Sagaing), Phyu (Bago), and Naung Cho (Shan). Such appalling acts, under the guise of disaster management, demonstrate a blatant disregard for human life and dignity.
Myanmar’s history painfully reminds us how the military regime exploits disasters, using humanitarian aid as a political and military weapon, as seen during Cyclone Nargis (2008), Cyclone Mocha (2023), and Typhoon Yagi (2024). Aid intended for survivors has repeatedly been diverted, restricted, or manipulated for regime gain, resulting in prolonged suffering and increased death tolls.
The continued contempt for international law and total disregard for international obligations of the military should keep the international community, including UN agencies, on the alert not to be abused by the military to continue to impose itself on the Myanmar people. The military must stand aside for aid and humanitarian intervention to reach all the Myanmar people and for the Myanmar people to rebuild their lives and livelihoods in peace and democracy.
We, therefore, urgently:
- Demand all humanitarian assistance be channelled exclusively through the National Unity Government (NUG), Ethnic Organisations, the Confederation of Trade Unions Myanmar (CTUM), trusted local civil society, and community groups; entities that have clearly demonstrated commitment and capacity to deliver impartial and life-saving relief.
- Condemn the military junta’s indiscriminate aerial bombings and attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure and call for a sustainable, long-lasting ceasefire that goes beyond the short-term truce announced by the junta.
- Appeal to the international community, including the United Nations, ASEAN, and humanitarian agencies, to ensure aid reaches affected communities swiftly and without junta interference and obstruction, employing cross-border and locally led mechanisms.
- Urge Russia, China, and India to immediately cease supplying weapons, equipment, and military resources to the junta as these are being used to carry out aerial attacks against civilians, which could constitute war crimes under international law. Humanitarian support provided by these nations must not be exploited by Myanmar’s military junta to target dissidents, resistance forces, or ethnic communities.
- Call upon multinational corporations profiting directly or indirectly from business relationships with the junta to immediately cease all operations linked to the Myanmar military.
Myanmar’s workers, communities, and ethnic peoples urgently require aid and protection, not bombings and obstruction. The extraordinary resistance of the people of Myanmar, ethnic groups, and civil society in the face of adversity demonstrate their leadership in delivering essential humanitarian aid. The NUG’s immediate declaration of a unilateral ceasefire to facilitate earthquake relief starkly contrasts with the junta’s continued violence and delayed reaction in calling off military operations.
The legitimacy and credibility of international humanitarian action depend on principled, decisive, and accountable delivery of aid. The global community must not repeat past mistakes that allowed humanitarian aid to empower Myanmar’s military oppressors.
As trade union organisations representing workers globally, we reaffirm our unwavering solidarity with the people of Myanmar and call for immediate and sustained international pressure to end this humanitarian crisis.
The earthquake has hit communities already enduring the junta’s brutal campaign of killings, forced labour, displacement, and repression. Yet in the face of devastation, the people of Myanmar continue to show unbreakable morale, determination, and unity. Their resolve is a powerful inspiration to the global labour movement. The international community must stand with them, clearly, decisively, and without delay - on the side of justice and human dignity.
Building and Woodworkers International
International Trade Union Confederation
Education International
IUF
International Domestic Workers Federation
Public Services International
IndustriALL Global Union
Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD
International Federation of Journalists
UNI Global Union
International Transport Workers Federation
Photo: Mandalay, Myanmar 28 March, 2025: An earthquake hit the city center, causing buildings to collapse. Rescuers are helping the injured. Credit: somkanae sawatdinak