The International Labour Organization (ILO) has taken an historic stand against Myanmar’s military regime. This month, in Geneva, the ILO announced decisive action under Article 33 in response to severe violations of labour and human rights, including compulsory military conscription. The junta’s breaches of ILO conventions on freedom of association, the right to organise, and prohibitions on forced labour have been met with global condemnation.
This breakthrough follows tireless advocacy by labour rights activists, including the Myanmar Campaign Network, and was supported by an overwhelming majority of international worker and employer delegates at the ILO’s International Labour Conference in Geneva. Despite opposition from Russia, Belarus, Laos, and China, the resolution calls for halting UN agency support, ceasing diplomatic recognition, designating the military as a terrorist group, and pursuing international prosecution.
“Myanmar is not breaking up. It is the Myanmar military that is breaking up Myanmar,” declared Maung Maung, President of the Confederation of Trade Unions Myanmar (CTUM), at the ILO conference.
“This is a moment of reckoning,” said Shoya Yoshida, General Secretary of ITUC-AP. “Today’s resolution must mark not the end, but the beginning of a concerted international effort to hold the junta accountable and help rebuild a democratic Myanmar where freedom of association and decent work are fully realised.”
Myanmar Campaign Network’s Campaign Manager, Ko Saulsman, has urged the international community — including the Australian Government — to publicly support the ILO’s decision and encourage ASEAN to stand with the Myanmar people’s wishes by rejecting recognition of the junta. Saulsman also condemned the junta’s planned sham election by the end of 2025, calling it a blatant attempt to legitimise their oppressive rule. The Australian Government has supported the ILO’s decision, adding weight to growing international opposition to the regime.
This decision is a triumph for the people of Myanmar, who have endured years of oppression since the 2021 military coup. The junta’s atrocities include:
- The imprisonment of 69 trade unionists.
- Ongoing attacks on workers and civilians, including aerial bombings and military conscription.
- The displacement of over two million people and over 3,700 deaths following the March 2025 earthquake, with the junta obstructing critical humanitarian aid.
This action under article 33 echoes the ILO’s 2000 sanctions against Than Shwe’s dictatorship, which then labelled the previous military regime a terrorist organisation. And as that period of Myanmar’s history showed, the global campaign of pressure does work. We must keep it up.
Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA stands in solidarity with Myanmar’s workers and communities, celebrating this step towards justice and accountability. We call on global leaders to amplify this momentum and reject the junta’s sham election plans.
Support our work: Join APHEDA and the Myanmar Campaign Network in advocating for freedom, dignity, and human rights. Join at www.apheda.org.au/join