Dominican Family Solidarity Statement for Justice and Peace with the People of Myanmar
We are the Dominican Family, inspired by the spirituality of Saint Dominic and the Catholic faith to promote and uphold democracy, human rights, social justice, and ecological justice. We voice out our solidarity with the people of Myanmar.
We are in unity with the people of Myanmar, regardless of religion and ethnic identity, who sustainably and bravely stand with their human rights, democracy, and environment. We empathize with you and your struggles and prayerfully commemorating your heroes, comrades, and martyrs. You are teaching us the deeper love and fearless commitment for your country to attain genuine justice, freedom, and democracy. Even this has put you in a situation of ambiguities and dangers. We, Dominican Family, are also carrying our cross in the struggle for human rights, democracy, and justice in our specific localities. Your tireless struggles give us the will to battle against the current oppression and tyranny. We stand with you through the power of our prayers and communal actions to share your resistance and courage.
For the Burmese military, who continue to be an instrument of oppression and slay innocent blood of your people. Your nation’s people’s amplified voice that expresses peaceful struggles against military and economic powers must be addressed with open conversation and compassion. They are your brothers and sister who are also taking part in your country’s life. We, Dominican Family all over the world, strongly condemn the military Junta in Myanmar led by Chief General Min Aung Hlaing for arresting, attacking, killing innocent civilians with the use of excessive military forces, especially deployments of powerful weapons and soldiers in civilian infrastructures such as religious buildings, hospitals and schools in Kachins, Kayahs, Karens, Chins, Rakhines, and Shans States. Is it not that you have professed to defend your people? Why then are you attacking them?
To the United Nations and the ASEAN Member States, we earnestly plead for your support. Defending the Burmese people against the tyranny of the military Junta is to attain social order and justice for the people of Myanmar who are a part of the global community and Southeast Asian countries, which you have sworn to protect against injustice and oppression. We are hoping, pleading, and praying for your genuine responses to resolve the crises and for the people of Myanmar.
And to our fellow Catholics and Christians, we have the mission to speak and denounce the injustices and oppression. We share Christ’s mission to “proclaim liberty to the captives, bring recovery of sight to the blind, and to let the oppressed go free” (Lk 4:18). Let us concretely carry out this mission by actively participating in the emancipation of Myanmar from the authoritarian military power. We have the duty and the right to strengthen our initiatives to promote justice and peace in our respective localities and countries, in Myanmar, and in the global community.
For the people of Myanmar, the Dominican Family members’ signatories (organizations, communities, congregations, and individuals) signifies the commitment to these actions of solidarity:
We will gather, educate, evangelize, and mobilize our communities using creative and innovative means like online platforms, social media posts, sharing of news and stories about Myanmar;
We will conduct series of virtual conferences on the aspirations of Myanmar as a means to sustain dialogue between the citizens, religious, advocates, and leaders;
We will maximize our academic resources, stakeholders, and networks to include the struggles of Myanmar people and their connection to our respective mission areas and countries’ aspirations to safeguard, keep and uphold human rights in online means;
As a Dominican Family, we will put pressure on the embassies of Myanmar in our respective countries, on political and ASEAN Leaders, on episcopal conferences of Asia, on the UN Security Council and on the UN Human Rights Council to take actions immediately on the six-point consensus:
- Immediately cease all acts of violence and abuses committed against civilians;
- Implement an inclusive and comprehensive national political dialogue and nationwide reconciliation process while ensuring the full, effective and meaningful participation of all ethnic groups, women, young people, persons with disabilities, as well as civil society and religious leaders, with the objective of achieving lasting peace, and also calls for a peaceful resolution through dialogue towards national unity;
- Allow for the effective, timely and unfettered delivery of humanitarian assistance;
- Urge Myanmar to cooperate fully with and to grant full, unrestricted and unmonitored access to all United Nations mandate holders and human rights mechanisms, including the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General on Myanmar, the Independent Mechanism for Myanmar to independently monitor the situation of human rights, and to ensure that individuals can cooperate without hindrance with these mechanisms without fear of reprisal, intimidation or attack;
- Immediately and unconditionally release all persons arbitrarily detained, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners who have been democratically elected by the people of Myanmar during the 2020 national election, in order to restore the Democratic government in Myanmar;
- Hold accountable all those responsible for brutal acts and crimes against all persons in order to deliver justice to victims using all appropriate legal instruments and domestic, regional and international judicial mechanisms, including the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.
This is our statement of solidarity for the dauntless people of Myanmar people.
