By Simon Lewis and Doina Chiacu
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration said on Monday it is ending temporary legal status for citizens of Myanmar in the United States, arguing they can safely return to the war-torn Southeast Asian country and citing the military junta’s planned elections as evidence of an improving situation.
The move sparked concern for individuals who may be forced to return to Myanmar, which has been in political turmoil since the military seized power in a 2021 coup, ousting a civilian government and sparking a nationwide armed resistance.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem had conferred with U.S. government agencies and concluded that the Temporary Protected Status designation for Myanmar was no longer needed, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that justified the move.
“This decision restores TPS to its original status as temporary,” Noem said in the statement, using another name for Myanmar. “The situation in Burma has improved enough that it is safe for Burmese citizens to return home, so we are terminating the Temporary Protected Status. Burma has made notable progress in governance and stability, including the end of its state of emergency, plans for free and fair elections, successful ceasefire agreements, and improved local governance contributing to enhanced public service delivery and national reconciliation.”
‘FACTUAL ANALYSIS IS FANTASTICAL’
The status will expire for the roughly 4,000 Myanmar nationals benefitting from it on January 26, the agency said.
International actors, including the United Nations, have said elections the junta is planning for December and January cannot be free and fair while some opposition parties remain banned and former leader Aung San Suu Kyi languishes in jail.
“The (U.S.) factual analysis is fantastical,” said John Sifton, Asia advocacy director at Human Rights Watch. “Contrary to its content, there have been no improvements in governance or stability, the revocation of a state of emergency is meaningless in effect, and the so-called elections announced by the military are widely understood to be theater — not even a farce, which at least might be amusing, but a sham.”
The State Department warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Myanmar “due to civil unrest, armed conflict, and arbitrary enforcement of local laws.”
AUGUST STATE DEPARTMENT REPORT CITED RIGHTS ABUSES
The department’s most recent human rights report on the country, published in August, said there were “significant human rights issues” in Myanmar, including credible reports of arbitrary killings and disappearances, torture, persecution of journalists and restrictions on religious freedom, among other abuses.
“The human rights crisis in Burma deteriorated during the year as the conflict between the military regime and opposition forces (including ethnic armed organizations) intensified, marked by increased regime airstrikes and artillery attacks on or near civilian sites,” it said. The State Department also highlighted the deaths of two senior opposition leaders who died after being arbitrarily detained by the military government.
TPS status for Myanmar had been extended for 18 months, ending November 25, under the administration of Trump’s Democratic predecessor Joe Biden.
Trump, a Republican, has revoked TPS for nationals from several countries since taking office in January as part of his immigration crackdown.
(Reporting by Simon Lewis and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Katharine Jackson and Susan Heavey)
