Japanese zoo urged to reject elephants from Myanmar junta due to propaganda value

In a statement to This Week in Asia, Myint Swe said: “We, the Myanmar people in Japan, are shocked and outraged by this news.

“Since the 2021 military coup, serious human rights violations have been committed in Myanmar, including the military council’s repression of civilian rights and relentless air strikes against civilians.

“According to a civil society organization, more than 5,200 people have been killed and 26,800 people have been wrongfully arrested by the military council. In addition, the number of internally displaced people has risen to over 3 million due to the violent civil war.”

While Myint Swe acknowledged that the agreement to send the elephants to Fukuoka was made with the Yangon Zoo in 2019, under the previous democratic regime, he said the situation had “changed dramatically.”

“The Burmese have used the gift of elephants as a tool of diplomacy since the dynastic period of our history, and once the elephants are accepted by the State Administrative Council, they will be able to say that they have friendly relations with Japan and that Japan supports the rule of the military government,” he added.

“The elephants are being used as a political tool to the maximum extent.”

A Fukuoka Zoo official said she did not know when the elephants would arrive and declined to comment to This Week in Asia on the issue. However, a spokesperson told the Asahi newspaper that opposition to the issue would not delay the handover.

“The reception of the elephants at this time is an interaction between our countries aimed at breeding and biological research of elephants,” the official said. “Many people, including children, tell us they want to see the elephants soon.”

Myint Swe said he feared zoo visitors might get the wrong impression of the situation in his home country.

“We are concerned that the public will only find the elephants ‘cute’ and will not learn about the tragedy unfolding in Myanmar,” he said. “We are also concerned that there is no guarantee that the funds provided by the city of Fukuoka for the transfer will not be used for human rights violations.”

While the elephants will be given to the zoo for free, Myint Swe believes Myanmar’s state-owned enterprises would benefit from the agreement and the funds would find their way to the junta.

Private companies and the Japanese government have long-standing ties with Myanmar, which have continued even after the 2021 coup. This is largely because Tokyo felt it was important to keep lines of communication open with its counterparts in Naypyidaw, a Japanese Defense Ministry official told This Week in Asia.

While Japan believed its historic “special relationship” would enable it to influence policy and bring Myanmar closer to Tokyo’s sphere of influence to counter China’s dominance in the region, this does not appear to have happened so far, said the official, who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Criticism also arose in early 2023 when it was revealed that river boats donated by Japan to help students and seasonal workers get around Myanmar had been used by the junta to transport troops and military equipment.

After Tokyo expressed its displeasure over the use of the riverboats and Myanmar authorities said they would no longer use the vessels to transport troops, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in February 2023 that he would “appropriately manage” the flow of government aid to Myanmar.

Beyond the public sector, a report published by the Tokyo office of Human Rights Watch (HRW) confirmed that construction giant Yokogawa Bridge Corp made payments to the military-owned Myanmar Economic Corp (MEC) for an aid project.

According to HRW, MEC has been sanctioned by the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Canada and Australia for its role in generating significant revenues that help finance military aggression.

Myint Swe called on the Fukuoka city government, which runs the zoo, to make it clear in a statement that by accepting the four elephants from Myanmar, it does not condone the military government’s human rights violations.

He also suggested putting up signs next to the animal enclosures explaining “the tragedies of Myanmar.”