Thai commercial banks, which have been reported as facilitating the Myanmar military junta’s buying of weapons, along with government agencies, have committed to halting such transactions. Meanwhile, concerns have been raised regarding the lack of proactive measures.

Following the UN report ‘Banking on the Death: How Banks and Governments Enable the Military Junta in Myanmar’, the Committee on National Security, Border Affairs, National Strategy, and National Reform on Thursday (11 July), together with Tom Andrews, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, summoned representatives of Thai banks and relevant government agencies to clarify the facts and discuss joint measures to prevent weapons procurement for the Myanmar military through Thai banks.

According to the report, banks in Thailand facilitated at least US$60 million in purchases of weapons and other materials in the 2022 fiscal year and at least US$120 million in 2023. The report noted that throughout 2023, as Singaporean banks stopped processing these transactions, the volume of transactions through Thai banks increased and came to account for around half of the total military procurement of the Military of Defence under the State Administration Council (SAC).

Five Thai banks were identified in the reports: Siam Commercial Bank (SCB), Bangkok Bank, KBank, TMB Thanachart Bank, and Krung Thai Bank.

The UN Special Rapporteur said during the meeting that he found no evidence that the government or these Thai banks were aware of in the nature of the transactions they facilitated. He urged the government to make known its stance against transactions related to the weapons trade and to conduct a thorough investigation as Singapore did last year.

All the Thai banks insisted that they do not support any transactions related to weapons purchases that breach human rights, whether involving the Myanmar military junta or any other government. Meanwhile, the Bank of Thailand (BOT) stated that it obliges financial institutions to comply with sanction measures. All banks are required to verify their customers in high-risk countries.

The Thai Bankers’ Association mentioned that in some cases, it is beyond banks’ capability to thoroughly investigate which of the transactions they facilitated were linked to weapons procurement by the Myanmar military since banks do not have special departments overseeing the issue. He said banks rely on the government to determine which transactions need to be monitored.

MP Rangsiman Rome, Chairperson of the Committee, noted that the meeting did not lead to clear measures, but all stakeholders have committed to developing measures to address the issue. He also said that TMB Bank has active bank accounts associated with transactions linked to the Myanmar military’s weapon purchases. He noted that despite the small amount of money, the Committee found it unacceptable as it was used to commit a crime against the Myanmar people.

The Committee and the UN Special Rapporteur have reached the following resolutions:

(1) The Committee is concerned about the lack of clear measures taken by the government and Thai banks, which contrasts with the proactive actions overseen by the Singapore government.

(2) The Committee proposed that all relevant agencies consider establishing working teams with the Singapore government, the UN Special Rapporteur, and other international organisations, to develop measures and investigate the issue.

(3) The BOT and other agencies are required to investigate 254 companies listed in the report and 2 companies selling oil to the Myanmar military, and report to the Committee within 30 days.

(4) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Anti-Money Laundering Office are to develop further measures addressing the Committee’s concerns, and report progress within 30 days.