Myanmar could face aid ‘catastrophe’, experts warn, after junta law change
Myanmar’s junta has passed a law that grants it sweeping powers over aid delivery, prompting warnings of a “catastrophic” effect on services to those in need in the crisis-hit nation.
Sources inside aid agencies in Yangon, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Guardian that the new rules would severely impact their ability to reach vulnerable communities, likely resulting in wholesale shutdowns of some programmes.
The “registration of associations” law, introduced late last month, bans any “indirect or direct” contact between aid providers and groups blacklisted by the junta, including political organisations that act as gatekeepers to the needy in some areas.
Emanuel Stoakes
