After months of teasing and deliberation, Myanmar’s government finally announced, through a statement published on Tuesday via the Ministry of Transport and Communications website, that it will be formally forming a coast guard to protect its 2,080 kilometer coast line and territorial waters.
According to Transport Minister U Thant Zin Maung, the new Myanmar Coast Guard will be in charge of managing offshore drilling and the building of deep-sea ports. He also said that they would be in charge of maintaining the environment and protection of natural resources. Sounds a bit paradoxical there, but only time will tell if those two interests can live in harmony.
Moreover, the new organization will also deal with “non-traditional maritime security threats”, such as human trafficking, illegal entry, drug trafficking, and fishing activities that are deemed illegal or irregular.
The move comes just months after a mysterious “ghost ship” which had gone missing for 9 years landed just 12 km away from Yangon, prompting the Myanmar government to begin discussions to organize a coast guard.
Less than a week after the incident, in a September 6 press conference, the Director General of the Department of Marine Administration, U Thaung Kyaing, confirmed that there was indeed interest in the government to establish a coast guard.
While plans for the formation of a new coast guard are being submitted to the President’s Office, it is unclear which authority the new entity will be reporting to. While there is speculation that the President’s office and the Department of Marine Administration could pick up the mantle, analysts have said that it would be a “politically bold attempt” to form a civilian-controlled coast guard, a mandate granted to the Myanmar military by the 2008 constitution.
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