Pressure Building on Singapore to Remove Shelter for Sanctioned Myanmar Businessman
Sanctioned Myanmar businessman Tay Za has for years set up shop in Singapore, where he's found shelter from U.S. sanctions, but those days may be coming to an end, Bloomberg reported. Tay Za was accused of supplying arms and equipment…
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to the Myanmar military. Despite this, he upheld the right to live and work in Singapore despite the sanctions first imposed in 2007 and incorporated around 10 companies in Singapore operating in palm oil, teak and aviation. Most countries in Asia do not support these sanctions, though this position is becoming harder to uphold while the U.S. increases pressure on Myanmar's ruling junta and global financial regulators discuss the prospect of blacklisting the country, Bloomberg said. Signs are starting to appear that show Singapore is moving away from its practice of not interfering with its neighbors' business, criticizing the junta's regime, asking banks to increase their scrutiny of financial flows to Myanmar, and not allowing the transfer of any items that could be used to inflict violence against unarmed civilians, though Tay Za and others continue to operate in Singapore, Bloomberg said. Tay Za continues to deny he supplies arms to the military.