Justice for Myanmar (JFM), a leading activist organization, has called on the United Nations to probe potential conflicts of interest concerning the UN Special Envoy to Myanmar, Julie Bishop, following her links with Chinese state-owned entities. Bishop, who formerly served as Australia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2018, was appointed UN Special Envoy in April 2024. Concurrently, she leads Julie Bishop and Partners, a global business consultancy firm.
A critical focus of JFM’s concerns is Bishop’s association with Energy Transition Minerals (ETM), as first reported by The Saturday Paper. ETM is linked to Shenghe Resources, a partially state-owned Chinese company, and China Communications Construction Company, which is state-owned. ETM has been embroiled in controversy due to a halted uranium and rare earth minerals mining project in Kvanefjeld, Greenland. This project faced significant pushback over environmental and health concerns and led to a legal standoff after Greenland implemented a uranium mining ban in 2021, resulting in ongoing litigation between ETM and the local government.
The activist group’s primary concern revolves around the potential overlap between Bishop’s advisory role at ETM and her obligations as the Special Envoy to Myanmar. Shenghe Resources is a major Chinese processor of rare minerals, with Myanmar being China’s largest supplier. These resources financially support the Myanmar military regime, notorious for resisting pro-democracy efforts. Such affiliations may pose a threat to Bishop’s duty to foster “a resolution to the crisis in Myanmar” through integrity and trust in her UN role.
As global scrutiny mounts, the call for a thorough investigation into these potential conflicts of interest underscores the complex intertwining of diplomatic roles and private sector involvement that could affect international efforts towards stabilizing regions like Myanmar.
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