A group of civil society organisations in Myanmar plans to take legal action against Norwegian telecoms firm Telenor, accusing it of passing customer data to the country’s military government for use in repression.
The activists sent Telenor a notice of intent to sue on Monday, according to a statement from the Netherlands-based nonprofit Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO), which is backing the case. The case states that the data shared by the telecoms giant was used by the military following its 2021 coup to trace and target civilians.
The claimants allege that Telenor, majority-owned by the Norwegian government, disclosed data from millions of customers to the military authorities, which, after toppling the country’s elected government, embarked on a campaign of violence and repression.
They say the information helped the military target anti-coup activists, several of whom were tortured in detention and one of whom was executed.
Telenor, which has previously faced investigations over its actions from Norwegian authorities, asserts it was trapped by the situation in Myanmar with “no good options”.
One claimant, Thazin Nyunt Aung, said she is “terribly disturbed and shocked” by the data disclosures, which occurred weeks before her husband, lawmaker Phoe Zeya Thaw, was arrested and executed.
Ko Ye, another claimant, said she feels “betrayed” by a company that had a reputation for integrity.
“We were in danger, in struggle, in a very difficult position. But Telenor did not protect us. On the contrary. Our data was used as a weapon against us,” said Ye.
Jan Magne Langseth, a lawyer with Norwegian firm Simonsen Vogt Wiig representing the clients, said Telenor “should never have handed over this information” and “must be held accountable for its failures”.
‘No good options’
Facing pressure from Myanmar’s government to implement surveillance technology that could have provoked European Union sanctions, Telenor ultimately sold its business in Myanmar in 2021 to Lebanese investment firm M1 Group and majority-owner Shwe Byain Phyu, a local conglomerate whose chairman has a history of military ties. The claimants say the sale gave the military “unfettered access” to customer data.
Langseth said Telenor “should have deleted all sensitive data before selling its operations and exiting Myanmar”.
In a statement to the Reuters news agency, Telenor said it believes the legal notice raises issues that have already been addressed, including in previous police and court investigations in Norway.
The company said it faced a “terrible and tragic situation” in Myanmar following the coup, with “no good options”, as disobeying orders from the military government would have “been perceived as terrorism and sabotage, and would have put employees in direct danger”.
“Like all operators in any country, Telenor Myanmar was legally required to provide traffic data to the authorities,” the company said.
Myanmar has been in crisis since the coup and ensuing military crackdown, which prompted a nationwide armed rebellion.
The military government has killed almost 7,000 people and arrested close to 30,000, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a nonprofit monitoring group. The military denies accusations that it has targeted civilians.
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