Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma

The Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (ALTSEAN-Burma) is an advocacy and capacity-building network focused on human rights, democracy and atrocity prevention in Burma/Myanmar and the wider Southeast Asian region. According to its own account, it was formed in October 1996 by a diverse network of organizations and individuals at the Alternative ASEAN Meeting on Burma, held in Bangkok. Its stated mission is to develop and strengthen strategic relationships among key networks and organizations from Burma, Southeast Asia and the international community; to support cooperation and partnership among activists — particularly women, youth, ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ people, displaced people, migrants and other marginalized communities; to implement innovative strategies responsive to emerging needs and urgent developments; and to produce practical resources for these purposes. ALTSEAN-Burma pursues this mission through advocacy, training and collaboration. Its thematic priorities include atrocity prevention, business and human rights, women's participation and leadership, and broader human rights and democracy issues. On atrocity prevention, it argues that serious gaps in the rule of law perpetuate impunity, including state-sanctioned atrocity crimes, and that these continue to threaten people in Burma/Myanmar; it works with global movements to advocate for measures to halt crimes, bring justice to affected communities and prevent recurrence, producing resources and delivering capacity-building workshops so that activists can work on atrocity prevention at local and international levels. On business and human rights, it frames the issue around the absence of adequate safeguards and regulation in the growth of the Burmese economy and its effects on the livelihoods of millions of people. A distinctive feature of ALTSEAN-Burma's work is its monitoring and briefing output. Its website publishes special briefers and recurring series such as "Coup Watch" briefers, covering topics including the treatment of the Rohingya, the junta's air strikes and attacks on civilians, political prisoners, and the junta-organized elections. These publications combine documentation of incidents with policy analysis and recommendations, and are produced in English and Burmese, with some material also available in other regional languages. ALTSEAN-Burma positions itself as an alternative, civil-society-led voice on Burma within and alongside the ASEAN region — hence the "Alternative ASEAN" in its name — amplifying grassroots and local voices at international strategy forums and channeling their analysis and policy recommendations into advocacy. It operates as a network rather than a conventional commercial enterprise, with no publicly listed parent company or ownership structure disclosed in the available evidence. Its headquarters are in Bangkok, Thailand, and its activities extend across Burma/Myanmar, Southeast Asia and the international community.

The Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (ALTSEAN-Burma) was formed in October 1996 by a diverse network of organizations and individuals at the Alternative ASEAN Meeting on Burma, held in Bangkok. The name signals its origin as a civil-society counterpart to the intergovernmental Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), created at a time when ASEAN's engagement with Burma/Myanmar was a subject of intense debate among activists and regional organizations. From its founding, ALTSEAN-Burma's stated mission has been to develop and strengthen strategic relationships among key networks and organizations from Burma, Southeast Asia and the international community; to support cooperation and partnership among activists, particularly women, youth, ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ people, displaced people, migrants and other marginalized communities; to implement innovative strategies responsive to emerging needs and urgent developments; and to produce practical resources for these purposes. It has pursued this mission through advocacy, training and collaboration. Over the years, ALTSEAN-Burma's work has concentrated on several thematic priorities. It focuses on women's participation and leadership, on business and human rights, on atrocity prevention, and on broader human rights and democracy issues. In the area of atrocity prevention, it works with global movements to advocate for measures that halt crimes, bring justice to affected communities and prevent recurrence, and it produces resources and delivers capacity-building workshops to enable activists to work on atrocity prevention at local and international levels. In the area of business and human rights, it addresses the effects of unbridled growth of the Burmese economy on the livelihoods of millions of people in the absence of adequate safeguards and regulation. A central element of ALTSEAN-Burma's public profile is its monitoring and briefing output. Its website publishes special briefers and recurring series such as "Coup Watch" briefers. These publications document developments inside Burma/Myanmar — including attacks on civilians, air strikes, the treatment of political prisoners, the situation of the Rohingya, and the junta-organized elections — and combine this documentation with analysis and policy recommendations. Material is produced in English and Burmese, with some content also available in other regional languages. ALTSEAN-Burma also emphasizes amplifying grassroots voices. It supports grassroots activists by ensuring local voices are heard at international strategy forums, including their analysis and policy recommendations. Its headquarters are in Bangkok, Thailand, and its activities extend across Burma/Myanmar, Southeast Asia and the international community. The available evidence does not disclose a parent company, ownership structure or commercial listing for the network.

• ALTSEAN-Burma is formed by a diverse network of organizations and individuals at the Alternative ASEAN Meeting on Burma, held in Bangkok.

• Publication of the Coup Watch Briefer September 2025, documenting increased junta airstrikes ahead of the sham election.

• Publication of the Special Briefer Aug 2026 on the Rohingya, documenting continued persecution and regional forced repatriation plans.

A civil-society-led advocacy and research network offering an alternative, grassroots-informed voice on Burma/Myanmar within and alongside ASEAN, focused on human rights, democracy and atrocity prevention.

• Special Briefer series

  Periodic in-depth briefers on urgent thematic issues, such as the August 2026 Special Briefer on the Rohingya.

• Coup Watch Briefer series

  Recurring briefers documenting developments after the 2021 coup, including attacks on civilians, air strikes and election-related repression.

• Burma Sham Election Overview

  An overview resource on the junta-organized election, available in Burmese and English.

• Capacity-building workshops and training

  Workshops delivered to enable activists to work on atrocity prevention and related issues at local and international levels.

1. 1HOME - ALTSEAN-BURMAaltsean.org
2. 2About Us - ALTSEAN-BURMAaltsean.org
3. 3Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma - Wikidatawikidata.org