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Info Birmanie and Justice For Myanmar welcome move, urge EU members to widen sanctions and strengthen enforcement
Info Birmanie and Justice For Myanmar welcome the decision of Monde Selection, a Belgian company which assesses the quality of consumer goods, to revoke awards given to Myanmar military-owned beer, spirit and soft drink brands and to remove them from its website.
The decision comes after Dagon Beverages Company Limited was awarded several prizes at Monde Selection’s 2026 award ceremony held at the Quai d’Orsay, the headquarters of the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs in Paris.
In August 2026, Info Birmanie and Justice For Myanmar wrote to Monde Selection calling for the awards to be revoked on sanctions and human rights grounds.
A representative of Monde Selection confirmed that the military-owned Dagon Beverages and Myanmar Brewery have been removed from its client list and all references to the companies have been removed from the website, revoking previously granted recognition of the award.
Dagon Beverages, whose brands include Dagon Lager Beer, Dagon Extra Strong, Dagon Royal Rum, Dagon Malta Fresh and Dagon Fresh Lemon Sparkling, is a fully owned subsidiary of the military conglomerate Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC).
Myanmar Brewery, whose brands include Myanmar Beer, Black Shield and Andaman Gold, last received awards from Monde Selection in 2023. It is a fully owned subsidiary of the military conglomerate Myanma Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL).
MEC and MEHL are sanctioned by the EU, UK, US, Canada and Australia.
Monde Selection has written to MEC, MEHL, Dagon Beverages and Myanmar Brewery to inform them that they no longer have the rights to use the Monde Selection Quality Award logo.
Products from these breweries have been a target of a massive boycott campaign to cut off funds to the military. The boycott campaign has been a powerful tool of resistance against an illegal military junta that commits mass arbitrary arrests, killings and torture.
Funds raised through the two military conglomerates are a direct source of income for the military and its generals, providing revenue to continue to commit international crimes with total impunity. The importance of these conglomerates in the military’s ability to commit atrocities has been widely reported, including in a report by the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission in 2019 that named Dagon Beverages and Myanmar Brewery.
While Monde Selection states it was not aware of the companies’ links to the military and took swift action, its longstanding relationship with Dagon Beverages and Myanmar Brewery could be a violation of the EU’s restrictive measures, and it demonstrates a lack of due diligence and corporate responsibility.
To enter the competition, Dagon Beverages and Myanmar Brewery paid fees to Monde Selection, and in return received services in the form of awards for use in marketing.
Monde Selection’s awards to subsidiaries of the two EU-sanctioned military conglomerates raise questions over the enforcement of sanctions by France and Belgium and the exposure of EU banks to payments from sanctioned Myanmar military companies.
It is deeply concerning that representatives from Dagon Beverages may have obtained Schengen visas to travel to France and pursue business interests that benefit MEC in 2026. Close scrutiny should be given to the source of the funds used by the Myanmar ‘brewers’ at Dagon Beverages to finance possible travel to France, as well as to the procedures for verifying and obtaining any visas and access to French Foreign affairs official buildings.
Info Birmanie and Justice For Myanmar call on Belgian and French authorities to investigate potential breaches of EU sanctions in relation to payments from MEC and MEHL companies to Monde Selection, including through EU banks, the provision of services to MEC and MEHL companies, any visas issued to representatives of these companies, the source of funds for any travel, and the use of the French foreign affairs building for the award.
Info Birmanie and Justice For Myanmar call on the EU and its member states to rigorously enforce its sanctions on Myanmar and widen them to cover all of the junta’s sources of funds, arms and aviation fuel.
Johanna Chardonnieras, coordinator of Info Birmanie
“This case should be a reminder to every company of how interconnected the actual economic world is – in times of peace and war. A proper due diligence process to avoid supporting human rights violations in Myanmar and other countries is now a necessity.
“It is good to have a company that recognises and responds quickly to issues relating to sanctions and human rights, but the real question is: how can a company owned by a conglomerate under EU sanctions make payments in Europe without raising any red flags?
“Despite the terror, millions of Myanmar people have decided to resist and are collectively targeting the military’s resources through a boycott. From the comfort of Brussels, European leaders should act in accordance with their principles and continue to impose targeted sanctions on the junta.”
Yadanar Maung, spokesperson of Justice For Myanmar
“Dagon and Myanmar Beer fund a brutal and murderous military junta to torture and slaughter Myanmar people.
“It is deeply concerning that representatives of conglomerates that fund terror in Myanmar have been able to make payments and promote their dirty business in the EU.
“France and Belgium must now take action to ensure accountability for all violations of EU sanctions, and to prevent the heavily sanctioned Myanmar junta and its conglomerates from doing any further business in the EU and with EU companies.
“The people of Myanmar have courageously resisted the illegal junta for well over five years. It’s time for the EU to take action to stand with the Myanmar people and widen and fully enforce its sanctions to block the junta’s ability to continue its campaign of terror.”
