Telenor Hit With €11 Million Lawsuit Over Myanmar Junta Data Handover

Swedish non-profit Justice and Accountability Initiative (JAI) filed a civil class action suit on Wednesday against Norway’s state-controlled telecom giant Telenor, claiming damages on behalf of Myanmar customers whose private data was shared with the military regime. According to a press statement by the Open Society Justice Initiative (OSJI), which is supporting the lawsuit, the legal action in Norway is seeking corporate accountability for disclosing personal data of activists to a regime committing widespread human rights abuses.

Telenor sold its Myanmar subsidiary to a military-linked firm in March 2022, one year after the coup.

The transfer to Investcom PTE LTD—a joint venture between Lebanese investment firm M1 Group and Myanmar company Shwe Byaing Phyu (SBP), owned by junta crony Thein Win Zaw—proceeded despite widespread protest and legal challenges by civil society organizations.