Tag Archives: Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)

Myanmar unity government tells ASEAN no talks until prisoners freed

(Reuters) – Myanmar’s pro-democracy unity government, formed to oppose the military junta that seized power nearly three months ago, on Wednesday ruled out talks on the crisis until all political prisoners are released.

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been trying to find a path for Myanmar out of the bloody turmoil that followed the Feb. 1 coup and has called for an end to violence and talks between all sides.

But the junta has already declined to accept proposals to resolve the crisis that emerged from an ASEAN summit last weekend that was attended by Myanmar’s Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, while no-one from the civilian side was invited.

The pro-democracy National Unity Government (NUG), which includes members of parliament ousted by the coup, said Southeast Asia’s regional bloc should be engaging with it as the legitimate representative of the people.

“Before any constructive dialogue can take place, however, there must be an unconditional release of political prisoners including President U Win Myint and State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi,” the NUG prime minister, Minister Mahn Winn Khaing Thann, said in a statement.

There was no immediate comment from any senior officials in ASEAN.

Win Myint, Suu Kyi and others have been detained since the coup, which the military launched as Suu Kyi’s government was preparing for a second term after sweeping a November election.

The military said it had to seize power because its complaints of fraud in the election were not being addressed by an election commission that deemed the vote fair.

Pro-democracy protests have taken place in cities and towns across the country since the coup. The military has cracked down with lethal force on the protesters, killing more than 750 people, an activist group says. Reuters is unable to confirm the casualties as the junta has clamped down on media freedoms and journalists are among the many people who have been detained.

Protesters marched in support of the NUG in the second city of Mandalay on Wednesday, the Myanmar Now media outlet reported. There was no report of violence.

Alarmed by the turmoil in one of its members, ASEAN held a meeting on Saturday in the Indonesian capital with the leader of the junta in a bid to press him to end the crisis.

ASEAN leaders said after the meeting they had reached a “five-point consensus” on steps to end violence and promote dialogue between the rival Myanmar sides.

MORE AIR STRIKES

The junta later said it would give “careful consideration” to ASEAN’s suggestions, which included appointing an envoy to visit Myanmar, “when the situation returns to stability” and provided that ASEAN’s recommendations facilitated the junta’s own roadmap and served the country’s interests.

Activists had earlier criticized the plan, saying it helped to legitimize the junta and fell far short of their demands.

In particular, it did not call for the release of Suu Kyi, 75, and other political prisoners. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners advocacy group says more than 3,400 people have been detained for opposing the coup.

The coup has also exacerbated old conflicts between the military and ethnic minority insurgents who have been battling for years for greater autonomy in frontier regions.

Fighting has flared between the army and Karen insurgents in the east near the Thai border, and between the army and Kachin insurgents in the north, near the border with China.

Clashes have also broken out in Chin State, which is on the border with India, between anti-coup activists and security forces. Myanmar Now reported 30 government soldiers were killed in four days of clashes there.

A spokesman for the military did not answer calls seeking comment.

Karen insurgents captured Myanmar army posts near the Thai border on Tuesday in some of the most intense clashes since the coup which included air strikes by the military.

The military launched more air strikes in the area on Wednesday with both jets and helicopters, Thai authorities monitoring the fighting said, but there was no immediate word on casualties.

About 100 villagers, mostly children, elderly, and pregnant women, crossed to the Thai side of the border to escape the air strikes, the Free Burma Rangers aid group said.

The Karen and other ethnic minority forces based in frontier regions have supported the largely urban-based pro-democracy opponents of the junta.

(Reporting by Reuters Staff; Writing by Ed Davies, Robert Birsel; Editing by Christian Schmollinger & Simon Cameron-Moore)

ASEAN calls summit on Myanmar crisis as EU imposes sanctions

(Reuters) -Southeast Asian countries will discuss the crisis in Myanmar at a summit in Jakarta on Saturday, the ASEAN bloc’s secretariat said on Tuesday, but Thailand’s prime minister said several will be represented only by their foreign ministers.

Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said he would not be attending and that Thailand would be represented by Deputy Prime Minister Don Pramudwinai, who is also foreign minister.

“Some other countries will also send their foreign ministers,” Prayuth, a former army chief who led a coup in Thailand in 2014, told reporters after a weekly cabinet meeting.

A Thai government official said on Saturday that Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing would go to Jakarta, although the Myanmar government has not commented. However, this is seen as unlikely – in previous stints of military rule, Myanmar has usually been represented at regional meetings by a prime minister or foreign minister.

The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been trying to find a way to guide fellow member Myanmar out of the bloody turmoil that it descended into after the military overthrew an elected government, led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, on Feb. 1.

But there have been divergent views among ASEAN members over how to respond to the army’s use of lethal force against civilians and the group’s policies of consensus and non-interference in each others’ affairs have limited its ability to act.

Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore have sought to ramp up pressure on the junta. Thailand, Myanmar’s neighbor, has said it is “gravely concerned” about escalating bloodshed, but close military ties and fears of a flood of refugees mean it is unlikely to go further.

Brunei, the current chair of the bloc, said after a meeting of the group’s foreign ministers in March that ASEAN expressed concern about the situation in Myanmar and called on “all parties to refrain from instigating further violence”.

LITTLE WILLINGNESS

Romeo Jr. Abad Arca, assistant director of the community relations division of the ASEAN Secretariat, said Saturday’s summit would take place at its Jakarta headquarters under strict health and security protocols due to the pandemic, confirming an earlier advisory.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) activist group, 738 people have been killed by Myanmar security forces since the coup.

Myanmar’s military has shown little willingness to engage with its neighbors and no sign of wanting to talk to members of the government it ousted, accusing some of them of treason, which is punishable by death.

Pro-democracy politicians including ousted members of parliament from Suu Kyi’s party announced the formation of a National Unity Government (NUG) on Friday.

It includes Suu Kyi, who has been in detention since the coup, as well as leaders of the pro-democracy protests and ethnic minorities.

The NUG says it is the legitimate authority and has called for international recognition and an invitation to the ASEAN meeting in place of the junta leader.

Former U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon urged his successor to engage directly with Myanmar’s military to prevent rising violence and said Southeast Asian countries should not dismiss the turmoil as an internal issue for Myanmar.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ special envoy on Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, has communicated with the military since the coup, but the junta has not allowed her to visit.

In its firmest response yet, the European Union said on Monday nine members of the junta’s State Administration Council, formed the day after the coup, had been targeted with travel bans and asset freezes. Information Minister U Chit Naing was sanctioned also.

The decision follows similar measures by the United States. Min Aung Hlaing and Myint Swe, who has been acting president since the coup, were blacklisted by the EU last month.

(Reporting by Reuters StaffWriting by Ed Davies and Raju Gopalakrishnan; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)