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Let Brunei and Cambodia handle Myanmar’s chaos
ASEAN is very important for Indonesia but not everything.
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Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi (top centre R) attends an informal dinner with her Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) counterparts in Jakarta, ahead of the ASEAN summit on the Myanmar crisis in April. (AFP/Handout)
W
ill ASEAN invite Myanmar’s junta leader to its summit on Oct. 26-28, after the military leader publicly defied his own commitments to the regional grouping’s leaders in April this year? What if Brunei, as the host of the summit, asks for Indonesia’s stance? I would suggest Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi simply respond, “Up to you”. When her counterpart still insists, I would recommend her to reply, “Please ask Cambodia, as the next ASEAN chair”.
When Brunei Sultan Hasanal Bolkiah decides to invite the coup leader, “it is okay” for Indonesia, and if he says the junta does not deserve the honor, it will be “as long as you are happy” for Indonesia.
In seeking a settlement to the Myanmar quandary Indonesia had done its part, but it was overruled by other ASEAN members. Myanmar is now on brink of a civil war, with potential involvement of outside forces, including terrorist networks. If this happens, the conflict will not only be further damaging to the country, but also to its neighbors and regional stability.
Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen will chair the regional grouping next year. During a meeting in Jakarta, Hun Sen reportedly told the Myanmar general, Min Aung Hlaing, to accept ASEAN’s proposal because he would benefit from ASEAN’s involvement and could end the prolonged conflict in his country. Hun Sen will not likely repeat his “mistake” that prevented ASEAN leaders from issuing a joint declaration, which would have included the South China Sea issue, during their summit in Phnom Penh in 2012.
It is difficult for President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to pay special attention to the Myanmar conundrum right now.
First because he has already taken the initiative to gather ASEAN leaders and Myanmar’s coup leader where they reached an agreement. Yet while Brunei as the rotating chair has had the full mandate to implement the consensus, it has been reluctant to do its job. So let Brunei accomplish its mission before handing over the chairmanship to Cambodia.
As ASEAN strictly sticks to a consensus mechanism, it is practically meaningless for Indonesia to be the chief defender of the people of Myanmar. ASEAN is very important for Indonesia but not everything. We also need to remember that the ousted leader of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi, was also responsible for her own fall. The Nobel Peace Prize winner bravely defended the gross human rights abuses committed by the military against the Rohingya Muslims – the same generals who toppled her government last February.
