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Indonesia calls on Myanmar to resolve coup ‘dispute’ legally
Indonesia has denied reports that it plans to hold Myanmar's military junta to its promise of ceding power after fresh elections. The reported plan sparked a backlash against Jakarta.
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Police officers advance towards protesters demonstrating against Myanmar’s recent military coup in Yangon on Feb. 22. (Agence France Presse/Ye Aung Thu)
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ndonesia has denied reports that it plans to hold Myanmar's military junta to its promise of ceding power after fresh elections and has called on the country to resolve its electoral dispute “through available legal mechanisms”, after protesters criticized Jakarta for appearing to give credence to the junta’s narrative.
Crowds of protesters gathered in front of the Indonesian embassies in Yangon and Bangkok on Tuesday to demand support for the November 2020 election results, following reports on Monday that Indonesia had proposed a plan that involved advocating for new elections to be held within a year, a claim the Indonesian government denies.
Myanmar’s armed forces, the Tatmadaw, seized power early this month from Aung San Suu Kyi’s democratically elected government over alleged fraud in the November election.
Suu Kyi’s National League of Democracy (NLD) secured a landslide win in November, claiming 83 percent of the parliamentary seats and fending off pro-junta challengers, leading to an embittered response from the military elite.
The junta claims it will remain in power until the election dispute is resolved and new elections are held.
The response from Southeast Asia has been varied, with Indonesia advocating for a peaceful settlement and respect for the rule of law. However, Reuters cited three anonymous sources claiming that Indonesia was putting forward an “action plan” that effectively accepted the military status quo, angering the people of Myanmar.
Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Teuku Faizasyah dismissed the claims, saying Indonesia’s sole objective at the moment was to set up a meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers to resolve the political crisis “as a family”, as President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had instructed.
