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Myanmar’s ousted lawmakers tell ASEAN to pick a side
“The question becomes: Is ASEAN standing with the people of Myanmar or are they standing with the military?” said the lawmakers’ special envoy to the United Nations.
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Protesters construct a makeshift barricade to impede security forces in Yangon, Myanmar, on March 9, during demonstrations against the recent military coup. (AFP/STR)
A
s the international community hopes for an effective ASEAN response to the Myanmar coup crisis, the regional bloc has taken an informal and familial approach, issuing appeals for restraint as human rights defenders lambast the junta for killing protesters.
But ASEAN statements will not go far unless the bloc makes its stance clear, said Dr Sasa, a special envoy to the United Nations appointed by the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), an interim authority formed by Myanmar’s ousted elected lawmakers.
Since the Feb. 1 putsch, ASEAN’s voice has been split between concerned nations and member states that are unwilling to take a stand on what they consider Myanmar’s internal affairs.
However, the coup regime’s increasing violence against protesters and other citizens of Myanmar has put ASEAN in a tough position, observers have noted.
Sasa, in an interview with The Jakarta Post this week, said the bloc should make clear that there was “no more place for [the junta] in ASEAN” if it continued to cling to power illegally and launch repressive attacks on the people it was supposed to protect.
“If we are ten people in a family and one of our brothers is [committing] a criminal act at home, how would you feel?” the elected Chin state lawmaker asked on Tuesday.
“If he’s killing other people, are the nine other brothers and sisters just going to [keep saying] ‘don’t do that’?”
