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SE Asian lawmakers call for action against Myanmar junta
The ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights have called on ASEAN to provide “real” assistance to prodemocracy forces up against military rule in Myanmar.
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The ASEAN secretary-general and Southeast Asian foreign ministers (except Myanmar’s) prepare to pose for a group photo during the ASEAN Coordinating Council meeting in Jakarta on Feb. 3, 2023. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)
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arliamentarians across Southeast Asia are urging ASEAN to take “swift and concrete action” against the Myanmar military junta and provide “real” assistance to prodemocracy forces up against military rule, amid intensifying resistance campaigns across the country.
Myanmar has been beset by social, political and economic chaos ever since its military overthrew the democratically elected government in 2021, and a regional response led by ASEAN has so far failed to push the needle on a peace plan agreed upon by the junta leadership.
The United Nations and human rights groups have accused Myanmar’s military of carrying out atrocities as part of a brutal crackdown on its opponents, which the junta labels “terrorists”. The coup regime also spurns any “external interference” in what it insists are internal affairs.
In recent days, fighting between the People’s Defense Forces (PDF) and the junta regime has intensified across the country, with clashes reported in the Sagaing, Mandalay and Magwe regions as well as Kayah state, causing casualties on both sides of the conflict.
In response, dozens of parliamentarians and civil society organizations from Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, Timor-Leste and Myanmar convened for roundtable talks in Jakarta on Friday to address the crisis and call for decisive action.
“The crisis in Myanmar is causing a humanitarian catastrophe of gigantic proportions,” said Mercy Barends, chairman of the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights’ (APHR) regional advocacy group.
“The sole [entity] responsible for this disaster is the junta led by Min Aung Hlaing, and it is high time that ASEAN stop treating it with kid gloves. Strong pressure to isolate the Myanmar military is more imperative and urgent than ever,” said the House of Representatives lawmaker.
