ASEAN’s Blinkered Vision
“The AICHR has been silent in the face of the junta’s attacks on the Myanmar people. This organisation is not only doing nothing to help Myanmar people, but also actively working against them by inviting the military junta to its top meetings on human rights.”
As the 57th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM) concluded on 25 July in Vientiane, Laos, a persistence with the failing Five-Point Consensus (5PC) and the lack of representation from legitimate dialogue partners, such as the National Unity Government (NUG) and ethnic resistance organizations, demonstrate ASEAN’s continued ineffectiveness vis-à-vis the multifaceted, military-created crisis in Myanmar. And while ASEAN accepted junta representatives at the AMM, this is completely at odds with the reality on the ground, where the junta lacks legitimacy and is rapidly losing more territory throughout the country.
The Joint Communique released after the AMM expressed “deep concern over the escalation of conflicts and humanitarian situation,” reiterated its commitment to the failed 5PC, outlined its support for humanitarian aid to be delivered through the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on disaster management (AHA Centre), and commended the efforts of the ASEAN Special Envoy on Myanmar. What the statement did not do is naming the perpetrator of the violence against civilians and the root cause of the conflict and humanitarian crisis in Myanmar: the military junta. And while ASEAN remains with its policy not to invite the junta’s political representatives, its invitation of the junta’s ‘non-political, diplomatic representatives’ to the 57th AMM is still problematic, lending false legitimacy to the junta. This was flagged by Myanmar civil society, with a joint statement by 333 CSOs and revolutionary forces noting that this creates a “back-door entrance to the high level meetings” and that there do not exist ‘non-political’ representatives of the junta.
Diplomatic exasperation abounds, however. Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, clearly frustrated with the junta’s complete lack of political will to comply with the 5PC, apparently told the AMM, “There is no progress on the implementation of five-point consensus. And if there is no progress still, Myanmar’s participation in ASEAN foreign ministers meetings and summits must be kept at non-political level.” Similarly, the Australian Foreign Minister, Penny Wong, who attended the ASEAN Regional Forum, told the media that, “Myanmar is deeply concerning, we see it in the economy, instability, insecurity, deaths. The message I want to send to the military regime is ‘this is not sustainable for you and your people.”’ It is inconceivable and frustrating that these political leaders continue to speak, yet not take concerted, concrete action to meet the urgent needs of Myanmar’s people and stop the junta’s campaign of terror.
Perhaps most galling, given the human rights catastrophe created and exacerbated by the Myanmar military–which lest we forget committed genocide against the Rohingya in 2017–is that illegitimate junta representatives are representing Myanmar at ASEAN’s human rights bodies, namely, the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) and the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children. As Naw Aung, spokesperson for Defend Myanmar Democracy, the civil society organization behind the joint statement addressed to ASEAN, noted, “The AICHR has been silent in the face of the junta’s attacks on the Myanmar people. This organisation is not only doing nothing to help Myanmar people, but also actively working against them by inviting the military junta to its top meetings on human rights.”
It is deeply disappointing that ASEAN’s, and indeed the UN’s and its member states’ approach to Myanmar, is still tied to the moribund 5PC. With further losses in Rakhine State, Mandalay Region, and in northern Shan State in recent weeks, the perception that the military junta is in control of the country becomes even more untenable. There is a clear direction of travel in the people’s revolution in Myanmar, and it is not going the way that Min Aung Hlaing and his cruel generals and cabal of cronies want it to. Yet international actors clinging on to the junta as some form of legitimate partner in any future resolution are not only ignorant of history, but a betrayal of the people of Myanmar in their collective and persistent fight for federal democracy.
ASEAN, therefore, must engage with the NUG, which continues to “extend its full cooperation” with ASEAN as Myanmar’s legitimate representatives. ASEAN must cease inviting the illegitimate junta’s representatives to all ASEAN meetings and forums, whether they be political or ‘non-political’ representatives, and join current international efforts and push for stronger coordinated action such as an aviation fuel ban and a global arms embargo. Many other international actors are keen to follow ASEAN’s lead, and this places great responsibility on the regional bloc. It is time for ASEAN to ditch its failed 5PC and support the people of Myanmar and their aspirations for federal democracy and a final end to the violence and impunity of a sadistic military junta.
[1] One year following the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, the former military junta changed the country’s name from Burma to Myanmar overnight. Progressive Voice uses the term ‘Myanmar’ in acknowledgement that most people of the country use this term. However, the deception of inclusiveness and the historical process of coercion by the former State Peace and Development Council military regime into usage of ‘Myanmar’ rather than ‘Burma’ without the consent of the people is recognized and not forgotten. Thus, under certain circumstances, ‘Burma’ is used.
Resources from the past week
Statements and Press Releases
By Defend Myanmar Democracy
လားရှိုးမြို့၏အုပ်ချုပ်ရေး ယန္တရားများကို ဆက်ခံလိုက်ကြောင်း ထုတ်ပြန်ကြေညာချက်
By Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army
Statement on NUG’s position on the 57th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting
By National Unity Government
Reports
Junta Forces Destroy Over 300 Homes in Doo Pla Ya District
By Free Burma Rangers
Fueling Genocide: Telegram’s Role in the Ongoing Violence in Rakhine State
By Myanmar Internet Project
By Shan Human Rights Foundation
Progressive Voice is a participatory, rights-based policy research and advocacy organization that was born out of Burma Partnership. Burma Partnership officially ended its work on October 10, 2016 transitioning to a rights-based policy research and advocacy organization called Progressive Voice. For further information, please see our press release “Burma Partnership Celebrates Continuing Regional Solidarity for Burma and Embraces the Work Ahead for Progressive Voice.”
