THERE is a need to put more pressure on the military junta in Myanmar, said Foreign Affairs Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah.
One of the ways, he said, is to talk to people whom the junta might listen to.
“If the junta is not going to listen to any one of us from Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), then we have to look at ASEAN dialogue partners that the junta may want to listen to,” he said.
He was speaking at a plenary session of the 19th Shangri-La Dialogue yesterday, on a topic titled “Myanmar: Finding a Way Forward.”
Taking a question from the press after the session on who might the junta listen to, Saifuddin noted that it might be difficult to “state out loud” who they are.
“But people who have been following what’s happening in Myanmar will know there are probably one or two dialogue partners of ASEAN that the junta would listen to more compared to the others.
“So, we have to have a combination of ways. On one hand, adding pressure… on the other hand, talking to people that the junta might want to listen,” he added.
To a question of whether the expulsion of Myanmar from ASEAN is on the table, Saifuddin said no foreign minister in the region has ever spoken of expelling Myanmar.
“I think the only debate that we had… is on the issue of non-interference.
“I have raised the idea of it not being about non-interference, we should hold this principle about non-indifference which is even more important,” he added.
Empower ASEAN special envoys
The minister also expressed his concern that the Myanmar junta may be emboldened by the absence of concrete actions by ASEAN.
“That’s exactly my worry. If we don’t have the answer to those hard questions, by the time the summit meets again at the end of the year, then the junta will have a field day, probably saying ‘see, ASEAN is not able to do much’.”
During the session, Saifuddin also said there is a need to strengthen the role of the ASEAN special envoys.
“We are meeting informally in Delhi for the ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers’ Meeting on June 16 and 17.
“I think in that informal meeting, I would ask my friends to seriously look into how we can strengthen the role of the ASEAN special envoys, including the roadmap.”
5-point consensus
Saifuddin earlier alluded to the roadmap in terms of listing down things that need to be done in a specific timeline, including humanitarian assistance and COVID-19 vaccination given priority.
He reiterated the need for new and creative ways to achieve meaningful implementation of the ASEAN 5-Point Consensus due to the lack of progress.
While the consensus did not indicate its exact stakeholders, he said it must include Aung San Suu Kyi, former president Win Myint, the National Unity Government, and the National Unity Consultative Council.
Saifuddin also stressed there must be no hindrance or discrimination against humanitarian and cross-border assistance and must include local civil society organisations.
“Malaysia regrets that at the Myanmar humanitarian meeting, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar Dr Noeleen Heyzer was uninvited.”
ASEAN, he said, must also develop a regional approach to protect civilians who have left Myanmar, including the Rohingya.
To this end, he said, the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of OIC will organise a conference on the right to education for refugees in Kuala Lumpur in October. – June 12, 2022
