Myanmar junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing (Source: AFP)

Southeast Asian parliamentarians are calling on the ASEAN and the international community to take swift action against the illegal military junta led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in Myanmar.

The call comes following a roundtable discussion on the Myanmar crisis held on 6 March  2023, in Jakarta as part of the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights’ (APHR) annual members’ forum.

The discussion included parliamentarians and civil society organizations from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste, and Myanmar.

The parliamentarians stressed that the humanitarian catastrophe caused by the junta’s atrocities in Myanmar is of gigantic proportions. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced from their homes, bringing the total number of internally displaced persons in Myanmar to more than a record 1.3 million.

APHR Chair Mercy Barends called on ASEAN to stop treating the junta with kid gloves and apply strong pressure to isolate the Myanmar military.

“The crisis in Myanmar is causing a humanitarian catastrophe of gigantic proportions. The junta’s atrocities have displaced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Adding to previous displacements before the coup, the number of internally displaced persons in Myanmar now stands at more than a record 1.3 million. The sole 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 Barends, who is also a member of the Indonesian House of Representatives.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has reported that over 16,000 political prisoners are currently jailed in abysmal conditions, and at least 3,075 people have been killed by the military since the coup.

APHR monitoring also shows that 84 members of the national and sub-national parliaments remain in detention, with some facing the risk of torture and execution. Most ousted parliamentarians continue their work in hiding and are at risk of detention or even death.

The parliamentarians also urged the international community to recognize the National Unity Government and the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) as the legitimately elected representatives of the people of Myanmar and involve them in any future negotiations.

“One of the first steps is to recognize the National Unity Government and the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) as the legitimately elected representatives of the people of Myanmar and involve them in any future negotiations.” said António de Sá Benevides, a member of Parliament of Timor Leste and APHR Member.

They further cited the International Parliamentary Inquiry (IPI) into the global response to the crisis in Myanmar, organized by APHR in 2022, which found that the global community has largely failed to provide the help that the people of Myanmar sorely need.

Charles Santiago, the former member of the Malaysian Parliament and APHR Co-Chair, emphasized that Indonesia, as Chair of ASEAN this year, has a duty to step up and tell the generals in Naypyidaw that enough is enough.

He called on Jakarta to put significant pressure on the Myanmar military and support the pro-democracy forces led by the NUG if it is serious about solving the crisis.

The parliamentarians’ call for concrete action against the illegal military junta in Myanmar comes at a time when the world is grappling with multiple crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and regional security issues.

However, they argue that the crisis in Myanmar is an affront to humanity and that fellow humans should not stand idly as the military continues to violate the human rights of the Myanmar people.

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