Myanmar's senior vice-prince minister Min Aung Hlaing, who ousted the elected government in a coup on February 1, 2012, presides at an Armed Forces parade in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, March 27, 2021. REUTERS Stringer File Photo: Stringer FILE - Requests
Oct 19 Reuters - Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia urged for a harder stand at a regional meeting that determined to exclude Min Aung Hlaing from the leaders of Myanmar and Burma. Four people said it at a tense meeting this month and pushed for the weaker position against the Myanmar Tenta Leader.
Southeast Asian ministers are divided between sticking to a tradition of non-interference and the need to retain credibility by sanctioning the coup leader who has led a bloody crackdown on dissent since seizing power from Myanmar civilian government on February 1, the sources said.
In the end it was Brunei with majority backing who chose to prevent him from attending the official summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations ASEAN and invite instead a non-political representative from Myanmar. The decision broke with ASEAN's decades-long policy of engagement and non-intervention in member countries' affairs.
The mood in the meeting had never been more tense, said one of the people with knowledge of the conversations.
If I said something like this a year ago, you would have said it would never happen, said a regional diplomat. Singapore Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin said on Twitter the outcome of the meeting was a difficult but necessary decision to uphold ASEAN credibility Philippines Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said prior to the meeting that the bloc could no longer afford to take a neutral stance on Myanmar, adding that if it relented, our credibility as a real regional organization disappears If a bunch of guys agree with each other on the valueless things Malaysia's foreign ministry and a spokesperson for Indonesia's foreign
The 10 - member ASEAN includes Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Thailand.
New international pressure has mounted on Myanmar to take a tougher line against ASEAN's failure to take agreed steps to end violence, allow humanitarian access and start dialogue with its opponents.
The grouping's perceived ineptitude has sparked outrage in Myanmar, with some anti-junta protesters burning the Block's flag.
Since overthrowing Aung San Suu Kyi government, arresting her and most of her allies and ending a decade of tentative democracy, Myanmar military has killed more than 1,000 people and arrested thousands in a bid to crush resistance, monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners says.
Fighting has flared in pro-democracy forces against junta troops and hastily assembled pro-consolidations armed groups.
Earlier, a spokesman blamed ASEAN's decision on other intervention saying the United States and other members of the European Union had pressured foreign members of the grouping.
For decades Myanmar s military has been a thorny issue for the regional bloc, as previous ruling juntas came under fire for brutally crushing pro-democracy movements.
Friday decision came after months of failed diplomacy over the crisis and days after plans were scrapped for a visit to Myanmar by ASEAN's special envoy Aung San Suu Kyi when the junta denied him a meeting with Erywan Yusof citing the criminal charges she faces.
These include violating the official secrets act.
Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore floated the idea of sidelining the junta head at a meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers in the regional calendar this month, said the regional diplomat, as a tactic to gain access to Suu Kyi, who is held at an unknown location.
Two source told there were fears that Min Aung Hlaing's presence would deter other global leaders from attending the larger East Asia Summit, which is set for a few days after the ASEAN Summit.
Last week, U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres postponed a call with Myanmar ministers to get into the same room as a Southeast Asian military representative.
The threats to disengage weren t made, at least explicitly, but there was anxiety on the part of member states that it would begin to affect ASEAN credibility in a broader sense, said Aaron Connelly, a Southeast Asia researcher at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
The regional leaders discussed on Friday requests to attend the summit from Myanmar s parallel civilian government, the National Unity Government, which two sources said has been in quiet talks with Indonesia, among other nations, but stopped short.
The selection of a neutral representative now falls to the junta, which is likely to choose someone seen as comparatively neutral but tied to regime, three sources said.
But the decision to sideline Min Aung Hlaing represents the most severe sanction that any ASEAN member states have ever been dealt by the organisation, said Connelly.
People regionwide have lost faith and hope in the mechanisms of ASEAN to protect its own community members, said Fuadi Pitsuwan, a fellow in Chiang Mai University School of Public Policy.
It is time to re-evaluate the non interference principle.
Let s see whether this would kick start another round of existential debate and whether it would end differently.