The International Parliamentary Inquiry publishes its report urging the global community to support democracy in Myanmar

The International Parliamentary Inquiry publishes its report urging the global community to support democracy in Myanmar

International actors should help Myanmar to put an end to the violence and human rights violations perpetrated by the military junta since the coup in February 2021, put the country’s military under civilian control, and establish a federal democratic system, argued the International Parliamentary Inquiry into the global response response to the crisis in Myanmar (IPI) in its final report,  published today.

The report, titled “Time is not on our side”: The Failed International Response to the Myanmar Coup, contains an analysis of the situation in Myanmar since the military takeover, as well as the reaction of international actors. Finding that the global response to the crisis has fallen woefully short of international obligations and standards, the IPI offers a set of recommendations to move forward and help the Myanmar people in their struggle against military dictatorship.

“It is imperative that the international community changes course on Myanmar as soon as possible, and those countries claiming to support democracy and human rights in the country live up to their stated commitments. They should begin with recognizing the National Unity Government of Myanmar (NUG) as what it is: the legitimate authority in the country; impose effective and coordinated sanctions on the junta, and address the terrible humanitarian crisis afflicting Myanmar,” said Heidi Hautala, Vice President of the European Parliament and IPI Chair.

The IPI is an initiative launched by ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) in June 2022. Its Committee is formed by eight parliamentarians from seven different countries in Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe who are appalled by the situation in Myanmar since the military takeover.

Since the coup, the Myanmar military has committed acts which the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has said may amount to “crimes against humanity and war crimes” in order to consolidate its power against widespread popular resistance to its rule, throwing the country into chaos, and leading it to the brink of becoming a failed state.

The IPI Committee has held a total of six public oral hearings online, as well as several private hearings, with dozens of stakeholders and experts, and has received dozens of written submissions. Two of its members conducted a fact-finding mission to the Thai-Myanmar border in August 2022.

The Inquiry has analyzed the response to the crisis in Myanmar of a wide variety of international actors, but has paid particular attention to the role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in which Myanmar is a member. In April 2021, ASEAN member states and the Myanmar junta, led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, signed the Five-Point Consensus to put an end to the violence, seek a negotiated solution to the conflict and address the humanitarian crisis. Since then, many countries have expressed their support for the agreement and largely deferred to ASEAN to solve the crisis.

“It has become abundantly clear that the Five Point Consensus has been an utter failure. General Min Aung Hlaing has shown an absolute contempt for the agreement he signed and for ASEAN’s member states, and the regional group has been unable to adopt a stance to put pressure on the Junta. Meanwhile, most of the international community has hidden behind ASEAN in order to avoid doing anything meaningful. It is past time that ASEAN ditches the Five Point Consensus and urgently rethinks its approach to the crisis in Myanmar,” said Charles Santiago, former Member of Parliament (MP) in Malaysia, APHR Chairperson and IPI Committee Member.

In the latest meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers on Myanmar, held on 27 October, the regional group agreed to “reaffirmed the importance and relevance of the Five-Point Consensus” while underscoring “the need to further strengthen its implementation through concrete, practical and time-bound actions.”

“ASEAN is not acting with the urgency that the situation in Myanmar demands. The group should have started to put real pressure on the junta and engage the NUG long ago. It is unacceptable that ASEAN continue to shirk their responsibilities to the people of Myanmar, and continue adopting half-hearted measures that only serve to embolden Min Aung Hlaing and his junta,” added Santiago.

International passivity has encouraged a sense of impunity within the Myanmar military, which most recently launched an airstrike on a multitude attending a music festival in Kachin state, killing at least 60 civilians. By the most conservative estimates, the junta has killed at least 2,404 Myanmar citizens, and arrested over 16,000 people.

The violence has also displaced hundreds of thousands from their homes, and the number of internally displaced people in the country now has reached 1.3 million, a terrible record in Myanmar’s history. Many interviewees during the IPI oral hearings described in vivid detail the humanitarian catastrophe afflicting the Myanmar people, as well as how the military junta is hijacking and weaponizing the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

“Myanmar is suffering a tragedy words cannot describe. The global community should urgently step up the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and it should work with local civil society organizations that know the terrain well, have ample experience and are trusted by the population. Millions of Myanmar citizens suffering the most grievous hardships cannot wait for long. International actors should leave politics aside and help the Myanmar people immediately,” said Mercy Barends, APHR Board Member and IPI Committee Member.

Click here to read the IPI report, “Time is not on our side”: The Failed International Response to the Myanmar Coup.

Click here to read the report’s Executive Summary and Recommendations in Burmese.

Click here to read the report’s Executive Summary and Recommendations in Indonesian.

Click here to read the report’s Executive Summary and Recommendations in Malay.

Click here to read the report’s Executive Summary and Recommendations in Thai.

Parliamentarians call on ASEAN to take concrete steps on Myanmar at Summit, meet with NUG

Parliamentarians call on ASEAN to take concrete steps on Myanmar at Summit, meet with NUG

Click here for a Myanmar translation of this statement

Click here for a Thai translation of this statement

Click here for an Indonesian translation of this statement

Click here for a Malay translation of this statement

Click here for a Khmer translation of this statement

JAKARTA – Southeast Asian parliamentarians call on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to use this week’s ASEAN Summit to take concrete actions to resolve the disastrous situation in Myanmar, including by immediately engaging with the National Unity Government (NUG).

“We’re soon approaching one year since the Myanmar military conducted its coup and launched unspeakable violence and terror against the people, and devastated millions of lives,” said Charles Santiago, chair of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) and a Malaysian Member of Parliament (MP).  “This week’s Summit must be the occasion for the bloc to put in place concrete steps to help the people of Myanmar, who everyday since February 1 have so bravely displayed to the world that they do not accept this murderous junta.”

APHR is encouraged by ASEAN’s decision to exclude coup leader Min Aung Hlaing from attending this week’s ASEAN Summit, citing a lack of progress on the Five-Point Consensus on Myanmar agreed in April, but called for much more to be done. 

“We recognize that ASEAN took a major step in disinviting Min Aung Hlaing and letting him know that his toying with them doesn’t come free of consequences. Now our regional leaders must use this unprecedented opportunity to step up their response even further, and make real progress on putting Myanmar back on the democratic path. First and foremost, ASEAN must meet officially and publicly with representatives of the duly elected NUG.” said Santiago. 

ASEAN’s credibility depends on its ability to act decisively and bring the Myanmar military junta to end its relentless campaign of violence against the people of Myanmar, APHR said.  In particular, it must hold the Myanmar military to the Five-Point Consensus agreed between the leaders of nine ASEAN Member States and Min Aung Hlaing in April.

Further, ASEAN must discontinue inviting any other junta representatives to all ASEAN official meetings until there is an end to violence, all political prisoners are freed, and the will of the people for fully-fledged democracy has been heard, the group said.

ASEAN member states, in particular Thailand, must also be supported by the region and ASEAN Dialogue partners to respond to the movement of refugees in a way that respects human rights, including by providing humanitarian assistance and by allowing those fleeing Myanmar to seek asylum, APHR said.

“As well as threatening regional stability and peace, let’s not lose sight of the fact that Myanmar’s junta leaders are also accused of the worst crimes imaginable, including genocide. There’s only one place Min Aung Hlaing belongs: not at ASEAN’s next meeting, but in an international court of justice,” Santiago said. 

Open Letter to ASEAN Leaders Re: Myanmar’s presence at the ASEAN Summit

Open Letter to ASEAN Leaders Re: Myanmar’s presence at the ASEAN Summit

OPEN LETTER TO ASEAN LEADERS

Click here to download the pdf file.

Click here to download the Bahasa Indonesia translation.

Click here to download the Malay translation.

Click here to download the Thai translation.

To: ASEAN Leaders

H.E. Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, Prime Minister of Brunei

H.E Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia

H.E Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia

H.E Thongloun Sisoulith, Prime Minister of Laos

H.E Dato’ Sri Ismail Sabri, Prime Minister of Malaysia

H.E Rodrigo Roa Duterte, President of the Philippines

H.E Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Singapore

H.E Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand

H.E. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Prime Minister of Vietnam

CC: ASEAN Dialogue Partners

H.E. Will Nankervis, Ambassador of Australia to ASEAN

H.E. Diedrah Kelly, Ambassador of Canada to ASEAN

H.E. Deng Xijun, Ambassador of China to ASEAN

H.E. Igor Driesmans, Ambassador of the European Union to ASEAN

H.E. Shri Jayant N. Khobragade, Ambassador of India to ASEAN

H.E. Chiba Akira, Ambassador of Japan to ASEAN

H.E. Lim Sungnam, Ambassador of Korea to ASEAN

H.E. Pam Dunn, Ambassador of New Zealand to ASEAN

H.E. Alexander Ivanov, Ambassador of Russia to ASEAN

H.E. Melissa A. Brown, Chargé d’Affaires, a.i., U.S. Mission to ASEAN

                                                                                                                               13 October 2021

Re: Myanmar’s presence at the ASEAN Summit 

Your Excellencies,  

We, the undersigned organisations, write to you to urge you not to extend an invitation to Myanmar’s military junta to the upcoming ASEAN Summit on 25 to 28 October because of the military’s blatant disregard for the Five Point Consensus agreed at the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting and continuing refusal to cooperate with ASEAN towards its implementation.

We welcome the remarks made by the Foreign Ministers of Indonesia and Malaysia who questioned whether the junta should be invited to the Summit and urge the other Member States to come to the same conclusion. 

ASEAN’s credibility depends on its ability to act decisively and bring an end to the Myanmar military junta’s relentless violence against the people of Myanmar. A lack of decisiveness and consequences for the military’s total contempt for the ASEAN’s leaders’ agreement risks undermining the bloc’s legitimacy as a key regional player that can bring peace and stability.

On 24 April 2021, the leaders of nine Member States and the Myanmar junta, represented by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, agreed on a consensus that included the “immediate cessation of violence”, constructive dialogue among all parties, the appointment of an ASEAN special envoy on Myanmar, humanitarian assistance to be delivered to the country, and for the Special Envoy and delegation to visit Myanmar to “meet with all parties concerned“. 

Myanmar’s junta has failed to respect this consensus on every single count.

Since the Myanmar junta agreed to immediately cease the violence on 25th April till the end of September there have been 3,534 attacks either on civilians by the military or armed clashes that failed to protect civilians – that’s an 840% increase from the same period in 2020 (376). Thousands have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety. Violent acts amounting to crimes against humanity have been documented. It is clear that junta leader Min Aung Hlaing will not stop in his attempts to crush the democratic opposition to his rule.

The military junta has also continually opposed any form of dialogue. Zaw Min Tun, the military’s spokesman, recently said that dialogue between the ASEAN Special Envoy and the State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, the National Unity Government and People’s Defence Forces could not take place because they have been declared by the junta as “illegal organizations”. The junta’s stalling tactics also contributed to the delay in announcing Brunei’s Foreign Affairs Minister II Erywan Yusof as ASEAN’s special envoy to Myanmar.

While we note aid commitments made to the AHA Centre and delivered through the Myanmar Red Cross, it is important to recall that the Myanmar military’s own actions are creating the current humanitarian crisis engulfing the country. According to the United Nations (UN), three million people require assistance. That number has tripled over the last eight months. In addition to that, there are now 20 million people living below the poverty line – nearly half the population. Yet, the military junta is weaponizing humanitarian aid; blocking the distribution of supplies, placing travel restrictions on humanitarian workers, hoarding and destroying aid, and attacking civilians, health and humanitarian aid workers. 

It is clear that Myanmar’s military has displayed a flagrant lack of respect for ASEAN, and in fact since the coup, it appears to have used the bloc to try to gain legitimacy while at the same time increasing its brutal reprisals against the people.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has also warned that the opportunity to prevent the Myanmar junta from entrenching its rule could be narrowing. He has called for unified regional and international action to prevent the crisis from becoming a large-scale conflict and multi-faceted “catastrophe” in Southeast Asia and beyond.

It is time for ASEAN to act decisively. This starts by denying the Myanmar junta the legitimacy it craves, and which has been rejected constantly by the people of Myanmar. The junta has refused to cooperate with regional and international neighbors, failed to stand by the commitments it has made, and exposed to the world not only its barbaric brutality but also an inability to deal with the deepening social and economic disaster currently taking place in the country, which includes the dereliction of public health services amid the global pandemic. 

Reiterating the remarks of Malaysia and Indonesia’s foreign ministers, a firm united response by the other Member States is required. The Myanmar junta’s actions must not be accepted as “business as usual.” They are endangering the stability, prosperity, peace and health of the region.

We therefore call on ASEAN leaders to deny the head of the Myanmar military junta a seat at the table and display to him that his callous disregard for the people, and his regional neighbors, does not come free of consequences. 

Sincerely, 

Signatories:

  1. A Lin Thitsar
  2. A Lin Yaung Pan Daing
  3. A Naga Alin
  4. Action Committee for Democracy Development
  5. All Arakan Students’ and Youths’ Congress
  6. ALTSEAN Burma
  7. ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR)
  8. Assistance Association for Political Prisoners
  9. Association of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters
  10. Athan – Freedom of Expression Activist Organization
  11. Backpack Health Workers Team
  12. Burma Medical Association
  13. Burmese Women’s Union
  14. CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
  15. Democracy for Ethnic Minorities Organization
  16. Democracy, Peace and Women’s Organization – DPW
  17. Equality Myanmar
  18. FORUM-ASIA
  19. Freedom and Labor Action Group
  20. Future Light Center
  21. Future Thanlwin
  22. Generation Wave
  23. Human Rights Foundation of Monland
  24. Kachin Women’s Association Thailand
  25. Karen Environmental and Social Action Network (KESAN)
  26. Karen Human Rights Group
  27. Karen Peace Support Network
  28. Karen River Watch (KRW)
  29. Karen Women’s Organization
  30. Karenni Civil Society Network
  31. Karenni Human Rights Group
  32. Karenni National Women’s Organization
  33. Keng Tung Youth
  34. Let’s Help Each Other
  35. Metta Campaign Mandalay
  36. Myanmar Peace Bikers
  37. Myanmar People Alliance (Shan State)
  38. Network for Advocacy Action Tanintharyi Women Network
  39. Network for Human Rights Documentation – Burma (ND-Burma)
  40. Olive Organization
  41. Progressive Voice
  42. Save and Care Organization for Ethnic Women at Border Areas
  43. Save the Salween Network (SSN)
  44. Shan MATA
  45. Southern Youth Development Organization
  46. Spring Revolution Interfaith Network
  47. Synergy – Social Harmony Organization
  48. Tanintharyi MATA
  49. Thint Myat Lo Thu Myar
  50. Union of Karenni State Youth
  51. Women Advocacy Coalition – Myanmar
  52. Women’s League of Burma
    1. Burmese Women’s Union (BWU)
    2. Kachin Women’s Association-Thailand (KWAT)
    3. Karen Women’s Organization (KWO)
    4. Karenni National Women’s Organization (KNWO)
    5. Kayan Women’s Organization (KyWO)
    6. Kuki Women’s Human Rights Organization (KWHRO)
    7. Lahu Women’s Organization (LWO)
    8. Pa-O Women’s Union (PWU)
    9. Shan Women’s Action Network (SWAN)
    10. Ta’ang Women’s Organization (TWO)
    11. Tavoy Women’s Union (TWU)
    12. Women for Justice (WJ)

 

Open Letter: Leaders must address COVID-19 human rights concerns at 36th ASEAN Summit

Open Letter: Leaders must address COVID-19 human rights concerns at 36th ASEAN Summit

H.E. Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phuc, 
Prime Minister of Viet Nam
16 Le Hong Phong Street, 
Ba Dinh District,
Ha Noi, Viet Nam

25 June 2020

Your Excellency, 

Re: Leaders must address COVID-19 human rights concerns at 36th ASEAN Summit 

As a regional network of parliamentarians from Southeast Asia committed to the promotion and protection of human rights, we write to you on the occasion of this week’s 36th ASEAN Summit, to urge you to ensure that ASEAN’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath places human rights at its centre. 

While our region should be commended for being reasonably successful in containing the spread of the virus, the pandemic exposed major weaknesses and inequalities in our governance systems. The region failed to protect those in the most vulnerable situations, in particular its migrant workers and refugees. It has also seen a surge in restrictions on freedom of expression and in hateful rhetoric against marginalised groups.  

However, the gathering of the region’s leaders under your chairmanship this week presents an opportunity to demonstrate that ASEAN can learn and grow from these challenging times, by ensuring that from this point on, our region’s policies are inclusive of all and promote a more just, sustainable and equal society. 

This should begin by ensuring that the region collectively moves towards greater environmental sustainability and social justice. Post-COVID 19 economic recovery plans are a unique occasion for our economies to move away from a reliance on fossil fuels and coal, and towards renewable energy projects that reduce contributions to climate change. 

Post-COVID19 economic stimulus investments should also reach small and medium-sized enterprises, and be used to prioritise the creation of sustainable and decent employment. We urge you as leaders to see that these are necessary steps to not only avoid future shocks and crises, but also to be better prepared to absorb their impact and guarantee the long-term economic prosperity of the region.

Greater regional cooperation and assistance will also be necessary to ensure that everyone in ASEAN has access to basic services and social protection measures, including those working in the informal sector and migrant workers. Having strong social protections programs and ensuring basic services to all will help mitigate the impact of the economic crisis and help our region recover faster. 

The pandemic has deepened already existing inequalities, with women and girls being disproportionately affected. Economically they are more at risk of falling into poverty and facing food insecurity, and have also faced restricted access to sexual and reproductive health services, as well as a rise in sexual and gender-based violence. For ASEAN’s post-COVID-19 economic and social policies to be effective they must take into consideration this differentiated impact, be gender responsive and ensure women’s equal participation in all policies and decision making. 

Regional peace will also be crucial to guaranteeing a just and sustainable recovery from the crisis. In that regard, we are extremely concerned by the rise in xenophobic and hateful rhetoric. Our region is sadly well-placed to know how hateful comments on social media can translate into violence, deaths, and deep divides among societies. 

We therefore urge you and all ASEAN leaders to immediately publicly acknowledge the risk that hate speech represents and to speak out against discrimination of all kinds. Your intervention, as our region’s leaders, could play an important preventative role to ensure unity and peace. 

Finally, we would like to exhort you to use your leadership to organise urgent collective search and rescue operations for boats carrying Rohingya refugees and to organise for their proper disembarkation. We cannot overstate the shame that falls upon us collectively when our governments choose to push people back to die at sea. 

Ultimately, addressing this situation will require that ASEAN fully uses its political leverage to ensure that Myanmar addresses the root causes of the human rights crisis in Rakhine State, ends all attacks on civilians and restores the rights of the Rohingya. 

In the spirit of a “Cohesive and Responsive ASEAN,” we hope that Vietnam will use its leadership to ensure that ASEAN’s “new normal” is one of a truly people-centered ASEAN – that is inclusive, sustainable, and that benefits all. 

Yours sincerely,

Charles Santiago 
Chairperson of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights Member of Parliament, Malaysia 

CC: 

His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah
H.E Prime Minister Hun Sen
H.E President Joko Widodo
H.E Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith
H.E Tan Sri Muhyiddin Haji Mohd Yassin
H.E State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi 
H.E President Rodrigo Roa Duterte
H.E Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong
H.E Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha

Parliamentarians urge ASEAN leaders to put human rights at the forefront

Parliamentarians urge ASEAN leaders to put human rights at the forefront

A Thai version of this statement is available here.

JAKARTA – Parliamentarians from across Southeast Asia today called on their leaders to not overlook the most pressing challenges facing the region when they gather in Thailand for the ASEAN Summit this week.

The 35th ASEAN Summit will be held from November 2–4 in Bangkok, but regional lawmakers are concerned that ASEAN leaders will once again fail to discuss the rise in authoritarianism and lack of commitment by states in protecting human rights. Of particular concern remain ongoing human rights violations and persecution of the Rohingya and other ethnic minorities in Myanmar, the demolition of democracy and assault on dissent in Cambodia, the lack of accountability for the thousands of extra-judicial killing victims in the Philippines, as well as the continued suppression of civil and political rights and military interference in politics in Thailand, said ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR).

“The list of issues that could and should be discussed at this summit is just too long, and too serious, to reel off in sufficient detail, but we all know the likelihood of any of them being addressed over the coming days is minimal. APHR and civil society organizations have repeatedly called on ASEAN to step up, but it has always failed to do so. Regardless of the well-meaning intentions that some of the region’s leaders may have, ASEAN does not provide even an inch of space for meaningful dialogue on human rights abuses against its own citizens,” said Charles Santiago, Malaysian MP and APHR Chair.

Among the many concerns that require urgent regional attention, APHR has consistently highlighted ASEAN’s failure to respond sufficiently to allegations of genocide being committed in one of its member states and ensure full accountability for the crimes.

“The suffering of the Rohingya has no end in sight,” said Eva Sundari, former Indonesian MP and APHR Board Member. “ASEAN needs to live up to its responsibility and use its position to press Myanmar to address the root causes of the crisis, including restoring the rights of the Rohingya. Any discussion of repatriation is futile unless we listen to the Rohingya’s demands and Myanmar can guarantee their safety and dignity.” 

Meanwhile, authoritarian governments are closing democratic space and targeting activists and opposition members for their peaceful criticism against ruling government policies. 

APHR has documented the growing trend of judicial harassment and persecution of the opposition in Cambodia, Thailand, and the Philippines. This year, more than 50 activists and opposition members from the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) have been arrested, placed in pre-trial detention and forced to admit their “crime” for peacefully expressing their right to freedom of expression, creating an atmosphere of fear among the general public. In Thailand, the authorities must immediately lift restrictions on fundamental freedoms and end their attempts to silence the opposition and civil society. APHR also issued a report exposing the crackdown on political opponents of the Philippine government.

Parliamentarians warned ASEAN that by failing to live up to its stated principles of democracy and hold member-states to their commitments to human rights, the grouping could become fractured. They also stressed the important role played by the international community in pushing for greater respect for human rights in the region. ASEAN leaders will meet with key dialogue partners at the East Asia Summit, as well as in separate summits with China, Japan, the US, India, and the United Nations.

“Supporting authoritarian regimes that are suppressing the rights and freedoms of their people will not lead us to the long-term peace and prosperity which ASEAN hopes to achieve. We must also not forget that Laos, Brunei, and Vietnam are no closer to opening up than they were a decade ago,” said Kasit Piromya, former Thai MP and APHR Board Member.

“As the Chair of ASEAN this year, Thailand should lead by example in finally speaking up, and international leaders attending the Summit must urge ASEAN and its member states to put human rights at the forefront.”