Kuala Lumpur, May 4 — Several opposition MPs have expressed their support for Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah’s proposal for ASEAN to establish an informal engagement with the National Unity Government (NUG), elected by the people of Myanmar before the military coup.
PKR’s Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin said Saifuddin’s suggestion is an attempt to break the impasse, as there has been no progress for the past year on the implementation of the Asean Five-Point Consensus (5PC).
“They (Myanmar) refuse to cooperate and there is no progress. That is why I think the foreign minister is trying to find a new solution to this stalemate, breaking through so that there is progress.”
“This is because as ASEAN, we need to be respected in the world on the basis of the rule of law, democratic institutions, and also human rights.”
“I think the Malaysian government’s stance is correct. In terms of the foreign minister’s statement, we must support Malaysia’s stand against Myanmar,” Sim told Malaysiakini.
Charles Santiago, who is the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights chairman, said countries in the region should ignore the Myanmar military junta’s views on the proposal.
This comes after the junta, known as the State Administration Council (SAC), slammed a proposal by Saifuddin for ASEAN to engage with the National Unity Government, especially when it comes to humanitarian relief.
Describing the SAC’s response as “outrageous”, the Klang MP said its remarks against Putrajaya’s proposal showed SAC’s “nervousness”, especially in the face of increasing international isolation.
“It is especially galling that Myanmar’s SAC dares to describe Saifuddin’s proposal as irresponsible and reckless,” said Santiago.
“A junta that has staged a coup d’état against a democratically elected government, has thrown Myanmar into chaos and is committing all kinds of atrocities against the population of the country to consolidate its power, utterly lacks any moral authority to make such accusations.”
Myanmar has come under the control of the military junta since Feb 1, 2021, after a coup d’état overthrew Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government.
On May 1, Saifuddin said Malaysia would suggest that Asean enters into informal relations with the exiled NUG government, as no progress had been made last year in implementing the 5PC to find a solution to the political stalemate in the country.
“We are not proposing Asean to recognize other governments, the informal relationship may be conceivable, especially how we deliver humanitarian aid to the people of Myanmar who are still in their country,” the foreign minister said.
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