The Myanmar military, led by Army General Min Aung Hlaing, launched a coup against the civilian government on February 1, 2021, declaring the results of the November 2020 general election invalid. President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and other senior officials of the governing National League for Democracy Party were arrested on the grounds of widespread fraud in the general election, which the NLD won with a large majority.
On April 24, 2021, Asean held a high-level summit in Jakarta to discuss the mounting crisis in Myanmar. In attendance was Junta Leader Min Aung Hlaing. A five-point consensus plan was agreed at the summit: An immediate cessation of violence in Myanmar, constructive dialogue among all parties, the appointment of a special Asean envoy to facilitate dialogue, the provision of humanitarian assistance, and a visit by the envoy to Myanmar. The summit failed to call for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners.
The Asean’s five-point consensus plan to resolve the crisis in Myanmar miserably failed, mostly because of the junta’s uncompromising military leadership. More than two years after the 2021 coup, Myanmar remains in deep crisis, with the economy moribund and millions in need of humanitarian assistance. The civilian death toll at the hands of the junta reached an estimated 3,000 last month, while more than 15,800 people remain in unlawful detention, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which monitors regime killings and arrests.
The junta said national elections will be held in August. On January 26, 2023, the junta announced the Political Party Registration Law, which repeals a 2010 legislation. The new law prohibits anyone previously convicted of a crime or serving a prison term from joining a political party. This disqualifies many senior members of the NLD, including party leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, both serving lengthy sentences on fabricated charges.
From the Associated Press: “Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to speak up and hold Myanmar’s military leaders accountable for blatant human rights violations, but said the country should remain in the regional bloc. Anwar, who took office in November, has become one of the most vocal critics in Asean of Myanmar’s military, which seized power from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021.”
During his visit to the Philippines, Anwar discussed the Myanmar crisis with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and called on Asean to explore new ways to persuade Myanmar’s ruling generals to halt the violence, saying it is affecting the region. “They need to do more because it is causing us a major problem, we have 200,000 (Myanmar) refugees in Malaysia alone,” Anwar told The Associated Press after delivering a lecture Thursday at the University of the Philippines, at which he received an honorary degree for advocating democracy and fighting corruption.
In his lecture, Anwar urged Asean to speak up on atrocities in Myanmar and not be restrained by the group’s bedrock principles of deciding by consensus and non-intervention in each other’s domestic affairs. Deciding by consensus “does not mean that Asean should remain silent over developments in member states that affect the wider region or particularly egregious violations of the Asean charter by its own members,” Anwar said. “In all honesty, I believe that non-interference is not a license for indifference,” he added.
Western nations have taken strong actions, including political and economic sanctions against the Myanmar generals and their cronies. Under intense international pressure, Asean excluded top Myanmar officials from the bloc’s meetings starting in 2021. Pundits said the regional bloc can do more to help the people of Myanmar by declaring this early that they will not accept the military junta’s sham election. The generals are counting on Asean to accept the elections, which is seen conferring legitimacy on a military-dominated government that will emerge. It would do well for Asean members to help explore ingenious ways to end the Myanmar crisis.