Solving the Myanmar Crisis, Indonesia Follows Up on ASEAN Leaders Recommendations

Jakarta, InfoPublik - Indonesia, as chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) 2023, will follow up on the recommendations of ASEAN leaders in resolving the political crisis in Myanmar.

The Spokesperson for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Teuku Faizasyah, conveyed this in a written statement on Thursday (11/3).

Faizasyah said that Indonesia would first observe the results of the leaders' talks at the ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh on November 10-13, 2022.

The summit aims, among other things, to review the implementation of the Five-Point Consensus on Myanmar, which was previously agreed upon by ASEAN leaders, including Myanmar.

"So the authority lies with the leaders, who may be at the next summit and will review the extent to which the consensus implementation will issue suggestions for future steps," said Faizasyah.

One of the points of the Five-Point Consensus underscores the importance of involving all stakeholders in Myanmar in a constructive dialogue to resolve the crisis triggered by the coup by the military junta in February 2021.

Faizasyah emphasized that ASEAN and its members, including Indonesia, continue to approach at various levels to realize the consensus.

"We observe that various ASEAN countries are communicating which are currently not published," said Faizasyah.

"But it is part of ASEAN's efforts to help resolve problems in Myanmar with various stakeholders - it is in line with the Five-Point Consensus," he said.

ASEAN is an association of 10 countries in Southeast Asia. ASEAN countries are Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar.

Earlier, Myanmar's military junta warned that any pressure from ASEAN to set a timeframe for implementing the consensus would create negative implications. The junta leader argued that the lack of progress in implementing the consensus was due to instability in Myanmar and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week, following a meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers specifically to discuss the Myanmar crisis, Myanmar's military-appointed foreign ministry released a statement blaming the armed resistance movement for the continued violence.

ASEAN countries have expressed their commitment to the Five-Point Consensus to help deal with the Myanmar crisis, even though several countries have voiced concern over Myanmar's failure to implement the peace plan agreed upon with the junta 18 months ago.

No Myanmar representatives were present at the special meeting of ASEAN foreign ministers in Jakarta last week. Myanmar's generals have been barred from attending ASEAN summits since last year, after the military toppled the elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in a February 2021 coup.

The junta considered that ASEAN countries had not done much to honor its commitment to the Five-Point Consensus. The consensus includes ending violence, dialogue with all stakeholders, and appointing special envoys to facilitate mediation and dialogue.

The following points are that Myanmar is asked to open access for ASEAN to provide humanitarian assistance to Myanmar citizens and allow ASEAN special envoys to visit and meet with stakeholders in Myanmar.

Photo Caption: Spokesperson for the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Teuku Faizasyah during a media briefing in Jakarta, Thursday (11/3). ANTARA/Yashinta Difa

Author: Eko Budiono

Editor: Untung S

Translator: Wilda Stiana