August 4, 2022
U Kyaw Mo Tun, the Permanent Representative of Myanmar to the United Nations, has urged the international community to prevent the military from continuing its brutal actions against the people of Myanmar. This call was made during a panel discussion on “Responding to the Ongoing Violence in Myanmar,” organized by the Asia Society Policy Institute on August 3.
In attendance were U Kyaw Mo Tun and former U.S. Ambassador to Myanmar, Scot Marciel. U Kyaw Mo Tun highlighted that:
- The world has witnessed the military’s most egregious acts of brutality and inhumanity, and the urgent call for assistance from the people of Myanmar should not be overlooked.
- The people of Myanmar freely elected their representatives in the 2020 general elections, expressing their democratic will, but the military staged a coup on February 1, 2021, under the pretext of alleged electoral fraud, despite independent election monitoring groups confirming no significant electoral irregularities.
- On August 1, the military leader Min Aung Hlaing announced an extension of the state of emergency by another six months, which is meaningless as the country has been stable and the elected government has successfully conducted democratic elections, while the military has seized and deprived the rights of the people.
- The ongoing military regime will not bring an end to conflicts; military brutality and oppression will not bring stability.
- Recent extra-judicial killings of four pro-democracy activists show the military’s ongoing brutality, indicating that the military’s actions are a violation of human rights and rule of law.
- The resistance against the military regime has gained momentum, uniting various ethnic revolutionary organizations and democratic forces in a manner not seen before, striving for an end to military rule, the restoration of democracy, and the establishment of a federal democratic union.
- In a recent statement by ASEAN’s chair, Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia, he emphasized the ongoing political, security, and economic crises in Myanmar challenge ASEAN’s cohesion and stability.
- There are growing concerns that Myanmar may become a failed state.
- He called on the international community to take six key actions: (1) Suspend all forms of recognition of the military regime; (2) Cut all financial flows to military leaders and their affiliates; (3) Prevent military representation in ASEAN meetings and undertake further actions to halt military rule; (4) Urgently establish an R2P (Responsibility to Protect) policy framework to protect civilians; (5) Provide assistance to the people of Myanmar comparable to that given to Ukraine; and (6) Officially recognize the National Unity Government as the legitimate representative of the people.
- He warned that treating the military rule as normal will only prolong instability and suffering in Myanmar, urging the international community to unite and take decisive actions against military brutality.
Former U.S. Ambassador Scot Marciel also emphasized that the people of Myanmar clearly do not want to return to military rule, as they unite against the military’s tyranny. He noted that the Myanmar military is regarded as one of the most brutal regimes in Asia, especially following the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia.
Daily, the people of Myanmar face severe hardships and are arbitrarily arrested and killed without justification. He stressed the need for the National Unity Government to collaborate with other organizations, urging ASEAN to revisit the five-point consensus, which has become ineffective.
He further stated that the military will not listen to anyone and that meaningful political dialogue is not possible under the current military regime. Therefore, the international community must provide financial support to the National Unity Government and its allies, as the only hope for change in Myanmar lies with its people. Thus, he called for urgent assistance from the international community to support the people of Myanmar.
