Myanmar junta to mull over Asean's proposals to end violence

YANGON • Myanmar's junta has said it will give "careful consideration to constructive suggestions" from Asean on ways to end violence in the country, noting any suggestions would need to fit with the junta's stated road map and come after "stability" is restored.

Leaders of the 10-member Asean, including junta leader Min Aung Hlaing, appeared to have reached a "five-point consensus" on Myanmar during a special summit in Jakarta on Saturday that included an "immediate cessation of violence" following the military takeover on Feb 1.

According to the consensus, the bloc would appoint an envoy to mediate talks between "all parties" in Myanmar. It would also provide humanitarian assistance.

However, in a press release yesterday, the military's State Administration Council said the Asean leaders' "suggestions" would be "positively considered" only if they facilitate the junta's platform and "served the interest of the country".

"Myanmar informed the meeting that it will give careful consideration to constructive suggestions made by Asean leaders when the situation returns to stability in the country since priorities at the moment were to maintain law and order and to restore community peace and tranquility," the junta said in its first official comment on the meeting.

The release was also presented to the Asean Secretariat in Jakarta.

General Min Aung Hlaing, in comments reported in state media, said: "The visits to Myanmar proposed by Asean will be considered after stabilising the country."

The statement lowers expectations that the dialogue process will prompt the military to release state counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, 75, and other detained civilian leaders, or alter a plan to hold a fresh election in early 2022 following a year-long period of emergency rule.

Asean's move to appoint a special envoy is unusual for the bloc, which traditionally has avoided direct interventions into domestic political disputes.

Since overthrowing the civilian-led government, the junta has killed more than 750 protesters throughout the country with nearly 3,500 others detained or sentenced to prison, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.

Ethnic minority Karen insurgents attacked a Myanmar army outpost near the Thai border yesterday in some of the most intense clashes since the coup. The Karen National Union (KNU), Myanmar's oldest rebel force, said it had captured the army camp on the west bank of the Salween river, which forms the border with Thailand.

Mr Saw Taw Nee, head of KNU's Foreign Affairs Department, said by phone yesterday that the Karen National Liberation Army, the armed wing of KNU, attacked the border post in Thaw Le Hta near Thailand's north-western town of Mae Hong Son, resulting in several casualties.

The Myanmar military later hit back with air strikes, the KNU and Thai authorities said.

Mr Saw Taw Nee said over 30,000 residents have fled to safe zones since the national army, or Tatmadaw, conducted deadly air strikes last month. At the time, fighter jets came out in retaliation against an attack by the group on a military base in which 10 soldiers were killed and another eight were captured.

Earlier this month, Ms Aung San Suu Kyi's close allies joined ethnic groups to form a new unity government, escalating the possibility of a prolonged conflict with the junta. The members would also push for the formation of a union army to take on the military.

Mr Saw Taw Nee said at the time that such an army is "essential", though it would take time as negotiations are ongoing. "The junta is making people live with fear in the mainland as well as in KNU-controlled areas," he said. "We, the KNU, accept forming the federal army in principle, but it is not realistic it will be formed in a short period of time."

The Myanmar army made no comment on yesterday's attack.

About 24,000 people are sheltering in the jungle after being displaced in recent weeks by violence near the Thai border, including military air strikes, Karen groups say.

Fighting has also flared in the north and west, where the Irrawaddy news site reported 13 government soldiers were killed in clashes in Chin State over the past few days.

Protesters against the junta were out in force in several places yesterday, including the main city of Yangon, where hundreds staged a "flash mob" march down a street chanting slogans and holding banners, images on social media showed.

REUTERS, BLOOMBERG