Malaysia’s Anwar says Asean cannot view Myanmar crisis as a ‘purely internal’ issue

PM Anwar says the 10-nation grouping should explore new ways on how Myanmar’s junta can be persuaded to resolve the civil conflict

He added Asean should take a more comprehensive approach as a bloc to try to achieve ‘an amicable resolution’ to the South China Sea dispute with Beijing

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Protesters flash the three-finger salute during a demonstration outside the embassy of Myanmar in Bangkok on February 1, 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 8:00am, 2 Mar 2023

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim has called for new ways to persuade Myanmar’s ruling generals to resolve the civil conflict, as he revealed more than 200,000 refugees had fled Myanmar to his country.

Anwar made the comment in Manila, where he was visiting as part of his first regional tour since taking office last November.

During talks with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, Anwar said they also discussed the South China Sea territorial disputes, which had embroiled their countries along with China and other coastal states, and ways to further boost ties.

“I did express my concern about the contentious, unresolved Myanmar issue which is affecting Malaysia adversely due to the huge number of refugees exceeding 200,000 people now in Malaysia,” Anwar said.

Malaysia’s PM Anwar Ibrahim (left) and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr shake hands at Malakanang presidential palace in Manila on March 1, 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE

Since the military takeover in Myanmar in 2021, security forces have killed thousands of civilians and army sweeps through the countryside have displaced more than 1 million people. In 2017, a brutal counter-insurgency campaign against the Muslim Rohingya minority drove more than 740,000 to flee across the border to Bangladesh, where they remain in refugee camps.

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