As I see it | Malaysian PM Anwar’s suggestion of Asean ‘carving out Myanmar’ faces uphill task

Name: Myanmar under the military junta 2 years on: Thousands dead, economy in shambles, future uncertain
Uploaded: 2023-02-17T00:00:14.000Z
Duration: 3 min 33 s
Description: Myanmar under the military junta 2 years on: Thousands dead, economy in shambles, future uncertain

Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim suggested this week that Asean should ‘carve Myanmar out’, drawing debate whether the bloc has the will to suspend a member

Currently, Myanmar’s military officials are only barred from high-level gatherings, such as the Asean Summit and foreign ministerial meetings

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Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s suggested this week that Asean should “carve Myanmar out”, drawing debate whether the bloc has the ability to suspend a member. Photo: Bloomberg/File

Dewey Simin Singapore

Published: 8:00am, 17 Feb 2023

The debate that followed Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s suggestion this week that Asean should “carve Myanmar out” highlights the growing pressure the bloc faces to enact harsher consequences on the errant member state.

In a speech made in Thailand, where Anwar was visiting as part of his first regional tour since taking office in November, he spoke of the “atrocities” committed by Myanmar’s junta following its 2021 coup, and Asean’s response to the political and humanitarian crisis.

“We should carve Myanmar out for now, and I don’t think the Myanmar issue should frustrate our moves. It would be ideal if we could have just a strong consensus in giving a strong message to the Myanmar regime,” he said.

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Myanmar under the military junta 2 years on: Thousands dead, economy in shambles, future uncertain

His remarks renewed a lengthy debate whether the 10-nation Southeast Asian bloc has the will to suspend – or even expel – its member, more than two years since the conflict erupted.

Attention to Anwar’s comments was not unexpected. After all, Anwar had in 2021, as an opposition politician, co-signed a statement that urged Asean governments to suspend Myanmar from the grouping if its military leaders did not free all political prisoners and reinstate the civilian government.

But the debate was quickly quelled when Malaysia’s foreign ministry released a much pared-down statement the following day, seemingly walking back Anwar’s remarks.

Foreign Minister Zambry Kadir said Anwar had meant that Asean “should not allow the Myanmar issue to distract us from continuing to pursue a much stronger collaboration to promote peace, security and prosperity for Asean and its people”.

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}As I see it | Malaysian PM Anwar’s suggestion of Asean ‘carving out Myanmar’ faces uphill task

As I see it | Malaysian PM Anwar’s suggestion of Asean ‘carving out Myanmar’ faces uphill task