Myanmar’s junta to consider Asean’s five-point consensus after ‘stabilising’ the country

The junta said in a statement that ‘constructive suggestions’ had come from Saturday’s talks, but the priority at the moment was to ‘maintain law and order’ and ‘restore community peace and tranquillity’

Its response signals that junta chief Min Aung Hlaing is not emphatically behind the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ five-point consensus aimed at de-escalating Myanmar’s post-coup crisis

Reading Time:3 minutes

Myanmar junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing presides over an army parade on Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw on March 27. Photo: Reuters

Published: 2:51pm, 27 Apr 2021Updated: 6:16am, 28 Apr 2021

Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing on Tuesday signalled he was not emphatically behind Asean’s “five-point consensus” plan to de-escalate the country’s post-coup violence, saying instead that the military would consider the proposals “after stabilising the country”.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) had sought to suggest that the army chief was receptive to their plan, which included calls for a cessation of violence and for a special envoy to be granted access to the country, following crisis talks they held with him on Saturday.

In a statement published on the website of Myanmar’s information ministry, the junta said it had conveyed to Asean that it would “give careful consideration to constructive suggestions” made by regional leaders during Saturday’s talks. But it said the priority at the moment was to “maintain law and order” and “restore community peace and tranquillity”.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations meet to discuss the situation in Myanmar at the Asean secretariat in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Saturday. Photo: Handout via Xinhua

During the meeting, Asean leaders – the heads of government of Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, in particular – were forthright in their condemnation of the Myanmar military’s use of violence against unarmed civilians and called for the immediate release of detained civilian leaders.

Aung San Suu Kyi, the leader of the democratically elected National League for Democracy who was deposed in the February 1 coup, remains in custody alongside President Win Myint and other elected officials.

The junta’s statement implied that Min Aung Hlaing distributed a dossier outlining the military’s point of view during the meeting. “Myanmar also stated that Asean leaders thoroughly review the information booklet circulated at the meeting before comments are made relating to the current political situation in Myanmar,” it said.