Asean in uncharted waters as it snubs Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing

In an unprecedented move, the bloc has excluded a national leader from its biannual meetings, blocking the architect of February’s coup but allowing a ‘non-political representative’

Some say the move is a blow to the junta’s legitimacy and a win for democracy. With US President Joe Biden and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to address the meeting, the decision will also spare the blushes of world leaders

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Myanmar's junta chief General Min Aung Hlaing. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:00pm, 25 Oct 2021Updated: 10:11pm, 25 Oct 2021

A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) as the bloc’s leaders convene this week in unprecedented circumstances, with Myanmar’s junta chief Min Aung Hlaing excluded from the talks in a rebuke over the bloodshed following his February coup.

Founded in 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, and expanded in the 1990s to include Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia, Asean has never before excluded a national leader from its biannual meetings.

But on October 15, nine of the 10 member states (Brunei joined in 1984 after gaining independence) agreed to allow Myanmar to be represented by a “non-political representative” in light of the country’s continued turmoil and contest over who wields legitimate executive power.

Asean watchers have said the decision was taken partly to avoid the embarrassment of world leaders skipping the Asean meeting to avoid the junta chief.

Since the February 1 coup, some 1,200 people have been killed by junta forces, according to a local monitor, with thousands of others detained, charged or convicted of criminal offences.

Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines are believed to have actively pushed for Min Aung Hlaing’s exclusion, with the backing of the bloc’s current chair, Brunei.