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Cambodia urges Myanmar to help ASEAN special envoy

Cambodian PM Hun Sen calls on junta chief to allow envoy to meet deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi
Cambodia urges Myanmar to help ASEAN special envoy

Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi takes part in the Martyrs' Day ceremony in Yangon in July 2019. The civilian leader was deposed in a military coup in February 2021. (Photo: AFP)

Published: May 03, 2022 08:48 AM GMT
Updated: May 03, 2022 09:10 AM GMT

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has called on Myanmar’s junta chief to allow ASEAN’s special envoy to meet with all parties including deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The call came during a phone call between Hun Sen and junta chief General Min Aung Hlaing on May 2 in which Hun Sen raised the issues of taking steps to implement a five-point consensus, humanitarian aid in conflict areas and maintaining law and order.

“He re-emphasized the importance of access for the special envoy to meet all parties concerned, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and former President Win Myint, for creating a conducive environment to start an inclusive political dialogue,” Cambodia’s Foreign Ministry said in a May 2 statement.

It said Cambodia sought further cooperation in facilitating the second visit to Myanmar by the regional bloc's special envoy, possibly at the end of May.

Hun Sen also called for the release of all political prisoners, including Australian professor Sean Turnell, former economic policy adviser to ousted state counselor Suu Kyi.

The junta-controlled media did not mention the request for a meeting with Suu Kyi and instead focused on terrorist acts allegedly committed by the people’s defense forces.

The Nobel laureate has already been sentenced to an 11-year jail term after being convicted of possessing walkie-talkies, violating Covid-19 restrictions, sedition and another graft charge

The move by Cambodia, currently the chair of 10-member ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), came as it faces pressure from rights groups to revamp its approach to the brutal military junta as there has been no progress on the peace plan one year after the five-point consensus agreed at the Jakarta summit in April 2021.

Cambodia’s calls also come some days away from the US-ASEAN summit that US President Joe Biden will host on May 12-13 where the Myanmar crisis is likely to be high on the agenda.

The first visit to Myanmar by the AEAN special envoy in March was met with protests from anti-junta and rights groups as they have little faith in the regional bloc’s ability to find a solution to the political crisis in Myanmar.

The envoy met with the military chief and other junta officials but he didn’t meet with deposed leader Suu Kyi.

On May 2, the former state counselor was charged in a new bribery case after being accused of taking US$550,000 in bribes from a construction magnate.

The Nobel laureate has already been sentenced to an 11-year jail term after being convicted of possessing walkie-talkies, violating Covid-19 restrictions, sedition and another graft charge.

Backed by the United Nations, the United States and the European Union, ASEAN has been leading diplomatic efforts to tackle Myanmar’s political crisis, but its response has been ineffective in pressuring the military regime.

Over 1,800 people, including at least 130 children, have been killed and more than 13,000 detained since last February’s coup ousted the civilian government elected in the November 2020 election.

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