Fortify Rights urges ASEAN not to recognise Myanmar junta govt

Fortify Rights has called on the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to refrain from recognising the junta as Myanmar’s government, citing its continued atrocities against civilians, particularly the Rohingya.

In a statement issued on Friday, the US-based human rights organisation, which focuses primarily on Southeast Asia, made the call ahead of the ASEAN leaders’ 49th Summit, scheduled to be held in Manila, the Philippines, tomorrow.

Calling for the recognition of the Myanmar military junta’s attacks on civilians as a demonstrable threat to regional peace and security, Fortify Rights urged ASEAN to agree on new and concrete measures to address the situation.

The organisation called for efforts to hold the Myanmar junta accountable, accusing it of committing widespread atrocity crimes, including war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

“Treating the junta as Myanmar’s government would lend it political legitimacy while its forces continue to attack civilians, and that is dangerous for Myanmar and for ASEAN’s credibility,” said Yap Lay Sheng, Senior Human Rights Specialist at Fortify Rights.

He added, “ASEAN must turn its meek moral censure of Myanmar into real steps to end a crisis that has engulfed the region.”

Fortify Rights said the Myanmar junta’s actions had caused mass refugee outflows across South and Southeast Asia and humanitarian emergencies in Myanmar, while also contributing to a regional human trafficking epidemic.

“The ASEAN Five-Point Consensus has patently failed to achieve its central objectives of peacebuilding,” said Yap Lay Sheng. “It begs the question: how bad does the situation in Myanmar have to get before ASEAN adopts a new approach?”

Fortify Rights has documented how the military junta’s targeted and indiscriminate attacks on civilians continue to intensify, including massacres, air strikes against civilian targets, and bombings of hospitals, schools and religious sites.

The International Court of Justice is set to conclude a seven-year trial and rule on 19 November on whether Myanmar committed genocide against the Rohingya people.

Fortify Rights called on ASEAN to support referring the situation in Myanmar to the International Criminal Court, coordinate restrictions on arms transfers and aviation fuel supplies, and impose targeted financial restrictions.