Asean MPs want Myanmar expelled if brute force continues
- From: pluto <pluto@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 30 Sep 2007 07:50:18 +0800
NST Online » Local News
2007/09/29
Asean MPs want Myanmar expelled if brute force continues
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BANGKOK: The Asean Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus (AIPMC) wants Myanmar to
be expelled from Asean if its military junta continues to use brute force to
break up peaceful protests in the country.
AIPMC president Datuk Zaid Ibrahim told a news conference here yesterday that it
was not enough for Asean to merely issue statements as its credibility and
integrity were at stake.
?Asean must go one step further to dissociate itself from Myanmar as previous
actions to persuade the regime have not brought positive results.?
But Zaid admitted that Asean on its own could not achieve much as long as the
big powers, including the United Nations Security Council, continued to regard
Myanmar as a non-security issue.
He said unless the world took action now, the unrest in Myanmar could escalate
into a humanitarian crisis and see a repeat of the 1988 tragedy, where more than
3,000 protesters were killed by the military junta.
At least nine people have been killed since security forces began a crackdown on
Wednesday on street protests in Yangon and several cities, where monks are
spearheading the largest challenge to the junta since 1988.
Zaid said Asean should also co-ordinate moves to address the problem with the UN
and European Union, instead of everyone acting separately.
AIPMC vice-president and former Thai senator Kraisak Choonhavan said Myanmar
could no longer be regarded as a non-security issue.
He said that between three and five million Myanmars were currently in Thailand
without proper documentation, basic amenities, health care or education for
children.
Zaid agreed that Malaysia might face similar problems given that a large number
of Rohingyas or Myanmar Muslim refugees were already in the country.
He said if Asean could not take action as a grouping due to various
restrictions, then member nations could act individually. An example would be to
freeze the bank accounts of Myanmar leaders in their countries. - Bernama
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