APHR demands proof of life for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi

Myanmar As the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting is being held in Manila, Philippines this week, the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) has urged ASEAN leaders to pressure for the unconditional release of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and all political prisoners. In a letter dated July 20, addressed to the ASEAN Chair, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., and Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta, APHR demanded that the ability for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to meet freely with her family, legal counsel, and medical professionals be designated as an absolute prerequisite for any engagement with the military junta. APHR also urged the Timor-Leste government, which has initiated legal proceedings against military leader Min Aung Hlaing under universal jurisdiction this year, to push for more effective action by ASEAN on the Myanmar issue. APHR stated that this demand is directly relevant to the main agenda of this week’s meetings, as the ASEAN Foreign Ministers and the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) are scheduled to discuss the human rights situation in the region. The meeting was held on July 20. APHR also referred to the statement of the ASEAN Special Envoy on July 19, continuing to cite ASEAN’s Five-Point Consensus on Myanmar, but pointed out that it is merely further commitment and no concrete results have yet emerged. “Obtaining proof of life for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is one of the basic outcomes intended by the Five-Point Consensus,” APHR said. APHR urged that during this week’s ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, the ASEAN Chair should consider obtaining “proof of life” for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi as a crucial test to measure whether there have been any tangible results from the renewed engagement with Naypyidaw.