NUG should have been immediately recognized after 2021 coup, says Norwegian MP

Ola Elvestuen, a Member of Parliament from the Liberal Party of Norway, said that after the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, the international community should have responded more quickly and decisively, and that the National Unity Government (NUG) should have been recognized in a timely manner by the United Nations and various countries. Speaking on the Insight Myanmar Podcast, Elvestuen explained that Myanmar's democratization has been an important part of Norway's political and foreign policy for many years. He said that he witnessed the fall of the Berlin Wall in the late 1980s, the overthrow of the Ferdinand Marcos government in the Philippines, and the 1988 popular uprising for democracy in Myanmar, and has been involved in global issues of democracy, justice, and sustainability since that time. According to him, the struggle for democracy in Myanmar became a matter of particular focus within Norway's political circles due to the 1988 popular uprising and subsequent military coups. He recalled that after Daw Aung San Suu Kyi received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991, the Norway-Burma Committee (NBC) was formed in 1992, and that the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) also began radio broadcasts into Myanmar from Oslo, Norway. However, Elvestuen observed that the international community's response after the 2021 military coup was significantly different from previous periods. In his view, although the international community should have responded immediately and effectively after the Myanmar military coup, the weak response from Western governments and insufficient attention from international media led to a worsening of Myanmar's predicament. "The protests were astonishingly strong. But they did not receive the international support they deserved in the early stages," he said. He also emphasized that after the 2020 elections, the National League for Democracy (NLD) was the legally elected government, and that the NUG should have been recognized by the United Nations and various countries immediately after the military coup. Elvestuen also mentioned that he visited Myanmar in 2014 during the country's democratic transition period, along with former Liberal Party leader Arne Fjørtoft. During that trip, he said he witnessed the natural beauty and friendly people of Myanmar, but also met families living in difficult circumstances. He also recalled that they provided solar panels for households without electricity and planted mangrove forests in the Ayeyarwady Delta region, activities that are still memorable today. Norwegian MP Ola Elvestuen and the Insight Myanmar Podcast program can be listened to at the following link: https://player.captivate.fm/episode/53830a06-9e5b-4007-8136-79162b575d41