DILI (TOP) – The Prime Minister of Timor-Leste, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão, considered that the war conflict that has been taking place in Myanmar has violated human rights as well as democratic values. Therefore, he called on all ASEAN leaders to find a solution to immediately stop it.
"As Prime Minister of Timor Leste, I declare that Timor Leste cannot join ASEAN if the leaders of ASEAN member countries do not yet have the ability to resolve the prolonged conflict in Myanmar," said Xanana Gusmão answering Hatutan question in the Presidential Palace, Dili, Wednesday 03 August 2023.
Xanana emphasized that Timor-Leste as a democratic country really does not want a military junta to take place in ASEAN friendly countries.
“Timor Leste also has various social and political problems but does not want a coup by the military. The 2022 presidential elections and the 2023 parliamentary elections all went smoothly and upheld democratic values. The military junta in Myanmar has often committed human rights violations and has not upheld democratic values," he described.
He added, Timor-Leste's attitude towards the Myanmar conflict in line with the position of the Secretary General of the United Nations (UN) António Guterres who criticized the detention of Myanmar's de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi by the military junta.
"One of the conditions for Timor Leste to join as a member of ASEAN is how the leaders of ASEAN member countries believe in resolving the Myanmar conflict and expect ASEAN leaders to continue to uphold human rights and democratic values," he said.
Timor Leste, said Xanana, does not accept all the human rights violations committed by the military junta and the detention of Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
The internal conflict in Myanmar refers to a series of uprisings that took place since 1948 when this country was named Burma independent from Britain. This conflict is partly based on the struggle between ethnic groups in Myanmar who formed their own armed forces against the Myanmar armed forces, the Tatmadaw, to fight for their democratic rights. This conflict has been described as the 'World's Longest Civil War' as it spanned seven decades.
