[Tee tiong huat]

M'sia to lead ASEAN delegation to war-torn Myanmar. Diplomats from M'sia, currently chairs regional bloc, said they try to assess whether Myanmar junta’s planned elections be ‘comprehensive’.

M'sia will lead a delegation to Myanmar next month after junta scrapped its state of emergency, foreign minister Mohamad Hasan announced on Friday.
Mohamad told reporters trip will “most likely” take place on September 19 and include foreign ministers of Indonesia, Thailand & the Philippines. “I want to get a clear picture for me to bring to the attention of ASEAN leadership in October,” he said, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ (ASEAN’s) year-end summit. Malaysia currently chairs the bloc, has tried to increase pressure on member state Myanmar’s junta, including by barring its leaders from summits, over ongoing bloodshed. But ASEAN has so far been fruitless in its diplomatic efforts to end Myanmar’s conflict, triggered by the junta’s ousting of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021, sparking a many-sided civil war. Last week, military chief Min Aung Hlaing ended nationwide state of emergency declared during coup touted plans for an election in December.

M'sian Foreign Minister Mohamad said ASEAN delegation will look into the coming polls. “I want to discuss them whether their elections will be comprehensive.” Mohamad pointed out there are still 63 cities or areas currently still in state of emergency. Most of them are conflict zones or areas under the control of anti-junta groups. No exact date has yet been set for the election.

https://myanmar-now.org/en/news/malaysia...n-myanmar/