UN chief vows to mobilize global pressure to ensure Myanmar coup fails

UN chief stresses need for global peace, 'now more than ever'
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NEW YORK, Feb 04 (APP): UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has pledged to mount international pressure on Myanmar to ensure the failure of the recent military coup in the Southeast Asian country.

“We will do everything we can to mobilize all the key actors and international community to put enough pressure on Myanmar to make sure that this coup fails,” Guterres said in an interview with The Washington Post.

“After elections that I believe took place normally and after a large period of transition, it’s absolutely unacceptable to reverse the results of the elections and the will of the people.”

Myanmar’s military, the Tatmadaw, seized power Monday, declaring a yearlong state of emergency and detaining de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint, among others.

The coup took place following days of tension between the military and the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD), which won the November elections. The Tatmadaw has refused to accept the results, alleging massive election fraud.

The UN chief said if anything, NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi “was too close to the military,” defending its brutal offensive against Rohingya Muslims that caused nearly a million of them to flee to neighbouring Bangladesh three years ago.

“I hope that democracy will be able to make progress again in Myanmar,” Guterres said. “But for that, all the prisoners must be released, the constitutional order must be reestablished, and I hope that the international community will be able to come together.”

“I hope that it will be possible to make the military in Myanmar understand that this is not the way to rule the country and this is not the way to move forward,” he said.

Earlier Wednesday, authorities in Myanmar filed charges against Aung San Suu Kyi for allegedly illegally importing and using six unregistered walkie-talkie radios found during a search of her home in the capital, Naypyitaw.

In Washington, State Department spokesman Ned Price said the U.S. was “disturbed” by reports of the new charges.

“We call on the military to immediately release them all, and all the civilian and political leaders, journalists and detained human rights activists. And to restore the democratically elected government to power, as President Biden has said the military seizure is a direct assault on the country’s transition to democracy and the rule of law,” Price said.

On Tuesday, the State Department made the legal determination that the military’s actions constituted a “coup,” triggering certain restrictions on foreign assistance to Myanmar.

Top administration officials have said the United States “will take action against those responsible if these steps are not reversed,” while continuing vital humanitarian and development programmes.

Meanwhile, the 15-member UN Security Council is negotiating a possible statement. The initial draft put forward by Britain condemned the coup, and called for the military to respect the rule of law and human rights and immediately release those detained

However, such statements have to be agreed by consensus and diplomats said the language would likely need to be softened to win the support of China and Russia, who have traditionally supported Myanmar in the Security Council.

APP Services