‘Buck up’ in enforcing Myanmar peace plan

Malaysia's Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah yesterday called on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to act more urgently in its efforts to provide humanitarian assistance and spur a peace process in junta-ruled Myanmar.

The 10-nation bloc has been pushing Myanmar's military rulers to follow a peace "consensus" they agreed to last year, with some member countries expressing disappointment over a lack of progress on the plan.

Myanmar has been trapped in a cycle of violence since the military overthrew an elected government last year and launched a bloody crackdown on protests and dissent.

Saifuddin said he had written to the Asean Secretary-General on Saturday to ask for updates on the situation in Myanmar, as he had yet to receive any reports from the bloc's leadership since the grouping met in Cambodia last month.

"The Asean Secretariat must have a sense of urgency to look into what is actually happening in Myanmar," he told reporters in Kuala Lumpur, adding that the bloc could not afford to wait until its next major summit in November.  "They (the Asean secretariat) must have a full-time team working on the conflict, otherwise people get killed in between all of our meetings... We must buck up."

The Asean Secretariat in Jakarta did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

Meanwhile, Myanmar's junta leader was on a visit to Russia yesterday, his second trip there in less than two months, as ruling military tries to shore up one of its few diplomatic alliances as it comes under growing international pressure.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing has been barred from representing Myanmar at most international gatherings since leading a coup early last year against an elected government led by Noble laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.