OPEN LETTER: DON PRAMUDWINAI .. “DON’T INTERFERE” “DO NOT ESCALATE VIOLENCE IN OUR COUNTRY”
June 18, 2023
We, representatives of Myanmar civil society organizations, strongly condemn the secretive meeting which includes the illegal Myanmar military junta organized by the outgoing Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai of the caretaker Government of Thailand on Sunday 18 June 2023. We demand the caretaker government cancels the meeting immediately.
This is a complete affront to the people of Myanmar who have sacrificed their lives to resist the Myanmar military’s attempt to seize power through years-long terror campaign against the whole nation. The military junta has never been a legitimate government of Myanmar, nor has it acquired effective control over the country’s territories.
This secretive initiative of the outgoing Thai Foreign Minister is in blatant contradiction with the ASEAN consensus on non-invitation of representatives of the military junta in high-level meetings. We are outraged that the Foreign Minister Don stated in his invitation to ASEAN Member States that ASEAN should “fully re-engage Myanmar at the leaders’ level”. This decision was never agreed upon by ASEAN Member States, nor did the Indonesian Government, the incumbent Chair of ASEAN, initiate this meeting. In organizing this meeting, the caretaker Government of Thailand is acting without the mandate and any consultation with the ASEAN Chair. As a member state of ASEAN, Thailand must not deviate from the bloc’s agreement, and must halt this meeting at once.
The caretaker Thai Government’s unilateral move further goes against the United Nations Security Council resolution 2669 on 21 December 2021.
By trying to “fully re-engage” the illegal military junta, representatives of ASEAN Member States will stand in contradiction with the will of the people of Myanmar for the end of military tyranny and for a federal democratic Myanmar. Participation in this secretive meeting, and the failure to cut all ties with the illegal military junta would only be “part of the initial steps” of another failed peace process. Rather, this step sends the signal to the military junta that ASEAN will recognize it despite its commission on heinous crimes. This will only further embolden the military junta to continue its crimes and atrocities, to burn villages, to displace civilian population from their homes and land, to weaponize humanitarian aid and to try to impose its tyrannical rule against the will of the people.
We condemn the secretive initiative of Don Pramudwinai in strongest terms. We demand the caretaker Thai Government cancels this meeting immediately.
We call upon invited states to not attend the meeting, as this meeting will only fuel more violence in our country and undermine other genuine attempts by the international community to address the worsening crisis in Myanmar.
For further information, please contact:
- Saw Alex. +48 728 027 952
- Ko Ye. +66 816 490 228
Signed by 316 organizations including 235 organization who have chosen not to disclose their name;
- Action Committee for Democracy Development ACDD
- Ah. La. Ka (12) Hta Khwe. Primary Education Student Union
- All Arakan Students and Youths Congress
- All Religions Strike Column
- Association of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters
- Athan
- Aung Myay Thar Zan Education Schools Strike Column
- Aung Pin Lae Main Strike Column
- AYN Ayeyarwady Youth Network
- BCC စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း
- Blood Money Campaign
- Blooming Padauk
- Burma Civil War Museum (BCM)
- Burma Human Rights Network (BHRN)
- Burma Support
- CDM Support Team Mandalay (CSTM)
- Chan Mya Thar Si Township People Strike Column
- Chin Farmer Network (C.F.N)
- Committee Representing Mandalay Region Hluttaw
- Cooperative University Student Strike Column
- Daung Sit Thi
- Democratic Party for a New Society
- Education Family (Anti – Fascists Education Strike Columns Coordination Committee)
- Ethnic Youth General Strike Committee
- Freedom and Labor Action Group
- Future Light Center
- Future Thanlwin
- General Strike Committee of Nationalities (GSCN)
- Generation Wave
- Grass-root People
- Human Rights Foundation of Monland
- India for Myanmar
- Inlihtan Peninsula Tanintharyi
- Karen Environmental and Social Action Network
- Karen Peace Support Network
- Karenni Human Rights Group
- Keng Tung Youth
- LGBTIQ Strike of Mandalay
- MAGGA Initiative
- Maha Aung Myay Township People Collective Strike Column
- Mandalar University Student Strike Column
- Mandalay Alliance Strike Collective Column
- Mandalay Based People Strike Column
- Mandalay Civil Society Organizations
- Mandalay Engineer Group
- Mandalay Engineer United Force
- Mandalay University Student Alumni Union
- Mandalay Wholesale Strike Column
- Mandalay Youth Strike Column
- MATA စစ်ကိုင်းတိုင်း
- Medical Family – Mandalay
- MIIT Student Strike Column
- Muslim Youth Union
- Mya Taung Strike Column
- Myanmar Cultural Research Society (MCRS)
- Myanmar Railway, Region (3) CDM Strike Column
- National League for Democracy (Mandalay Region)
- Network for Human Rights Documentation Burma (ND-Burma)
- No 7 State High School Alumni Strike Column
- NRFF- New Rehmonnya Federated Force
- Nyan Lynn Thit Analytica
- Pan Pa Wash People Strike Column
- Phayagye Peace Strike Column
- Private Pre-school Teachers Association
- Progressive Voice
- Pyi Gyi Ta Gon Strike
- Sangha Samaga Strike Column
- Save and Care Organization for Ethnic Women at Border Areas
- Sein Pan Strike Column
- Shan MATA
- Sisters 2 Sisters
- Southern Dragon Myanmar
- Southern Youth Development Organization
- Strike Column of Representatives of Arbitrarily Arrested People
- Strike Column of Teachers from Universities and Degree Colleges of Mandalay
- Synergy – social harmony organization
- Taekwando Sport Association
- Tai Youth Alliance (Myanmar, Japan, Thailand, South Korea)
- Tanintharyi MATA
- Thapaynyo News Letter
- အထက်အညာလွင်ပြင်ရပ်ဝန်း
