New Delhi: India has expressed “deep concern” at the execution of four pro-democracy activists by the Myanmar junta, which has already led to widespread outrage across the world.
On Monday, July 25, the junta announced that it had executed four democracy activists accused of helping to carry out “terror acts.” They had been charged with assisting insurgents in fighting the army that seized power in a coup last year and were sentenced to death in a closed-door trial.
“We have noted the developments in Myanmar with deep concern,” Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a weekly briefing on Thursday, July 28.
Responding to a query, he said that the “rule of law and democratic process must be upheld.” “As a friend of the people of Myanmar, we will continue to support Myanmar’s return to democracy and stability,” Bagchi said.
He added that as a neighbour of Myanmar, India has “always highlighted the need for a peaceful resolution to the issue.”
The four executed were identified as democracy campaigner Kyaw Min Yu, former lawmaker and hip-hop artist Phyo Zeya Thaw, Hla Myo Aung and Aung Thura Zaw. Both Min Nu and Zeya Thaw were political allies of Aung San Suu Kyi, the former state counsellor and Nobel laureate.
India’s statement came two days after the bloc of 10 Southeast Asian nations condemned the executions in an unusually strong language.
On July 26, the current chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Cambodia, condemned the executions, calling them as “highly reprehensible.” The chairman’s statement also described the junta’s actions as demonstrating a “gross lack of will” to support the implantation of ASEAN’s five-point consensus peace plan.
#ASEAN Chairman’s Statement on the Execution of Four Opposition Activists in Myanmar pic.twitter.com/Ki6ZIMqQ54
Advertisement— Office of Cambodian PM 🇰🇭 (@PeacePalaceKH) July 26, 2022
The regional bloc, of which Myanmar is a member, has said that it was “extremely troubled and deeply saddened” by the executions, which took place despite a “personal appeal” by Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen. “This is an issue that Asean takes seriously,” said the statement.
Also read: Almost 20 Myanmar Regime Forces Killed in Retaliation for Executed Pro-democracy Activists
Malaysian foreign minister Saifuddin Abdullah questioned the timing of the executions, which came a week before a meeting of the ASEAN.
“We looked at (the executions) as if the junta is making a mockery of the five-point consensus, and I think we really have to look at this very, very seriously,” Saifuddin told a news conference.
Myanmar should not be allowed to send political representatives to any international ministerial-level meetings, he said, widening Malaysia’s previous call for junta officials to be barred from ASEAN summits until progress was made on the peace plan.
In April 2021, the Myanmar government had agreed to engage on a roadmap issued by ASEAN, known as a five-point consensus, which called for an immediate end to violence and dialogue between all the parties. The junta has dragged its feet on the visits of the ASEAN special envoy and engagement with other stakeholders, even as it continued with a violent crackdown on civil society and political opponents.
India’s position on post-coup Myanmar has largely been aligned with ASEAN’s approach, with New Delhi enthusiastically supporting the implementation of the five-point consensus.
On July 27, the United Nations Security Council unanimously condemned Myanmar’s executions of four political prisoners and called for an immediate halt to all violence and “full respect for human rights and the rule of law.”
The statement approved by all 15 council members, including India and China, noted Myanmar had hanged the men after ASEAN had appealed for the sentences to be reconsidered.
China, which is Myanmar’s biggest trading partner and staunch ally, welcomed the Security Council’s alignment of views with the ASEAN chair’s statement on the executions of the pro-democracy activists.
A spokesperson for China’s UN Mission cited the “particular importance” of the council statement’s call for an immediate cessation of all forms of violence, including attacks on infrastructure, health and education facilities.
“We believe this sends a strong signal of the council’s rejection of all violence, unjustifiable wherever and by whoever committed,” the spokesperson, who was not authorised to speak publicly, told AP. “And we hope these important messages from the council could be heeded by all relevant parties.”
(With agency inputs)
