Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen was met by an honor guard and crimson carpet in Myanmar on Friday, simply as protests by coup opponents broke out in different elements of the nation over fears his journey will present extra legitimacy to the junta.
His two-day go to for talks with Myanmar’s navy rulers was the primary by a head of presidency to Myanmar for the reason that military overthrew the elected administration of Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1 final yr, sparking months of protests and a bloody crackdown.
Cambodia is present chair of the Affiliation of Southeast Asian Nations, which has been main diplomatic efforts to resolve the disaster in Myanmar and which adopted a five-point “consensus” peace plan in April.
Another ASEAN nations together with Indonesia have expressed frustration on the junta’s failure to implement the plan.
In Myanmar, opponents of navy rule have mentioned Hun Sen is backing the junta by making the journey.
In Depayin, about 300 km (186 miles) north of the capital, Naypyidaw, protesters burned a poster of the Cambodian prime minister and chanted “Hun Sen don’t come to Myanmar. We don’t need dictator Hun Sen,” images on social media confirmed.
There have been additionally experiences of protests within the second metropolis of Mandalay and the Tanintharyi and Monywa areas.
In a speech on Wednesday, Hun Sen known as for restraint from all sides in Myanmar and for the peace plan to be adopted.
“Brothers in Myanmar, would you like your nation to fall into an actual civil struggle or need it solved?” he mentioned.
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After a cellphone name this week with Hun Sen, Indonesian President Joko Widodo mentioned in messages on Twitter if there was no important progress on the peace plan solely non-political representatives from Myanmar ought to be allowed at ASEAN conferences
In October, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing was barred from attending an ASEAN summit for his failure to stop hostilities, permit humanitarian entry and begin dialog, as agreed with ASEAN.
However in an additional signal of divisions within the 10-member bloc, Hun Sen final month mentioned junta officers ought to be allowed to attend ASEAN conferences.
Min Ko Naing, a number one activist in Myanmar, mentioned in a social media publish that Hun Sen would face large protests over his go to, which might harm ASEAN.
Hun Sen is among the world’s longest serving leaders and Western nations and human rights teams have lengthy condemned him for crackdowns on opponents, civil rights teams and the media in Cambodia.
Amnesty Worldwide’s Deputy Regional Director for Analysis Emerlynne Gil mentioned the journey risked sending blended messages to Mynamar’s navy chief and Hun Sen ought to as a substitute lead ASEAN to robust motion to handle the nation’s “dire human rights scenario.”
Hun Sen will meet navy chief Min Aung Hlaing, however the U.S.-funded Radio Free Asia cited a junta spokesman as saying he wouldn’t meet Suu Kyi, who has been detained for the reason that coup and is on trial, going through almost a dozen instances that carry a mixed most sentences of greater than 100 years in jail.
(Reporting by Prak Chan Thul in PHNOM PENH and Reuters workers; Enhancing by Ed Davies and Michael Perry)
