HOPES of a return to democracy in juntaruled Myanmar are being crushed by “systematic repression”, United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres said last Thursday (7) at a summit in Indonesia with the United States, China and regional leaders.
Myanmar has been ravaged by deadly violence since a 2021 military coup ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, unleashing a bloody crackdown on dissent.
“Brutal violence, worsening poverty, and systematic repression are crushing hopes for a return to democracy,” Guterres said. He was speaking before a meeting with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Myanmar is a member. “The situation is untenable.”
The junta was not in attendance after being barred from attending ASEAN summits until it implements a fivepoint peace plan agreed two years ago.
Guterres noted that the crisis has “further deteriorated” in the past year. In an earlier speech, he had said that the world was witnessing an “enormous tragedy”.
Before his meeting with ASEAN leaders, he repeated a call for Myanmar’s military authorities to free detained leaders and political prisoners and return to democratic rule.
Deposed leader Suu Kyi is among those still in detention.
Guterres also said the conditions for the safe return of Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar in 2017, many of them to neighbouring Bangladesh, during a brutal military crackdown “are not yet in sight”.
Myanmar is facing genocide accusations at the United Nations’ top court following the mass exodus.
Leaders at the ASEAN summit last Tuesday (5) called on Myanmar’s military rulers to “de-escalate violence and stop targeted attacks on civilians”, a statement that the junta condemned as “one-sided”.
Myanmar has also been replaced as ASEAN’s rotating chair in 2026 by the Philippines.
An Indonesian official, who declined to be identified, said “they are still isolated, ASEAN does not trust them”.
In a wide-ranging speech earlier at the summit, Guterres called on world leaders to “turn up the heat” to solve the global climate crisis.
Dharavi slum in Mumbai
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session. (Photo: Hertfordshire Police /Handout via REUTERS)
Man pleads not guilty to murder of BBC presenter's family
A 26-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to charges of murdering the wife and two daughters of BBC sports commentator John Hunt in a crossbow and knife attack.
Kyle Clifford, who also faces charges of rape, appeared via video link at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday.
Clifford, arrested in July after a manhunt, is charged with three counts of murder, one count each of rape and false imprisonment, and two counts of possessing offensive weapons – a 10-inch knife and a crossbow.
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session.
He is expected to enter a plea for that charge at a later date.
The victims were Carol Hunt, 61, wife of horseracing commentator John Hunt, and their daughters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28.
An earlier hearing revealed that Louise had been found tied up and that both she and her sister had been shot with a crossbow, while their mother had been stabbed with a knife.
The fatal attack occurred at the family’s home in Bushey, a commuter town near Watford, northwest of London.
(With inputs from AFP)