On 24 January, the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) called on ASEAN Foreign Ministers to prioritize the Myanmar crisis in their upcoming meeting. They warned that without a clear strategy, ASEAN risks repeating past failures while the military junta consolidates its power through a fraudulent electoral process.
ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) urges ASEAN Foreign Ministers to prioritize the crisis in Myanmar as a central agenda item at the ongoing ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Cebu, Philippines on January 25-29, 2026.
APHR stresses that the central challenge facing ASEAN’s engagement in Myanmar remains the absence of a clear, results-oriented strategy capable of delivering meaningful outcomes. In this context, we call for clarity on how the Philippines’ current approach will differ in substance and outcome from initiatives undertaken by previous ASEAN Chairs, including Malaysia and Indonesia, which did not yield meaningful progress.
Without a clearly articulated strategy shift, renewed engagement risks replicating past limitations, particularly as the military authorities seek to legitimize their continued hold on power through a sham electoral process, amid worsening conditions on the ground.
ASEAN-led efforts have yet to deliver tangible improvements, and amid ongoing atrocities and the junta’s failure to comply with the Five-Point Consensus, strict adherence to non-interference is no longer fit for purpose. The Philippines’ chairmanship offers a critical opportunity for a more focused, coordinated, and outcome-driven approach.
Within this context, APHR notes with concern continued engagement by the ASEAN Special Envoy with Myanmar’s military authorities (on 6 January in Naypyidaw). This meeting risks creating perceptions of political normalization and undermining ASEAN’s stated non-recognition of the junta-led electoral process.
Despite these concerns, APHR welcomes the Philippines’ initiative to convene a Myanmar Stakeholders’ Meeting earlier this month led by the Foreign Secretary and ASEAN Special Envoy. This reflects an important recognition that sustainable solutions require an inclusive and democratic process. Such engagement must be matched by clear political objectives and concrete follow-through.
To translate these principles into meaningful outcomes, APHR calls on the ASEAN Chair to lead ASEAN to:
Publicly reaffirm its unequivocal rejection of the junta-led electoral process and any government formed through it;
Publicly recognize and engage with democratic representatives, including the National Unity Government, ethnic resistance organizations, and civil society actors;
Clarify benchmarks, timelines, and a clear work plan guiding the Special Envoy’s engagement; and
Prioritize ASEAN-led diplomatic efforts to hold the Myanmar military accountable for atrocities and crimes, including actions that fuel ongoing violence.
As ASEAN holds the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, APHR will continue to engage constructively with the Philippine government and ASEAN member states to support a principled, inclusive, and credible path toward peace and democracy in Myanmar.
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