ASEAN envoy to Myanmar in talks with board on visit and access to Suu Kyi

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Brunei’s second foreign minister, Erywan Pehin Yusof, addresses the 74th session of the UN General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York City, New York, USA, on September 30, 2019. REUTERS / Brendan McDermid

  • The envoy aims to visit the ASEAN leaders meeting before October
  • Still in talks with the board about access to Suu Kyi and others
  • Erywan Yusof says consultations are progressing well

BEGAWAN SERIES BANDAR, Sept. 4 (Reuters) – A Brunei diplomat appointed by a Southeast Asian regional bloc as a special envoy to Myanmar said on Saturday he was still negotiating with the army on the terms of a visit and has sought access to ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has tried to end the violence in Myanmar and open a dialogue between military rulers and their opponents following the overthrow of Suu Kyi in February.

ASEAN last month commissioned Erywan Yusof, Brunei’s second foreign minister, to lead these efforts. Read more

“There is an urgent need to go to Myanmar now. But I think before all this, I have to have guarantees,” Erywan told Reuters. “I need to be able to have a clear picture of what I’m supposed to do, of what they’ll allow me to do when I visit.”

Erywan wants to visit before the end of October, when ASEAN leaders will meet, but said no date has been set.

“They haven’t set any conditions yet, but they’re not clear,” he said.

“WE NEED TO TALK TO EVERYONE”

Requests for access to Suu Kyi have been made to the State Administrative Council, chaired by board leader Min Aung Hlaing, Erywan said. But access to the ousted leader was not a requirement under a five-point consensus reached by ASEAN in April, he added.

The consensus included an end to the violence and the start of peace talks between all parties.

“This is what I have been telling the current Myanmar authorities, I need to talk to all stakeholders and this is still under negotiation,” Erywan said.

A military spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

Erywan said his consultations with the Board and other parties on the ground “were progressing quite well”.

He said he was looking to establish a team of advisors to support his envoy role. The team could include Myanmar’s neighbors, including India and Bangladesh, he said.

When he took power, the military alleged irregularities in an election swept away by Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party in November 2020. The then-election commission and international monitors said the accusations of ‘army were wrong.

Military authorities say his seizure of power should not be called a coup because it was in line with the constitution.

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