MANILA, July 21 — ASEAN foreign ministers have proposed a permanent envoy to Myanmar be appointed, as well as a benchmarking tool to assess Myanmar’s Five-Point Consensus (5PC) implementation, the Philippine News Agency (PNA) reported.
These were among proposals put forth today during the extended informal consultation on the situation in Myanmar, chaired by the Philippines in Pasay City, to deal with the ongoing political situation in Myanmar.
At a press huddle, Foreign Affairs Secretary Maria Theresa Lazaro, who is also special envoy of ASEAN chair to Myanmar, said attending top diplomats have agreed to consider the possibility of a “long-term envoy” in Myanmar.
“It has been agreed upon that having an annual special envoy, like in my case, is something that is not really… it’s not really that effective because you have to have the whole picture,” she said.
“Practically, it was actually a Brunei proposal that the special envoy should be assisted by a unit in the secretariat. But these are all proposals. There’s the issue also of funding,” she said.
The ministers also proposed developing a new approach or mechanism to benchmark and assess developments in Myanmar.
The extended informal discussion follows the first in-person meeting between Myanmar’s top diplomat and ASEAN foreign ministers on July 12.
No representative from Myanmar was present.
“Through these meetings, I am optimistic about our commitment to assist Myanmar in achieving a lasting solution, one that is Myanmar-owned and Myanmar-led, and one that ultimately will benefit the Myanmar people and the region as a whole,” said Lazaro.
The official has repeatedly said ASEAN would be guided by the 5PC to help political strife-hit Myanmar, and that the country remains an integral part of the bloc.
